It all becomes so clear...

Today's Reading:
Matthew 27
Somewhere in Leviticus :-)

You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
Though he (Jesus) was God,
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;
he took the humble position of a slave
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,
he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

Philippians 2:3-8

I learned something long ago, and the longer I study the Bible it proves itself true. The BIble explains the Bible. Yeah, I know it may sound confusing. What I mean is that one verse found in the Bible, in order to understand it fully, you have to know another verse...and that other verse is explained by yet another verse somewhere else in scripture. The Bible is not a random collection of do's and do nots. It is not a self help book filled with a random collection of advice. It is God's grand story. A tapestry so beautifully interwoven that if you take but one thread from the story...it unravels. It would be missing something so important as if one ripped the page out of a novel or cut 10 very important minutes from a movie. It is God's grand painting. The more verses I learn and take to heart the greater my ability to understand fully the truth God wants to reveal in His word.

Tonight I read Matthew 27...the story of the crucifixion of Jesus.It has the ability to read very dry...it's extremely historical in nature. No embellishment...no drama...no fancy words meant to illicit emotion. It is merely a history...and not overly exciting I must say.

But then I remember the words of Philippians 2:3-8 and Matthew 27 takes on a whole new significance. (Yes, you should read Matthew 27 :-)

Jesus was God...and suddenly I think of the scene in the Old Testament where Moses wishes to see God's Glory and God informs Moses quite simply "You can't handle it Moses." I am reminded of how great and beyond us God truly is...and yet here is Jesus in Matthew 27, being that very same God, born as a man and humbling himself to the death on a cross (the most brutal form of death ever concocted) described in Matthew 27...

...and all for me, and you, and anyone else that has ever lived. When I take the identity that the Bible gives me of Jesus in Philippians (and dozens of other verses) Matthew 27 takes on it's full meaning and it is at that time that I find myself reading such a dry, historical recount of a man's death and find tears of joy streaming down my face...because I "Know" who it is that is being beaten, tormented, flog, abused and crucified...

....and I know why He is doing it...all to show me love the world has never seen before or since to bring me back to Himself...it is God in human form...Jesus, the Christ.

Do not make the mistake of reading the Bible as if it is simply a collection of ancient proverbs because if you do you will simply miss the point.

“For God loved the world so much that he gave his gone and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)

So often quoted, and perhaps so often glossed over with a "yeah, yeah, I know that." that we fail to appreciate the magnitude of what happens in Matthew 27.

Let us not become so fixated upon one part of the painting that we miss the painting itself in all it's beauty.

Thank you Jesus for what you did in chapter 27 of Matthew...because it means everything :-)