Cast Away Your Chains 14

April 20, 2014

Christ the Lord is risen today! Alleluia! Jesus is more than a mere man. He is joy, He is peace, He is wisdom, He is love... And for three days, the universe had been without that overabundant fountain. We took Him, and we killed Him. Willing though He was, we escorted Him from Gethsemane to Golgotha, but just as our fall began in a garden, so our redemption began in a garden.

See Him there, stooping in anguish in Gethsemane? See his friend coming to betray Him? See the look on Judas' face? He is possessed by Lucifer himself, and when Judas comes to kiss Jesus on the cheek, Satan kisses Jesus. The betrayal is complete, and the disciples flee. The Romans deliver Him to the Jews and then to Pontius Pilate.

See Him there, being whipped? Hear the cries of agony that fall from His mouth? He can no longer scream for lack of energy. The cries simply drop from Him like the saliva and blood that sprinkle and stain the dirt upon which they have tossed Him. Hear them mocking Him? Such brazenness to laugh at your Creator! This body is weak, true, but there is a mighty, cosmic fire within the Son of God that is undeniable, and yet, He restrains it for their sake. For our sake. For His sake.

This cup cannot be passed. There is a single candidate for this task, and He must be killed. Today.

Can you feel His pain? No, you cannot. You cannot imagine it. Iron driven through His wrists and nerves. Blood soaks the rough tree upon which He is nailed. Splinters thrust their way into His wounded back with every gasp of air He fights for. Do you hear His weakness? "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do." "I thirst!" "Woman, behold your son." "It is finished." "Father, into Your hands, I commit my spirit." Earth and sky give way as their Creator dies.

You have slain God. How that is done, we will never know, but this much we know. God is dead, and God killed Him with our instruments. Satan laughs with delight, but suddenly, he realizes what he has done. He has sealed his own fate. Satan exits Judas in fear and hastens to the temple. The veil is torn.

Now, three days later, Jesus has returned to us. Why? Because the crucifixion was insufficient? No. He is alive to intercede for us. God turned His back on His Son, but not forever. For three days, the world had no Jesus. For three days, the Trinity was but two. For three days, a Father was without a Son, but now, the Son is alive again, and He has two things on His mind: His people and His throne.

See Him standing there in heaven? Hear Him call to the Lord, "Welcome him, My Father, for that is my brother, and he is your son through me. I have loved Him. I have redeemed Him." Cast away the chains of sin. God was dead, but He is alive again.

~ The Fragile Grey Heart

1 Corinthians 6:14: "And God raised the Lord and will also raise us up by his power."