Spoken From the Cross - Introduction

Jesus on the cross.  Something we take too lightly because it's too big.  It's too important.  It's too shameful. All my pride, my anger, my brokenness- all the punishment paid for to a Holy God by a Holy God.  I want to sit down with this for a little while.  I want to bring my cup of coffee and the Scriptures and open ears and see what God's Son had to say while He was being my sacrifice.  And I'm going to ask the Holy Spirit to speak into my pride, my anger, my brokenness and show me the hope and healing God Is... especially in the scars of my singleness.

Over the next few weeks, I'm going to walk through the seven things Jesus said while He was on the cross.  This is nothing new.  There are many books about these words.  Many extremely smart scholars have lots to say.  But I need healing in my small world.  So, my prayer is going to be:

God, show me Your love, sovereignty, and holiness through the cross in regard to the scars I carry from being single.

I have a hunch, though, that it's not just the wounds of singleness that need attending to - it's my wounds of sin, idolatry and unholiness that need a salve.

Salve.  We don't use that word much.  But we all know what it means.  My sister-in-law made some fun soaps and scrubs to give as Christmas presents.  One of these little jars was a jar of green salve.  You know exactly what it feels like when I say "salve", don't you?  You can feel the thick, slimy, fullness of it.  I use it for everything.  Shingles.  Cuts.  Shaving.  Removing eye makeup.  Mask on dry hair.  Rosacea.  It's healing.  That's the point.  "Salve" means healing.

And I know that my salvation has a greater work than the amazing ticket to heaven it bought me... it has healing to do in the deepest areas of my bruised, sinful nature.

So, here we go... with this prayer from Ephesians 1...

God, You are the Father of glory.  Please give us the Spirit of wisdom and revelation as we desire to know You.  Enlighten our hearts so that we can know the hope to which You have called us, the riches of Your glorious inheritance and the immeasurable greatness of Your power toward us who believe, according to the working of Your great might that You worked in Christ when You raised Him from the dead...