John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
John 14:6
Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
The following is a historical description of Jesus by Publius Lentulus, governor of Judea, addressed to Tiberius Caesar, emperor of Rome. It was written in Aramaic, on stone and found in an excavated city. (From a book "A Call To Joy" by Matthew Kelly, pg:71-72).
"There lives, at this time, in Judea, a man of singular virtue whose name is Jesus Christ, whom the barbarians esteem as a prophet, but his followers love and adore him as the offspring of the immortal God. He calls back the dead from the graves, and heals all sorts of diseases with a word or a touch.
He is a tall man, and well shaped, of an amiable and reverend aspect; his hair is of a color that can hardly be matched, the colour of chestnut full ripe, falling in waves about his shoulders. His forehead high, large and imposing; his cheeks without spot or wrinkle, beautiful with lovely red: his nose and mouth formed with exquisite symmetry; his beard thick and of a color suitable to his hair, reaching below his chin. His eyes bright blue, clear and serene, look innocent, dignified, manly and mature. In proportion of his body, most perfect and captivating, his hands and arms most delectable to behold.
He rebukes with majesty, counsels with mildness, his whole address, whether in word or in deed, being eloquent and grave. No man has ever seen him laugh, yet his manner is exceedingly pleasant; but he has wept in the presence of men. He is temperate, modest and wise; a man, for his extraordinary beauty and divine perfections, surpassing the children of men in every sense."
To: All
STILL HE WALKED
He could hear the crowds screaming
"crucify" "crucify"...
He could hear the hatred in their voices,
These were His chosen people.
He loved them, and they were going to crucify Him.
He was beaten, bleeding and weakened...
His heart was broken, But still He walked.
He could see the crowd as He came from the palace.
He knew each of the faces so well.
He had created them.
He knew every smile, laugh, and shed tear, But now they were contorted with rage and anger...
His heart broke, But still He walked.
Was He scared?
You and I would have been so His humanness would have mandated that He was.
He felt alone.
His disciples had left, denied, and even betrayed Him.
He searched the crowd for a loving face and He saw very few.
Then He turned His eyes to the only one that mattered
And He knew that He would never be alone.
He looked back at the crowd, at the people who were spitting At Him,
throwing rocks at Him and mocking Him and he knew That because of Him, they would never be alone. So for them, He walked.
The sounds of the hammer striking the spikes echoed through the crowd.
The sounds of His cries echoed even louder, the cheers of the crowd, as His hands and feet Were nailed to the cross, intensified with each blow.
Loudest of all was the still small voice inside his Heart that whispered "WHY HAVE YOU FORSAKEN ME",
And God's heart broke.
He had let His Son walk.
Jesus could have asked God to end his suffering, But instead He asked God to forgive.
Not to forgive Him, but to forgive the ones who were persecuting Him.
As He hung on that cross, dying an unimaginable death, He looked out and saw, not only the faces in the crowd, But also, the face of every person yet to be, And His heart filled with love.
As His body was dying, His heart was alive.
Alive with the limitless, unconditional love He feels for each of us.
That is why He walked.
When I forget how much My God loves me, I remember His walk.
When I wonder if I can be forgiven, I remember His walk.
When I need reminded of how to live like Christ, I think of His walk.
And to show Him how much I love Him, I wake up each morning, turn my eyes to Him, And I walk. |
