What Jesus did for us is so enormous, so complex, so beyond our imagination our human minds cannot understand it. God has to give us revelation of what it means. From His perspective it is simple: He has done for us what we cannot do for ourselves. We are in Him and He is in us. (John 17:21)
Practically speaking how does that work? Take forgiveness. Nineteen years ago a drunk driver crashed into the side of the car where my husband Vernon was riding. The drunk’s car ended up in a field and he wasn’t hurt. Vernon was airlifted to the hospital in critical condition with injuries he will deal with the rest of his life.
As I stood by the hospital bed watching the incredible pain Vernon was suffering, I heard him pray many times, “God, don’t let me become bitter. Help me forgive.” He doesn’t remember praying that; it came out of his spirit, out of his heart. I on the other hand was completely conscious, and forgiving was not my prayer.
The injustice, the unfairness, the uselessness. What words could I use to describe how wrong this was? I could not forgive the driver. But that was exactly what my Father asked of me. When I finally made the choice to release everything that happened into God’s hands, when I trusted Him to take care of Vernon and to have mercy on the young driver, I experienced Resurrection life. Peace washed through me taking with it bitterness and resentment.
The Lord Jesus empowered me to do what I could not do alone. I did not have to understand the complexity of the Resurrection. I only had to step by faith into what is already mine. I am buried with Christ, I am resurrected with Him. It is possible to walk in His life.