JESUS SPEAKING
Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do” (John 17: 1-4.)
INSPIRED THOUGHTS
Throughout the ministry of Jesus Christ, he continually referred to an hour; a time that had not yet come. None of his disciples knew what he was referring to in this scripture; it wasn’t until after his resurrection that they understood he was speaking about his crucifixion. Jesus accomplished so many good works; the healings, the miracles; and yet his greatest work would be the cross. He is looking forward to when God will raise him up to a place of honor. Jesus says, “and this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.” The cross tells us about God; the cross is an invitation; a love-letter sent out to every human being, inviting them to fall in love with the creator of all things. Have you accepted that invitation yet?
As an oil painter, when I paint I don’t paint merely for my own pleasure; I am always mindful of those who will see the painting when it is finished. Every sculptor who sculpts a masterpiece, doesn’t put it in a storage locker when he completes it; rather, he puts it on a pedestal, or places it on display in a museum, or in the center of some fountain in a city square.
When the Hubble space telescope captured the first images of the distant Galaxies, with their beautiful colors, nebulae, and gas clouds large enough to swallow the sun, we saw first hand, some of God’s creation. When the electron microscope was pointed into a cell, we discovered that it was more complex than the space shuttle. When we see a brand new baby most don’t realize they began as a single cell, no bigger than the period at the end of a sentence; all of the information on how to build your dad, your grandmother, your son or daughter, was held within that single cell; a genetic blueprint from which even you were formed. God created those blueprints. Yet, within this enormous universe, out of every work ever displayed, Jesus Christ upon the cross is God’s masterpiece. We can still look to that masterpiece today and admire God. He loves us, and his work of love was accomplished by way of crucifixion.
“Lord Heavenly Father, we praise You. Your work upon the cross is what we look too, and we see Your glory, and we thank You. Father, continue to help us to look to You in love. Help us to pick up our crosses daily so that others would see Your Glory in our sacrifice as well. We love You Father, we praise You, and we thank You, and we ask and pray all of these things, according to Your will, in Jesus Christ’s name. Amen.”
Jesus Speaks 