Series on "The Message of the Cross" – (13)
|
|
|
 12629 |
 |
July 16, 2006 |
|
|
|
 The Providence Jesus' Wearing the Crown of the Thorns
They dressed [Jesus] up in purple, and after twisting a crown of thorns, they put it on Him; and they began to acclaim Him, "Hail, King of the Jews!" They kept beating His head with a reed, and spitting on Him, and kneeling and bowing before Him (Mark 15:17-19).
Learning about the specifics of Jesus' suffering will help you understand God's love in greater depths and lead a more zealous life in Christ. Your heart could only be profoundly moved when you learn about the providence of Jesus' being flogged, shedding His blood, and wearing the crown of thorns.
Explanations in the last issue of Manmin Joong-ang News the providence of Jesus' being flogged will be followed in this issue with explanations on the providence of Jesus' wearing the crown of thorns.
1.Jesus' Wearing the Crown of Thorns
As the Son of God, it only makes sense for Jesus to wear a crown of honor and glory. Yet, in the midst of His suffering, Jesus wore a very sharp crown of thorns (Mark 15:17). Roman soldiers weaved a crown that was smaller than the size of a man's head out of tree branches filled with thorns, and forced it upon Jesus' head.
As the long and sturdy thorns penetrated Jesus' head, the pain of His scalp being ripped apart was accompanied by the streaming blood that drenched His face in blood. Why did Jesus wear the crown of thorns and shed His blood? This was done to forgive men of the sins they committed in their thoughts.
For there are untruths in the heart of man, he will entertain untruthful thoughts and evil emotions. This world does not consider evil thoughts and hearts as "sin" as long as such thoughts and emotions are not expressed in deed, but the Bible tells us that harboring sin in our heart and thoughts are sins (Matthew 5:28; 1 John 3:15).
Inside the man's brain is a memory device that stores and applies knowledge. All the information an individual has seen, heard, and learned from birth is stored with emotion, and this is knowledge. The circumstances and the environment in which each person was raised and educated differ from person to person. Even if two people were educated by the same person in the same environment, the kind of emotion with which each person accepted information is different and that is why they will have different sets of values and the standard by which they tell good apart from evil.
"Thoughts" are the reproduction of such knowledge on a need basis, and because each individual possesses different knowledge, people will think differently even as they witness an identical event. This is why the culture you have cultivated in your country can become a subject of criticism in another, while what you have learned to be erroneous in your homeland may be deemed proper in another. In addition, as the thoughts of people in this world are governed by Satan, they are often in conflict with the truth.
For instance, when someone else is commended, Satan governs untruth and brings people dissatisfaction or dismay. If people only had truthful knowledge, however, Satan will not be able to control their thought; they will only think, 'It is so good that they are commended, and rejoice in the truth. For man has only stored untruthful knowledge in his mind, all his thoughts can only be untruthful in nature. If untruthful knowledge is transformed by the truth, however, people's thoughts can also be transformed into truthful thoughts.
Accomplishing this requires diligently listening to the Word and making bread of it. When you transform yourself by worshipping God in spirit and in truth and accepting the Word only with "Yes" and "Amen," you will be able to enter spirit quickly and harbor only truthful thoughts.
2.The Mind Set on the Flesh
When listening to God's Word, some people will say "Amen" if the messages are in agreement with their thoughts. If the messages do not agree with their knowledge or experience, however, they say, "Well, that's not so." They are unable to believe in the Word but instead harbor thoughts that are against God's will. All thoughts that oppose the will of God are called "the mind set on the flesh," and Satan causes people to harbor such fleshly thoughts.
We find in the Bible a scene in which Jesus told His disciples of the providence of His bearing the cross and Peter responding, "God forbid it, Lord!" This may have sounded like a thoughtful remark of a student uttered in love for his teacher, but Peter's words were a result of his mind set on the flesh that sought to prevent the will of God from being accomplished. For this reason Jesus rebuked him and said, "Get behind Me, Satan!"
To fleshly people, the mind set on the flesh may sound wise and good but it is hostile toward God and has nothing to do with Him (Romans 8:7).
Ever since meeting with God, I have never doubted His Word by mixing fleshly thoughts. For I experienced the power of God who healed me at once of all my diseases against which physicians had been utterly powerless, I could believe without any doubt that God created the universe, stopped the sun and the moon, and split the Red Sea, and that Jesus revived the dead.
3.Throwing Out Fleshly Thoughts
Between man's arguments and knowledge, all thoughts that prevent him from believing in God's Word or obeying it are fleshly thoughts. As people lived with countless fleshly thoughts day after day, they all became God's enemy. What is the next step for us to take after we have been forgiven of our sins we had committed in our thoughts?
As 2 Corinthians 10:15 tells us, we must commit ourselves to "destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and…taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ." In other words, we have to throw out all fleshly thoughts and any pieces of knowledge and information we had long deemed correct if they are in conflict with God's Word.
If we are to throw out all sin we commit with our thoughts, we must first make our hearts holy. 1 John 2:16 tells us, "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life, is not from the Father, but is from the world."
When the heart is filled with evil and attributes to take after the ways of this world, it is natural for people to harbor fleshly thoughts. When there is "the lust of the flesh," worldly cravings will look pleasing to their eyes. People will then naturally take after such cravings and when the cravings of sinful man intensify, they become even more compelled to carry out fleshly deeds (Galatians 5:19-21).
"The lust of the eyes" is an attribute that agitates the heart through what a person sees and hears, causing him to seek fleshly things even more. Due to "the lust of the eyes," people become worldly and seek lustful things increasingly.
"The boastful pride of life" is an attribute that seeks to boast oneself in accordance with all the pleasures he has in this world. This "boastful pride of life" drives people to elevate themselves, receive recognition, and take hold of fame and authority. Once you have thrown out the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life, you will be able to harbor spiritual thoughts with which God is pleased.
4.Beautiful Crowns for Us in Heaven
For Jesus wore the crown of thorns, we are now able to wear beautiful crowns when we enter heaven. A variety of crowns is prepared for us because the type of crown each of us will receive will be determined by the type of life we have led.
For instance, there are "imperishable" crowns for people who have fought to throw out their sin after accepting the Lord and listening to the truth (1 Corinthians 9:25); "crowns of glory" for people who have thrown out their sins, lived by God's Word, and given glory to Him (1 Peter 5:4); and "crowns of life" for people who have loved God to the utmost degree, have been faithful to God to the point of death and sanctified by throwing out every form of evil (James 1:12; Revelation 2:10). There is also "the crown of righteousness" for everyone who has become wholly sanctified and fully carried out their God-given duties with the kind of faith that was pleasing in His sight (2 Timothy 4:8).
Revelation 4:4 mentions heavenly "elders" wearing "golden crowns." Here, "elders" refer to people who possess gold-like, unchanging faith which God recognizes, who have become wholly sanctified, and who have been faithful in all God's household. Depending on the extent to which how sanctified and faithful His children had been, God will reward each of them different crowns.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, by wearing the crown of thorns, Jesus the Son of God not only redeemed us from the sins we commit in our thoughts but also allowed us to wear beautiful crowns in heaven. May each of you always remain grateful of God's love, accomplish a pure heart, be faithful in all God's household, and receive a beautiful crown in the eternal city of New Jerusalem, in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ I bless!
|
|
Manmin News 
