An Act of Grace

“I lay down my life for the sheep.”
John 10:15 NIV


Our Master lived a three-dimensional life. He had as clear a view of the future as he did of the present and the past.

This is why the ropes used to tie his hands and the soldiers used to lead him to the cross were unnecessary. They were incidental. Had they not been there, had there been no trial, no Pilate and no crowd, the very same crucifixion would have occurred. Had Jesus been forced to nail himself to the cross, he would have done it. For it was not the soldiers who killed him, not the screams of the mob: It was his devotion to us.

So call it what you wish: an act of grace; a plan of redemption; a martyr’s sacrifice. But whatever you call it, don’t call it an accident. It was anything but that.


From: Max Lucado