Entrusting Yourself to the One who Judges Righteously: Introduction to the Passion week

I was writing a blog yesterday which my lovely computer decided to delete, which I must say, really challenged my sanctification! However, I lived to wake up another day, and my computer did as well (though there was temptation to annihilate it with much gusto) Well, after thinking about the post, I decided it was to lengthy to begin with and to approach this idea a little differently. I wanted to write something in regards to the Passover/Easter weeks we recently celebrated as we pondered and reminisced of our sweet Savior's passion week. In the following days I will partake in a journey through the final days of the Christ and reflect on each day in how it corresponded to the Passover week and how He, our Savior, "fulfilled" the feast, not only as our Passover Lamb but gave new meaning to the festivities and symbolism the original feast was to commemorate. This current post will be an introduction to this venture, as I will approach the thought of the mindset of Jesus as He approached that final hour. Be looking in upcoming weeks as we start on the day of the Triumphal entry and continue on to the cross.

When He was reviled, He did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but continued entrusting Himself to Him who judges justly ~ 1 Peter 2:23

As He approached his final hours His heart and eyes were fixed solely on His prize, the winning and redemption of His elect from slavery to sin. Passover was ultimately in remembrance of this day in Israel's history, when God redeemed the people from the bondage and slavery of Egypt and brought them into their promised land. It was commemorating that day when the Angel of the Lord "passed over" those who by faith placed the blood of the lamb on their door. As we see through the writer of the Hebrews, Christ was tempted in all things yet without sin that He may be our great high priest, able to sympathize with His people. In doing so He is the great example of the lamb being led to the slaughter, but also reveals Himself as the great Shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep, and causes them to lie down in green pastures as we see in the feeding of the thousands. On His road to calvary, as the Scripture above indicates, He continuously entrusted His life to the one who judges justly. Christ, based upon the truth uttered by His mouth, was being reviled by the religious leaders of the day, the ones who were supposed to be upholding rightoues judgement based upon God's holy laws He instituted and who had been given the Law and the Prophets which pointed to the Savior of the Jews that was to come. The Author of these laws and the giver of these feasts was standing before them, tabernacled in flesh, and was condemned by the words and judgment of these earthly judges. Through all this, he entrusted Himself to the one who judgest righteously, His father. No time did he hurl back insults or thrash in rage and violence, but set His eyes as flint towards to the cross, never losing eye on His ultimate purpose and glory. He is our example of our heavenly calling, of being so heavenly minded and being of earthly good, that He shows through the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit, we too can walk our road of calvary in a manner worthy of that calling. Setting our eyes on the things above, not on the earth below, and entrusting our lives to the one who judges righteosly knowing that we have been given the deposit of the Holy Spirit and the promises of an inheritance of communion with the God-head in glory.

In those final days the Hallel would be recited and sung, thus the disciples and Christ would have sung these hymns of Psalm 113-118 on those days of Passover. I now lead you to a few of the stanzas of Psalm 118, which Christ would have sung with His disciples approaching that final hour which He had been foretelling would occur in the upcoming days. The hour of horror and isolation as being considered accursed by man and His father as He bore the sins of humanity.

"Out of my distress I called on the LORD, the LORD answered me and set me free. The LORD is on my side, I will not fear. What can man do to me? The LORD is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes (vs 6-9)

"The LORD is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation. Glad songs of salvation are in the tents of the righteous. The right hand of the LORD does valiently, the right hand of the LORD exalts, the right hand of the LORD does valiently! I shall not die but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the Lord! (vs14-16)"

"The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is the LORD's doing, it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the LORD has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it (vs 22-23)"

"You are my God, and I will give thanks to you, You are my God; I will extol you. Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, for His steadfast love endures forever! (v28-29)"

These words are the ones that Jesus would have sung the night of his betrayal and would have heard as the Paschal lamb was being slaughtered inside the temple as Christ approached His darkest moment. These are the words that were sung as He was being beaten, flogged, mocked, insulted and ultimately offered up to the Father as a sacrifice for redemption unknowingly by His offenders. The Messiah was reminded through words written centuries before that the Father was the Sovereign and in control of His impeding torture and being hung from a Roman cross. This too is our reminder of the great love of the Father and the great price of the Messiah who bore the wrath that was due me, that I may be adopted as a Son of the King from the family of the evil one. This is the frontal that ought to be placed on my forehead and sung in my ears and imbedded in my mind as I carry my cross daily. It is marvelous in our eyes that the chosen stone that was rejected by the builders has become our chief cornerstone that we too have been built upon. He is good, His steadfast love endures forever. No matter our circumstances in life, or the sorrow and pain we feel now, it can not compare to the glory we will have in eternity with the Father. How deep the Father's love for us!