We’re more than half way now. In a little over three weeks it will be Good Friday. The day Jesus went to the Cross, voluntarily, to die.
For us.
In the last few weeks I’ve been struck by a few songs that have emphasized the Cross and what Jesus did for us. Last week my church had a visit from Dr. David Yonggi Cho.
Dr Cho has a remarkable ministry and story to tell. He started out as a minister to five people and now his church in South Korea has over 800,000 members. By all accounts it’s the biggest church in the world.
He attributes a lot of what he’s done to prayer. He spends three hours a day in prayer rising every early in the morning. He said when he was younger (he’s just celebrated his 80th birthday) he used to pray for five hours a day.
He mentioned that when he first starts praying he simply starts by meditating for a while on the Cross and what Christ did for us. This fills him with gratitude and praise but also assurance that Jesus has broken the hold sin has over us and “by His wounds He has healed us.”
Letting Go
It’s very easy for us to be self-absorbed. It doesn’t mean we’re selfish or narcissistic, it just means we spend too much time thinking about ourselves. I know I do. Particularly when things aren’t working out the way we want them to, we’re not feeling well or we’ve had a disagreement with our spouse. It’s like our automatic response is to think about ‘me’.
As I journey longer with the Lord I’m increasingly realizing that He went to the Cross so we would be more enamored with another story than our own. His.
His story is breathtaking. And He asks us to partner with Him in it. Blows my mind everytime.
This week spend a little time picturing Jesus on the Cross. Put yourself with His mother, John and the others as they watch in horror and absolute awe, as He chooses to die rather than save Himself. So we could live.
Perhaps reflect on these lyrics by Chris Tomlin and his song “At the Cross.”
There's a place where mercy reigns and never dies
There's a place where streams of grace flow deep and wide
Where all the love I've ever found
Comes like a flood
Comes flowing down
[Chorus:]
At the cross
At the cross
I surrender my life
I'm in awe of You
I'm in awe of You
Where Your love ran red
and my sin washed white
I owe all to You
I owe all to You Jesus
There's a place where sin and shame are powerless
Where my heart has peace with God and forgiveness
Where all the love I've ever found
Comes like a flood
Comes flowing down
[Chorus]
Here my hope is found
Here on holy ground
Here I bow down
Here I bow down
Here arms open wide
Here You save my life
Here I bow down
Here I bow down
[Chorus]
Lord Jesus, we love you. We worship you. We’re in awe of you. Words can’t express our gratitude for what you did at the Cross. For us. For our spouses. For our families. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you that you ransomed your life for ours. We praise you. We receive all the work and triumph of the cross, the blood, the sacrifice. Thank you for washing us clean. Jesus, we want more of you. Please fill us with more and help us let go of our selves so we can be of the business of running with you on your Kingdom mission. In your precious name we pray. Amen
Leave a Reply