Illuminated Work + Why is Good Friday Good?

{WOYWW post below}

Hullo there everyone! 

Hanging on my bedroom wall is an Illuminated calendar for 2014, from the Hong Kong Christian Book Room. A lot of my texts are similar to their monthly images on the calendar as the book I learnt from (see - here it is) is written by the founder of this Book Room. 

Here is April's verse.. oriental this time - as it is printed in Hong Kong.

Isn't it a beautiful verse? 

It is the true reflection of what occurred on Good Friday all those years ago. On a rocky hillside, in sorrow and pain, a young Man shed His blood on a cross - a shameful, sinful death.

WHY?

Years ago (over 40) I well remember my sister's teacher asking me on a hillside (here near the beach) if I knew why Jesus had died? 

I said, " No."

.. and so she told me He had died for my sin, and the sins of everyone. 

Now I was a child.. and you may wonder - how a child can have sinned?

.. but believe you me, there was not argument at all from me on that point.

I knew I had done wrong.. and that was sin.. but that Jesus had died to take away my sin totally blew me away. 

That memorable day, when I saw Jesus on the cross for my sin, has lived evermore for me in these words of this hymn. 
 

                                      There Is A Green Hill Far Away

                        There is a green hill far away, without a city wall,

                        Where the dear LORD was crucified, Who died to save us all.

                        We may not know, we cannot tell what pains He had to bear,

                        But we believe it was for us He hung & suffered there.  

                        He died that we might be forgiven , He died to make us good,

                        That we might go at last to Heaven, saved by His precious blood.

                        There was no other good enough to pay the price of sin,

                        He only could unlock the gate of Heaven, and let us in.

                        Oh, dearly, dearly has He loved, & we must love Him too, 

                        And trust in His redeeming blood & try His works to do. 

By C.F. Alexander

 

Jesus is our Living Redeemer, Saviour and Friend - if we have sought salvation in Him, the Lord Jesus.

"God sent His Only Begotten Son into the world that we might live through Him."
1 John 4:9

This is why Good Friday is Good.

By faith in Him we have the certain hope of life forevermore with Him. 

For more see here - Who or What is a Christian? or see sidebar.

The Easter story. The gift of His transforming love. The reminder of what Jesus has done for us.

His sacrifice brought us life.

Taken from a Dayspring e-card

There is sadness in the story. There is pain in the story. There is death. But there is more. The whole story includes the beauty of Easter. 
The triumph. 
The joy.

I would dearly love that all who read this might know that Beauty, Triumph, and Joy.. in Jesus.

I would like to close with a very early Illuminated text done in the early 1990's. 

(sorry, it is very poor "best-can-do" enhanced image - bad flare from old camera, etc. not digital.)

 The observant among you will realise it's the verse done on the header of my blog. 

It is also on the very first post I did on my blog, back here.

(I have done it four times now, three different colours, and one was duplicate of one on the header.

This, the original is the one and only one done in Aluminum leaf - very hard to work with but will not tarnish like silver leaf.)

May we all take time to ponder the importance of these words of the Lord Jesus, as He speaks to each of us - it will help to keep life with a real perspective. 

"What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, but lose his own soul?" Mark 8:36

Zip, zero, zilch is the answer... 

The whole world will profit us nothing.

This is the whole key to Easter... Eternity... and what counts for eternity. 
May we live this truth.

 May God richly bless you wherever you maybe and thank you SO much for  making my day - being real encouragers!
Shaz in Oz.x 

Would like to join these over with:

Word Art Wednesday - anything goes    http://wordartwednesday.blogspot.com.au