“When He sees all that is accomplished by His anguish, He will be satisfied.
And because of His experience, my righteous servant will make it possible for many to be counted righteous,
for He will bear all their sins.” – Isaiah 53:11
I accepted Christ as my Savior when I was a little girl, but I never really understood the significance of the Cross. The phrase “Jesus died to save me from my sins” was just memorized, rote words. I had no idea what they meant.
That all changed one ordinary day in my early twenties. I was having lunch with a colleague who was a young, blonde gal and a beautiful, Spirit-filled Christ follower. I was drawn to her Jesus. Her authenticity led me to boldly confess that while I had prayed to accept Christ as a child, I didn’t understand what Jesus dying to save me meant.
To my surprise, after a long pause, she refused to tell me. She wisely advised me to pray and to ask God to tell me what those words meant. I naively laughed and somewhat mockingly asked, “Should I expect to hear a voice?” With an unwavering confidence, she lovingly told me that I would know when the answer had come.
A year and a half later, as I sat in Bible study, the answer came. The teacher was explaining how the symbols of Christmas all pointed to Christ and His sacrifice on the Cross. Using the words of Isaiah 53, she personalized the meaning of the Cross and encouraged us to do the same. The teacher shared the physical, emotional, and spiritual agony Jesus endured — for me.
“But He was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s path to follow our own. Yet the LORD laid on Him the sins of us all. He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet He never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, He did not open His mouth.” Isaiah 53:5-7
As she continued, I remembered the conversation with my co-worker. Though I had almost forgotten the exchange, God never had. He was answering her prayer before my very eyes. Catching a glimpse of the true meaning of the Cross was almost more than I could handle. I left Bible study in tears. I kept thinking, “It was my sin that put Him on that Cross. I’m the one who deserves punishment. But He took it for me.”
Later, when I went to bed, my mind continued to ponder. One by one, I gave Jesus the weighty and burdensome sins that I had been carrying. Like weights falling off my shoulders, He removed the sin and the guilt associated with them.
My life has not been the same since.
“I will give Him the honors of a victorious soldier, because He exposed Himself to death. He was counted among the rebels. He bore the sins of many and interceded for the rebels.”- Isaiah 53:12
Perhaps you were raised in the church and have been a Christian for most of your life. Yet in all honesty, like me, you do not understand the meaning of the Cross… Or perhaps it’s just a bumper sticker design – another logo for just another faith… Maybe you are a new Christian and the meaning of the Cross is brand new.
Regardless of your situation, join me over these next three weeks to explore and understand the true meaning of the Cross.
Women and Comparisons
BREAKING THE ROUTINE OF COMPARISON AND JEALOUSY IN YOUR JOURNEY WITH GOD
SPEAKER: ALLISON CAIN
Wednesday, April 14, 2021
12:00PM – 12:35PM EST
ZOOM CALL
A PRAYER-DRIVEN LIFE
Learning to Pray Proactively
THURSDAY, APRIL 22ND
12:00-12:45PM | ZOOM
LED BY TARA FURMAN AND MELISSA BELL