CRIMINALS
Fifth
of seven in Passion for Redemption
Parallel Bible Series
Isaiah
53:12, Matthew 27:38 & Luke 23:34
Isaiah
53:12: “Therefore, I will give Him a
portion among the great, and He will divide the spoils with the strong, because
He poured out His life unto death, and was numbered with the
transgressors. For He bore the sins of
many, and made intersession for the transgressors.”
Matthew
27:38: “Two criminals were crucified
with Him, one on His right, and one on His left.”
Luke 23:34: “Jesus said, ‘Father,
forgive them, for they know not what they’re doing.’”
People considered Jesus a criminal
when He was crucified (Luke 22:37). Isn’t
that fitting? He hung out with sinners,
was crucified next to, and intercedes for sinners even today!
Sinners rarely think of themselves
as criminals. But believers in Christ
were criminals before we accepted Jesus as Lord. For Romans 6:23 says, “the wages of sin is
death.” We certainly were criminals—criminals
who were dead, and headed for eternal death—as unforgiven and unsaved.
Because
Jesus bore the totality of human sin while hanging on the cross, the Father had
to look away. Even the Father treated
His perfect Son as a criminal! And yet, Jesus
interceded for, or negotiated with the Father on sinners’ behalf, as He hung on
the cross!
Jesus conquered death when
He rose to life on the third day. The
Father shows us in the opening Scripture that a conqueror receives and
distributes the spoils of war after a victory.
Jesus’ victory over death not only blesses the many and mighty, but also
the few and weak (Colossians 2:15). He
continues blessing redeemed sinners every
day! (Hebrews 9:24).
Jesus
poured out His very life for us, so that we might have eternal life with Him in
heaven (Romans 3:25). Because Jesus was
seen as, and punished as a criminal, He understands His brothers and sisters. Believers can depend on His faithful
intercession for us. We don’t deserve
that. But neither did Jesus deserve what
He had to endure on our behalf. In
exchange for our sin, Jesus makes believers the righteousness of God! (1
Corinthians 1:30).
The guilty are rewarded as
if we were innocent! You and I are the
true criminals.
Take
Home Nugget
Jesus still personally bears our physical and spiritual pain. He sympathizes with our problems. He heals our sicknesses. He delivers us from trouble. He restores wrecked lives. All He asks is that you put your faith in
Him. He did this because He loves you. Won’t you accept Him, so He can gift you forgiveness
and salvation today?
Purchased
by His precious blood, believers are monuments of Jesus’ grace.
Now we
can celebrate the good news of Good Friday!
J.D.
Griffith
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