Patty's story, repost

[Guest guest]

Please allow me to share this once again...Someone needs to be set

free today....

The woman sat quietly in the witness stand. She fought the trembling

in her body that she knew was not caused by any drafty windows, but

from the chill that hung in the air as she sat before her accusers.

The steeliness of their eyes told her that she would find no mercy

here. Their accusations against her had all been laid out one by

one, in aching detail, until she could no longer bear to hear them.

She knew they were right. But she also knew that she wasn't the

only guilty one. If they had anything in common, it was that they

were all guilty of offenses that deserved punishment.

The judge sat stonily in his chamber seat. He was a just man, known

for his great wisdom and kindness. Still, he was fearsome. His

presence dominated the courtroom with such force that it was almost

hard to breathe. She knew that her life was in his hands.

The moment they were waiting for came. As if in slow motion, she

watched as the gavel swung high into the air and came crashing

down. With it, she heard the one word she feared most. " Death! "

For her, the room suddenly seemed to spin with dizzying force. For

those watching, the room became animated with life. The faces of

her accusers turned to gleeful derision, their laughter splitting

the cold air into a thousand pummeling hands that beat wave after

wave upon her head and shoulders. She turned away as their steely

eyes became daggers that she could almost feel cutting her open.

The pain was so real, she found herself glancing down at her body,

waiting to see the blood flow.

Exhausted and mentally spent, she hung her head, blocking out the

din around her. So, this was how it all ended. She saw all her

hopes and dreams fall to the ground in a crash of rubble at her

feet. Her freedom was gone, her life was over. Her past was her

prison, and now it was her death sentence. What had she done? Yes,

she had made some bad choices, but was there no mercy to be found

anywhere? Was there no hope for the future? Was there nothing to

change this black darkness that awaited her?

Suddenly there was a voice that broke through the din with such

authority that even the judge looked up in surprise.

" Wait! "

The man who had been leaning inconspicuously against the wall in the

corner began to walk toward the court bench. He strode forward

slowly, but with determination, knowing that all eyes were following

him in shocked wonderment. What was he doing? Who was he? What did

he want?

The woman looked up in bewilderment, watching him as he moved toward

her. His eyes met hers, his gaze never wandering from her face as

each step closed the gap between them. She realized that she had

involuntarily sucked in her breath and held it as he moved closer.

There, in those eyes, she saw a kindness and compassion that she had

never seen before in the eyes of any man. They were eyes filled

with love, complete and unashamed love. Could it be that this gaze

was really meant for her? She found that she could not turn her

eyes away from his tender face. As he finally stood near her, his

hand seemed to reach out toward hers in longing as he paused to rest

his hand upon the bench railing. For a fleeting moment she felt

that he had gently touched her, and in that quiet instant, time was

suspended and a calmness filled her soul that she had never known

before. His face radiated compassion and tenderness, the warmth

chasing away the unwelcome chill she had fought. He seemed to

momentarily pause as He turned from her to face the judge. There

before the black robed man, his face became chiseled in strength and

determination as he spoke clearly.

" Your honor, it is my wish that you take my life in place of hers. I

wish to pay the penalty that she is to pay. I ask that you set her

free. "

Gasps could be heard as mouths dropped open in astonishment.

He went on, " She has done nothing to deserve this gift from me. I

give it of my own desire. I only ask one thing…that this gift be

shared among all, that all men learn to forgive others as I have

forgiven her, and that the meaning of grace given, though unmerited

and unearned is understood. My desire is that the whole world

would learn from this day forward and learn to live in grace with

one another. For it is only through forgiveness that the world can

become free. Forgiveness is a gift of salvation for all. I am

willing to die for this. Only then can we be truly free. "

Everyone sat dumbfounded, unable to speak. Papers fluttered, and

machines hummed. The silence seemed suspended into eternity as

everyone present weighed the meaning of his words. Forgiveness.

Grace. Unmerited. Unearned. Salvation. Gift. For all.

What would they do?

What will you do?

Oh, that we could all experience the look of our Savior into our

eyes as we sit condemned before the Almighty Judge of the Universe.

For we are all in that place, each one of us is that woman. Without

Christ, our past is our prison, and it will be our death sentence.

But Christ has come to set us free. We can be free of those chains

that weigh us down, once and for all. Forever. Our Lord and Savior

has approached us, each one of us, as we sit on that judgement seat,

and His eyes are filled with such compassion and kindness, and so

much love that we should be left breathless. No man could EVER love

us as much as Christ loves us….He gave everything he could for us,

and His love is so deep for us that we cannot fully comprehend it,

and yet it is all that we need. And it is totally unmerited. It is

a gift given for all. All that He asks is that we learn from Him,

and live for Him.

He reaches out to you, and you can gently feel His touch if you will

only open up your heart to let Him in. Trust Him. For He is there.

And if we truly love others, we will share with them this glorious

message of salvation, for it is theirs for the taking. A gift. For

all.

For eternity. And through Christ, we can learn to love others with

the same love that He has for us. That's what God wanted from the

beginning of time.

That is what will save the world.

" For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that

whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For

God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to

save the world through Him. " 3:16-17