In this sixth saying an unbeliever has spoken an eternal truth in the presence of the cross. In the simple gesture of offering drink to the thirsty lips of the Savior men are drawn up short to see what God will do as they point to the cross saying, “ Behold.” (Mark 16: 34-37) It is true that man’s plans change when God acts. But that should be no surprise considering the darkness, the earthquake, the resurrection of saints, and the tearing of the temple veil from top to bottom. Christ was not on the cross for his own personal punishment, as an example, or the confirmation of his teachings. He was on the cross by the act of God for man’s salvation. No wonder that those nearby would stop to see what might happen next. Mistakenly they thought Jesus was calling for Elijah, but in fact he was declaring the acts of God for all times.
Prior to this saying to the cross, Jesus cried out, “My God, my God why hast thou forsaken me?” As a reaction those who stood by thought he was calling out for an Old Testament prophet. That is why they said behold. Let us ask the same question of ourselves.
Behold what God has done. God has condemned wicked mankind by the catastrophes that has occurred such as the flood of Noah. Those people rejected an opportunity to be saved over a hundred-year period while the ark was being constructed. Yet they would not hear. Then suddenly when it began to rain, they became believers, not because of believers in God but because they believed that something terrible was happening. What God has done has been ministered by miracles. An example of that is the parting of the Red Sea. The lesson here is that God would not leave his people alone to face the acts of evil coming behind as an army of Pharaoh. Instead, God made a path, God made a way, for his people. God has reached out to humanity countless of times by the various revelations that he made whether it be by angels or prophets. It never was God’s intention for man to be left on his own because God knew that man could not help himself.
Behold what God is now doing. God is not an Old Testament deity only. He is the God of the past, the present, and the future. God is not helpless in anything. Whatever he wants, whatever he restrains is because of his will. His actions retain in any present time by his actions. God is doing what he is doing by whatever he chose are his divine nature. What he does is because he wants to do it. Any change of method that God intervenes in the history of mankind did not indicate change in nature or power. It simply is a change in how he approaches the moment by interacting with people. Even today God is doing whatever he can beginning with the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. The only thing that can stop God’s efforts is unbelief. If we do not have faith in Christ, we have faith in self, chance, or what happenstance that there might be in life.
Behold what God is going to do. This is the ultimate highlight of God’s interaction with the world. God had a plan from the beginning. He is always exercising that plan to an ultimate end. Because of this God continues to love everyone with the intention that anyone would come into his divine family. There is coming a time in which God is going to culminate evil. In our world we see evil active all the time. However, that will not last! The devil himself has limitations set by God. That ultimate limitation will be fulfilled as indicated in the prophecy in the book of Revelation. Satan will be cast into the eternal damnation that was prepared for him. In the meantime, God’s plan includes a crown of righteousness for all would accept him as Savior; for all who will follow him. God is not just simply inviting people. He is inviting them to receive an eternal crown. He is guiding them to enjoy righteousness in this life and in particular the life to come.
Christian Writer 