Most people have scars on their body. It’s part of growing up and it’s just part of living life. And each scar has a story to it doesn’t it? I can point to this scar and tell you about that surfing accident. I can point to that one and tell you about whitewater rafting on the Guadalupe River in Texas. That other one is when I was working on my car. And on and on and on. But just as we bear physical scars that tell stories about our life, so we can also bear emotional scars from the events and experiences we have been through. But an appropriate question would be . . . can the wounds we have in our souls be healed like our physical hurts? Or will we be scarred for life?
Many of us bear the pain and sorrow of life’s traumas. There’s just no way of getting around it. We spend so much time trying to build a life that is safe and protective, but we have to admit . . . those arrows seem to get through our fortress. We pull out the uninvited projectile and break it in two, but we are left with wounds that make us wince in pain. We try to go on with life but our heart breaks and our spirit aches. We try to be strong, but we feel like we’re limping along. We feel stung and try not to be overcome. But it’s hard. It’s like trying to walk in water. But this water is high and filled with debris left over from the storms of life. Any hope for those who just cope from day to day?
Jesus had wounds. He suffered and died for our salvation. Listen to how Isaiah says it:
(Isa 53:3-5) He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. 4 Surely He has borne our griefs And carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, Smitten by God, and afflicted. 5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.
Jesus has scars. They will remain to remind us of His love at the cross:
(John 20:27) Then He said to Thomas, "Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing."
There is hope for the hurting because Jesus took the pain. Do you need healing for a sin-sick soul? By His stripes you are healed. Is your heart hurting beyond what you can bear? (Psa 147:3) He heals the brokenhearted And binds up their wounds.
Now all the scars I have collected from living life have a story to tell. Jesus was scarred for life and by His stripes I am healed!
Louie