SHARING BREAD
54 When the centurion and those with him who were
guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were
terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”
55 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons.
55 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee's sons.
Matt
27:54-56 (NIV)
Such unusual circumstances surrounded our Lord’s death that
it terrified the macho Roman guards. God
can easily frighten the most hardened of adversaries as guilt puts men into
fear when confronted with holiness. Yet
those clothed in the righteousness of Christ need never fear. Our faith (choice) must rule over our fear
(emotion). God being our sure defense at
all times. When God judges the righteous need not fear. I am reminded of the psalmist words:
1 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in
trouble. 2 Therefore
we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the
heart of the sea, 3 though its
waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. Selah Psalms 46:1-3 (NIV)
10 Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they
will enjoy the fruit of their deeds. Isaiah
3:10 (NIV)
The momentous events of the day had struck fear in the
hearts of the guards. Normally these
centurions were without much fear or pity.
Yet, the curtain of the temple torn from top to bottom, an earthquake,
the rocks crying out and the dead raised to life all served to be exceedingly
troubling to those guarding the Master. To
be sure, one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus
is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords yet here we see a precursor in a
convinced pagan crying out that Jesus was the Son of God. There is no spirit too big or too bold for
Christ’s power to humble. Interestingly,
Jesus’ guys believed but dared not confess lacking the courage yet the
centurion makes a voluntary confession of the Christian faith. I am reminded of Paul’s words penned in
Philippians of the future adoration of Christ by all men:
9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and
gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in
heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to
the glory of God the Father. Phil
2:9-11 (NIV)
“Instead
of trying to comprehend My Incarnation intellectually, learn from the example
of the wise men. They followed the leading of a spectacular star, then fell
down in humble worship when they found Me.
Praise and worship are the best responses to the wonder of My Being.
Sing praises to My holy Name. Gaze at Me
in silent adoration. Look for a star of
guidance in your own life, and be willing to follow where I lead.” Sarah
Young
Next, we
discover in our verses for today a company of women who were following the Lord
Jesus from Galilee to care for His needs.
Some would have called them silly women to boldly stick by the Master’s
side when the rest of His disciples had deserted Him and fled. Yet, out of great love they had followed Him and
out of great love they had stayed by Him.
They had cared for Jesus out of their own means throughout His ministry
and now we see them admirably staying near Him to the bitter end albeit at a
distance. Surely, the distance must have
been an aggravation to the sufferings of Christ that even His closest friends
stood aloof from His afflictions. We must
not think it strange if when we suffer our friends shy away as well. If they treated the Lord this way His
followers should not be surprised to receive like treatment. Sadly, when Christ was suffering the best of His
companions were but spectators and onlookers.
Even so, these women stood watching with great love as it surely cut to their
hearts to see His great torment.
18 “If the world hates you, keep
in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love
you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you
out of the world. That is why the world hates you. 20 Remember the words I spoke to you: 'No
servant is greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute
you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. 21 They will treat you this way because of my
name, for they do not know the One who sent me.” John 15:18-21 (NIV)
“Be
not afraid of saying too much in the praises of God; all the danger is of
saying too little.” Matthew Henry
“The
cross is rough, and it is deadly, but it is effective.” A. W.
Tozer
“The
only ground on which God can forgive our sin and reinstate us to His favor is
through the Cross of Christ. There is no
other way! Forgiveness, which is so easy
for us to accept, cost the agony at Calvary.
We should never take the forgiveness of sin, the gift of the Holy
Spirit, and our sanctification in simple faith, and then forget the enormous
cost to God that made all of this ours.
Forgiveness is the divine miracle of grace. The cost to God was the Cross of Christ. To forgive sin, while remaining a holy God,
this price had to be paid. Never accept
a view of the fatherhood of God if it blots out the atonement. The revealed truth of God is that without the
atonement He cannot forgive – He would contradict His nature if He did. The only way we can be forgiven is by being
brought back to God through the atonement of the Cross. God’s forgiveness is possible only in the
supernatural realm……Once you realize all that it cost God to forgive you, you
will be held as in a vise, constrained by the love of God.” Oswald
Chambers
What
I glean from this:
· It is always well with the righteous.
· God can soften even the hardest heart.
· Forgiveness is the miracle of grace that came with
an enormous cost to God – the cost to God was the Cross of Christ.
