Romans 5:6-8 – For when we were yet without strength, Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person, though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die, but God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

THEME OF THE DAY: HOW CAN WE NOT? Right now, let’s take a mental journey into a sacred place; the sufferings of our Lord Jesus. Begin with His life. Imagine the agony of heart for the perfect, holy, Son of God to live among wretched, God-hating sinners. If it vexed the heart of Lot to live in Sodom and Gomorrah because of its vile sinfulness, think what it must have done to our Lord Jesus. Now go into the Garden of Gethsemane. Agony of agony. To pray so intensely that blood veins burst on His face producing tears and sweat of blood is beyond description. Proceed to the scourging by the Roman soldiers. Some historians believe three soldiers beat Him; one with a leather belt, one with a whip of metal and bone chips on the tip, and one with a rod. One soldier would beat Him until tired, then the next, and finally the third. Our Lord Jesus was beaten beyond recognition. Tendons and muscles were torn apart, bone and organs likely exposed. The physical suffering cannot be grasped. Most crucifixion candidates never made it to the cross. They died in the scourging phase, but not Jesus, though He was so drained of strength that He couldn’t carry His own cross. Now, let’s look on the cross. Naked, publicly shamed, and pierced with iron nails in His wrists and feet. With each hammer blow, a cry of pain from those sacred lips let loose. It would have been so difficult to look up at Him. And He did it for you and me. Yes, the innocent for the guilty.

So where is the application for us? As we think on these scenes of His sufferings, put these questions before us. They are not easy. They expose us. They convict us. They should humble us, and if we are spiritually sensitive, what we are about to ask of our ourselves must change us today and for the rest of our lives.

In view of the sufferings of our Lord Jesus, how can we not surrender all areas of our lives to Him? Our time, resources, relationships, desires, hopes, dreams, vocations, and every other single thing in our lives must find themselves freely surrendered to the Suffering Savior. With Jesus’ sufferings in our thinking, how can we not do what He asks when it comes to giving over control of our lives?

In view of the sufferings of our Lord Jesus, how can we not give Him unhindered, unrushed, and undistracted time every day, yes, every day, to seek Him in prayer and the Word? We know and experience so little of the Lord Jesus if the sacred privilege of seeking His face in Word and prayer, alone and with other believers, is not the highest priority in our lives. A Christian cannot meditate upon the sufferings of the Lord Jesus and walk away without a passion and commitment to know the Lord through disciplined time in the Word and prayer. With Jesus’ sufferings in our thinking, how can we not safeguard daily time to seek His fellowship?

In view of the sufferings of our Lord Jesus, how can we not make His chief desires our chief desires? The two things nearest to the heart of our Savior are His church and His Gospel. If we see His sufferings right, and the Spirit of God burns those acts of love into our hearts, then the nearest things to the heart of the Savior will be the nearest things to our hearts. We will live a sacrificial life for His church, His people. Church will be a priority and delight in our lives never sacrificed on the altars of worldliness and carnal desires. And the Gospel? Meditating long on the sufferings of our Lord will make our burden for the lost increase leading to a life of Gospel passion. With Jesus’ sufferings in our thinking, how can we not be passionately committed to His church and Gospel?

Beloved, don’t drift away from Christ’s sufferings. They are the fuel that keeps the heart aglow with love for Him. Without such constant awareness of the love of God displayed in the sufferings of His Son, a cold and indifferent heart is inevitable. May it never be so with any of us.

PRAYER: “Father, forgive me for the times I forget the great sacrifice Your Son gave and my life reflects such neglect.”

QUOTE: “Fail to meditate on the sufferings of Christ and our Christian life will not be lived sacrificially, but conveniently.”