I
love you
By:
Dr. Jeff Fuller
Today
is Good Friday and on this day in history Jesus Christ died at the age of
thirty three years of age. He died on a
Roman stake, on a hill called Calvary, as His mother and the disciple named
John watched in horror as the event unfolded.
On
that day, there were others who were present at Calvary as Jesus was
crucified. Among those numbered on that
hillside were rulers who mocked Him, the soldiers assigned to do the dirty
work, Simon the Cyrenian, two thieves who were on His right and on His left,
the Centurion guards, and a multitude of onlookers. All participated in this execution in some
form or fashion.
As Jesus hung on that cross, bleeding and dying, He spoke words which
give evidence of the great love of His heart.
To those who would perpetrate such an awful crime upon an innocent man,
He said, “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34
KJV) John Piper writes:
“Forgiveness is for the guilty. So when Jesus says, ‘Father, forgive
them,’ he means they are guilty. Then when he says, ‘For they don't know what
they are doing,’ he must mean, ‘And they should know
what they are doing. And they are guilty for not knowing what they are doing.’
In other words, they have so much evidence of the truth that the only
explanation for their ignorance is they don't want to see it. They are hard and
resistant and have a guilty blindness. That is why they need to be forgiven.
One
of the thieves who hung on the cross wanted to have Jesus take away his punishment:
“If thou be Christ, save they self and us.” (Luke 23:39 KJV) But the other one said, “Lord, remember me
when thou comest into thy kingdom.” (Luke 23:42 KJV) To which Jesus replied, “Verily I say unto
thee, to day shalt thou be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:46 KJV)
There
are seven of these phrases or as some preachers call them, “words” found in the
Gospel letters. In Luke, we find three
of the seven. Two we have already
covered, but there is one more. Jesus
said, “Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit.” (Luke 23:46 KJV)
When
Jesus speaks of forgiveness, a guilty man being promised eternal life, and
freely giving His life He is saying “I love you.” He is clearly saying, “My Father loves
you.” Together, Jesus and Father God
demonstrated the love they have for mankind by allowing the Son to go to the
cross and die for the sin of the world.
While
Jesus was teaching the people, He made a comment that struck at the heart of
all who heard it. It was something that
made a true impact on the heart of people.
Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life
for the sheep.” (John 10:11 KJV) On the
cross, Jesus demonstrated that love the shepherd has for the sheep. In the cross, Jesus stretched out His hands
and said, “This is how much I love you.”
During
a three year period He taught the people, instructing them in the love and care
of God and why God had sent Him. In more
ways that we have space to share here, Jesus showed the love He and His Father
have for the world. In that time they
did not see Him as the promised Messiah of the Prophets; they saw Him as a good
teacher, a good man, and someone who could work miracles and wonders-changing
water to wine, healing the lame, bringing the dead back to life, and causing a
fig tree to die by speaking a word.
Yet,
in scripture we learn that this love, demonstrated to the world in the death of
Christ on the cross, is extended to all who come after Him. Over two thousand years ago on this day in
history Jesus died. On this side of
Calvary, we look back and see that Jesus loved us so much He gave His life for
us. He was willing to go all the way to
rescue me and you from the penalty of death and eternal separation from His
abiding love.
If
that was all there is-if Jesus dying was all there was-then we would be in the
same boat with those who profess many other beliefs-but that is not all there
is; no, there is more. Jesus did die;
but Jesus rose again from the grave.
Jesus both paid the price for our sin on the cross of Calvary, meeting
the demands of the Old Testament law, but Jesus went a step further and on
Sunday morning, He awoke from the temporary slumber of death and proved that
“death ain’t no big deal.”
His
death offers us forgiveness from sin; the risen Savior gives us evidence that
we will not die, but live for eternity.
This life is not the end, but only the beginning. We labor and toil here, because we live in a
fallen, sinful, sick world; but this is not all there is-there is more, so much
more, and for those who have accepted the forgiveness of Jesus Christ, we have
eternity awaiting us.
Friend,
today is Good Friday and Sunday is Easter-Resurrection Day-and both are special
days if you know Christ and have chosen His free gift of eternal life in Christ
Jesus our Savior and the Messiah. If
not, then today and this weekend means nothing more than just another weekend
to spend time on the lake or in the woods or eating a meal with the
family.
Jesus
said, “I love you!” And He proved it by
spreading His hands out and allowing His hands and feet to be nailed to old,
rough timbers. For three hours He
allowed His blood to freely flow and His body to burn in the mid-day heat of a
boiling sun. All in order to say, “I
love you!” Yet, even though He died on
Friday, He rose again to life from the cold, dark, damp grave, to say with a
triumph shout, “I LOVE YOU!”
Yes,
He loves you. He loved you so much that
He would rather die than live life without you.
Yes, He loves you. He loves you
more than you will ever realize, as He made a way for you to enjoy the fruits
of life and eternity. Yes, He loves you!
The
old children’s song says, “Yes, Jesus loves me; Yes, Jesus loves me; Yes, Jesus
loves me, for the Bible tells me so.”
God
bless you and keep you, until next time…
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