Holy (Maundy) Thursday - Devotions in Exile The Fifth Word of Christ from the Cross
Holy (Maundy) Thursday - Devotions in Exile
The Fifth Word of Christ from the Cross
The Fifth Word of Christ from the Cross
True Man
John
19:28 After this, Jesus, knowing that
all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, said,
"I thirst."
Who is this “man” on the cross? Yes,
that is exactly what these words declare to us, that it was truly a man on the
cross. Jesus is a man with physical needs and requirements just like ours.
This
had to be true! Jesus had to be a man. He had to have the same flesh as we
have. For Christ's death on the cross to have the power to save mankind, Christ
had to be, true man.
Jesus
had to be tempted in every way like we are, for His sacrificial death to have
true power to save us. In order for Jesus to be tempted in every way, He had to
be true man. He had to have the same
physical needs of human flesh, the same pains,
trials, and temptations.
Had Jesus not been true man His death
would have been hollow. If He did not have human flesh, He would not have been
tempted and would not have suffered as we do. Without being tempted or
suffering, Jesus would not have been able to take our place “as a man” under
the Law.
Jesus,
as a man, kept perfectly that Law which we are unable to keep. It is because it was as He was true man and
kept the Law perfectly that He fulfills it for all mankind. It is also because He is true man that He is
able to suffer and die for our guilt because we have failed to keep the Law.
It is because Jesus was true man,
because He endured in human flesh; temptations, trials, pains, and sorrows,
that He is also able to sympathize with us in our temptations. He wept, He
hungered, He was abandoned by friends, betrayed by one closest to Him, and even
His own family did not understand or trust Him.
All
these things Jesus endured in the same flesh you wear. Does He understand you?
Can He sympathize with your situation? Does He comprehend what is going on in
your heart and mind during this trying time? Does He understand the emotional turmoil
that this viral epidemic is causing to people globally?
It
is this same Christ – God enfleshed – who has promised to be with us to the
very end of the age. He is there in our temptations to strengthen our faith, make
us to stand up under our temptations.
It is because Jesus was true man and
suffered as we suffer that He is able to understand our suffering and come to
our aid in our suffering and comfort us with His peace. He gives us true peace which
understands that this mortal life is for just a short time, and after it is
over, we will join Him for eternity in His kingdom.
As
True Man He was raised from the dead on third day. His fleshly appearances after
the Resurrection declare that on the last day, as He was raised in His human
flesh, we too will be raised in glorified and perfected bodies to enjoy heaven
with Him forever.
Yes, Jesus understands all our trials
and temptations. He is our perfect High Priest whose sacrifice makes atonement
for all our sins. What glory shall be ours we can only imagine, but we wait for
it in hope. Thanks be to Christ, true God in human flesh.
PRAYER: Thank you God for taking on human flesh, to fulfill
the Law in our stead, to atone for our sins, and to come to our aid. Be with us
always, as You have promised, in all that we do, that all we do would be to
Your Glory. Amen.
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