The Mystery of the Cross

This is the marvelous mystery of the Cross:

WE ARE FULLY KNOWN, YET FULLY LOVED.

God knows every single secret sin of our hearts.

He knows that we miss the mark each day of our lives on earth.

He sees the lack of love… the loss of empathy. He sees the spirits of judgment and criticism and prejudice. Our inability to forgive. He knows all about our addictions and lusts. He weeps as He witnesses the self-destruction, self-pitying, self-absorption, and narcissism. He is well acquainted with our hypocrisy.  He is saddened by our envy and avarice, and stricken by our sick self-righteousness and self-justification.

He grieves over our pathetic attempts at medicating the pain of living life in a broken, bleeding, hurtful world. He sympathizes with our doubt, defeat, despair, and lack of faith.

Above all else, He is brokenhearted by our great and fatal pride, which keeps us from seeking the help that we desperately need.

Yet…

He loves us just the same.

Listen to this (almost) unbearably Good News:

“He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross, so that we can be dead to sin, and live for what is right. By his wounds, you are healed.” (1 Peter 2:24 NLT)

All our past failures, indiscretions, and humiliations…

All our current inadequacies and insufficiencies…

All the future faux pas we've yet to make on the path of pilgrim’s progress…

Have already been carried in His body to the cross!

Where they have been put to death for once and evermore.

He gladly took all of my sin and shame upon himself, and paid the price for it in order to purchase my eternal freedom.

(He did this for you as well, if you believe it and receive it.)

It’s that simple.

"Amazing love, how can it be

That you, my king would die for me..." (Chris Tomlin)

A mystery, undecipherable on earth.

But it is true.

The Good News is just too good to be true.

But it is.

Truly.

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 A Russian Orthodox Easter Greeting:

“Христос воскрес!”  (Christ is risen!)

“Воистину воскрес!”  (Truly risen!)

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The picture at the top was taken by my husband in our back yard. It reminds me of this scripture: 

"Let the trees of the forest sing, let them sing for joy before the Lord..." (I Chronicles 16:33)

(This one's for A.)