Revealing Christ

Does the cross change God, or does it change us? Where was the Holy Spirit during the cross?  Did Jesus drink the cup of Gods wrath or was it something else?  Is it reasonable to infer our own interpretation as 'gospel truth'.  Why did it take 1,000 years for the doctrine of PSA to become accepted as mainstream theology? What did theologians believe before that?  How does the wrath view of the cross compare with the Christus Victor view?

Have you ever wrestled with any of these questions? Was the wrath of God put on Christ? Does God need an object to put His punishment on? Did God forsake His Beloved Son so He wouldn't need to forsake you?  Did Jesus become 'sin'?  Was the Trinity broken during the cross? Was the cross punishment or a demonstration of grace?  Was the cross retribution or redemption? It takes a good study and some honesty with the Hebrew and Greek to bring clarity to our understanding. The   

The moment when Jesus cried out in Matthew 27:46 "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?" He couldn't feel the presence of God for the first time in all eternity past, or future. This cry is often interpreted as confusion, but I believe it is a deliberate quotation of Psalm 22.  Jesus knew exactly why. What do you think? Did God "turn His back" on His Only Son? Or was the Father broken also? Psalm 22:24 states when Jesus cried, the Father heard Him. God heard it, and it broke his heart also…   

Shaming Eve for humanity's fall from grace is an lame excuse for yourself. Adam and Eve were responsible for their own actions not yours.  Using scripture to shame or blame others, especially women, highlights your own hypocrisy. 1 Timothy 2:14 shows us: Adam was not deceived- he knew exactly what he was doing was wrong- Eve was decieved- but he still blames her!  Don't fall into that trap!

Luke 24:13-35 God meets us in our deepest moments of doubt and despair. Christ draws near to the broken-hearted, even when we fail to recognize Him. Jesus doesn't force Himself on those who aren't seeking Him and He would have passed by if the disciples hadn't constrained Him to stay - a sobering reminder that encountering Christ requires a genuine desire to know Him.

The Ark (coffin) of the Covenant reveals the attributes of Jesus Christ.  The acacia wood, beaten gold, the manna, the angels, the mercy seat, Aaron's rod, it all points to Christ. The Ark also symbolizes our need for mercy, transformation, and the danger of religious performance without genuine relationship.

God didn't dismantle the Most Holy Place to be replaced with religious trinkets, but with something far more profound: Christ in you, a living, breathing sanctuary in human hearts. The torn temple veil reveals God's ultimate plan, how through faith in Jesus, every believer becomes the new holy place, in dwelt by the living God. Hebrews 10:19-20 declares, we now have boldness to enter His Presence through Jesus Christ! No additives needed!

Christ's ministry began with turning water into the finest wine at Cana, surrounded by joy and love, yet ended with unbearable bitterness, receiving sour wine from those who hated Him, all to fulfill Scripture and accomplish our redemption with a triumphant "It is finished!"

When Christ died, the earth itself trembled. Discover how one moment of ultimate sacrifice shook the world—literally and spiritually—and how sometimes it takes an earthquake to transform a soul.

In a world full of men, Jesus the Christ chose Mary Magdalene to be the first to witness and proclaim to them that Christ had risen from the dead, and they didn’t believe her.  They needed to have their own eyes behold it.  Do you believe in the resurrection of the dead?  How will God do that?  What will our new bodies be like?

There is great significance to the Triumphal Entry of Christ to Jerusalem.  Jesus usually walked everywhere, but today He’s riding a donkey?  Have you ever seen a Jerusalem Donkey?  They bear a cross on their backs.

Did you know that after Christ revealed Himself to Peter and Andrew, they still went back to work and didn't follow Him right away? Many people claim to know God but have no desire to follow Him full time. Even demons believe and tremble before Him, yet many people have no fear that someday their opportunity to truly follow Him will be over!

Jesus goes back to His hometown of Nazareth.  They know Him there as the 'Carpenter'.  He gives His first sermon that's recorded in the Bible, less than a minute long and  He was rejected immediately by His own people!

Why would Jesus help this guy out?  Why would one of Herod’s elite seek Jesus?  Because he has bigger problems than politics, his child is dying.

She's a lesser race and a lesser gender!  Why's Jesus talking to her?  She's about to win the prize of salvation though, and the apostles are about to get schooled.

The religious world considered her worthless because she was a foreigner and she’d been married 5 times.  

Luke 2:35 “…a sword will pierce through your own soul also), that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.”

The second time John exclaimed "Behold the Lamb Of God"! The First Disciples Were Andrew and ???  Jesus asked them "why are you following Me?"  Why did I come to Christ?  Why do you follow Him?  

Most people don't know that John the Baptist said this two days in a row.  John states "I did not know Him".  Even later on John struggled with who Jesus was.  How many of us struggle to 'know' Him?

Greedy church leaders turning church into money!  That's a good way to make God mad.  This is the first time Jesus Cleanses the temple, at the beginning of His ministry.  This was prophesied in the book of Malachi, ironically a book that money-loving preachers twist to collect money to this day.