Meditation for Wednesday of Holy Week

Greetings in the Name of Christ Jesus our Lord.

The assigned Epistle for this day is Romans 5:6-11, which reads as follows:

"For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation."

Oftentimes we call John 3:16 the Gospel in a nutshell. I think that title really should go to Romans 5:8 - But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

That is it. It's not just that we needed rescuing, it's not just that things were out of our control and God steps in - no - we were still sinners. We were enemies of God - and yet, even then, God's love compels Christ to go to the Cross for us, a love we have done nothing to earn, a love that we had done everything to confound and spoil.

Yet this is God's love for us. There is nothing noble in us that would make God set the events of Holy Week into motion. We are not righteous of ourselves - but yet, on towards Good Friday and the Cross our Lord goes.

This is what God's love for you is - it is not dependent upon you. God's love for you is not based upon how well you do this or how often you do that. There is nothing in you that forces God to love you. He simply does, and He always will. And so that you might be restored, that you might be reconciled unto Him for all eternity, He dies to redeem you from your sin, and He rises to give you life everlasting. It does not matter how difficult, how distasteful the task is - Christ will go about winning your salvation. This is His love for you.

In the Name of Christ the Crucified +