April 7
Deut 31:1-32:27 | PS 78:32-55 | Prov 12:21-23 | Luke 12:8-34
I think on a day such as this, we need to pause a moment, not just go through the motions, and honestly ask ourselves, “What does it mean to me, that Jesus took my sins upon the cross, paid the penalty that I deserve, and even died, not for Himself, since He knew no sin, but for me?” He gave up heaven for this. He suffered more than any Man for this. This is our hope. He is my hope. Honestly, we are all powerless without Him, yet most don’t think they need Him, thinking they are just fine. Our battles are often not physical, but in our minds. When battling others they are often not with guns, but with words. Not only did Jesus, the Son, pay it all, but He brought forth the Holy Spirit to reside within us. Consider these words from Jesus affirming the centrality of who He is, followed by the power of the Holy Spirit in Luke 12:8-9, 11-12, “Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God. But he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God…“Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say. For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”
Some might erroneously think that God adjusts to changing times. But this typology was seen many times throughout the pages of the Old Testament. We read in Deuteronomy 31:2-3, “And he said to them: “I am one hundred and twenty years old today. I can no longer go out and come in. Also the Lord has said to me, ‘You shall not cross over this Jordan.’ The Lord your God Himself crosses over before you; He will destroy these nations from before you, and you shall dispossess them. Joshua himself crosses over before you, just as the Lord has said.” Realize the Jordan River represents the death of our old nature, as we read in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” The Promised Land is not a picture of heaven, because there are still many battles, etc. It represents life empowered by the Holy Spirit. Moses represents the law. The law is good, but by itself was incapable of bringing people through the Jordan and into the Promised Land, as Moses was not allowed to enter. Joshua, on the other hand, is Jesus in Greek, which means Jehovah is Salvation. It was Joshua who led them into the Promised Land.
It was Jesus and is Jesus who leads us into the Promised Land. There are over 8000 promises in the Bible. So many of them are our assurances of blessings should we grasp just who Jesus is and what it is that He has enabled for us. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 12:10, “Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.” I am nothing without Him. You are nothing without Him, yet you may not realize this. Why is this Friday, Good? Hopefully, understanding what He did for you and me, will open our hearts and minds to just why this day is called Good. If you have not repented of your sins and accepted His sacrifice, making Him your personal Lord and Savior, please don’t delay, do so this day.
Messages from Pastor Lloyd Pulley: