And By His Wounds We are Healed
Date: July 18, 2024
I use the BLESS method every morning for my devotional.
B - Bible Verse
L - Listen for God's Voice and pray
E - Explore the History and meaning
S - Study the Key Words or Phrases
S - Summarize and Share
You can read more about it by going to: What is a Faith Journal?
B - Bible Verse in NIV (Isaiah 53:5) But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
L - Listen for God's Voice and pray Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Jesus to take our punishment and bring us healing. Help us to understand the depth of Your love and the freedom we have because of Christ's sacrifice. May we live in the peace and healing that Jesus provides. In His precious name, Amen.
E - Explore the History and meaning This verse is from the book of Isaiah, written hundreds of years before Jesus was born. It's part of a prophecy about the coming Messiah, describing how He would suffer to save His people. Christians see this as a clear description of what Jesus did for us on the cross, taking our sins upon Himself so that we could be forgiven and have peace with God.
S - Study the Key Words or Phrases
"Pierced for our transgressions" - Jesus was wounded because of our sins.
"Punishment that brought us peace" - Jesus took our punishment so we could have peace with God.
"By his wounds we are healed" - Through Jesus' suffering, we receive spiritual healing and wholeness.
S - Summarize and Share Have you truly thought about the amazing freedom we have because of what Jesus did for us? Our verse today paints a powerful picture of the sacrifice Jesus made so that we could be free.
You see, we all have things in our lives that separate us from God - the Bible calls these things sins or transgressions. It's like we owe a debt we can't pay. But here's the wonderful news: Jesus stepped in and paid that debt for us. The verse says He was "pierced for our transgressions" and "crushed for our iniquities." In other words, He took the punishment we deserved.
Now, you might wonder, "Why did Jesus have to suffer like that?" Well, the verse tells us that "the punishment that brought us peace was on him." Because Jesus took our punishment, we can now have peace with God. We don't have to be afraid of God or worry that we're not good enough. Jesus made a way for us to be right with God.
But it doesn't stop there. The verse ends by saying, "by his wounds we are healed." This healing isn't just about physical sickness (although God certainly can heal our bodies too). This is talking about a deep, spiritual healing. It's about being made whole, having our hearts healed from the damage that sin does to us.
So, what does all this mean for us today? It means we have freedom - real, lasting freedom. We're free from the guilt of our past mistakes. We're free from the power of sin in our lives. We're free to approach God without fear, knowing that Jesus has made everything right between us and Him.
This freedom isn't something we have to earn or work for. It's a gift, given to us because of what Jesus did. All we need to do is accept it, believe it, and live in it.
So today, let's thank Jesus for the freedom He's given us. Let's remember that no matter what we've done or what we're going through, His sacrifice is enough. We are forgiven, we are at peace with God, and we are being healed - all because of what Jesus did for us on the cross. That's true freedom, and it's available to each one of us through Christ.
3 Bible Cross References:
1 Peter 2:24 - "He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed."
Romans 5:1 - "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."
Colossians 1:13-14 - "For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."
Question of the day: On a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being "not at all" and 5 being "very much," how much does knowing what Jesus did for you impact your daily life? Type your number in the comments below. Let's see how our community is experiencing the freedom Christ offers in our everyday lives!