223. Anyone who is hung on a pole is under God's curse: Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law.

28 November 2021

Anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse. 

Deuteronomy 21

23 you must not leave the body hanging on the pole overnight. Be sure to bury it that same day, because anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse. You must not desecrate the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance.

Sacrifice

Maximillan Kolbe

From Book "Heroes" by Dr. Harold J. Sala, pages 274 - 276

I have quoted before this story of a Polish Franciscan priest, Maximillan Kolbe, who volunteered to die in place of a Polish army sergeant, Franciszek Gajowniczek, in the last days of July 1941 in the Auschwitz concentration camp. Kolbe died of starvation in place of a man who cried for his wife and children.

"Herr Kommandant, he began without faltering, "I wish to make a request, please."

"What do you want?" barked the commandant.

"I want to die in place of this prisoner", pointing to the sobbing Gajowniczek. "I have no wife and no children. Besides, I'm old and not good for anything."

There was absolute silence, but soon it was broken with the words, "Request granted!"

Galatians 3

13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.

From The Case for Christ by Lee Strobel, pages 176-186

THE TENTH INTERVIEW: ALEXANDER METHERELL, M.D., PH.D.

THE TORTURE BEFORE THE CROSS

"The gospels tell us he began to sweat blood at this point."

"This is a known medical condition called hematidrosis. It's not very common, but it is associated with a high degree of psychological stress. What happens is that severe anxiety causes the release of chemicals that break down the capillaries in the sweat glands. As a result, there's a small amount of bleeding into these glands, and the sweat comes out tinged with blood. We're not talking about a lot of blood; it's just a very, very small amount."

Since he knew the amount of suffering he was going to have to endure, he was quite naturally experiencing a great deal of psychological stress."

THE FINAL ARGUMENT

Appealing to history and medicine, to archaeology and even Roman military rules, Metherell had closed every loophole: Jesus could not have come down from the cross alive.

A QUESTION FOR THE HEART

"Jesus intentionally walked into the arms of his betrayer, he didn't resist arrest, he didn't defend himself at his trial - it was clear that he was willingly subjecting himself to what you've described as a humiliating and agonizing form of torture. And I'd like to know why. What could possibly have motivated a person to agree to endure this sort of punishment?"

Alexander Metherell - the man this time, not the doctor searched for the right words.

"Frankly, I don't think a typical person could have done it," he

finally replied. "But Jesus knew what was coming, and he was willing to go through it, because this was the only way he could redeem us - by serving as our substitute and paying the death penalty that we deserve because of our rebellion against God. That was his whole mission in coming to earth."

Having said that, I could still sense that Metherell's relentlessly rational and logical and organized mind was continuing to crunch down my question to its most basic, nonreducible answer.

"So when you ask what motivated him," he concluded, "well ... I suppose the answer can be summed up in one word - and that would be love."

Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law.

It is by GRACE that I have been saved through FAITH - it is the gift of God, the LOVE in Jesus Christ (Ephesians 2:8).

The Lord sent Good Samaritans in my life to deliver me from severe affliction. I do a good turn.

""Paul, an apostle—sent not from men nor by a man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead.

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”"

(Galatians 1:1, 2:20-21). My Lord, my Savior, thank for Your sacrifice on the cross for the forgiveness of my sins. I praise You, in Jesus' name. Amen.

21 February 2018"

May you be blessed with God's Word.

Maraming salamat.