Encouragement

Our Greatest Supporter

by Brandon Braddy
08/03/23
Free to Share

  Message Writer
  Hire Writer

Tweet

Luke 23: 23-26 (Kjv)

   Something the good Lord has brought back to my attention today, is something that took place in the book of Luke in God's word, something I have read before, but God really let it sink into my heart in a fresh way, I hope this will encourage and be a help to us who have been saved by the precious blood and sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Lord. This event began with the true happening many are aware of, that is, of the sacrificial death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus, our only true Hope beyond what words can describe. Many know what He did for us all, for all humanity over all the earth, for every race and nation, tribe and tongue, He went to Calvary's hill, where He had already been falsely accused and now sentenced to die by what was considered capital punishment back in that age, during that time, the cruel and barbaric soldiers nailed the hands and feet of Jesus to the wooden cross, and He would suffer by the hands of men, such a long and agonizing death, we cannot even imagine nor fathom even a small part of all He went through, but He did it for us all, for you and I. But on the way to the cross if we go a bit backward before His body was left there to hang and die upon it, something happened, something we, something I could easily miss, something I believe is probably mentioned only one time in what we call one of the four gospel accounts (the book of Luke, out of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). The same soldiers who were to execute the sentence given to Jesus, calls a man named Simon from a place known as Cyrene, while he is coming out from the country. In this reading of scripture, if you examine the origin meaning from the word behind the word country, you will see that it means mainly, a field, as a drive for cattle, or a farm, so the conclusion I gain from this word, is that I would like to believe that this man was a country boy, probably a southerner, but though that sounds funny, and I sincerely do not know if he was a southerner, the rest is most-likely so, he was passing through probably from around a farm of some sort, probably from a field, and when the soldiers called him, I wonder to myself, Did he want to do what they were about to demand him to do? Did he reluctantly go over to the living and breathing Salvation and Hope offered to this world, when they shouted with demand, looked at him, and said, Carry that man's cross! This was all accomplished according to the perfect will and plan of God. And yet it may not have seemed perfect at that time, while Jesus was mocked and ridiculed, spat upon, tortured, bleeding, and at last He eventually died. But then joy would come in the morning, or at least around three mornings from when Jesus would live to breathe another day, and now today, He lives at His father, God's right hand in Heaven, He stands as our ultimate and only real Hope for both this life and the next, Hope thou in God! I say this to both you and myself. For He is both the only real living Hope for both the saved ones and the lost ones in this world, We may not see Him, but we can see Him by faith, because if we believe in only what we can see with our own two eyes, this is not faith, faith is believing when we cannot see, we cannot see the income, we cannot see the outcome, we cannot see the good, we cannot see the better, but God Himself, though we cannot see Him there, is there, He is real, and really cares for us. They called this Simon to help Jesus carry His cross, it was the will of God for the cross to be carried by Jesus His Son, it was God'will, His plan for all of these things to happen like they did, and in the order they did, every detail perfectly fitting in place. Why was this His will, death, blood shed on the ground beneath the cross Jesus would hang on? Because it was done with deep thought and planning, this was God's plan since the beginning of time, He had you and myself in His eye, with a great amazing love in His heart, one unlike any other, Jesus went to the cross for us, because the gift of salvation that He now is offering to all who will accept this free yet costly gift, it required a Sacrifice, blood, a payment for all the numerous sins of all people, and only our sinless Rescuer, Jesus is His name, could pay for all of these, for we all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. Simon, on the other side somewhere, of the cross Jesus was carrying to where He would eventually die there upon it, was forced to help support Jesus, and if he knew it or not, he was also playing a small part in God's plan for sinful mankind's redemption, God allowed this man, Simon, likely only a farm boy, to be used as an instrument to help show the grace and mercy and love God has for us all. What God reminded me of today is that, not all people will be on your side at all times, to support you and be there with you, while you are doing your best to follow Jesus, but there again, this was so with Jesus Himself, some people yelled crucify him! They wanted Him dead, they did not support Him, did not sincerely encourage Him from the depths of the heart, but on the other hand, there were some who did stick around, even when others scattered, even while others had ill intentions toward Him, so it will be with us as Christians, as the ones who are saved, who have asked Jesus to save us, and His salvation toward us, it makes us no better than anyone else, salvation is only a gift from Jesus, a gift we ourselves, and also God, knows if we have received it. Some will stand by your side, some will scatter, some will claim not to know you, but greater is the One living in us. If it happed to Jesus, we should not be so surprised if it seems it has happened to us. But there are others who will stick with you, a friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity, the bible so plainly states. The ones who are our true friends on this earth, they will stick with you, they will support us and encourage us sincerely from the heart, they will pray for us behind close doors, they will be there to stick by our sides. But where people fail, that is, where we all do, both you and I, us, there is One who never does, and never will. He is our great Comforter and encourager, our Helper, the lifter of our heads, and the Rock on which we stand, also the Refuge, the Shelter we can run to, and are safe, He keeps us, protects and provides for us, He remains for us, on our sides, and not against us, He is our good Shepherd, the Friend who sticks closer than really anyone at all possibly can, the One who will never leave us or forsake us. So if you are feeling discouraged today for any reason, or in any way, know this, that if, or when, you feel low on support, Jesus has also been there where you stand, where we all will stand at one time or another in life, and now He lives, never more to die, as our greatest Supporter, our best encourager on this earth, listen for His voice alone, because He stands on our side, and if God be for us, who or what can stand against.