More Than A Picture
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures. (I Corinthians 15:3-4, NIV)
Years ago, I heard a story about a young twelve-year-old boy who received his first Bible. Inside the cover of his new Bible were several pictures of well-known biblical characters and scenes - Moses extending his staff as the Red Sea parts, Elijah fed by the ravens in the wilderness, Ezekiel’s vision of God’s chariot throne by the River Chebar in Babylon, and many others.
But as he thumbed through the pictures in his Bible, this young boy came across one picture that both arrested his attention and, at the same time, alarmed him. It was a painting of Christ on the cross. The nails in his hands, the crown of thorns upon his head, the blood and sweat that mingled together as it ran down his naked body; this graphic picture of the horror of Calvary’s cross touched this young boy deeply, and he began to cry.
Hearing her son weeping, the boy’s mother rushed to his room. There, she saw the open Bible, the picture of Jesus on the cross, and her son uncontrollably weeping. So, in an effort to comfort the boy, she placed her arms around him and said, “It’s okay son, it’s just a picture, it never really happened.”
This week, as we remember the final days of our Lord and Savior, his agonizing death on Calvary, and his victory over death in the Garden, we know that these things are more than pictures, more than fairy tales or legends. Together, they point to the greatest events in time and eternity.
As Paul states in 1 Corinthians 15 - the death and resurrection of Christ are of first importance.
In light of this, our devotionals for this week and next will focus exclusively on the crucifixion and resurrection of our Lord.
Each one of these devotionals will be accompanied by a brief podcast, which you can listen to by clicking here.
I’ve entitled this week’s series, “Darkness and Death.” Next week we will be considering “The Road From the Tomb.”
As these days of Lent draw to their decisive conclusion, let’s take the time to remember the price Christ paid to set us free from our sins, and let’s look forward, with joy, to the new life promised through his resurrection.
In Christ,
Dan