They Were Filled With Awe
The crucifixion of Jesus was a gruesome event in history. Jesus was beaten, whipped, and nailed to a cross. so He would die a slow painful death once His muscles gave out, and He could not push up to get one more breath. It did not take as long for Jesus to die as most people, because most others were not whipped within an inch of their lives before going to the cross. Therefore, Jesus was just on the cross part of a day, instead of several days. As His death drew near, He cried out to God in agony that was both physical pain and spiritual suffering, since all of our sins were placed on Him, and He was cut off from the Father. Then, He gave up His spirit and died. At that moment there was an earthquake that shook all of Jerusalem and the surrounding area. When the Roman centurion and the other soldiers who were watching saw the earthquake and everything else that Jesus said and did, they agreed, "Truly this was the Son of God." (Matthew 27:54) This was a powerful witness that Jesus was Lord of all, because these men had seen many others die by crucifixion.
What did it take to get you to realize that Jesus is the Son of God? Was it a sermon or a Bible lesson? Was it a personal witness from a family member or a friend? Maybe, you just finally put it all together as the Holy Spirit dealt with your heart. Whatever it took, God has a way of showing Himself to all of us and showing us that Jesus is His Only-begotten Son who died for us and rose again the third day. After that, it is up to us what we will do with Jesus. It is not enough to have head knowledge that Jesus is Lord, He is alive, and He died for our sins. That head knowledge has to travel 18 inches or so down to our hearts. We have to put our trust in Him, once and for all, as our personal Lord and Savior, so that we follow Him the rest of our lives. That is why every person who stands before God will have no excuse for not knowing who Jesus is and that they need to trust Him. I pray that all of us will not just be filled with awe, but we will be filled with faith in the One who loved us enough to give Himself for us.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Matthew 28 and Mark 1-2.
What did it take to get you to realize that Jesus is the Son of God? Was it a sermon or a Bible lesson? Was it a personal witness from a family member or a friend? Maybe, you just finally put it all together as the Holy Spirit dealt with your heart. Whatever it took, God has a way of showing Himself to all of us and showing us that Jesus is His Only-begotten Son who died for us and rose again the third day. After that, it is up to us what we will do with Jesus. It is not enough to have head knowledge that Jesus is Lord, He is alive, and He died for our sins. That head knowledge has to travel 18 inches or so down to our hearts. We have to put our trust in Him, once and for all, as our personal Lord and Savior, so that we follow Him the rest of our lives. That is why every person who stands before God will have no excuse for not knowing who Jesus is and that they need to trust Him. I pray that all of us will not just be filled with awe, but we will be filled with faith in the One who loved us enough to give Himself for us.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Matthew 28 and Mark 1-2.