A REVELATION; NOT A TRANSACTION
Kendra Intihar
Today's Scripture: “And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.” Matthew 27:51, ESV
Theme: The curtain in the Old Testament temple separated holy God from sinful people. Jesus’ death tore through that barrier and gave us direct access to our God and Father, alive in us.
…AND IT WAS VERY GOOD
I bet you and I were taught the same opening scene of the Bible: Adam and Eve and their descent into sinfulness and disobedience. That is certainly a plot point in Scripture, but our well-meaning Sunday School teachers usually skipped the beginning of the story and went straight to Genesis 3. God’s creation was not a fallen, sinful place in Genesis, Chapters 1 and 2. Rewind! Go back! Scripture’s opening scene is not about how bad we are; it’s about how good God is! The Bible begins with the story of God’s very good creation. Only after His goodness is made manifest in this world do we see brokenness enter the picture…brokenness, but never hopelessness.
The brokenness of the world certainly grieved God – as the entire Old Testament tells us. Yet, the world was never lost to despair because God had a plan to redeem His very good creation. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16, NIV).
A GOD OF FORGIVENESS
God LOVED the world. Even in our disobedience, He loved us so much that He brought Himself into the path of our destruction and absorbed it all for us. Jesus did not give God a reason to forgive us; Jesus revealed to us that God is a God of forgiveness. In other words, Jesus’ death on the cross was not a transaction; it was a revelation. It was the revelation that God’s infinite grace has absorbed every last molecule of sin because He loves us so. When the authorities put Jesus on the cross, they thought they were killing a man. While that is partially true, it’s also only the tiniest fraction of the story God had already written for us.
“For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21, ESV).
LIVING, BREATHING TEMPLES
Before Jesus, the dwelling place of the Lord was the physical temple in Jerusalem – specifically the “Holy of Holies” behind the temple curtain. No one could enter the Most Holy Place except for the specific High Priest at specific times (the yearly day of atonement). When Jesus breathed His last breath on that horrible, beautiful cross, the temple veil was ripped from top to bottom. The presence of the Lord would no longer be contained behind a curtain. Our sin is no barrier to God. We are now walking, living, breathing temples of the Lord (1 Corinthians 3:16). Because of the restorative work of Jesus on the cross, we now serve and worship God in the temples of our lives and at the altars of the work we do in this world.
Make it Personal: Jesus took away the sin of the world and the veil has been torn. He is alive and living in those who believe in Him, which means that despair is never, ever the end of the story. Just as God revealed, in Christ, that He is a God of restoration and forgiveness, He continues to reveal His goodness to us. He has made us emissaries of His goodness in the world, and we participate in His work when we point others to the Good News: God is restoring all things. The Bible begins – and ends – with God’s very good creation. Jesus is Risen – Alleluia!
Pray: Lord, thank You for revealing Yourself as Forgiver, Restorer, Redeemer, and Friend. I trust in Your goodness. Let me be a light in the dark places, bringing the Good News into this world so that others will see You and put their faith in You. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Read: Ephesians 2:21-22; Acts 1:8; Matthew 5:16
Weekly Memory Verse: “But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said.’” Matthew 28:5-6a, ESV