Get a grip lady!

I received a letter the other day from some lady who seems to be mad at God for all of the things that have happened to her. She cannot find a job, she lost her home, she can’t send her kids to the school she wants, blah, blah, blah – whine, whine, whine – whimper, whimper, whimper…. She then accused God of being uncaring of her plight.

Yikes, is she for real? This drivel would gag a maggot and makes me mad as a bee!

At last Sunday’s Easter Sunday service I spoke of the agony that Christ endured on our behalves. Jesus described what would happen to Him in Luke 24:46: “And He said to them, Thus it is written, that the Christ would SUFFER and rise again from the dead the third day”.

What did He mean when He said He would suffer? Hmmm… Although words are entirely inadequate I have listed some of it here.

1.Betrayed by a trusted disciple

2.Severely beaten several times

3.Cursed, mocked, taunted, spit upon

4.Scourged and savagely whipped by sadistic soldiers using metal and glass tipped leather whips from the back of His legs all of the way up to His shoulders

5.His beard was grabbed and literally ripped out of His face (Ouch!)

6.Crown of very long sharp thorns, (that covered His entire head including the top), was placed on His head and then beaten on with clubs

7.In His weakened state He was forced to carry a heavy cross through the steep cobblestone streets of Jerusalem

8.He was dehydrated from the loss of blood but was deprived of water

9.He was humiliated by being stripped naked in front of the crowd

10.Nailed to a rugged cross through the wrists and feet with large spikes

11.Speared in the side

12.His bones were disjointed

13.Tortured until suffocation and death came from being too weak to lift His body in order to take another breath

Right before He died He looked down at the crowd that was mocking Him and spitting on Him and asked His Father to please “Forgive them because they know not what they do”.

The physical pain is mind-boggling enough to imagine, but the sin factor was far worst for our holy righteous Father to endure. After being physically tortured, this innocent snow white Lamb took on Himself the sins of the world. “For He has made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.” (2 Cor. 5:21)

Imagine what it would be like if “you” had to take upon yourself the fierce wrath of God and punishment that we deserve for the entire world’s combined sins; all of the filth — all of the perverse black sins that have ever been committed that span the breadth of mankind.

1.Lust – sexual perversion

2.Hatred

3.Murder

4.Greed

5.Jealousy

6.Deceit

7.Theft

8.Lying

9.Cursing

10.Promiscuity

11.Anger

12.Selfishness

13.Perversion

These are sins that require that their perpetrators, (us), be hurled into the lake of fire prepared for Lucifer and his angels. When He was in this state, God the Father could not look on Him anymore and turned His back on Him. Jesus felt God’s presence depart and screamed in terror: “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” – Matthew 27:46. (I’m sure that many lost souls will follow this example and scream in terror too when God sends them to hell and they are eternally separated from God.)

Imagine if you had to spend the next 3 days without God in your world.

Christ willingly took our places and suffered through it because He loves us more than words in any language can describe. It is finished and He has triumphantly arisen and defeated death and sin in the process!

Now comes this woman complaining about the financial problems that she faces in this cursed and fallen world telling anyone who cares to listen that our God is “uncaring”.

“Lady” — What more would you have Him do????

It is finished — He has executed the great designs of the Almighty and satisfied the stringent demands of His holy justice. He has accomplished all that was prophesized, and suffered the utmost from His enemies; and now the way to the Holy of Holies has been made manifest through His blood sacrifice. He endured an awful, yet glorious finish, because through His tragic death God is at long last reconciled to man, and the kingdom of heaven has been opened to every believing soul. I urge you at this very moment, (no matter where you might be sitting as you read this) to thank God. He did all that was mentioned above and more for YOU and for me…and we should be eternally thankful.

John 19:30
…Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.