God loves us more than anything in the universe. He loves us more than the sun, more than the earth, more than anything. God’s love for us is so great such that he sacrificed his son Jesus so that he might save us from the penalty of sin. There is nothing God has withheld in order to give us life.
The prophet Isaiah spoke about God’s love this way:
Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth;
break forth, O mountains, into singing!
For the Lord has comforted his people
and will have compassion on his afflicted.(Isaiah 49:13)
Later, in that same chapter Isaiah reveals one of the most significant prophecies recorded in the bible, “Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands” (Isaiah 49:16). What is Isaiah talking about here? The context is all about Israel’s restoration, yet this one verse points to a time when God will give of himself for the salvation of those who believe. How is that possible?
When the Romans were holding Jesus’ hands steady on the cross, the engraver positioned his nails to write all our names on Jesus’ palms. Once our savior’s blood soaked the back of that cross, God’s love for us was complete. We all had a hand in the crucifixion, but God was the one who now had our names engraved on the palms of his hands.
If in our lives we reach a time when we feel abandoned, acquainted with sorrow, or rejected, there is no one else who felt that more than God’s son Jesus did when he hung on that cross. However, God’s love never failed Jesus, for he now sits at the right hand of the Father and is waiting for the day when he will come again. In the meantime, our names are safe with God, and he will not forget us when we pass from this life to the next, for his love endures forever.
Audio transcript:
Around 2001 or 2002, the Lord showed me in a dream how the one nail was hammered in. Ten inches, maybe a foot long, square in diameter, about half an inch to a side. Slightly tapered, yet blunt at the tip.
From shock, I was totally mute for two weeks, then could only greet my own family for another four weeks. Speech returned after six weeks. Nice try, Mel Gibson, but the Passion of the Christ was a mere cartoon by comparison.
Thanks for the reminder!
God bless!
You’re welcome
Lovely, Jack. I’d never considered that image of the engraver.
Every time I read the bible, there is something different I learn. The engraver is such an intimate portrait of God.
Great message in such few words. Thank you.
Thanks for the encouraging word, Damon.