Torn Apart

These days, a signature seals the deal on a contract.  Back in the day, a handshake signified the same.  But there was a time when a covenant was made certain by walking between a divided carcass.  Even God did it.

One day when Abraham was bummed because he had no babies, a word from the Lord promised lots of offspring and a land to live in.  “How can I be sure?” Abraham asked, and God answered, “Bring me a heifer, a goat and a ram, and I’ll show you”(Gen 15:9).

“Abraham brought all these to him, cut them in two and arranged the halves opposite each other.  When darkness had fallen, a smoking firepot with a blazing torch appeared and passed between the pieces.  On that day the Lord made a covenant with Abraham”(Gen 15:10, 17-18).

It all sounds bizarre and bloody, but the gory ceremony was a strong way of saying, “May I be torn apart if I don’t do as I say.”  But what only God knew as He passed between the pieces was that one day He would have to do just that—not because He hadn’t kept His word but so that He could keep it.  

Soon after the start, He had said it to a disobedient Adam and Eve and a deceptive serpent, and through the years that followed, God repeated the promise to redeem His people, save His own, forgive their sins, and restore their souls.  For this very reason, one bizarre and bloody Friday, a beaten and battered Jesus hung between heaven and earth groaning, gasping, and giving His all so we could be His.

Much has been made of the pain and suffering His body experienced on the cross, but the worst agony happened in the dark.  It was then that the Father tore the eternal Trinity apart and turned away.  We cannot fathom the horror, hell, and hopelessness Jesus endured during those three hours of forever, and because of His sacrifice, by His grace and to His praise, we never will. 

God knew if He stayed intact we would stay away, so He tore Himself apart to bring us back together.

May we be overwhelmed and overcome by the depth of this great love. 

What a wonderful Savior.