The other day, Dana came downstairs and asked, “Frank, why is every kid in this house crying?” It is probably not my best parenting lesson, but we will return to that; let’s start by saying Joshua Gary. I probably do not need to go further than that but let me explain. I love how God created all our Children; I said before on Wednesday that they are all made in His image and unique. Angelina is the oldest and is bright, caring, and sassy; Daniel is intelligent to the point where I am not sure there is room for common sense; Francesca is sensitive and more of the opinionated one; Christiano is just an old soul who stresses when others do not follow the rules, Joshua is built to find ways to step over the line, and Mila, the youngest is a combination of all of them put into one little girl.
Fast forward to the other night, Mila says Daddy, I’m thirsty, and I have a bottle with a little bit of sparkling water left. So, I took a little sip. Right before I went to give it to her, Joshua came over and said, Dad, can I have a little? As I contemplated, I said, “Joshua, there is a little bit. Take a little sip. That is it, and the rest is for your sister.” Well, Joshua took the bottle, looked at me, and gulped. He slammed the bottle down, wiped his mouth, and looked at me with the empty bottle. I was so frustrated that I sternly said, “Have you lost your mind? I told you to take a little sip. The rest was for your sister,” he replied, “Sorry, I was thirsty.” As Mila was starting to cry, I was frustrated with him, and as I told him to get upstairs, he was already crying, I nudged him in the butt with my foot.
Christiano became upset because he saw his brother crying and running upstairs because he was in trouble. Christiano said dad, I think you are being a little too hard on him in that moment, I thought to myself this is a great time to teach him about what Christ did for us on the cross, so I said you know what, since you care so much, come here. I am going to punish you for what Joshua did and spank you, I will let Joshua off the hook and you can take his punishment; well, he came over, and he was crying hard, hard enough that it caused Dana to come down. At that moment, I explained to him that is what Jesus has done for us: He laid His life on the cross and took a punishment that He did not deserve for a trespass we committed.
1 Peter 2:23-24
23 who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously;24 who bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.
It was a profound moment; even in the tears, he could put together that he loved his brother, but he did not want to take punishment for him, especially for something that he did not do. I explained to Dana what I was teaching him, and yes, the lesson seemed extreme, but it was such a tangible moment for him to see that every time we trespass against the Lord, Jesus paid for it with His death on the cross.
John Courson says when we contemplate sin in our life or chalk it up to a night of fun, look at the tree of Calvary, and see what sin does; it will crucify you. God is not holding anything back from us, nor does He not want what is best for us. Look upon the cross, and you’ll see Him with outstretched arms and nails, piercing His palms, proving to you unequivocally that He loves you passionately.
So I ask, are you looking at the tree of Calvary?
Frank D.