"How Much is Twelve Legions of Angels?"

When Jesus, the Son of God, was crucified – nature convulsed. The ground shook, rocks cracked open, and the sky went black. It was as if an arrow had been shot into the heart of hope. How do we fathom the indignity of it all? Should the son of God be expected to endure that kind of shame? It is hard to envision – Jesus stripped and whipped, spittle on his face, and his head garlanded with thorns. The mocking and the derision must have been deafening.

There was amazing self-restraint shown that dark Friday in Jerusalem. How much is twelve legions of angels? The answer is seventy-two thousand. With every demeaning act, every crack of the whip on his back, Jesus could have called on twelve legions of angels for protection.

Instead of making a spectacle of relief, Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.” Luke 23:34. A prayer not for himself but for others; abusers, mockers, doubters, and persecutors. What about us?  In a sense, we participate in that crucifixion scene in every act of sin in which we engage. We are the ones in need of reconciliation with God. Christians are not people who are good; rather we are people who realize painfully that we are not good. We all need the Savior. Thankfully, we do not live absorbed in despair but start each day with a fresh sense of what it means to live redeemed! At Calvary, Christ covered all those hurts you don’t deserve.

Blessings!