PIERCED

 

PIERCED

CRUSHED
PUNISHMENT

WOUNDED

STRIPES
But He was pierced for our transgressions, 

He was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that brought us peace

was upon Him,

and by His stripes

we are healed.

Isaiah 53:5

    PIERCED

The nails used to hold Christ to the cross were about 7-inches in length: head, shank, tip. 

    This is a Remembrance Nail my Mother found at a thrift store some years back. And she gave it to me. These were created in 1973 after much research by the man who commissioned them to be made. It's a heavy nail with a roundish head and a thick point. It was this type of nail that PIERCED Christ Jesus' hands and feet. And while the nails fastened Him to the cross, it was Love that kept Him there. 

    CRUSHED

    Oppressed in spirit, bruised in body, Jesus knew pain like many of us have never experienced. A crown of thorns was not just laid atop His head, but pressed into His head with such force that the top of His head bled. He was whipped then covered with a robe; when the blood had begun to dry on the robe, it was lifted off His body, tearing anew the wounds on His back. He was forced to carry His own cross up a hill. Then He was nailed to it. The reverberations of the hammer hitting the nails echoed through His broken body.

    We have oils and ointments and drinks to dull the sensations of pain in our bodies and minds. He had none of this, though when it was offered Him, He refused (Psalm 69:21; John 19:29). 

    PUNISHMENT

Hebrews 9:27, 28 tells us "Just as it is appointed unto man to die once, and after that to face judgment,  So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for Him shall He appear the second time without sin unto salvation." 

    He bore my sins and yours. He took our punishment upon Himself that we would not be punished for our unrighteous, wicked ways. Christ Jesus allowed Himself, in obedience to His Father, to be tortured and killed for us (Luke 22:42). 

WOUNDED

    Not all wounds result in death, but this wounding which Christ received not only resulted in His death, but was instrumental in conquering death once and for all to all who believe on The Name of The Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior. 

    What are these transgressions for which He was PIERCED and WOUNDED? Rebellion. Rising up against God and God's Word. Rebellious thoughts and actions and attitudes. Insurrection against God's Authority. Treasonous words and actions.

    STRIPES

    It is for our rebellion that He willingly let Himself be led to a mock trial; let Himself be taunted, whipped with a Roman leather whip which had barbs in it designed to rip and tear the flesh off of the one being punished in this way. He allowed Himself to be led on the road to Calvary. He is God's Word in the flesh and in the flesh He submitted and surrendered to God's Will that God's Purpose would be carried out:

    JOHN 3:16, 17

For God so LOVED THE WORLD that He gave His Only Begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

    By His STRIPES we are healed. Healed of the sin in our hearts. Healed of the sicknesses in our bodies. Healed and delivered of the torments of the mind. All we have to do is believe that JESUS CHRIST IS LORD. 

    And having believed it is only in this love we have for Him that we can choose to honor Him with our lives. So we ask The Holy Spirit to reveal God to us in His Word and help us to live a life that honors God. That's The Way of Holiness. That's the path we traverse and the journey we begin in this life. 

    It's a simple faith. So simple that it is impossible for many people to believe it. But I believe. Do you? 

    

BY HIS WOUNDS - Mac Powell (Glory Revealed album)

ONLY JESUS - Casting Crowns 

BETTER IS ONE DAY - Kutless