THE SHADOW OF THE CROSS

Luke 23:33 – 47

We often sing, “To be like Jesus”, but do we really think about what that means? It is only as we look at Jesus, considering His character, that we can understand  what our life should be. And we never see Him better than when we consider Him on the cross. That will change us (Heb. 12:2-3). In light of the text and in reference to this subject J. H. Jowett wrote:

Look at our Lord in relation to His foes. “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do!” Their bitterness has not embittered Him. The “milk of human kindness” was still sweet. Nothing could sour our Lord, and convert His goodwill into malice, His serene beneficence into wild revenge. And how is it with me? Are my foes able to maim my spirit as well as my body? Do they win their end by making me a smaller man? Or am I magnanimous even on the cross?

And look at our Lord in relation to the penitent thief. “To-day shalt thou be with Me in Paradise.” There was no self-centredness in our Saviour’s grief. He was the good Physician, even when His body was mangled on the cross. He healed a broken heart even in the very pangs of death. When “there was darkness over all the earth,” He let the light of the morning into the heart of a desolate thief. And, good Lord, graciously help me to do likewise!

And all this amazing graciousness is explained in our Lord’s relation to His Father. “Father, into Thy hands I commend My spirit!” Yes, everything is there! When I and My Father are one, my spirit will remain sweet as the violet and pure as the dew.

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

NO REMEDY

“But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.  Therefore he brought upon them the king of the Chaldees, who slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion upon young man or maiden, old man, or him that stooped for age: he gave them all into his hand.”- II Chronicles 36:16, 17

   There is a limit to God’s forbearance.  His people repeatedly disobeyed Him and turned to the idols of the heathen.  When God would chasten them, they would temporarily reform, but it was always short-lived.  When God sent prophets to warn them, they “misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people.”  They did not want to hear what God’s servants had to say.  

   Finally, the Word of God tells us, “there was no remedy.”  Our text records that God sent the “king of the Chaldees” who “slew their young men with the sword in the house of their sanctuary, and had no compassion.”  Because His people would not repent, God sorely chastened them.  People somehow have the idea that God should always, and will always, grant leniency to His wayward people.  This is the commonly-held view of most.  They act as though God is unaware or unconcerned with their rebellion.  This attitude is prevalent among the unsaved, but too often, it exists among those who profess to know Christ.  

   When God appears to be judging sin, He is frequently criticized as the One that is guilty of wrongdoing.  God is definitely merciful and forgiving, and is more patient than we could ever deserve.  But His forbearance should not be interpreted as a lack of chastisement.  God has supplied us with multiple warnings in His Word.  He also provides faithful servants who proclaim the truth, calling us to repentance and obedience.  He indwells His children in the Person of the Holy Spirit, who convicts us of sin.  The preferred response is to obey His promptings and turn from those things that are displeasing to God.  

   However, as with the Israelites, if we refuse to repent, there may come a time when “there was no remedy.”  God has no choice but to severely chasten when His will is met with stubbornness and disobedience.  May our hearts be sensitive to His direction, and be ever willing to submit to the reproof of His Word.- Thomas Smith

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346

Yesterday I wrote about the deaths of Bro. Dean Gooch and Bro. Larry Jones. It seems that I can still hear Dean and Barb singing, “Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday”! In light of that I want to share with you this article by Bro. Larry. We are blessed to have his words still with us and, having received permission from Carol, I will share more with you later.

JESUS STOPS TIME!
Matthew 5:21 “Ye have heard that it wassaid by them of old time, 
22  But I say unto you,
27  Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, 
28  But I say unto you,”

In a sense Jesus stopped time. Let me explain. We time-bound creatures have a way of immortalizing the past. We sometimes think that teachers “back then” must have been more wise than we are today. Some of us tend to exalt the present as the sum of all that exists. And then there are some folks who see all that is bright to be yet in the future. But Jesus spans it all!

He is the “alpha and omega”, the“first and the last”. He said “before Abraham was I am…”The Son Of God was there to hear Noah preach, Moses judge, and King David play his harp. His Spirit was present when these teachers of old expounded their incomplete notions about the law to their audience.

He, above anyone in all time, can speak about what they had to say. He stops the influence of time when He speaks, because, in a sense, He is timeless. These “old time”speakers were in His presence just as we are today, and our descendants will be tomorrow. And He is their Lord just as He is ours, and He has the right to correct us all by saying “but I say unto you.” He is The Teacher of all teachers and we should sit at His timeless feet today and learn.(Larry Jones)

David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346