Thursday, September 27, 2007

We Have To Feel It!

I was on Youtube tonight looking for the song "By His Wounds" from an album called "Glory Revealed". I came across this video instead. Someone has taken the song and put it to a clip from the film "The Passion of the Christ". I know that there are many problems held in regard to this film, and a number of them I understand and agree with fully. There are also a number of people that have a problem, in general, with there being any cinematic or artistic portrayl of Jesus, and again I see where they are coming from in one sense. However, in this clip, there is a bit of nonsense feartured, although very briefly, so do guard your minds! However, as an illustration, and illustration only, please read on.

The one thing that stands out for me, with this clip, is that we are seeing, to a large extent, what is being sung (the Scripture of Isaiah 53). Now, I don't believe that we need this film to add anything to what the Bible says, or that without the film or the clip our understanding would be deficient as the Bible says it plainly and clearly enough. What I think we all do, however, is block out the true physical and spiritual realities of what Jesus went through, i.e, He was torn apart when whipped and beaten and crucified and that when Jesus went to that cross the wrath of God was poured out in an incomprehensible way, in that "the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him" (Isa 53v5). We, I, talk of being saved and yet in my heart, far too often, there is a lack of horror that my sin would cause the holy Son of God to be punished in my place ("For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."-2 Cor 5v21) and that He did it all willingly ("he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death even death on a cross"-Phil 2v8; "For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. 18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord."-John 10v17-18). And because He did all of this, and willingly, that horror should be sweetened by gratefulness and joy, that because of what Jesus has done for me, I can say those words of Isaiah 53, but it should always be with heartfelt thanks for Jesus' sacrifice and not just words that we repeat in a similiar fashion that we carry out normal coversations about the weather or fulfill menial tasks-it should hit us! We should feel this truth in the depths of our hearts! It should cause us to weep, and to be filled with joy, that bitter-sweet reality that, in spite of the wretched state of our own hearts, in our natural state, that we are accepted in the beloved, adopted into God's family, declared righteous in our justification, redeemed, made right with Almighty God and only because of King Jesus.
Again, I don't think we need this clip to show us this. But, for those of us who are expert runners when it comes to pondering the sacrifice of Jesus, it is something that is right before us that will, hopefully, cause us to think about what the Bible says. As a graphic illustration, and illustration only, it may cause us to return to the Bible, to read the truth, and force us then to drop on our knees before Jesus, in awe of the great Saviour that He is! "By his wounds we are healed"! Praise God!

2 comments:

Boaly said...

A painful illustration to watch bro!

simont said...

I know it is brother, but don't we need it at times? Our hardness of heart, love of sin and self! We need awakened to the realities of the cross! We need to feel it!