Saturday Devotional...3/9/13...ECCE HOMO

                                                                                          BEHOLD THE MAN

Then Jesus came out,

wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe

And Pilate said to them,

“Behold the Man!”

John 19:5

KJV

Pilate had washed his hands of the whole decision about what to do with Jesus. He did not have the courage to share what he knew. He did not pay attention to his wife’s warning that he should not condemn Jesus. So he washed his hands.

Every time we sin we turn away from Jesus. We are forgetting for a time to remember what He did for us on the weekend of the crucifixion and Resurrection Sunday. We become blinded to the reality of Who Jesus was. In essence we are washing our hands of Him. It is necessary for us to turn back and give over our allegiance to Him and to live lives that honor Him.

Who do you see when you see Jesus. Many people who saw Him in person saw Who Jesus was and followed Him.

• Mary saw her newborn baby and marveled that He was the Son of God.

• The learned men in the temple saw a twelve year old boy who was wise beyond his years.

• John the Baptist saw his cousin. He baptized him and said he was not worthy to loosen his  sandal.

• The devil saw Jesus as a person he could tempt in the dessert for forty days. Jesus was not tempted.

• The angels saw Him as He really is, and theycame to minister to Him in the dessert after the time when the devil was tempting Him.

• Two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew saw Jesus and they recognized that He was special. When Jesus said, "Come, follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men." They followed Him.

• Many people saw Him as a teacherof goodness. They followed Him to learn how to live and how to become holy.

• The rabbis saw Him as a threat to their power. They hated Him, feared Him, and conspired against Him.

• When you look at Jesus…when you “behold the man”…who do you see?

Please spend some time thinking about whom you see when you see Jesus, and what He means to you. Pray a prayer of praise and thanks to Jesus who brought you salvation and eternal life with Him.

Written by

Corinne Mustafa.