Matins Devotion: November 18, 2024

Matthew 27:33-56

As our Lord hangs upon the cross, the crowd knows exactly what would convince them that Jesus really is the Christ, that He really is the Son of God. “Just come down from the cross and we’ll believe. You said you were powerful enough to destroy the temple and raise it again in three days. Prove it by saving yourself from the condemnation of crucifixion. If you really are the savior of men, if your healings, your miracles really meant anything, then you’d bring yourself down from the cross. But you haven’t. So it appears you’re not really the Son of God. It appears that God isn’t with you because you’re not using your power to escape our hatred.”

Ah, but that’s the beauty of the cross, isn’t it? Jesus reveals His divine nature not by escaping their hatred, but by embracing it. Jesus reveals that He is the Son of God, the Savior of the world, not by using His power to kill His enemies, but by concealing His power to save them, to forgive them, to cover them in His love and mercy. So when you were His enemy, when you warred against Him, hammered the nails into His hands and feet with your sins, the Son of God did not use His power to crush you. He used it to heal you, to love you, to come to your aid, to cover you in His forgiveness, to make you worthy of His kingdom, to give you eternal life. “What punishment so strange is suffered yonder, the shepherd dies for sheep that love to wander. The master pays the debt His servant owes Him, who would not know Him.” 

That’s the power of God. And it’s all yours. Come receive it from your Good Shepherd, from your Savior, from the Son of God, Jesus Christ.