April 2009 Easter Devotion

Christ's True Sacrifice

May the peace of the Lord be with you! It is an amazing thing to know and understand the true meaning of Easter. It is the most important holiday of our Christian faith, and it should call us to a sincere contemplation of the cornerstone of that faith: Jesus Christ. We would do well to make such reflection a daily habit, so that we might remain acutely aware of just how much we need Him.

"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." (Hebrews 4:14-16)

Praise the name of Jesus! His sacrifice has given us peace with God (Romans 5:1). As I have reflected on the sacrifice of Christ, I have asked myself what the greatest part of that sacrifice was. I believe that Jesus was most distressed by this: the separation from God that resulted from sin. From the gospel accounts we see that His worst moment on the cross came when he cried, "Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?'-which means, 'My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46, Mark 15:34). It was not His physical sufferings or the abandonment, betrayal and rejection of the human race that caused Him so much distress. It was the fact that His relationship with God the Father was in jeopardy. This, then, was Christ's true sacrifice: He gave up His relationship with God so that ours might be restored. Jesus knew what we needed the most; He knew what mankind was lacking, and His sacrifice restored it to us. Again I say, praise the name of Jesus!

"Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in the appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:6-11)

So now I ask that, as Christians, we take some time to reflect on just how thankful we are for Christ's sacrifice. We should also take a hint; there is nothing more valuable to us than our relationship with God. The restoration of that relationship should give us more joy than anything else and the pursuit of it should be our constant goal and focus. It is the gift that has been given to us by the grace of God through the blood of Jesus Christ. Take advantage of it! It was Christ's true sacrifice, and He has made it our true reward.

May the joy of the Lord be with you as you consider Christ and all that He means to you. Be blessed!

Brad Zimmerman
RUC Chaplain
Sophomore, Global Business major