By Max Lucado
He Canceled the Record
How would you feel if a list of your weaknesses were posted so that everyone, including Christ himself, could see? Yes, Christ has chronicled your shortcomings. And yes, that list has been made public. But you’ve never seen it. Neither have I.
Come with me to the hill of Calvary. Watch as soldiers shove the carpenter to the ground and stretch his arms against the beams. One presses a knee against a forearm and a spike against a hand. Jesus turns his face toward the nail just as the soldier lifts the hammer to strike it.
Couldn’t Jesus have stopped him? Why? Why didn’t Jesus resist? Through the eyes of Scripture we see what others missed but Jesus saw. Colossians 2:14 says, “He canceled the record that contained the charges against us. He took it and destroyed it by nailing it to Christ’s cross.”
How Wide Is God’s Love?
It’s nice to be included. You aren’t always. Universities exclude you if you aren’t smart enough. Businesses exclude you if you aren’t qualified enough. And sadly, some churches exclude you if you aren’t good enough. But though they may exclude you, Christ includes you. When asked to describe the width of his love, he stretched one hand to the right and the other hand to the left and had them nailed in that position so you would know he died loving you.
Surely there has to be a limit to this love. You’d think so, wouldn’t you? But David the adulterer never found it. Paul the murderer never found it. Peter the liar never found it. When it came to life, they hit bottom. But when it came to God’s love, they never did. How wide is God’s love? Wide enough for the whole world, and you’re included.
