Monday, March 10, 2008
Isaiah 1:18 "Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow . . ."
A BLIZZARD ON CALVARY
Did you know that it snowed on Mt. Calvary when Jesus was crucified? In drawings and paintings that help us visualize our Lord's crucifixion we see dark clouds and flashes of lightning, but seldom do we see precipitation of any kind, especially not snow. And truth be told, none of the Gospel writers record anything about snow.
But that doesn't change the fact that with every twinge of pain in Christ's body there came down another flake of pure, white snow. It was a snowstorm, not just a flurry. We might even call it a blizzard. For when Jesus had felt all the pains of body and soul that our sins had earned, there over the blood red field of the world's sinfulness lay a thick blanket of white. This snowy blanket of Christ's suffering covered all the misspoken words and misshapen deeds that mankind had ever created. By the time the storm subsided the snow was so deep, that not even the pudgy shapes of those evil things could be seen from above. All was smooth, and white, and pure, and new.
Perhaps you feel a recurring twinge of regret over some foolish word you once spoke. Perhaps you are saddened by some hurtful thing you once did. Remember the snow on Mt. Calvary. Even the outline of that sin in gone, buried in the avalanche of Christ's suffering, covered over by the blanket of His righteousness.
Perhaps you have a hard time forgiving the foolish words directed your way by others. Perhaps you can't seem to forget some hurtful thing that someone has done to you. Remember the snow on Mt. Calvary. To God, even the outline of those sins are gone, buried in the avalanche of Christ's suffering, covered over by the blanket of His righteousness.
"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you" (Ephesians 4:31-32 NIV).
