“Eli, Eli, Lama Sabachthani?” That Is, “My God, My God, Why Have You Forsaken Me?”

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” that is, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” - Matthew 27:46.

                The fourth word that Jesus spoke on the cross was the word of anguish. My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me? Why are You so far from helping Me, And from the words of My groaning? - Psalm 22:1. He was forsaken by the Father in order to bring us to God. For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit -1 Peter 3:18. All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all - Isaiah 53:6. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God - 2 Corinthians 5:21.                    

             Jesus was forsaken by everyone, even His disciples. Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled - Mathew 26:56. Likewise the chief priests also, mocking with the scribes and elders, said, “He saved others; Himself He cannot save. If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him. He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” Even the robbers who were crucified with Him reviled Him with the same thing - Matthew 27:41-44. He was forsaken by the Father for the plan of redemption to be fulfilled. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, And you shall bruise His heel - Genesis 3:15. Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him; He has put Him to grief - Isaiah 53:10. 

            Jesus who was forsaken by all for our own sake had promised us that He will never leave us and forsake us.  He I will never leave you nor forsake you - Hebrews 13:5. Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you - Deuteronomy 31:6. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you - Joshua 1:5.    

                                                                   

             

PRAYER: Dear Lord, We thank You for never leaving us nor forsaking us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Palm Sunday

“Hosanna! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ The King of Israel!” - John 12: 13. 

              The disciples brought the colt to Jesus as told by Him and Jesus sat on it. Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their clothes on it, and He sat on it - Mark 11:7. Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey - Zechariah 9:9.

                 People welcomed Jesus as their victorious Savior and honored Him by putting their clothes on the road, waving the palm branch and shouting "Hosanna to the son of David", "Blessed is the King of Israel". They welcomed him as their victorious Savior, taking palm branches and shouting "Hosanna!" - John 12:13. Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: “Hosanna to the Son of David! ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ Hosanna in the highest!”. They shouted, “Hosanna!! Hosanna!!  Son of David!! Blessed is the King of Israel!!”. And when He had come into Jerusalem, all the city was moved, saying, “Who is this?” So the multitudes said, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth of Galilee”  - Matthew 21:8-11.

                  The crowd rejoiced and praised God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen. Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: “‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!’ Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” - Luke 19:37,38. Let us also rejoice and lift up the name of Jesus with hearts full of praises for all His mighty works we have seen in our life.                                                                                 

PRAYER: Dear Lord, You are the King of Kings. We welcome You in our life as our victorious Savior. We lift up Your name with hearts full of praise, shout hosanna and exalt You. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.            

He Said To His Mother, “Woman, Behold Your Son!” Then He Said To The Disciple, “Behold Your Mother!”

  When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” - John 19:26,27.

             The third word that Jesus spoke on the cross was a word of compassion to His mother and the disciple whom He loved. When Jesus therefore saw His mother, and the disciple whom He loved standing by, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold your son!” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother!” - John 19:26,27. John is the only disciple who is at the foot of the cross when Jesus is dying.

           Jesus fulfilled His responsibility by committing His mother Mary to the care of John, the disciple He most loved. It shows the love and care of Jesus towards His mother even on the cross. And from that hour that disciple took her to his own home - John 19:27. Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever - 1 Timothy 5:8.

           Like Jesus, let us also honor our father and mother. Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord your God is giving you - Exodus 20:12. Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. “Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with promise: “that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.” - Ephesians 6:1-3.                                                                           

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Let us have the love and responsibility like You in honoring our parents and taking care of them. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.     

               

Assuredly, I Say To You, Today You Will Be With Me In Paradise

And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” - Luke 23:43.

             The second Word that Jesus spoke on the cross is “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise”. Jesus made this promise to a thief crucified with him when he asked Him to remember him when He came into His Kingdom. Jesus was crucified on the cross between two thieves. And when they had come to the place called Calvary, there they crucified Him, and the criminals, one on the right hand and the other on the left - Luke 23:33. Because He poured out His soul unto death, And He was numbered with the transgressors, And He bore the sin of many, And made intercession for the transgressors - Isaiah 53:12.  

              One of the thieves hanged on the cross blasphemed Jesus whereas the other thief recognized that Jesus did nothing wrong and He is the Savior. Let the Christ, the King of Israel, descend now from the cross, that we may see and believe. Even those who were crucified with Him reviled Him - Mark 15:32. Then one of the criminals who were hanged blasphemed Him, saying, “If You are the Christ, save Yourself and us.” But the other, answering, rebuked him, saying, “Do you not even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?. And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward of our deeds; but this Man has done nothing wrong - Luke 23:40,41.        

                The thief repented and asked Jesus to remember him when he comes into His kingdom and Jesus promised the thief that he would be in paradise and offered him the eternal life on the cross. The thief said to Jesus, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” - Luke 23:42. And Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise” - Luke 23:43. The blood of Christ that is shed on the cross had paid for the sins of everyone and whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” - Romans 10:13.  For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith - and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -  not by works, so that no one can boast - Ephesians 2:8-9.                                                                              

PRAYER: Dear Lord, We thank You for Your gift of salvation for us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Father, Forgive Them, For They Do Not Know What They Do

 Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” - Luke 23:34.

                The first word that Jesus spoke from the cross is the word of forgiveness. He prayed to the Father to forgive His enemies as they do not know what they do. He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors - Isaiah 53:12. But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you - Mathew 5:44.

                Jesus told Peter to forgive seventy seven times which means that we need to forgive those who sinned against us irrespective of what they did. Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times - Matthew 18:21, 22.

               Our heavenly Father will also forgive us as we forgive others. For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you - Matthew 6:14. But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins - Matthew 5:15. But if you do not forgive, neither will your Father in heaven forgive your trespasses - Mark 11:26. Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us - Matthew 6:12. 

                Let us forgive others like Christ for our sins to be forgiven. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you - Ephesians 4:31-32. Bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do - Colossians 3:13.                                                                        

PRAYER: Dear Lord, Let us forgive others just as You have forgiven irrespective of what they did. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

I know The Plans I Have For You

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future - Jeremiah 29:11.

                God's plans stand firm forever and it will always prosper us and give us peace, hope and a future. The plans of the LORD stand firm forever - Psalm 33:11. For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope - Jeremiah 29:11. He knows everything about our life from the beginning till the end. Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure' - Isaiah 46:10

               Jesus surrendered His ways to the will of God and so God's plan of salvation to people was established through Him. Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand - Isaiah 53:10. He knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done" - Luke 22:41. So, God highly exalted Jesus and gave Him the name above every names as He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death. He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore, God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name - Philippians 2:8,9.

               Let us also surrender all our ways to God and trust His plans that give us peace, hope and future. Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths - Proverbs 3:5-6. Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him, And He shall bring it to pass - Psalm 37:5. Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and He will establish your plans - Proverbs 16:3. 

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts - Isaiah 6:8,9.

PRAYER: Dear Lord, We surrender all our ways to You. We thank You for Your great plans for us that prosper us and give us peace, hope and future. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

I Am The Lord Who Heals You

If you listen carefully to the Lord your God and do what is right in his eyes, if you pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees, I will not bring on you any of the diseases I brought on the Egyptians, for I am the Lord, who heals you - Exodus 15:26. 

Listen carefully to the Lord your God 

Love the LORD your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him - Deuteronomy 30.20. My son, pay attention to what I say; turn your ear to my words. Do not let them out of your sight, keep them within your heart; for they are life to those who find them and health to one’s whole body - Proverbs 4:20-22.

Do what is right in his eyes

Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so that it may go well with you - Deuteronomy 6:18. For the ways of the Lord are right; The righteous walk in them - Hosea 14:9.

Pay attention to his commands and keep all his decrees

Keep my commands and follow them. I am the Lord - Leviticus 22:31. Whoever keeps commandments keeps their life - Proverbs 19:16. Walk in obedience to all that the Lord your God has commanded you, so that you may live and prosper and prolong your days in the land that you will possess - Deuteronomy 5:33.

I am the Lord, who heals you 

I will restore you to health and heal your wounds - Jeremiah 30:17. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds - Psalm 147:3. He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses - Matthew 8:17. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed - Isaiah 53:5.                                                                

PRAYER: Dear Lord, You are our Healer. We are healed by Your stripes. Let us listen carefully to You and do what is right in Your eyes, pay attention to Your commands and keep all Your decrees. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.