Amazing Grace

You know you haven't blogged for awhile when you forget where you put it....

Was listening to "This is Amazing Grace" by Bethel tonight and while it was playing there is a line it that says "that you would take my place, that you would bare my cross" and it reminded me of that scripture "Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. Luke 9:23".

So I said "you know Lord, I have never really understood what you meant by that. I mean I kinda get it... actually no - I really don't. What DID you mean?"

And He said, "Well... it means - you take up YOUR cross. You do for me what I did for you"

"Yeah. OK. So... When YOU took up YOUR cross, you took all my sins, my failures, you stood in my place and took my punishment on you. OK so... um... I stand... and take up... your sins? No wait! That can't be right. You were sinless. You were God. What can I possibly do - what cross can I bare - there is nothing! Loooooorrrrrrd nope I still don't get it."

And do you know what he said to me? Now bare with me if this is complete heresy and I am still fleshing this out (no pun intended) but he said... and also the music was still playing so..., you know...

"No Nell. You are not the Messiah..." :-)

"Salvation is freely given. No price. I paid the price. Anyone can have salvation and live in the grace of what I did on the cross"

"Discipleship has a price. Discipleship is a cross experience"

"My cross was - I was sinless yet I gave up my sinlessness and I took your sin on me. Your cross is - you have sin, yet you take up my righteousness and live sinless for me"

"My cross was - I was a King, yet I gave up my Kingship and become no-one and nothing. Your cross is, you were no-one and nothing, yet you take up my Kingship and become a King."

"My cross was - I was the Son of God, but I lay down my Godishness (yeah come on that is totally a word) and became a man. Your cross is, you were a son of man, yet you receive the Holy Ghost. The power of God comes into you!"

"My cross was - I was the ONLY begotten son of God. I gave up my inheritance, my status as the son, my birthright. Your cross is- you were an orphan. Yet you take up your cross and you become an adopted son of God. You get full inheritance. You get to call my Dad, Dad."

"My cross was - I was the son of God, King, Prince, The Alpha, the Omega, the beginning, the end... a pretty important guy. I gave that up and was ridiculed, made fun of, and teased. Your cross is - you were 'a foolish thing', 'a vessel of dishonour', yet you become a pretty important person. A child of THE God of the universe. You get to actively turn away from every negative pointed finger against you, and put on robes and a crown and honour"

My cross was - I had to be separated from God. No you don't even know! I had known nothing but Him. Why do you think I prayed till I bleed tears in the garden? Why do you think I begged not to have to do it. To be separated from Him, to march into Hell alone, forsaken, To be disowned, dishonored, disinherited. To become an Orphan. For my father to turn his face from me because of the shame I bore.

Your cross - is that you are embraced by your father. That as he turned his face from me, it was towards you. That you could run into his arms and never, ever, ever be seperated from Him, His presence ever again."

"That is your cross. An active conscious acceptance of your inheritance. An active giving up of sin, of being an orphan, of being a nobody, of listening to ridicule or the things that keep you down, of being separated from him and being alone"