Another Insight At The Foot Of The Cross
In the last blog, I looked at the possibility of the five fold being the five fingerprints of the hand of God, each individual finger having a distinctive fingerprint, but when examined all looking like the image of Jesus, the complete hand being the corporate body of Christ. When meditating in Church today, I came upon a scripture that I have read plenty of times before, but now took on a different perspective.
Luke 23: 44-46 records, It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two. Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” When he had said this, he breathed his last.
When Jesus was crucified on the cross, he could not hold on or grasp anything because of the nails that were driven through his hands. He hung there exposed, naked, physically helpless. Things looked out of control, but that assumption would be incorrect, for things were exactly in His control. Because of Jesus’ mission, he knew that as a human he had to die, but “death where is your sting?” As a sacrificial lamb, he knew his mission, death, resurrection, and victory. Being in control, what was the last thing Jesus said before his death loudly? He proclaimed for all the world to hear, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.”
Where did Jesus commit his spirit? Into “the hands of God, His Father”! He “releases” His spirit into the hands of God. Who is God’s hands? The Church! What does God, the Father do, grasp a strong hold to keep and horde the Spirit of Jesus Christ? No. Jesus knew his Father’s Promise that if he, Jesus, returned to his Father in heaven, then the Father would “release” that Spirit Jesus just gave him and allow it to be released into His Church! Fifty days later, a blink of an eye to God, He “releases” the Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ back onto the Church, and Pentecost becomes “the birth of the Church”, the evangelistic spirit! In upcoming days, these believers would break bread with each other, nurture and care for one another, the pastoral shepherding spirit! Would “teach” the fulfillment of all scripture, the Logos Word, the Law, through Jesus Christ, the teaching spirit! Commune with the Holy Sprit, listening to his voice and obediently following it, the prophetic spirit! The Church would be founded on the 12 apostles to “over see” the work of this Holy Spirit of Jesus Christ! The hand of God had released His fingerprints, the five fold, upon His Church, and on the world!
In upcoming blogs we will look at the “hand of God” and what it means, the power of the use of hands in ministry, and the imprint of the five fold a unique passions and points of view, but the power of a newly birthed Church, and the power of a restored Church in preparation for Jesus’ return to earth as He had prophesied.