The Incomparable Christ

Back in March I decided to read long with Nancy Leigh Demoss’ radio series following the book called The Incomparable Christ.  It probably won’t surprise you to hear that I am quite behind.  I think I let my mind go to mush reading books by Jeanette Oke and devotionals.  This book takes a lot of thinking for me.  I find myself reading and rereading sections many times to figure out what is being said.  But it is good.  I think I have highlighting on every page!  I have done better on keeping up with the podcasts.  And I do not think I am being cheated in my desire to focus on this in anticipation of Easter.  It has been very good…did I say that already?  Here’s just a couple of thoughts I have had.

I enjoyed the chapters of Jesus’ birth and boyhood and youth.  It brought humanness to my thoughts of Jesus to picture Him as a toddler and young child.  Andrea and Elaine were visiting at the time, so I had a living example in front of me.  Jesus grew and played  and learned and discovered the same way as Elaine was.  He did not take any shortcuts or have any miraculous advantages…He laid all that side to come to earth for us.

I think I have benefited the most, so far, from the chapters on Jesus’ temptation and His prayer life.  Probably because that is where I live and struggle and fail a lot in my relationship with Christ.  I listened to the podcast on His temptation twice and intend to listen again…it was so helpful!  You can read or listen to it here.  Twice if you want too!  It was encouraging to me just to be reminded of our enemy Satan and His tactics.  And that we have the same resources in our battle with Satan that Jesus did, the Word of God! 

Here is where you can hear the Prayer Life of Christ.  Also worth a double listen!  Do you ever get so busy or so overwhelmed that you think you don’t have time to pray?  I do.  Nancy shared this which really convicted me. “We make busy schedules and pressing demands a reason for not praying; Jesus made it a reason for praying.” 

Yesterday I listened to the podcast about Gethsemane.  The purpose for Christ coming to earth is now in focus. Here is a quote from the book, The Incomparable Christ: “He drank a cup of wrath without mercy, that we might drink a cup of mercy without wrath. The agony was not the fear of death but the deep sense of God’s wrath against sin that He was to bear.”

I am so undeserving of this love He has for me.  We are looking at future events in our study of Isaiah, the Millennial kingdom and eternity.  Last night Alethea was sharing about God’s restoration, both of Israel and our future as believers also.  She gave the definition for restoration; to return to a former condition, to repair or renovate.  But God’s restoration is not about restoring us to our former condition.  He is restoring us to a place we have never been before, a life without sin!  That is an awesome thought to me!  Because Christ drank the cup of wrath for me, I have that restoration now!  Sin does not have power over me.  I will have it more fully in eternity when there will also not be any presence of sin!  Truly Christ is Incomparable!