SUFFERING IS A WINDOW TO THE SOUL, Daily Devotional, Friday, March 22, 2013

FRIDAY, MARCH 22, 2013
9 Days to Resurrection Sunday
Luke 23:43 “Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.”

SCRIPTURE READING: LUKE 23:35-43
 35And the people stood beholding. And the rulers also with them derided him, saying, He saved others; let him save himself, if he be Christ, the chosen of God.
 36And the soldiers also mocked him, coming to him, and offering him vinegar,
 37And saying, If thou be the king of the Jews, save thyself.
 38And a superscription also was written over him in letters of Greek, and Latin, and Hebrew, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
 39And one of the malefactors which were hanged railed on him, saying, If thou be Christ, save thyself and us.
 40But the other answering rebuked him, saying, Dost not thou fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?
 41And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss.
42And he said unto Jesus, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.
 43And Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, Today shalt thou be with me in paradise.

REFLECTION:  
Suffering is a window to the soul.  Nowhere was this more evident that at Calvary.

The cynic impaled on one side of Jesus railed, “If thou be the Christ, save yourself and us.” (Luke 23:39). Count him among that multitude who doubts the divinity of Christ and delights in the deity of self.  The first article of their creed is “please thyself.” People and things are seen as means to self-fulfillment.  Even Christ is seen as a means not an end.  

This tormented soul, only hours away from an eternity of unfulfilled desire, refused to abandon his self-centered agenda.  Imagine it. Physically he was inches away from the Savior, but spiritually he was a thousand miles away.  He writhed on the cross, longing to escape the consequences of his choices, but unwilling to make a different choice—to make Christ his sovereign.

On the other side of Christ, a man whom we will call the seeker saw the vulgar error of his companion in suffering.  From his painful post he spoke to the cynic: “Dost thou not fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation?” 

The seeker humbly acknowledged his sin and the propriety of his punishment.  He confessed, “We receive the due reward of our deeds.”  When we awake to the fact that we have sinned and that we deserve retribution we are well on our way to salvation.

Focusing his eyes on Christ, the seeker expressed his faith, “this man hath done nothing amiss!”  He is continuing toward Christ, but he has not yet arrived.  The recognition of Christ’s perfection is essential, but it is not enough. Remember Pilate had said a few hours earlier “I find no fault in this man.”  

The seeker’s salvation was secured the moment he sincerely prayed, “Lord…”  In that moment, he stepped off the throne of his life and crowned Jesus Lord of all!  The cynic saw Christ as a means to an end.  The seeker embraced Christ as the end.  His heart sang,
My stubborn will at last hath yielded,
I would be Thine, and Thine alone,
And this the prayer my lips are bringing,
Lord, let in me Thy will be done!
Lelia Morris

The Seeker’s fear of God brought him to humbly acknowledge his need for God.  His confession and faith in the Son of God instantly infused his soul with the blessed hope that is unique to people of God.  “Remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom.” (Luke 23:42).  “We have here no continuing city”, but “we look for a city whose builder and maker is God.” (Hebrews 13:14; 11:10)

Suffering revealed the sad soul of the cynic, it moved the longing soul of the seeker, and it demonstrated the great soul of the Savior. Extreme suffering only proved His extreme goodness and His extreme love for us. 
“Oh what a Savior! Oh Hallelujah! 
His heart was broken on Calvary.  
His hands were nail-scarred, His side was riven, 
He gave His life’s blood for even me.”  

PRAYER: Our Father in Heaven, what a joy to call Thee “Father.” We are so grateful for the promises of your Word. It is such a comfort to know that “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for Thou are with me.” We pray that whatever trial we face today, that we will emerge better not bitter.  Whatever you will that we suffer today, we pray that our faith would hold firm, our love would grow greater, and our hope would hold us secure.  Lord we love you more than anything, more than anyone, and more than ever before.  In Jesus name, Amen.  “Our Father, &c.”