As we prepare to celebrate and commemorate such a sacred act of love meshed with pain and agony that ultimately led to death on a cross; I can't help but to think of His unselfishness. An act of Agape Love, which is unconditional love toward all humanity. Yes, Jesus endured much agony, for what? For who? For all of us, so that we can have a second chance at life. You see, our sentence was death; yet, He paid the price. He died so that we can live.
He pronounced SEVEN words that have been the cornerstone of this weekend in all of Christianity, in all churches, in all believers but I want to focus on one word that put end to the pain and misery. IT IS FINISHED! The sixth word that Jesus pronounced was "It is finished!" [John 19:30]
What does this mean? It means that Jesus' purpose here on earth was finished, He finished the job for what He was called for; shortly after that, He died. His death brought a semi-colon [ ; ] to the project He endured, a period [ . ] because that specific task was completed and a colon [ , ] because there was still one more thing to be fulfilled before His job was completely fulfilled. After His death, the bible says, He rose on the third day. Yes! He rose, He woke up! Death did not defeat Him, for He chose to lay himself unto death, it was His decision, not death's.
I want to tell you that the same spirit that had the power to raise Jesus from the dead is the same spirit that dwells in your heart, the Holy Spirit! He has power to help you overcome any situation in life. It is finished because Jesus endured all of your pain and suffering. It is finished!!!!
Can you believe that word today? It is finished because Jesus said it is finished! He does not promise us a perfect life but He does promise to never leave us nor forsake us. We have the one and only who endured all of sin, temptations, pain, sufferings... etc..you name it. He bore it all on the cross and He was able to withstand it! He is by our side all day, everyday to help us overcome life's obstacles.
Next time you find yourself in a crossroad where you don't know what to do, remember Jesus' words on the cross: It is Finished! and because He lives in you, you too can say: It is Finished.
As I was driving to work this morning, I was thinking what should I blog about? It's been a few days and I really wanted to write. And it just hit me.. "All things work out for good." This was a facebook post I wrote a couple days ago because I truly believe; beyond a shadow of a doubt, that this statement is true.
No matter what you are going through; at the end of the day, all things work out for good! Did you read that clearly? Let me repeat it, just in case you think I might have made a mistake. I said, no matter what you are going through [yes, that includes the bad] all things will work out for your good! Isn't that awesome?!
The Bible says: And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. [Romans 8:28]
There is good news my friend! If you love God, everything that happens in your life will be turned into good. Every negative situation, God will turn it into a positive situation. But you may be like, Landy, you don't know what I am going through... etc. I don't need to know, there is someone greater who does know, God. Whatever struggle you may be enduring right now, just know that God is ready to perform a shift in your life. The word speaks about weeping all night long but joy comes in the morning. Let me tell you something, you may be going through some pain but joy is coming your way. Are you ready?! You may not see that ray of sunlight at the end of that dark tunnel but I assure you, there is light! Yes, there is light! He is ready to turn your curse into a blessing, your test into a testimony and your mess into a message. He makes all things work together for your good, remember that!
You see, sometimes we go through some stuff because God knows that we are strong enough to handle it. The Bible says that we can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens us [Phil. 4:13] Just when you think you are at the end of the road, holding on to the end of the rope, God is there to tell you, "Its worth it because all things work together for your good because you love me. And my child, you have passed the test!"
Jesus Culture is one of my favorite bands and I just remembered a song they have that is so appropriate for this topic. Hope it blesses your life. Just know that God's love never fails, even though we may fail Him, His love never changes! [Agape Love!]♥
Today, I want to encourage you to keep on pressing, keep on PUSHing [Pray Until Something Happens] and you will see at the end, how much of a blessing your trials were. Why? Because they made you stronger and now, you are able to help others in similar situations. I want to leave you with my favorite quote: There can't be a TESTimony without a TEST! We all must to go through tests in life in order to testify to others that if we made it, they can too! Now go pass that test & testify, someone needs to hear your testimony!
