The Wounded One

He was quiet the whole time…I wasn’t sure if he was contemplating on why he resisted his arrest and perhaps, regretting the way he did. Or he was in so much pain that his remaining strength waned at every passing second, as each wound bled and throbbed with pain.

I had everything ready in front of me: gauze, saline, wound cleanser, antibiotics, a sterile pack for wound care and some pain-relievers I had stashed in a small, tan envelope. He was screened by the Intake Nurse after being treated at the hospital. But as he was walking toward the unit where he would be housed, his wounds started bleeding. So, the deputy brought him to the Clinic and had us evaluated them again.

His left shin was swollen. The metal part of a baton etched on it, as it started to become bluish. He showed me his right elbow. There was a big abrasion that bled a little. His face, slightly swollen on the left cheek. He looked embarrassed at the same time. Not wanting to answer the deputy’s queries on what he did that precipitated the officers to hit him.

I wasn’t paying attention to their one-sided conversation. I was looking at each wound, thinking how it wasn’t even open but he looked like he was already in so much pain. And a scenery flashed in my mind that dated back thousands of years ago. When one man, sinless, was hit hard though no crime was ever committed by him. He knew this needed to happen. He had many wounds from being whipped. His head pierced with a crown of thorns. His hands and feet pierced by the nails. His side pierced by the Roman soldier. He wasn’t a felon. He was God’s only Son. Willed to die on the cross to pay for humanity’s sins. He is Jesus…..God has no obligation to save any of us. But because He loves us, He sent Jesus to take away the sins of the world…The punishment paid…by Jesus’ blood. The sentence no longer applies. And God raised Jesus from the dead. And the death sentence has been lifted from mankind, too.

“Everyone dies because all of us are related to Adam, the first man. But all who are related to Christ, the other man, will be given a new life.” ~ 1 Corinthians 15:22

But for us to be given eternal life, we must choose to believe in Jesus and repent for our sins and make Him the Lord of our lives. “You can enter God’s Kingdom only through the narrow gate. The highway to hell is broad, and its gate is wide for the many who choose the easy way. But the gateway to life is small, and the road is narrow, and only a few ever find it.” ~ Matthew 7:13-14
Do you know Jesus? Yes, the One wounded many years ago….The One Who died for you and me…