“Come, let us return to the LORD.
He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us;
he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds.
After two days he will revive us;
on the third day he will restore us,
that we may live in his presence.
Let us acknowledge the LORD;
let us press on to acknowledge him.
As surely as the sun rises, he will appear;
he will come to us like the winter rains,
like the spring rains that water the earth.”
Isaiah 53:5
But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the
punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.
Matthew 20:18b-19
They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked
and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life.
John 4:14
…whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them
will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.
Gracious God and Heavenly Father,
When we do not have you in our lives, we may be aware of our sins or oblivious of them, but we continue in them nonetheless and we have no hope, for our sins are what separate us from you. We may have a time of happiness, but true joy evades us and we have no one to sustain us through painful times.
We need to repent and turn away from our sins, knowing that real strength and healing and truth and life come from you. Help us to do this, LORD. Open our eyes to our sin, and bring us to our knees every day. We are so grateful that we do not need to remain in our guilt and shame because you sent your Son, Jesus, to take our sins from us when he died in our place on the cross, and through his wounds we are healed! After we confess our sins and are forgiven, we feel an unfathomable peace as we are able to live in your presence.
On the third day, Jesus rose from the dead. He conquered death and sin and was restored to his rightful place at your right hand. We who believe in him are restored to a right relationship with the Father. And because he was raised to life again, we know that his promise of eternal life is true. As Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well, “whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” And as surely as the spring rains come to water the earth, he will appear again to pour his life-giving spirit on us and fulfill his promise of eternal life to all who believe in him.
Praise be to God! In Christ’s name. AMEN.