Today’s Reading: Acts 2:22-24 (NIV)
22 Men of Israel, listen to this: Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders and signs, which God did among you through Him, as you yourselves know. 23 This man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put Him to death by nailing Him to the cross. 24 But God raised Him from the dead, freeing Him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on Him.
Good morning!
Ever tried to pick up a piece of ice melting on the floor? We have an automatic ice maker in our refrigerator. Our almost “two year old” grandson Andrew is fascinated with refrigerator gadgets. He often soaks himself and the kitchen floor playing with the water dispenser and ice maker buttons. It is hard keeping a busy boy back, and, unfortunately, Andrew inherited his grandmother’s deep sense of curiosity as well as her stubborn streak!
A cold ice cube on a warm hard surface does not take long to melt. I was chasing down Andrew and the ice cubes that he managed to drop all over my newly mopped floor. Those slippery little suckers were melting faster than I could pick them up! Tiny puddles of water were causing a serious walking hazard. I saved Andrew from falling face down as he ran and slid his way through my kitchen in wet, sock feet. You would have thought we were at the water park! As hard as I tried, I couldn’t hang on to the mischievous one or the ice cubes he kept dropping, and we both ended up sitting on the floor, laughing at each other, while soaking up ice puddles in our blue jeans.
Satan thought he had won the victory on the day Jesus died on the cross. He was sure he had finished the Lord God Almighty. No more miracles from this One – he was convinced God would die that day and that he had finally won the battle for the world. How surprised Satan must have been when Jesus showed up and rattled the very gates of hell to free the dead in Him. It must have felt a little like melting ice cubes in the hot pit of seclusion. Jesus Christ slipped straight through Satan’s fingers – he couldn’t keep the Lord locked up in his pit of iniquity. There was absolutely nothing he could do to stop the Father’s salvation plan for the world.
This is the Gospel in a nutshell! The blood of Christ melted like an ice cube, as it made contact with the sins of man. He literally poured Himself out to cover the people. It is Christ’s blood alone that frees us from the hell Satan has tried to create in our lives. We have an opportunity to receive His gift of blood if we are willing to trust Him enough to be our Lord and Savior. Jesus can melt even the toughest addiction, every secret sin you’ve held on to, even your anger and frustration and unforgiveness for others. He creates clean hearts out of filth. You can finally be free from Satan’s grasp if you’ll just call upon the Lord Jesus Christ today.
Thanks be to God for the blood covering of our Lord Jesus Christ! The next time you try to pick up a melting ice cube on the kitchen floor, remember how the love of Jesus melts away every sinful thing that you have ever said or done. And all you have to do to receive Jesus into your heart today is ask.
Grace and peace,
Deb Spaulding
Faith UMC - St. Charles, MO
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