"He saved others, but he can't save himself! He's the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him."
— Matthew 27:42
They were mocking Him. But what they didn't realize is that He absolutely could have come down.
That's what makes it so powerful.
Think about that for a second. The same hands that calmed a storm, healed the blind, and raised the dead were nailed to a cross. Not because He was powerless. But because He chose to stay.
He didn't come down because you were worth staying for.
We live in a world that tells you to protect yourself. Walk away when things get hard. Quit when it stops being comfortable. And honestly, that's what most of us do including me. I spent years running from anything that hurt, numbing it, avoiding it, pretending it wasn't there.
But He didn't run. He stayed on that cross through every insult, every nail, every breath that got harder than the last. Not because He had to. Because He wanted to.
And when it was finished, three days later, He rose. The same cross they thought defeated Him became the most powerful symbol in all of human history.
That's the reminder I wear every day.
When life gets heavy and it will, remember that the King of Kings looked suffering in the face and didn't flinch. That same strength lives in you. Not because you're strong enough on your own, but because He already proved that love is stronger than anything this world can throw at you.
Stay on your cross. Don't come down early. Your resurrection is coming.
— Austin, Founder of TheRisenKing