Ron Hutchcraft Ministries - The Knife and the Nails - #3839

Thursday, September 27, 2001

Tony was one of the best-liked teachers in our kids' junior high school. And one summer day when he was helping me paint our house, I learned a lot about his background - a lot that was very surprising. Tony told me that he grew up in a very tough neighborhood that was sharply divided into ethnic groups - and ethnic gangs. And he was a fighter - most of the guys in his neighborhood were. He told me, "Five of my good friends died violently in just two months." Two more of his gang friends are serving prison terms. I said, "Tony, how did you ever get out of all that? How'd you end up doing so well?" His answer blew me away.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A WORD WITH YOU today about "The Knife and the Nails."

When Tony told me what had made the difference, he did something I've never seen him do before - there were tears in his eyes. He said, "One of those friends who died was my best friend. There was a gang fight one night - one guy was coming behind me with a blade. It was intended for me. But my friend stepped in front of it. My friend took my knife - and that changed the course of my whole life."

Then it was my turn for tears. I said, "Tony, maybe you can understand why I try to live my life for Jesus Christ - same reason. My Friend Jesus took my knife - and realizing that has changed the course of my whole life."

Our word for today from the Word of God, 1 Peter 2:24 . Now the "He" in this verse is Jesus Christ, God's one and only Son. "He Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by His wounds you have been healed." I should have gotten the knife of God's judgment - after all, I should have to pay for the sinning I've done. But Jesus stepped in and took my knife. And your knife.

That death Jesus died on the cross wasn't for His sins - He didn't have any. They were for my sins - they were for your sins. The penalty for a lifetime of living for ourselves is death - which means being forever cut off from God, from His love, from His heaven. But Jesus loves you and me so much that He has stepped up and said, "Don't punish him. Don't punish her. Punish Me instead."

And He took more than my knife. He suffered all the hell I deserve - that you deserve. Now you may say, "I know all this. I know that Jesus died on the cross for our sins." But you may have never gone to that cross and said those two words that make all the difference - "for me." In the Biblical words of Galatians 2:20 , "The life I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me."

The day you make the Savior your Savior is the day the eternal wall between you and your God comes down; then you can finally have peace. And you'll be able to give up the sin that killed Him and begin living for what He loves. Once you give yourself to the Son of God who loved you enough to take your knife, your life will never be the same.

His love is within your reach right now - if you'll just tell Jesus you want to begin this love relationship with Him. If you want to belong to Jesus, I'd love to send you the booklet I wrote about this relationship called Yours For Life. Just use the information we're about to give you to get in touch.

One young man told me he wanted Jesus in his heart for one simple reason. He said, "No one ever loved me this much. No one ever loved me enough to die for me." Don't live one more day without that love.