“All the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children”.
Matthew 27:25
After Gethsemane, Jesus was betrayed by Judas, abandoned by His disciples and denied by Peter.
Then He was brought before Herod to be judged. Herod sent Him to Pilot, but Pilot couldn’t find a reason for a death penalty.
It came down to the people and the people demanded that Jesus be crucified and the murderer, Barabas, be released to them.
Unfair, unjust, unreasonable are just three words that come to mind. He did nothing to deserve a penalty of death.
The crowd shouted: “His blood be on us and on our children.”
He must have stood there marveling as He heard the crowd cry out for His death, knowing that He was going to bear their judgment physically, spiritually….literally.
Now their cry has become mine: “His blood be on us and on our children”, not the blood of judgment but the blood of forgiveness.
While Jesus was on the cross, He drank deep from the cup of God’s fury against our sin so that you and I could drink deep of the cup of forgiveness. He took our judgment so we could be pardoned for all eternity.
Now their cry has become mine: “His blood be on us and on our children”, not the blood of judgment but the blood of His amazing love and forgiveness.
If you don’t know how much Jesus loves you, look at the cross – the proof lies lifeless there.
Holding a grudge clutters the soul with bitterness.
Forgiveness is vital to your soul and it is a journey Jesus wants to walk you through.
It is vital because you are valuable.
And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously.”
Matthew 5:38-42 MSG
God doesn’t deny that bad things happen or that people will take advantage of you but He also doesn’t abandon you to it either.
Jesus is saying that when someone takes advantage of you, give them what you have and move on with your life. Let it go. Forgive it.
In this way, you will be living in the abundance of God’s love instead of the famine of your past hurts.
You are not meant to carry the heavy load of resentment and regret.
What resentment or regret is weighing you down?
What grudge is poisoning your soul?
Bring them all to Jesus and lay each one at the foot of the cross. Then, take a deep breath and allow Him to fill the newly evacuated space with the cleansing power of His love.
It takes a special kind of stubbornness to start a new thing in your life, to change the course of it. A stubbornness to keep going against the odds and swim against the current.
Life in Christ means that you are being called upon to be a pioneer.
He may be calling you to be the first in your family to break the cycle of unhealthy habits or to break the cycle of emotional or physical abuse. He may be calling you to start a new business to help people that need it or create a home unlike the one you grew up in.
He is asking you to be a pioneer.
“But you need to stick it out, staying with God’s plan so you’ll be there for the promised completion. It won’t be long now, he’s on the way; he’ll show up most any minute. But anyone who is right with me thrives on loyal trust; if he cuts and runs, I won’t be very happy. But we’re not quitters who lose out. Oh, no! We’ll stay with it and survive, trusting all the way.”
Hebrews 10:32-39 MSG
God is asking you to be a change-maker and to be stubborn about it.
Be stubborn about your goals but flexible about your methods.
Jesus never did a miracle the same way.
Each one was different and unique.
Be creative, use what God has given you, and fight for the change you need in your life.
“All the people answered, “His blood be on us and on our children”.
Matthew 27:25
After Gethsemane, Jesus was betrayed Judas, the disciples abandoned Him, Peter denied Him and He was brought before by Herod to be judged. Herod sent Him to Pilot but Pilot couldn’t find a reason for a death penalty. It came down to the people and the people demanded that Jesus be crucified and the murderer, Barabas, be released to them.
Unfair, unjust, unreasonable are just three words that come to mind but that is not what captivated me. What captivated my attention was the truth of the statement written in the account: “His blood be on us and on our children”.
He must have stood there marveling as He heard the crowd cry out for His death, knowing that He was going to bear the judgment physically, spiritually….literally, not only for them but for all mankind.
Now their cry has become mine: “His blood be on us and on our children”, not the blood of judgment but the blood of forgiveness.
While Jesus was on the cross, He drank deep from the cup of God’s fury against sin so that you and I could drink deep of the cup of forgiveness. He took our judgment so we could be pardoned for all eternity. Thus is the gift of salvation!
Now their cry has become mine: “His blood be on us and on our children”, not the blood of judgment but the blood of His amazing love and forgiveness. It was the strength of His love for us that drove Him to become the sacrifice for us.
If you don’t know how much Jesus loves you, look at the cross – the proof lies lifeless there.
Pride is the thing that keeps you from asking for help because you don’t want others to think you have a problem, even if you do.
Pride is the thing that keeps you silent when you should speak because you don’t want to cause trouble or cause a scene even if what you need to say is true.
Pride is the thing that prevents you from reconciling because you are right. And being right is more important than a person.
Pride keeps you safe.
Except it doesn’t.
It keeps you isolated.
No matter how any people you have in your life, trying to love them through the lens of pride keeps you disconnected and self protected.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
1 Corinthians 13:4 NIV
Love is not proud.
You are loved and you are made to love others freely, fully, with hope and joy.
Lay down your pride and let love heal what is broken.
