He is Risen!

Jesus Lives And So Shall I

Jesus lives, and so shall I.
Death! thy sting is gone forever!
He who deigned for me to die,
Lives, the bands of death to sever.
He shall raise me from the dust:
Jesus is my Hope and Trust.

Jesus lives, and reigns supreme,
And, his kingdom still remaining,
I shall also be with him,
Ever living, ever reigning.
God has promised: be it must:
Jesus is my Hope and Trust.

Jesus lives, and by his grace,
Vict'ry o'er my passions giving,
I will cleanse my heart and ways,
Ever to his glory living.
Me he raises from the dust.
Jesus is my Hope and Trust.

Jesus lives, I know full well
Nought from him my heart can sever,
Life nor death nor powers of hell,
Joy nor grief, hence forth forever.
None of all his saints is lost;
Jesus is my Hope and Trust.

Jesus lives, and death is now
But my entrance into glory.
Courage, then, my soul, for thou
Hast a crown of life before thee;
Thou shalt find thy hopes were just;
Jesus is the Christian's Trust.

Satisfaction in the Sufferings of Christ

When you first saw the title to this post did you think of your satisfaction or the satisfaction of God? The cross speaks to the Mick Jaggers and Keith Richards of the world, offering true satisfaction. But it is not the kind of satisfaction that we ordinarily look for in our lives. We live our lives looking for personal satisfaction. The cross is foremost about the satisfaction of God.

The Biblical account of the suffering and death of Jesus on the cross is a peculiar answer to our needs and problems. It only makes sense when we see our lives as part of a greater story, which does not begin with us, but with God. The Bible begins, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth". God does not exist for us, we exist for God. There on the cross, in his agonizing death on our behalf, Jesus accomplished the very thing we were created to do: bring God satisfaction. In our place, Jesus gave his Father perfect obedience and bore the full weight of the punishment we deserved for our disobedience. There on the cross, God was satisfied.

In his book The Economy of the Covenants between God and Man, Herman Witsius writes about the agony Christ this way:

"This exceeding trouble and agony did not arise only from the sympathy of the soul with the body, nor from the mere horror of impending death; it was something else that afflicted the soul of Christ, namely, his bearing the sins, not of one, but of all the elect; he had beheld the awful tribunal of God, before which he was presently to appear, in order to pay what he took not away; he saw the Judge himself, armed with all the terrors of his incomprehensible vengeance, the law brandishing all the thunders of its curses, the devil, and all the powers of darkness, with all the gates of hell just ready to pour in upon his soul: in a word, he saw justice itself, in all its inexorable rigour, to which he was now to make full satisfaction; he saw the face of his dearest Father, without darting a single ray of favour upon him, but rather burning with hot jealousy in all the terrors of his wrath against the sins of mankind, which he had undertaken to atone for. And withersoever he turned, not the least glimpse of relief appeared for him, either in heaven or on earth, till with resolution and constancy he had acquitted himself in the combat. These, these are the things, which, not without reason, struck Christ with terror and amazement, and forced from him his groans, his sighs, and his tears."

There is unexpected satisfaction to be found in the suffering of Christ; for there on the cross God is not only satisfied with Jesus; he is also satisfied with all who seek forgiveness by believing on Christ as their God and Savior. This is not some inner satisfaction that comes from being numb to the world or to the problems that surround us, or from perfect calm and zen-like peace in our lives. It is not the empty promise of consumerism to give us satisfaction in things. It is not even ultimately the hope of a better world (although by changing our lives, it makes us into better neighbors to people near and far). This satisfaction does not begin with us; it begins with God. It flows from the promise that for Jesus' sake God is satisfied with us; that he desires good for us; and that he will take us from this world to live with him forever one day.

The Selective Amnesia of Jesus

"From this we conclude that he had no regard for himself; as he clearly affirms, 'For their sake I sanctify myself'. For he who gave away the fruit of his holiness to others testifies that he acquired nothing for himself. And this is indeed worth noting: to devote himself completely to saving us, Christ in a way forgot himself."

- John Calvin

I wake up thinking about myself, my comfort, my problems, and my needs. Even when my thoughts are turned to others, to my wife, my children, and my church, I am trying to be a good husband, a good father, a good pastor who will be appreciated by those I love and serve. The moment my wife complains to me, or my children disobey me, or my parishioners criticize me I lose my motivation to love them. Deep down I have a sneaking suspicion that I matter more than them. In fact, the greatest thing that gets in the way of my own devotion to God is this attitude rooted in the corruption of my soul (which the Bible calls my sinful nature) that convinces me that I matter more even than God.

Jesus forgot himself completely. He had nothing to gain from his life in this world but the unbearable anguish of his body and soul on the cross. The source of all life forgot his life. The righteous one forgot his merit and innocence.

Jesus forgot himself, but he did not forget his Father who sent him. There on the cross, Jesus brought glory to his Father, accomplishing the work he had been given. His Father would forsake him on the cross, yet this did not diminish his love for his Father or his commitment to fulfilling his Father's will; it added fuel to his fiery determination to bring his Father glory.

Jesus forgot himself, but he did not forget the people he was sent to save. There on the cross, Jesus paid the penalty for our sins. His own people would abandon him, yet this did not diminish his love for them or his commitment to redeem them from their sins with his own life; it added fuel to his fiery determination to save his people.

Now that I have seen him crucified and risen for my salvation I can never forget how Jesus forgot himself for me. For even when I forget him he will not forget me.