What God Gave Up

In the world, selfishness is considered a sign of “ego strength,” and  it is considered a healthy thing to seek one’s self-interest first.  People seem almost to regard selfishness as a virtue.  This attitude presents a stark contrast to the example of Christ.

It is when we contemplate the Trinity, that the  enormity of Jesus’ sacrifice for us becomes clear.  God the Son was begotten, not created.  God the Son was begotten of God the Father from Eternity, before He was born in a human body. (Psalm 2:7; Acts 13:32-36) Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Jesus’ beloved Disciple John tells us that, His power was so great that it was through Him that God created the heavens and the earth, and  “without Him, nothing was made that has been made.”
(John 1:1-3, 1John:1-2)

Before He came to live among us, Christ Jesus lived in all the splendor and glory of heaven.  At various times, men have been given visions of heaven, and their reports of what they saw are recorded in the Holy Bible. (Revelation 4)  God the Son left all that to live with us at a time when things here were very primitive by today’s standards.  Jesus was poor, and He had no use for the things of this world.  (Philippians 2:5-11)

Most of us who are parents know how overpowering our love for our children is.  Truly, in this life we experience love most delightfully when we look into the eyes of our babies and bond with them.  Imagine how it must have broken God’s heart to give up His Son, His only begotten Son, to pay the price for the sins of mankind … to make us fit to be His children.  (John3:16, 1John 3:1)

Imagine the indignity Christ suffered!  All the fullness of the essence, the very substance, of God, who was also fully a man, allowed those he was dying for to beat Him nearly to death and then to execute Him in a way that was reserved for criminals … even the cross. (Mark 14:65, 15:16-37; Luke 22:63, 23:10-11)

The worst of it came when the intimacy that had existed between the Father and the Son from eternity, a relationship that was so close as to be as one, was broken.  It was while nailed to the cross that Jesus cried out, “My God, My God why have you forsaken me?” (John 10:30; Mark 15:34) He who was absolutely pure, who was in no way deserving of death, took on Himself all of the sin of all of us (2Corinthians 5:21), so that we might have eternal life in Him.

They buried the body of Jesus of Nazareth, but the grave couldn’t hold Him.  God raised Him from the dead. (Luke 24:1-12)   For 40 days He was seen among men by 500 witnesses. (Acts 1:3; 1Corinthians 15:6)  He has returned to Glory and sits at the right hand of God the Father.  (Ephesians 1:19-23)  It is in His resurrection that we have the promise of our own. (John 11:25)

There is nothing you have to do except to repent and believe in Him.  That is sufficient for your salvation.  (John 3:16)  If you do that, you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38)  God will make you a new creation who desires to live according to His commands.  He will cause you to think and act according to His will.  (Philippians 2:13)