Zigging and Zagging

That is how I roll, people. I zig...
wait for it.....
watch for it.....
then I zag.

Which is oddly appropriate as I live in a little town nestled in the Cascade foothills called....

ZIGZAG.

Yep. Appropriate.

See, yesterday was all about poking good natured fun at Cindy using every Wizard of Oz pun we could come up with. Oh, the joy of humming "If I only had a Brain" while doing invoices and laundry!

But today is a whole different ball of wax because I want to share how moved I was this morning while doing some reading on the front porch. (notice the ZIG? See the ZAG?)

No, I wasn't moved because because Rod had rinsed his soapy truck-washing bucket in my precious little fountain and when I lifted my eyes from reading in Acts I saw this:

No to be honest, I was moved because I read a sermon written by Charles Spurgeon in the late 1800's. Now just stay with me.

I first read it a couple days ago and it caused tears then. I thought I must be weepy or hormonal or something, so I printed it out and read it this morning again.

Tears again. It deeply touched me. So I want to share it here. At least a part of it.

An Awful Contrast

"Then did they spit in his face."—Matthew 26:67.

...Observe that these men, the priests, and scribes, and orders, and their servitors, did this shameful deed after they had heard our Lord say, "Hereafter shall ye see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven. It was in contempt of this claim, in derision of this honor which he foretold for himself, that "then did they spit in his face," as if they could bear it no longer, that he, who stood to be judged of them, should claim to be their Judge; that he, whom they had brought at dead of night from the garden of Gethsemane as their captive, should talk of coming in the clouds of heaven: "Then did they spit in his face."

...There are two or three thoughts that come to my mind when I think that these wicked men did actually spit in Christ's face,—in that face which is the light of heaven, the joy of angels, the bliss of saints, and the very brightness of the Father's glory. This spitting shows us, first, how far sin will go. If we want proof of the depravity of the heart of man, I will not point you to the stews of Sodom and Gomorrah, nor will I take you to the places where blood is shed in streams by wretches like to Herod and men of that sort. No, the clearest proof that man is utterly fallen, and that the natural heart is enmity against God, is seen in the fact that they did spit in Christ's face, did falsely accuse him, and condemn him, and lead him out as a malefactor, and hang him up as a felon that he might die upon the cross.

Why, what evil had he done? What was there in his whole life that should give them occasion to spit in his face? Even at that moment, did his face flash with indignation against them? Did he look with contempt upon them? Not he; for he was all gentleness and tenderness even towards these his enemies, and their hearts must have been hard and brutal indeed that "then did they spit in his face."

He had healed their sick, he had fed their hungry, he had been among them a very fountain of blessing up and down Judaea and Samaria; and yet, "then did they spit in his face."

I say again, relate not to me the crimes of ancient nations, nor the horrible evils committed by uncivilized men, nor the more elaborate iniquities of our great cities; tell me not of the abominations of Greece or Rome;—this—this, in the sight of the angels of God, and in the eyes of the God of the angels, is the masterpiece of all iniquity: "Then did they spit in his face."

To enter into the King's own palace, and draw near to his only-begotten Son, and to spit in his face,—this is the crime of crimes which reveals the infamous wickedness of men. Humanity stands condemned of the blackest iniquity now that it has gone as far as to spit in Christ's face.

If you stayed with me, I am sure you can tell why I cried when I read it. My heart hurts. I am in awe of his great compassion for us. We, who didn't deserve it then and don't deserve it now and yet have rivers of grace and compassion and mercy and love and delight. Enough said.

Look what the book of Revelations says about Him whose face was spit upon:

"And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away."—Revelation 20:11

(Click on Charles Spurgeon's name up above if you would like to read the entire sermon...without my cutting, copying and pasting.)