Ragamuffin: death and resurrection

… contradiction in motion

Jeremy Taylor writes the following in The Westminster Collection of Christian Prayers: “Grant, O Lord, that in your wounds I may find my safety, in your stripes my cure, in your pain my peace, in your cross my victory, in your resurrection my triumph, and a crown of righteousness in the glories of your eternal kingdom.”

During the Lenten season, the praise of Palm Sunday, the agony of the cross and the victory of the resurrection we are taken on a roller coaster ride of emotion. The soul cries out, “Don’t you guys see, He is the Messiah! He is our hope! Don’t crucify Him.” Yet, the very fact that He is headed to the cross and the grave is our HOPE! It is in the midst of tragedy that we find spiritual relief. David Ford states: “It is in the light of Calvary that we can see what it means for us to confess our poverty and our helplessness and to renounce the attempt to overcome them on our own.”

This is the irony of life. This is the oddness of the Christian life. It is filled with paradox. It is contradiction in motion. It is “illogical” yet makes perfect sense!

One idea behind Romans 12:1-2 is that the very act of giving ourselves totally to God, to Christ, is a “reasonable act of spiritual worship”. Yes, Lord, in your wounds I do find safety, in your stripes my cure, in your pain my peace, in your cross my victory, in your resurrection my triumph… all I can say is “Thank you!”

Yes during the Lenten season we are taken on a roller coaster ride of emotion. But it is worth it all just to know Christ and the power of His resurrection. The soul cries out “Don’t you guys see, He IS the Messiah! He IS our hope!”

Ragamuffin appears every Monday on theRubicon. Find past Ragamuffin posts and a bio of Capt. Jay Davis here.

No comments yet.

Leave a comment