It seems to me . . .
Bob Beanblossom August 2015
The sands of Eternity stopped flowing. God the Father had turned His back on God the Son as He hung dying on the cross, more alone than any man could imagine. An unparalleled event was taking place. The inseparable God-head was suffering a rift, a division. Eternity waited, paused in the course of forever. On earth, the sky darkened and the ground trembled at the magnitude of the event. The Son cried, “My God, why have you forsaken me!” noting a significant shift in their relationship, the relationship that John described as being distinct in person yet one in being. The cause of this event demanded both the Son’s sacrifice and the Father’s response. The sin of man was beyond his feeble attempts to reconcile himself to his God—when he did try. Sin demanded a sacrifice—holy, without blemish–to reconcile God and man: No other sacrifice than that offered could be accepted. It was not His sin, not the punishment for His failure, but the voluntary acceptance of vicarious punishment for man’s willful failure to obey his Creator that Jesus took upon Himself.
Man’s failure, his self-willed rebellion against God through the ages, was no surprise to the all-knowing Creator. This plan of salvation had existed from before the foundations of the world were laid. In Jesus’ sacrifice, God’s plan was completed. The sacrifice required by a holy God to atone for the sin of Adam, and the sins of every person since, had been accepted. Jesus the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world had cried, “It is finished.”
Then, after three long human days, in the fulness of God’s time, the Father reached down into the cold rock where Jesus had been buried and said: “Wake up, Son. Eternity is waiting.” And as the angels watched, the Rock of Ages arose in his rightful majesty as King of kings and Lord of Lords and stepped forth from the grave never to return.
Jesus’ resurrection showed the Father’s acceptance of that unparalleled sacrifice. The blood shed by the God-Man is the only currency acceptable to the Father that allows the remission of our sins. The Tree of Life in God’s garden had become the True Vine, giving life to the lost, and new growth to the saved—those who believe on His Name. God was pleased. This was His Beloved Son, in whom He was well pleased. Never again would God turn his back on His beloved Son, the Only Begotten of the Father.
Eternity resumed its timeless journey from forever to forever, led now by Jesus the Bridegroom. Soon He will be joined by His blood-washed bride, His church triumphant, who will come at his call—again, in the fulness of God’s time.
And He shall reign forever and forever. Amen