Rejoice

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

REJOICE

John 14:28-31

28 "You heard me say, 'I am going away and I am coming back to you.' If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe. 30 I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, 31 but the world must learn that I love the Father and that I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.

"Come now; let us leave.                                 

NIV

It seems God has everything under control and we are going to the part where we call Good Friday, yet we act all sad or doomy and gloomy. Those churches with crosses outside drape dark purple or black on them. But here we see that our Lord is telling us that he is going away, he told his disciples that he knew about the plan of the Father, the will of the Father concerning how he was going to restore us back to our rightful place with him. Jesus also told them, and us, that he would be coming back for them and for us. Now here is the part where most Christians seem to be disobedient to Christ. He said if we love him, we would be glad that he is going to the Father. If we love him we would be glad he is going to the cross to die for our sin, so he could go back to the Father and there be our advocate, ever interceding for us. Job uttered some very prophetic words when he said: 18 "O earth, do not cover my blood; may my cry never be laid to rest! 19 Even now my witness is in heaven; my advocate is on high. 20 My intercessor is my friend as my eyes pour out tears to God; 21 on behalf of a man he pleads with God as a man pleads for his friend.” We also have what God has told us through the Apostle Paul that Jesus was raised and is at the right hand of the Father interceding for us. So then why is Friday such a gloom and doom day? Sure we say we are sad that he had to die for our sin, but if that is truly the case, why do we continue to sin? This Friday should be a day of rejoicing for it is the day our sin will no longer be counted against us, as long as we have accepted Jesus as the sacrifice God provided for our sin. This should be the greatest day of rejoicing we know, but we reserve that day for Easter, the day we can say that we serve a risen Savior. Yes that is wonderful and amazing and all that it is, because Jesus is not in the grave and therefore neither will we, but it is all about the sacrifice and Jesus has told us that if we love him we would be glad, not sad. We also see that all this happened because of the will of God, that he did all that was needed to satisfy his own need for justice. True Satan may have thought he had won the day, motivating Judas to betray Jesus and get Jesus arrested and crucified, that is simply not true, for Jesus just told us that Satan was coming, but that he has no hold on him, he is only playing a part in the plan of God for our salvation. Jesus is not going to be crucified because of the work of Satan, but because of the work of God. So we need to see that when Friday gets here we should be rejoicing, not bemoaning. Rejoice, again I say Rejoice!