The Cross

“And they that passed by reviled him, wagging their heads, And saying, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross. Likewise also the chief priests mocking him with the scribes and elders, said, He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel, let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him.” (Matt. 27:39)

Can you see this scene? The Son of God has just agonized over His decision to go to the cross. He sweated drops of blood in His anguish. He pleaded for His Father to make any other way… but there was no other way. He fought history’s greatest battle on His knees, alone. “He hath poured out his soul unto death.” (Isa. 53:12)

Now, as Jesus hangs on the cross, He is tempted. “Save thyself.” “Come down from the cross.”

Have you heard the tempter’s voice?

The same snake that whispered for Jesus to wrench Himself free from the nails and shame whispers into our lives. “Save yourself.”

That cross is our cross.

Jesus said, “If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.” (Luke 9:23)

What does it mean to take up your cross daily?

It is the moment-by-moment realization that my life belongs to Jesus. It is wielding the reality that I am dead to sin and alive to righteousness. (Rom. 6:2,18) It is putting off the old man, the sinful nature that used to control me, and putting on the new man, which is the Life of Jesus Christ ruling in my body and spirit. “That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts… And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” (Eph. 4:22-24) 

Simply put, it is saying no to self and sin and saying yes to God. And we do that through faith in Jesus’ work, not faith in our own good efforts.

Jesus’ cross was a once-in-history cross. He has completed the work. “It is finished.” (John 19:30) Ours is a daily cross. We must live each moment in light of our Savior’s victory.

Have you heard the tempter’s voice?

“Save yourself.” Perhaps it sounds more like, “God doesn’t really expect victory in every area of your life all the time.” 

That is when we need the cross more than ever. The tempter lies. It is his nature (John 8:44). Do you know God’s nature? God is truth (John 14:6), and He only speaks truth (Tit. 1:2). When God tells us to put to death the deeds of the body (Rom. 8:13), He means it. 

The cross was more than an annulling of our sins. The cross is complete destruction of everything that stands in the way of a full relationship with God Himself. 

Jesus did not just die on the cross to take away your sins. He died on the cross to take away your sin—the part of you that controls you and will kill you. “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.” (Rom. 6:6-7)

Today, I am dead. I am dead to sin. I am dead to self. I am set free to live in my Jesus!

And when I hear a voice hissing, “Save yourself,” I’ll know it for what it is. A lie. 

Who would ever want to trade freedom in Christ for the slavery of sin?

Rejoice in what your Savior has done for you today! This is a very Good Friday indeed.

European Adventure Part Five: Paris

Yes, I realize this trip occurred in summer 2015 ... but I still want to post about it!

PARIS, FRANCE

5.26.15 - 5.30.15

By mid-morning, it was going to be an adventure to see if we would make it to Paris! 

From Lauterbrunnen, we squeaked onto a train for the second leg of our journey which departed a half hour earlier than the train we had planned to take. It appeared that we had plenty of time... until we pulled out our tickets for the next two trains and realized that we had reserved them for the wrong day, several days later!

Allow me to briefly explain. Although Eurail is a train system, some of the trains require reservations. It's not like the old-fashioned American trains for which one could walk up and purchase a ticket on the day of travel. It's more like an airline; you need your reservations in advance.

Thus began an exercise of faith. God foresaw this problem, had us on a train a half hour earlier than we had planned, and would see us through the rest of the day. But for an hour or so, all we could do was sit and wait.

I watched in amazement as God led us to the help desk, through the process of changing our tickets, and onto the platform where the train would arrive with about ten minutes to spare. God knew exactly how much time we needed and had provided it even before we knew there was a problem!

The Eiffel Tower was first on our to-do list in Paris, 
so we headed through Champs de Mars (a park).

All at once, the tower appeared through the trees.

Sisters in Paris!

I knew the Eiffel Tower was big, but I didn't expect it to be that big as I approached!

We started out on the lower platform ... 
and then went all the way up there (to the "lip" on the top!)

We watched the sun set from the top of the Eiffel Tower ... until my sister and I begged to go down because we were so tired. That is when we discovered it was nearly ten o'clock! 

As we reached the bottom of the tower, the crowds on the Champs de Mars began cheering. Lights began flashing. The Eiffel Tower was lit up - and not just lit up, but sparkling brilliantly!  

For about five minutes, the lights flashed and we enjoyed perfect views of the tower.  

As I turned away from snapping my last photo, the lights stopped sparkling.  

God had blessed us all day long with His truly perfect timing!

Musée d'Orsay is an amazing museum.  
I could have basked here for a few days, not a few hours!
The statues interested me more than I expected; 
I think I am gaining an appreciation for sculpture after Rome and Paris!
I especially appreciated the Monet, Degas, and Van Gogh exhibits.  
Each one alone would have merited a separate museum in America!  
Musée d'Orsay is built in an old train station with side rooms extending from the main hall.

(Mom, me, and Caroline)
Île de la Cité (isle of the city, situated in the middle of Paris in the Seine)
interested me far less than I expected.
Cathédrale Notre Dame de Paris was less spectacular than other cathedrals we had visited,
though the stained glass was lovely.

There they are... the gates of gold!  

Though the skies threatened, I was glad it did not rain as we waited in a long line at Versailles.

Other than the hall of mirrors (above), the rooms were not well-decorated.
I suppose the enraged peasants destroyed most of the furnishings during the French Revolution.
Versailles was a let-down for us; after all, it is the finest French palace, right?
Perhaps we would have appreciated it more had the weather been warmer
and more conducive to exploring the extensive palace gardens.

We went to Musée de l’Orangerie just to see Claude Monet's water lily rooms.

After WWII, Monet painted eight large canvases of water lily scenes and gave them to the city of Paris. He wanted the Parisians to have a peaceful retreat after the horrors of war.

Those paintings are now on display in two oval rooms.

  It really is a peaceful retreat - I could stay for hours.

Paintings don't usually stop me in my tracks, but this one did.
Does anyone else think the water is rippling?

Here we are at l'Arc de Triomphe!

The city spread out in all directions from the platform on top of l'Arc de Triomphe.

This is not a fancy bakery; this is MacDonald's.
Yup, we had real French fries. (But they didn't taste as good without MSG!)

On our last evening in Paris, we noticed something for the first time right outside our apartment.

Our apartment building sat on a corner with the above view to the Eiffel Tower!

We went outside and watched it light up... a perfect ending to Paris!

.......................................................................

Next travel post: a day trip in France.