He Did Not Speak

Then they spit in his face and struck him. And some slapped him, saying, “Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck you?”

(Matthew 26:67-68)

Meditation

Why did the Creator of the universe and everything in it, allow himself to be treated the way he was? Why didn’t he speak up when he was being spat upon? Why didn’t he tell them who it was that struck him? Because he is not me, that’s why. He’s is infinitely less vindictive than I am. In my weakness, I want to put the blame on someone else for what happened to Jesus that night and the next day. I want to forget that it was my spittle that struck the face of Jesus. Shamefully, it was my hands that were striking him, and it was my voice that was mocking him! It was my sin that required him to sacrifice himself. And yet, when Jesus was hanging on the cross that next morning, he asked the Father to forgive!

I saw a photo with a person holding a sign that said, “The Jews killed Jesus. God hates the Jews!” People who think like that have no concept of the depth of love the Father has for everyone. Jesus could have wiped out every person in Caiaphas’ court that night by calling down angels to protect him. He didn’t because he was willingly giving himself as a sacrifice for me. Am I worthy of his sacrifice? Have I been a good enough person to warrant the shedding of his blood? Have I done enough good deeds to earn a place at his side? The answer is a resounding NO to all three. The same answer applies to you also. No one who has ever lived deserves or can ever earn the salvation offered by Christ. It’s a gift, offered freely to us from our loving Father. All we have to do is accept it.

When I was still living a life consumed by my sins, I didn’t see a necessity for a savior. I thought it was a sign of weakness to need an unseen God. I thought I could handle pretty much anything life threw at me. I was wrong. I didn’t understand what I was missing because I didn’t know what I could have with Christ. Salvation is more than saying a prayer and being sorry. It’s fully turning away from the way I was before. It’s peace in my heart and so much more. If you haven't yet given your life to Jesus, you are spitting in his face; you are slapping and mocking him. He wants to save you like he saved me. He wants to cleanse you and make you whole. He died for you back then, turn to Him now and be saved!

Daily Prayer

Gracious God and Father, you have made our salvation possible with the gift of your Son, Jesus. Before you saved us, we had trouble understanding why Jesus would willingly sacrifice himself. We looked back at the Jews and Romans, blaming them for the death of an innocent man. At that time, we didn’t understand he was more than a man, he was also God. Now we know our own sins were on his shoulders as he hung on the cross. We realize it was our spittle upon his face. It was our hand that struck his face. It was our mocking voice telling him to prophecy. We are guilty, Lord, and we don’t deserve the sacrifice you paid for our sins. We cannot possibly do enough to make ourselves worthy of the kind of love you showed so many years ago. There is nothing we can do to earn our salvation. It is a free gift from our loving Creator. We covet your love for us, Lord, so help us to share that love with others. We need your forgiveness every day and we thank you for your faithfulness. In Christ’s holy name, Amen!