I'd read one of the blog-post length chapters (or two or three!), then read some of the quoted books and chapters of the Bible more fully. He died to secure this for us.Molly lent me this book, and I've been enjoying reading it with my Bible during devotions. We have seen enough to capture us for his cause. In his suffering and death “we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14). And what is that? It is the gift he prayed for at the end of his life: “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory” (John 17:24). So I say with those early witnesses, “He loved me and gave himself for me.”Īnd what do I mean? I mean that he paid the highest price possible to give me the greatest gift possible. And there flows into my heart this great reality-the love of Christ for me. My heart is swayed, and I embrace the beauty and bounty of Christ as my treasure. “Whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). “Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name” (Acts 10:43).
“Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13). “The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).Īnd I ask, Am I among the “many”? Can I be one of his “friends”? May I belong to the “church”? And I hear the answer, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved” (Acts 16:31). “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). 30 6 “Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25). For whom? It says, Christ Suffered and Died. When it comes to salvation, I have forfeited all claim on justice. It is my hard-heartedness and spiritual numbness that demean the worth of Christ. It is my sin that cuts me off from God, not sin in general. They are about Christ’s love for me personally. Surely this is the way we should understand the sufferings and death of Christ. They took the self-giving act of Christ’s sacrifice very personally. The early witnesses who suffered most for being Christians were captured by this fact: Christ “loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20). The death of Christ is not only the demonstration of God’s love (John 3:16), it is also the supreme expression of Christ’s own love for all who receive it as their treasure. 30-31Ĭhrist loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.Ĭhrist loved the church and gave himself up for her. The Passion of Jesus Christ, John Piper pp.
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