This blog entry is for those who believe and have confessed that Jesus is LORD. Those who are bipolar and those who are not. Those who are depressed and those who are not. Children of God – no matter who you are or where you live, all those who adore and believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God…
This is Holy Week. We think of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross for our sins and how we are healed by His stripes. His death was the surgery that gave us life. Because Christ conquered death and rose again, those who follow Him and accept His free gift can enjoy abundant life both now and forevermore.
When Jesus yielded His Spirit to death, the curtain around the most holy place of the temple was split – from top to bottom. Only one person was allowed into the “Holy of Holies,” the High Priest, and he could only enter once a year. I’m thinking that he probably entered with great fear and trembling. I would have.
The curtain was quite high; no man could rip it from top to bottom. Only God could do that. He ripped it just like we would rip a piece of paper. Now there is no barrier for us to approach God the Father. God opened up the path Himself. Now you and I can go straight up to the very high Throne of God! Do you realize how loving our God is; how merciful and kind to allow His Son to die for people such as us? YAHWEH…how beautiful, how majestic, and how utterly breathtaking is that Name! Do you know how much it cost to pay for our admittance to the Throne Room? Because of Jesus, we can go to His Throne and sit, stand, lie down, be at His Feet, and actually hang out with our Creator God.
Jesus has restored us to the place we held in Eden, before we fell for the enemy’s lie. Because we have His Spirit within us, we can actually listen to God Himself. And the best part about all of this? God wants you to be with Him more than you could ever want it! He really is delighted when His people desire Him. All day long we take Him for granted, over and over again, day after day after day — and then we get a flash of The Spirit in our brains and BAM! We are right back at His Throne…and I am amazed at the mercy, the grace, the love that puts up with us. Back and forth and back again…we’re like Billy in “The Family Circus” cartoon; we’re running all over the place.
Tattoo it on your heart. Let the truth of it penetrate into the marrow of your bones. Ask God to help you remember this every day for the rest of your life: it cost Jesus everything to make a way for you to be with God. Think about it. If Jesus had not died and paid your bill, you wouldn’t be able to call on God. How would that work for you? It wouldn’t work for you at all.
Take this day during Holy Week to worship God alone. Just you and Him. Right now you can worship while you read this post. Sing Him a love song today with every bit of your heart. It cost Jesus His life in order for you to have this privilege…let’s do our very best to follow The Spirit of God as He teaches us how to avoid taking prayer for granted.
May God Himself draw you so close to Him today that you hear His Breath…
Scripture to ponder: Mark 15:33-39
Today’s weapon: “He Himself bore our sins” in His body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by His wounds you have been healed.” 1 Peter 2:24