TAKE A FEW STEPS MORE

1 Peter 2:24 NLT He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin
and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.

Jesus must have walked miles throughout His life, taking steps eventually towards the Cross. He would  have seen many men suffer and die on crosses throughout those years but He was determined to do the will of God because of the joy that was to come.

I’d like to invite us all to walk a bit further today, to go from where we are, looking at the front of the Cross as we usually do, and  take a few steps more, to walk around to the back of the Cross, to the other side, and look up. What do we see? 

We see the stripes on Jesus’ back, where it was whipped so badly by the Roman soldier, there was no flesh remaining, with His bones showing through, covered in flowing blood. We begin to understand the enormity of the words Isaiah spoke in Isaiah 53:5 AMPC But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our guilt and iniquities; the chastisement [needful to obtain] peace and well-being for us was upon Him, and with the stripes [that wounded] Him we are healed and made whole. 

Jesus went to the Cross for our sake, to take all the wrath and punishment of God into Himself, for all the sin of the world, for you and me, past, present and future. Jesus’ ripped back paid the price for all our physical, mental and emotional healing and wholeness, of every sickness and disease, so we don’t have to bear it. It’s all part of our salvation as much as forgiveness is, praise God! 

Matthew 8:17 AMP And thus He fulfilled what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah, He Himself took [in order to carry away] our weaknesses and infirmities and bore away our diseases. 

As we remember Jesus’ taking all the curse, as He paid for our forgiveness and freedom, remember to go a few steps more to see His back, and see all your sicknesses, diseases or mental distress laid on Him and know He already bore them for you as well. We can exchange it all for His healing and wholeness, for His forgiveness and His righteousness, and know His peace today because of His precious blood poured out for us.

Words are not enough but thank You with all our hearts Lord Jesus. Amen.

And if you can spare three minutes, catch a glimpse of what Jesus did for us at the Cross:

https://youtu.be/BW39G0EsKfk?si=Lys3akvVoHcAX1CV

Photo: Alicia Quan at Unsplash