If you choose Calvary, understand that it is one of choice!
Hear what Jesus had to say:
Matt 16:24-26
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. 26 What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul?
And again, He said it was one of choice;
John 7:37-39
37 On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
Matt 11:28-30
28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
What does it cost to go to Calvary?
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
Give up the world
Deny yourself
Take up your cross
Follow Jesus in everything
Allow Him to be Lord of your life.
What courses would we study at the University of Calvary?
I MUST LEARN TO SURRENDER MY WILL
Heb 5:7-9
7 During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. 8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered . 9 and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him
Our Example is at Gethsemane
Matt 26:36-39
36 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, "Sit here while I go over there and pray." 37 He took Peter and the two sons of Zebedee along with him, and he began to be sorrowful and troubled. 38 Then he said to them, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me." 39 Going a little farther, he fell with his face to the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will."
AT CALVARY, I LEARN THAT OTHERS ARE MORE IMPORTANT THAN I
Luke 23:27-28
27 A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him. 28 Jesus turned and said to them, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children.
Selfishness cannot live at Calvary
Self Pity Must die.
When Peter told Jesus "Pity thyself Lord." Jesus said, "Get behind me Satan..." “Feel sorry for yourself” --Calvary teaches me what it means to give all for someone else—how to give myself for others—The example at Calvary will teach this lesson like no other place.
I WILL LEARN TO LOVE, EVEN WHEN I AM HATED
1 Cor 13:1-8
13:1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
3 If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails.
“By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:35).
This is the true Test of Spirituality. When He grades us, he tests us by this word...What greater example of love than the Love God gave to us at Calvary. It is the 'agape` love—the love that gives all. “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whosoever believed in him would not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
When I think I have passed the course, I fail, and must get a fresh vision of Calvary.
I WILL LEARN FORGIVENESS EVEN WHEN THERE IS NO REPENTANCE
How many times do I forgive?
Matt 18:21-22
21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?" 22 Jesus answered, "I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
Luke 23:34 Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.
The true meaning of forgiveness.
Someone said that the word forgive is the most beautiful word in any language. I think we could agree, for included in the word are the concepts of faith, hope, and love. By forgiveness, the tragedy of sin is cancelled, guilt is removed and broken fellowship is restored. Forgiveness is faith in action, hope in restoration and love in reconciliation.
No one has escaped the snare of sin. Only by the act of Divine forgiveness can we be cleansed and restored to a state of innocence. While we were still sinners, Christ died on the cross for our sins and opened the door of forgiveness and reconciliation to God. His love still draws sinners to an altar of repentance so that He may pardon them. Without forgiveness we would all be trapped in our sins:It literally means that I, being wronged, assume the obligation of someone else's wrong, expecting no payment in return, accepting the premise as if I were the guilty one. And that my friend is exactly what Jesus did for us at Calvary—He took our place!
Forgiveness defined: “To give up the wish to punish or get even with; Not having hard feelings at or toward others…It means to pardon another, To release him from the punishment he should receive for his wrongdoing…It means to cancel the debt that a person owes.”
There is a terrible price to pay when we harbor unforgiveness in our heart. We pay the price in physical and emotional trauma. It doesn’t cause the one who committed the wrong any pain.
God is the source of forgiveness—Calvary is the price of forgiveness..
Look at this place called Calvary—Golgotha! A place of suffering and humiliation—where they spit on Him, slapped Him, beat Him. This reveals to us the awfulness of sin and its tragic consequences—what it cost to obtain forgiveness.
I MUST LEARN TO DIE, EVEN THOUGH I AM INNOCENT
John 12:24-25
24 I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. 25 The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
But if it dies—it produces many seeds The lesson taught here is that by giving our life, we will save it.
Gal 2:20
20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
I invite you to consider Calvary again today. Capture the spirit of that place of suffering. It is the greatest example of love ever shown to man.
If you go to this University at Calvary:
You will go because—
1. You choose to go
2. Understand that it will cost you something—there is a price to pay—not in dollars and cents, but in giving up your claim to yourself and allowing Him to become Lord of your life.
3. It is at Calvary that I learn to be what God wants me to be. It is where I learn the lessons of Christian living—love, forgiveness, compassion, denial of self, and many other lessons.
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