Resurrection Sunday was hard. There's no other way to say it. I know it's a celebration of Christ's triumph over death and the grave, and that is cause for great rejoicing! But the fact is, you can't dwell on Christ's resurrection without being affected by the reality of the cross, and the truth about the cross is . . . unthinkable. For one thing, I can't bear to think of Christ enduring His own Father's wrath in such a cruel way - for people who, left to themselves, do nothing but sin continuously - for me. For another thing, there is no logical explanation! It's mind-bending. It's gut-wrenching. It's overwhelming. And yet . . . it's unspeakably beautiful.
I wanted to share the words of a song that's been haunting me all week, if I may:
How deep the Father's love for us, how vast beyond all measure
That He should give His only Son to make a wretch His treasure
How great the pain of searing loss; the Father turns His face away
As wounds which mare the chosen One bring many sons to glory
Behold the man upon a cross, my sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed, I hear my mocking voice call out among the scoffers
It was my sin that held him there until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life; I know that it it finished
I will not boast in anything - no gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ - His death and resurrection
Why should I gain from His reward? I cannont give an answer
But this I know with all my heart: His wounds have paid my ransom
"He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Cor. 5:21).
Even though David wasn't speaking of the cross specifically when he uttered these words (but he was speaking of God's omniscience), I can't help but echo them now: "Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain to it" (Ps. 139:6).
That's all.
5 comments:
And with this, the message yesterday was on communion and was so good and thought provoking. What a priviledge it is to participate in communion, to connect with Jesus in this way, communing with Him through His death and resurrection. I am often reminded of a song my ladies trio sang in churches as we traveled for Grace, "I am unworthy, this dull tongue repeats it. I am unworthy, this heart gladly beats it. Jesus left heaven to die in my place. What mercy! What love! and what grace!"
Sorry, I meant to sign that comment. mm
Thanks so much for your thoughts. I especially appreciated reading the words again to that beautiful hymn. What powerful imagery.
It's so strange how often you seem to echo my thoughts. I love that song so much...I was thrilled that we sang it on Sunday morning. I was reading Psalm 139 a few weeks ago and was so moved by it's intimacy that I decided to memorize it. So I just finished this weekend and have so enjoyed the meditation time on it while committing it to memory. That verse really stuck out to me as well...David was obviously having trouble wrapping his brain around the incredible intimacy with which God knows and cares about us! It's good to know that we can expect aspects of God to elude our human brains! That's why He is God and I am not! I love the Psalms! They express so well what we feel.
I was wondering this weekend how Easter Sunday would go for you guys....I remember as a kid my dad always being pretty stressed on that day.
Thanks for sharing that hymn. How incredible those words are! I am going to print it out and think about them more when it's not so late at night :)
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