In speaking of our access to the holy and transcedent God, Keller writes, "How is such access and freedom possible? The only time in all the gospels that Jesus Christ prays to God and doesn't call him Father is on the cross, when he says, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus lost his relationship with the Father so that we could have a relationship with God as father. Jesus was forgotten so that we could be remembered forever-from everlating to everlasting. Jesus Christ bore all the eternal punishment that our sins deserve. That is the cost of prayer. Jesus paid the price so God could be our father" (79-80).
What a glorious blessing this is! What a powerful motivation this is! What a conclusively convincing and encouraging truth this is! This is a heart-warming and mind-expanding gospel-cross-approach to prayer. And to read this on Easter weekend...Wow!
This truth is one we must hold on to with an iron grip. We have access to God in prayer because Jesus was forsaken for us and because of us. He mediated our path to encountering God. This Christ-wrought good news is our ticket into the very presence of God.
This was a solid point. When he writes of Jesus bridging the chasm between us a God it I had a movie scene pop into my mind. I pictured something similar to the scene in Indiana Jones, maybe Raiders of the Lost Ark? The one where Indy is on one side and the Ark is on the other of this enormous chasm. There appears to be no way across. He ends up making it across because he trusts in the clues he has and steps out seemingly to fall to his death into the chasm. But surprise surprise there's a bridge there. Once on it his perspective changes and he can see the bridge that was there all along.
ReplyDeleteThe Cross is like this. It's the invisible bridge that once we have our perspective changed by God through faith in his Son we can use it to bridge the gap between us and Him.