We are at a time of the year when many people begin to give thought to the death, burial, and resurrection of our Savior. Movies have been made about this, and most evangelical churches use “Easter Sunday” to go through the scriptures that tell the familiar story. The question comes to mind: just how significant was the action that the Son completely fulfilled for the Father to offer eternal life to all sinners of this world? (ESV – all emphasis is mine)
Jesus was not an ordinary human who walked this earth. John 1:1-3 states: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made.”
John 10:10-11; “The thief comes only to kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”
To prove that Jesus came for everyone worldwide, we have John 10:16-18; “And I have other sheep, not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to My voice. So they will be one flock, One Shepherd. For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from My Father.”
Here we have one-third of the Holy Trinity, Creator of the heavens and the earth, allowing Himself to become lower than the angels that He also created (Hebrews 2:7,9) to fully take on being human. The biggest difference with Him was that even though He was seriously tempted “In Person” by Satan, He did not give in. The fact is He is the only human to have ever lived a pure, sinless life and the only one who ever will.
This purity had to be, or our Heavenly Father would not have been able to accept the sacrifice once for all. Instead, we would still be under the old law where priests would still be sacrificing animals as a temporary means of having forgiveness.
Thus, the significance of “It Is Finished” in John 19:30 tells us that our eternal redemption has been paid in full. For our part, we have to confess that we are sinners; Jesus is the true Son of God, and His death, burial, and resurrection are the only way to eternal life with Him. Finally, we have to ask Him to forgive us and be our Savior forever. He literally gave His all so that we could truly have it all. Our covenant is given in 1 John 1:9; “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
In Lamentations 3:22-24, we read, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning, Great is Thy Faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, says my soul, therefore I will hope in Him.”
Psalm 143:8, “Let me hear in the morning of Your steadfast love; for in You I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to You I lift up my soul.”
Psalm 91:4, “He will cover you with His pinions, and under His wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and buckler.”
Paul states in 1 Corinthians 1:9, “God is faithful, by whom you were called unto the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.”
In Hebrews 13:8, we’re told, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, and today and forever.”
No matter how hard we would try, we could never come close to being as faithful as our Heavenly Father, His Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.
In 1923, Thomas O. Chisholm (1866-1960 wrote a song titled “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” His words give praise, glory, and worship to our Heavenly Father for His unlimited love for us.
1.) Great is Thy faithfulness, Oh God my Father; there is no shadow of turning with Thee. Thou changest not; Thy compassions, they fail not; as Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.
Ref.) Great is Thy faithfulness; Great is Thy faithfulness; morning by morning, new mercies I see. All I have needed Thy hand hath provided; great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me.
2.) Summer and winter, and springtime and harvest; sun, moon and stars in their courses above; join with all nature in manifold witness to Thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love. (ref)
3.) Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth, Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide. Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow; blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside. (ref)
Our Savior fulfilled the Father’s wishes to ensure we would have a pure, sinless blood sacrifice so we could be with Him forever.
There is a downside, and unfortunately, even Jesus knew more would reject Him than would receive and accept Him. Matthew 7:13-14 tells of the two roads leading to eternity. One is the broad path that leads to destruction, and the other, straight and narrow, leads to eternal life. He plainly states that there would be more on that broad path than on the narrow one leading to Him.
The outcome of the paths is definite. The straight and narrow leads to the Judgment Seat of Christ, as given in 2 Corinthians 5:10, where everyone will find out if they have gained or lost rewards. However, the final outcome is still eternity with Jesus.
The broad path leads to the White Throne Judgment of Revelation 20:11-15. This judgment is for all who were out of the will of the Father prior to Calvary and all who would not and will not receive and accept Jesus as their Savior from Calvary to the end of this earth. This judgment is to determine the degree of punishment each individual will receive for all eternity. No one at this judgment will be able to call out and be forgiven.
For anyone who has never asked Jesus to be their Savior, now would be a great time to consider it. Once a person’s last breath is taken on this earth, their forever is set.
For all who truly receive and accept Jesus (Romans 10:9-13), there is an event that is rapidly approaching to keep all believers from the coming wrath or tribulation. That will be the Rapture that Paul speaks of in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 and 1 Corinthians 15:51-53. Once the Rapture starts, it will happen so fast – in the twinkling of an eye – that no one will be able to call out before it’s over.
It’s an individual decision that the Father allows everyone to make. He will force no one to take either path but would love for us to call on His Son for our Salvation.
No matter what anyone’s past has been, the only unforgivable sin right now is to die without Jesus as your Savior. During the tribulation, the only other unforgivable sin will be to take the mark of the beast.
Consider your eternity, and yes, forever in one of these two places is absolutely real. There is no third option. Call out to Jesus to forgive you and be your Savior forever. He will turn no one away who truly does so. Satan is the master of lies and would have you believe all this is not so. He knows his forever is already set and would love nothing more than to take souls away from the Savior.
Jesus is waiting for your call. Now would be a perfect time!
Maranatha – Come, Lord Jesus!
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