Sunday, June 8, 2014

June 8 (Mark 10:33)

See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles.  (ESV)

He says it in such a matter-of-fact way.  “We are going to Jerusalem.  I am going to be executed.  Be sure to pack extra socks.”  It is one thing to admire this from a distance, but put yourself in the place of Jesus for a moment.  Think about driving a few miles to a place where you know people are lying in wait to kill you.  Imagine the anxiety that would build into raw fear as you got closer and closer.

I don’t know how He did it.  I have no idea how He suppressed the natural, human desire for self-preservation.  Yes, Jesus was God, but He was fully human, too.  He had to overcome the most basic instinct to save His life in order to save ours.  And He had to overcome it again and again, with each and every step on the way to Jerusalem, knowing He could turn around at any time.

He did it for you and me.  With each one of those steps, He fought back the natural desire to go anywhere but Jerusalem.  He willingly walked a slow, anxious journey so that you and I could have immediate passage to a life we do not deserve.  Forget not knowing how He did it.  I cannot get my head around why.


Jesus, I really do not get it.  I cannot come close to understanding the how and why of Your love.  When confronted by the enormity of it all, the only thing I can do is accept it and say, “Thank You!”

Copyright © 2014 by Steven R. Perkins

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