The Intersection of Love

Editor’s note: Yesterday, we shared a selection of devotions from the Grace for the Moment Bible. You can read it here. Today, we’re sharing even more of this wonderful Bible. Enjoy reading! 

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Though He was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by the power of God. — 2 Corinthians 13:4

The cross. Can you turn any direction without seeing one? Perched atop a chapel. Carved into a graveyard headstone. Engraved in a ring or suspended on a chain. The Cross is the universal symbol of Christianity. An odd choice, don’t you think?

Strange that a tool of torture would come to embody a movement of hope.

The symbols of other faiths are more upbeat: the six-pointed star of David, the crescent moon of Islam, a lotus blossom for Buddhism. Yet a cross for Christianity? An instrument of execution?...

Why is the Cross the symbol of our faith? To find the answer look no farther than the cross itself. Its design couldn’t be simpler. One beam horizontal — the other vertical. One reaches out — like God’s love. The other reaches up — as does God’s holiness. One represents the width of His love; the other reflects the height of His holiness. The Cross is the intersection. The Cross is where God forgave His children without lowering His standards.

~from He Chose the Nails

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The Cost of His Gift

[Jesus] gave Himself for our sins, that He might deliver us from this present evil age. — Galatians 1:4

• Christ came to earth for one reason: to give His life as a ransom for you, for me, for all of us. 

He sacrificed Himself to give us a second chance. He would have gone to any lengths to do so. And He did. He went to the Cross, where man’s utter despair collided with God’s unbending grace. And in that moment when God’s great gift was complete, the compassionate Christ showed the world the cost of His gift...

He who was perfect gave that perfect record to us, and our imperfect record was given to Him... As a result, God’s holiness is honored, and His children are forgiven.

~from The Applause of Heaven

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God Gets Into Our Lives

It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. — Galatians 2:20

You have leaves to rake. A steering wheel to grip. A neighbor’s hand to shake. Simply put, you have things to do.

So does God. Babies need hugs. Children need good-night tucks. AIDS orphans need homes. Stressed-out executives need hope. God has work to do. And He uses our hands to do it.

What the hand is to the glove, the Spirit is to the Christian... God gets into us. At times, imperceptibly. Other times, disruptively.

God gets His fingers into our lives, inch by inch reclaiming the territory that is rightfully His.

Your tongue. He claims it for His message.
Your feet. He requisitions them for His purpose.
Your mind? He made it and intends to use it for His glory.
Your eyes, face, and hands? Through them He will weep, smile, and touch.

~from Come Thirsty 

Excerpted with permission from Grace for the Moment Bible, copyright Max Lucado.

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Your Turn

What greater love is there than sacrificing one’s own life for one’s beloved? There isn’t any more magnificent love! That’s what Christ Jesus did for us. He was born to die for us. He lived to pay His life as a ransom for us. That’s love! ~ Devotionals Daily