The Choice of the Cross 3-30-10

Good morning, Lord Jesus. I journey with You to Your cross this Holy Week. Give me grace to journey with You to my cross every day. … “He took the twelve aside again and began to tell them what was to happen to Him, saying, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn Him to death; then they will hand Him over to the Gentiles; they will mock Him, and spit upon Him, and flog Him, and kill Him; and after three days He will rise again’ ” (Mark 10:32-34). You were not caught off guard; You were not surprised by what happen to You in the final week of Your life as Son of Man on this earth. Both Jew and Gentile, leaders of religion and leaders of government, representatives of all humanity, would reject You, dishonor You, defile You, and try to destroy You. Yet You willingly gave Yourself into their hands because You willingly gave Yourself into the Father’s hands. Ultimately, they had no power over You but what the Father allowed (John 19:11). And the Father set before You the choice to yield to His will or not, even knowing the cost of Your sacrifice to come (Luke 22:42). But You chose to trust the love of the Father for You and for all humanity, willingly offering Your life as a sacrifice of love for each of us. “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have the power to lay it down, and I power to take it up again. I have received this command from My Father” (John 10:17-18). You were not blind to the cost of the sacrifice You would endure, but You chose to look beyond to cost of sacrifice to the joy of all it would forever accomplish for us. So when we remember Your journey to the cross and all the suffering of sacrifice You endured for us, we should not dwell on the hatred of men who wanted to take Your life but on the love of our Savior who willingly chose to endure the hatred of men for us for the sake of the joy it would ultimately bring to You and to us. Let us not look at their hearts, but look to Yours—“looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken His seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart” (Hebrews 12:2-3). Thank You, Lord Jesus, for Your choice to endure the suffering and sacrifice of the cross for me. Thank You, Lord, for loving me in that way beyond my comprehension and imagination. May my love and thanks to You in response to Your sacrifice for me bring You joy today. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen. Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays Friends, God bless you this Holy Week of preparing our hearts to experience the resurrection power of God through Jesus Christ our Lord! Subscribe by email to Tommy Hays at Messiah Ministries: MessiahMin@aol.com -- "Preparing the Way of the Lord ... Ministering the Healing Love of God" To order my books and our ministry resources or contribute on-line: www.messiah-ministries.org 2800 Tates Creek Rd; Lexington, KY 40502