Then He said to Thomas, "Put your finger here, and look at My hands. Put your hand into the wound in My side. Don't be faithless any longer. Believe!" John 20:27
Every time I look down at my left middle finger, I am reminded of a dumb mistake that I made a year ago at Spartan Training. I was tired after a long workout and in my last rotation. I was doing a Kettle Bell press over my head with about 35 pounds on each side, and with one bad move, I crushed the tip of my middle finger. As a result, I had to have the fingernail removed. My body shows the sign of the trauma that I went through that day with my now crooked fingertip and Frankenstein nail. I bear on my body the proof of what happened that day.
In the same way, the body of Jesus bears the scars of the cross. When Jesus died a sinner's death on Calvary, they pierced His hands and feet. They shoved a spear in His side, causing blood and water to flow. When Jesus appeared to the original disciples, He showed them His hands and side as proof of His true identity. His resurrected body still had the signs of the suffering He went through to make us right with the Father. Through seeing the scars, the disciples were also reminded of the incredible sacrifice that Jesus went through to free us from sin.
Understanding the price that Jesus paid for our salvation changes our perspective. Many people don't take the time to think about what Jesus did on the cross for them. It becomes a historical event that happened thousands of years ago, but it doesn't affect their daily lives. They go through life without considering the debt that was paid. Some, however, consider the evidence and weigh the proof, understanding how Jesus lived, died and rose again. This fosters a spirit of gratitude that we have been saved from certain death. Instead of being ashamed of Jesus Christ or clamming up about spiritual things, we have an opportunity to share about a person who saved our soul. His scars bought our freedom.
We are going to ask that you do something a little different today. We would like you to find a pen and to draw a cross on one or both of your wrists. It doesn't have to be a huge cross. It can be something small that will remind you of the scars that Jesus has as a result of setting you free. Every time you look at the cross during the day, take some time to pray a short prayer thanking God for the cross. Use the small cross also as a reminder to others of what Jesus did for you. If a friend or coworker asks you about it, say, "It is the weirdest thing, I was reading this devotional, and they asked me to draw a cross on my wrist to remember what Jesus did on the cross for us. Have I ever told you what Jesus did on the cross?" This might lead to an opportunity to share Jesus with another person. Go out and make a difference!
Read Matthew 9:9-13 (NLT)
As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man named Matthew sitting at his tax collector’s booth. “Follow me and be my disciple,” Jesus said to him. So Matthew got up and followed him.
Later, Matthew invited Jesus and his disciples to his home as dinner guests, along with many tax collectors and other disreputable sinners. But when the Pharisees saw this, they asked his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with such scum?”
When Jesus heard this, he said, “Healthy people don’t need a doctor—sick people do.” Then he added, “Now go and learn the meaning of this Scripture: ‘I want you to show mercy, not offer sacrifices.’ For I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners.”
©2024 Sagebrush Church
