...[F]ar be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Galatians 6:14
I agree with this post on DesiringGod.com that states that Holy Week is the most important week in all of history. As such, I continue with one of the recommendations from the post to prepare for Holy Week, which is to read John Piper's 50-day devotional Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die. Today I read reason #33: To Make His Cross the Ground of All Our Boasting. In today's devotion, Piper unpacks Galatians 6:14, Piper by sharing that, while the Bible shares that believers are only to boast in the cross, and this for some may seem "over the top" to non-believers. Yet this is indeed what the Bible says, not just in Galatians 6:14, but also in Romans 5:2, 3, 2 Corinthians 12:9, and 1 Thessalonians 2:19. While these verses seem to describe boasting about things, they all point to honoring the cross. Piper then connects the dots for us as he shares that "every good thing—indeed, even every bad thing that God turns for good—was obtained for us by the cross of Christ. Apart from faith in Christ, sinners get only judgment. Yes, there are many pleasant things that come to unbelievers. But the Bible teaches that even these natural blessings of life will only increase the severity of God’s judgment in the end, if they are not received with thanks on the basis of Christ’s sufferings." We are referred to Romans 2:4-5. Piper then goes on to share that "everything that we enjoy, as people who trust Christ, is owing to his death. His suffering absorbed all the judgment that guilty sinners deserved and purchased all the good that forgiven sinners enjoy. Therefore all our boasting in these things should be a boasting in the cross of Christ." Piper encourages all believers to be "radically cross-focused." We do this by recognizing that when we truly trust in Christ, our old self is dead and we are born again and we belong to Christ. We also recognize that all of our enjoyment is sourced by God and we seek what God seeks because we love Him and therefore love to please Him. See yesterday's post. Piper concludes by sharing that "every legitimate pleasure in the world becomes a blood-bought evidence of Christ’s love and an occasion of boasting in the cross." Trust in Jesus and experience everlasting joy in Jesus as he becomes "the ground of all our boasting."
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My Prayer: Father God, You are an awesome God who loves me and who is full of grace and mercy for me. Thank You Father God - Jesus - You are deserving of all my boasting. I am not deserving of the grace You pour out for me...which of course started on the cross and continues though today and ultimately to Heaven where You are saving a place for me. Thank You for these gifts for which I am undeserving. My sin is great and it continues...daily. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my sin towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith. Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please continue to heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.
