Were You There?

Today has been a day to reflect on Jesus Christ giving his life to pay for our sin. A day of contrasts when man was at his worst and God was at his best. We tried to kill God and God rescued us.

It is interesting to note some of the people who were present at the cross. We sing the old "Spiritual" "Were you there when they crucified my Lord?" In a way we were - as we are the reason why Christ died. There are also those who were present that represented us.

There were those who represented earthly rulers. The soldiers were there executing the wishes of those in authority. Then there was Pilate who had the power to make the decision to crucify Jesus - or not. Throughout history there has been a conflict between church and state. Jesus is King and he is establishing His Kingdom - but it is not a kingdom of this world. 

Then there were those who might be considered social outcasts - the thieves who were crucified with Jesus. I wonder what their stories might be? What went wrong in their lives. Whatever it was, Jesus was there to offer forgiveness and hope for a better future. He still does that today.

There were the religious leaders who found their place in society threatened. Jesus also flew in the face of all their long-standing religious traditions. Status quo was contrary to what God was doing. How much does religious tradition stand in the way of what God wants to do today?

There were those who abandoned or denied Jesus. Peter as an example. Yet, Jesus didn't give up on them. He invited them back into relationship with him - and entrusted them with the future of the church. God still does that today.

And finally there were those who were devastated and brokenhearted. While Jesus was dealing with the sins of the whole world - past, present and future - he noticed his mother. She was in despair because her son was being horribly, publicly executed. Jesus cared for her and saw that she was looked after. He still does that today.

Jesus gave his life for me - for you. What will we do about this?