Ultimate Grace

Posted in , , , , By Mike Johns 0 comments

When I was about 8 I thought it was my job to protect my older sisters(one was 10 and the other was 12).  It was a warm summer day and we were playing at the park when I saw a boy picking on my oldest sister.  The boy was 12 but I still could not stand for my sister to be picked on.  After all, if someone was going to pester my siblings, it was my right not anyone else's.  So I approached him and let him know that he would not be picking on my sister without trouble from me!  Do you realize how this sounds?  An 8 year old confronting a 12 year old... well you can guess how it went from there.  He bloodied my nose, but I still had the honor of standing up for my sister.  He also left her alone, which was a bonus.

It is great to have someone to stand up for you.  

I was reading Matthew 8:14-17.  It is the passage where Jesus heals many, including Peter's Mother-in-law and many others.  The passage ends with a quote from Isaiah... "He took our illnesses and bore our diseases."  This was prophesy being fulfilled.  

I have often heard it said that an innocent man died on the cross.  It is true that he did nothing wrong.  It is true that he never sinned.  But, we do not kill innocent men, innocent men were never hung on a cross.  The fact is that he bore our disease, our illness, our sin.  Jesus was not innocent, He was guilty... not of his own doing, but of mine and yours.

What an incredible display of grace - that he who knew no sin became sin so that we might become His righteousness.  He stood up for you.  He took much more than a bloody nose on your account.

May you realize the Ultimate Grace in your life today.