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1 Peter 2:24 - Christ Died For Us So We Could Live For Him; Now and Forever.

1 Peter 2:24 (NLT) He personally carried our 
sins in his body on the cross so that we can be 
dead to sin and live for what is right. By his 
wounds you are healed.  

COMMENTARY PEARL

   Have you ever thought about how strange 
the tooth fairy is? She sneaks into your room, 
digs around under your pillow, and steals a 
bloody tooth. Sure, you receive something in 
return, but it's still a little creepy. Italy, 
Spain, and France have a nicer tradition - 
supposedly a little mouse scurries into your room and 
takes your teeth. How cute! (Unless you don't like 
mice next to your face.) The world is filled with 
different traditions. In Australia, children pass up 
chocolate Easter bunnies to buy Easter bilbies - a 
much-loved, endangered, mini-kangaroo-looking creature. 
Every Easter sales from chocolate bilbies go 
toward helping this animal survive. 
   Christmas can also get a little crazy 
with its traditions. Forget about Santa Claus. In 
Denmark, Sinterklaas arrives by boat in early 
December. Instead of putting out cookies for him, 
children fill a wooden shoe with hay and carrots. The 
good kids get presents. In China, Dun Che Lao Ren 
(which loosely translated means "Christmas Old 
Man") brings gifts. Try putting that into a song: 
"Christmas Old Man is coming to town." It just doesn't 
work. Then there's Jultomten. This Swedish gnome 
brings presents on a sleigh pulled by goats. 
   Many traditions began with a small piece 
of history. Then things get exaggerated and 
mixed up. Some people say that's the case with 
Jesus. They think, He's just a myth. No person 
could do everything that Jesus did. But when you 
honestly look at the historical evidence, dig into 
his claims of being God, and explore the effect 
he's had on the world and in individual lives, 
then you'll come to one conclusion: Jesus is no 
Easter bunny. He's 100 percent real. 
   Jesus is not just a feel-good symbol 
who's as irrelevant to your life as the tooth 
fairy. He's the Son of the living God who saved you 
from your sins. First Peter 2:24 says, "He 
personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so 
that we can be dead to sin and live for what is 
right. By his wounds you are healed" (NLT). Because 
of Christ's sacrifice, you can live for what is 
right. The Easter bunny may bring us chocolate, but 
Jesus brings us life! [Case For Christ For Kids by 
Les Strobel] 

COMMENTARY

   In front of Rockefeller Plaza in New York 
City stands a famous statue from Greek mythology 
- Atlas, bearing the earth on his shoulders. 
The huge globe he holds looks terribly heavy. 
Even his mighty knees seem to be buckling under 
the weight. It reminds me of how people talk 
about Jesus bearing the sins of the world - as 
though He had a massive, invisible weight on His 
shoulders. But today's Scripture reads, "He himself 
bore our sins in his body on the cross." He 
didn't carry our sins on His back; He took our sins 
into himself. It happened on the inside. When God 
saw Jesus on the cross, He literally saw our 
sin. Jesus experienced the full weight of God's 
anger meant for you and me. God "made him who had 
no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we 
might become the righteousness of God" (2Co. 
5:21). 
   Lord Jesus, there is nothing fair about 
this exchange. You took my sins into Your own 
body, paying my penalty. And in trade, You gave me 
Your righteousness, purity, and sinless beauty! 
You took on my death, allowing me to receive 
Your life. I will never comprehend this. I am in 
awe of Your love today. [A Spectacle of Glory by 
Joni Eareckson Tada and Larry Libby] 

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

   My wife and I took two days to make the 
trip from Colorado to Louisiana. During those two 
days Hurricane Isaac made landfall. We arrived 
late at night and felt relieved that we had 
electricity. We were glad to be sleeping in our own bed 
after a month away. It wasn't until I went outside 
the next morning that I noticed the damage from 
the storm. Everywhere I looked limbs were down, 
and the yard was a mess. There was a lot of work 
to do, so much that I felt a little 
overwhelmed. But I got started by taking care of one limb 
at a lime.  
   While we are still in darkness, our lives 
don't look all that bad to us. But when we give 
our lives to Jesus Christ and his light shines 
on us, we see the devastation caused by our 
hurts, hang-ups, and habits much more clearly. As 
we look around at the broken relationships and 
dashed hopes, it can feel overwhelming. 
   There's a lot of work to do, that's for 
sure. But with God's help, we can start by taking 
care of one issue at a time and then moving on to 
the next and the next and the next. 
   Father, thank you for helping me clean up 
the debris that litters my life. I know there is 
a good, blessed life under there somewhere. 
Help me as I uncover it one issue at a time. In 
Jesus' name, Amen. [Celebrate Recovery Daily 
Devotional by John & Johnny Baker] 

LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS TOPIC

1 Peter 2:24 - Christ Died For Us So We 
Could Live For Him - Now & Forever. 

http://www.abible.com/devotions/2010/20101124-1517.html 

2 Corinthians 5:14, 15 - Love & Living for 
Christ. 

http://www.abible.com/devotions/2005/20050527-0651.html 

YOUR COMMENTS

If anyone has a paraphrase, commentary or 
testimony on this passage of Scripture, either 
personal or otherwise, I would be interested in 
hearing from you.  Thanks in advance and let's keep 
uplifting Jesus that all might be drawn to Him. Fred 
Gibbs  

LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT

Most Important Decision in Life: 
http://www.youtube.com/embed/WGnEuGwvXqU?rel=0 

A Man without Equal by Bill Bright: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiVa7UoruIo 

Seeking God Made Real: 
http://vimeo.com/31489782 

Prayer Made Real: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc8VdMV26VE 

Importance of Choice: 
http://creationhealth.com/CREATION-Health/Choice [click on video]  

Medical Seminar on Healthful Living by David 
DeRose, MD, MPH: 
https://www.smartlifestyletv.com/lifestart 

LINKS FOR BIBLE STUDIES 

Lifting Up Jesus Bible Studies: 
http://www.liftingupjesus.net/ 

Amazing Facts Bible Studies: 
http://www.amazingfacts.org/bible-study/bible-study-guides.aspx  

Hope Awakens Bible Study Guides: 
https://www.hopeawakens.study/lesson-header;id=2 

Glow Tract Video Bible Studies: 
http://www.bibleresearch.info/ 

LINKS FOR BIBLE PROPHECY SEMINARS

Revelation Now by Pastor Doug Batchelor: 
https://www.revelationnow.com/ 

Unlocking Bible Prophecies by Cami Oetman of 
Adventist World Radio: 
https://bible.awr.org/en/the-signs/ 

Hope Awakens by John Bradshaw of IIW: 
https://itiswritten.tv/programs/hope-awakens 

Prophecies Decoded by Pastor Ron Clouzet: 
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL1A435C5373550657