Devotion To
Devotion To
First, we celebrate Christ’s “devotion to” His Father’s will. Our Lord Jesus Christ had no secondary aims. His one passion in life was the fulfillment of His Father’s will. Of no other human being can this be said in absolute terms. Others have been devoted to God, but never absolutely. Always there has been occasion to mourn the introduction, however brief, of some distraction. But Jesus was never distracted. Never once did He deviate from His Father’s will. It was always before Him, and it was to this one thing that He was devoted.
Because it was not the Father’s will that any should perish, Jesus was devoted to the rescue of fallen mankind—completely devoted to it. He did not do a dozen other things as avocations. He did that one thing that would permit a Holy God to forgive sin. He was devoted to the altar of sacrifice so that mankind might be rescued from the wages of sin.
One of the old Baptist missionary societies had as its symbol an ox quietly standing between a plow and an altar. Underneath was the legend: “Ready for either or for both!” Plow, if that be God’s will. Die on the altar, if that be God’s will. Plow awhile, and then die on the altar. I can think of no more perfect symbol of devotion to God.
That symbol certainly describes the attitude of our Lord Jesus Christ. He was ready first for His labors on earth, the work with the plow. And He was ready for the altar of sacrifice—the cross. With no side interests, He moved with steady purpose—almost with precision—toward the cross. He would not be distracted or turned aside. He was completely devoted to the cross, completely devoted to the rescue of mankind, because He was completely devoted to His Father’s will.
Even “if we believe not,” as the ancient hymn puts it (see 2 Timothy 2:13), Jesus’ faithful devotion is unchanged. He has not changed. And He will not change. He is as devoted now as He was then. He came to earth to be a Devoted One, for the word devoted actually is a religious term referring usually to an animal, often a lamb, that was selected and marked for sacrifice to a god. So, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, was devoted—completely devoted—to be the Infinite Sacrifice for sin.