Just the Gentle Savior We Need – April 13, 2022

He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out.
Isaiah 42:2,3

Just the Gentle Savior We Need

We are in the middle of a week that the church calls “Holy Week.” This week, we hear about and reflect on the events of the final week before Jesus died. The Bible tells us more about the events of this week than about any other week of Jesus’ life.

It is perhaps noteworthy then that it seems there is nothing written about Wednesday of Holy Week. Some label this day “Silent Wednesday.”

Though the silence stands out in contrast to the other details of this week, it doesn’t stand out from how Jesus often operates. It’s not that Jesus never raises his voice, but often, he chooses gentle silence and tender conversations.

This is especially the case with the bruised and broken. When we are broken by our inadequacies and bruised by our insecurities, Jesus speaks words of gentle, unconditional love. When the struggles of life leave us worn and weary, Jesus promises his strength and pledges never to leave us. When our guilt leaves us feeling crushed and hopeless, Jesus assures us that he forgives us completely and makes us new.

And when our trust in Jesus is hanging on by a thread, Jesus doesn’t shame us or disown us. Instead, he points us to his cross and tenderly says, “There I kept my promise to you. There I died for you. There I opened paradise for you. I love you, and I’m not going to let you go.”

How fitting it is that Jesus, who entered Jerusalem in humility to go to the cross and die for us, now comes humbly and gently in the words of the Bible to comfort and encourage us, to heal our hearts and restore our hope. That’s where you will find him. Don’t seek him in the flashy or spectacular. Don’t look for him in the alarming or attention-getting.

Look for him and listen to him in the Bible. There you’ll find just the gentle Savior you need, one who patiently forgives, consistently cares, and never fails you in your time of need.

Prayer:
Jesus, gentle Savior, thank you for dealing gently and lovingly with me in my weakness. Amen.