When you were stuck in your old sin-dead life, you were incapable of responding to God. God brought you alive—right along with Christ! Think of it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ’s cross. Colossians 2:14 - Message
As we enter the heart of Holy Week, the image of Jesus nailed to the cross comes front and center. The nails made sure that Jesus was fastened securely to the cross, there was no escape. The nail gives us the most visceral experience of the suffering of Jesus. There on the cross for several hours Jesus hung, with unending, excruciating pain. The nails made sure Jesus would hurt in the worst way possible. Nailed to that cross were all the sins of the world. Nailed to the cross was the debt owed God. Nailed to the cross was Love, a love that attached itself unconditionally to us, refused to let us go, committed to opening the doors of eternal life for us.
This is the deepest mystery of our faith. God in human flesh, was willing to endure the sting of the nails for us. In this we see the power of unconditional love, a love so deep, so profound it would not let us go. We can't comprehend such love. However, if we open our hearts, we can receive it. It can transform our lives. It can lift us up out of our despair, our guilt, our shame. out of any situation in which we are stuck. In a sense we can say Jesus, through the cross, has spiritually nailed himself to us so that our lives are forever attached to his, by the power of the Holy Spirit. What joy it is to know this! Because of the nails, we can journey through the passion and death of Jesus in the hands of divine love, and recommit ourselves to following the footsteps of our Lord. Let us chose to be nailed to love, to service, to each other the way Jesus allowed himself to be nailed for us. Amen
As we enter the heart of Holy Week, the image of Jesus nailed to the cross comes front and center. The nails made sure that Jesus was fastened securely to the cross, there was no escape. The nail gives us the most visceral experience of the suffering of Jesus. There on the cross for several hours Jesus hung, with unending, excruciating pain. The nails made sure Jesus would hurt in the worst way possible. Nailed to that cross were all the sins of the world. Nailed to the cross was the debt owed God. Nailed to the cross was Love, a love that attached itself unconditionally to us, refused to let us go, committed to opening the doors of eternal life for us.
This is the deepest mystery of our faith. God in human flesh, was willing to endure the sting of the nails for us. In this we see the power of unconditional love, a love so deep, so profound it would not let us go. We can't comprehend such love. However, if we open our hearts, we can receive it. It can transform our lives. It can lift us up out of our despair, our guilt, our shame. out of any situation in which we are stuck. In a sense we can say Jesus, through the cross, has spiritually nailed himself to us so that our lives are forever attached to his, by the power of the Holy Spirit. What joy it is to know this! Because of the nails, we can journey through the passion and death of Jesus in the hands of divine love, and recommit ourselves to following the footsteps of our Lord. Let us chose to be nailed to love, to service, to each other the way Jesus allowed himself to be nailed for us. Amen
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