Luke 23:31
For if they do these things when the wood is green, what
will happen when it is dry?
As the women were weeping for the suffering of Jesus, He
prophesied the terrible judgement that awaits those that do not accept the new
life that He offers them. He emphasized
the message of His prophecy by using Himself as the standard against which
judgement will be made.
Jesus compared Himself to a green tree, full of life,
flourishing in every aspect of its existence.
Such a tree is not proper to be cut down before its time, nor is it fit
to be fuel for the fire. The metaphor
was designed to express the righteousness and innocence of Jesus Christ.
On the other hand, Jesus was comparing the sinner to dry,
dead wood. Such wood is rotten and
deserving to be fuel for the fire. The
metaphor was designed to express the depravity and worthlessness of the sinner.
If He, who is pure and perfect in every measure and is the
essence of life itself, had to suffer beyond the human capacity for pain and
then die for our sins, why then should we, the driest of woods, not expect to
die for our sins? We should not. The wages of our sins is death. We can only escape the
punishment for our sins and claim our inheritance as children of God by
accepting the offer of eternal life through Our Savior.
May we become vessels of the life of Christ within us. May we look deep inside and make sure that
we are not dry wood, bearing no fruit, showing no sign of allowing the life of
Christ within us to be released to the world around us. Indeed, may we submit and surrender to the abundant life that dwells within us and then seek out the dead wood around
us in order to present the offer of eternal life to them.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank You for providing the way, the truth
and the life that is found only in Your Son, Jesus. We praise the name of Jesus for all that He
suffered on our behalf. We rejoice in
the inheritance that awaits us. We pray
that You will raise us up to be living testimonies to the new life that we have
in Christ so that others may join us in our eternal places in Your
kingdom. We ask all these things in the name
of the life giving spirit, Jesus Christ.
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