Crowned
VII. Crowned
“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord;
my soul shall exult in my God,
for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation;
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness...”
The robe of righteousness for your shame
can only be found in Christ Jesus.
There is no other covering
that can cleanse the conscience,
silence accusation,
and make sinners fit for the presence of a holy God.
Jesus says,
“Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life,
and I will raise him up on the last day.”
On this dark Friday,
we are confronted with what sin has done to us.
Our shame is not shallow.
Our need is not small.
There is only a Savior
for the honest conscience,
for the sinner who comes into the light
and says,
“I cannot fix myself.”
And as you prepare your heart
to respond to the death of Christ,
ask yourself:
Have I come to terms
with the shame sin has stamped upon me?
Have I come to terms
with the fact that I cannot heal myself,
cleanse myself,
or clothe myself?
Have I stopped trusting
in religion, appearances, effort, or morality
to do what only Christ can do?
The only hope of restoration
is found in trusting the Faithful One—
The One who endured shame,
suffered in your place,
shed his blood for your cleansing,
and now offers you
the garments of salvation
and the robe of righteousness.
There are not many moments in our days
when we stop long enough
to sit quietly before God, our Creator.
Let this be one of them.
And if, as these truths have unfolded,
you have come to see
that you are not truly a Christian—
though your parents may assume you are,
though your friends may think you are,
though you have sat in church for years
as one more quiet face in the room,
watching but not worshiping,
present but not surrendered—
then do not stay where you are.
Come and pray before the cross.
Cry out to God.
Do not leave with your shame concealed
when Christ is ready to cover you with grace.
Do not remain distant
when Jesus receives sinners.
And you will find
that the Christ who was stripped in shame
is able to robe ashamed sinners in righteousness.
You will find
that the Savior who endured the cross
is ready to embrace all who come to him in faith.
