Scars are testimony of the past. The psalmist so expressed himself: “Even my own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, who ate of my bread, has lifted up his heel against me” (Ps. 41:9). This was prophetic of YAHSHUA’S experience before His trials in John 13:18-19: “I am not speaking of and I do not mean all of you, I know whom I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may be fulfilled. He who eats My bread with Me has raised up his heel against Me. I tell you this now before it occurs, so that when it does take place you may be persuaded and believe that I am He [Who I say I am] – the Messiah.” Judas was destined to perdition. He was called the son of perdition (Satan). With a terrible task to perform which caused him to commit suicide. I truly believe, he will come as the antichrist to finish the work of his father- the devil.
YAHSHUA died with marks all over His body to prove Israel that He was the Messiah Who came to fulfill redemption for all who would believe in Him. While they forsake Him, many still believed and will witness the marks on His body as evidences of His Messianic act of salvation. The disciples who discredited His resurrection, were also shown by the eating of the bread with them. On the road to Emmaus, He took bread and praised [God] and gave thanks and asked a blessing, and then broke it and gave it to them, when their eyes were opened and they recognized Him and He vanished. At the testimony of these disciples, YAHSHUA appeared to the others while they were talking about this, YAHSHUA Himself took His stand among them and said to them, Peace be to you! He said to them, why are you disturbed and troubled, and why do such doubts and questionings arise in your hearts? See My hands and My feet, that is I Myself! Feel and handle me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see that I have… He said to them, Have you anything here to eat? They gave Him a piece of broiled fish. And He took and ate before them (Luke 24). YAHSHUA’S scars served to testify of His resurrection to the disciples and to the world. Before He closed His eyes to death, He forgave those who were inflicting scars on His body and saved a thief on the cross. And when the time comes, we will see the scars on His hands, feet and side. We will forever be thankful in adoration and in praises to Him.
Scars are certain that will happen to all of us. They exist to tell a life story of challenges and results. Physical scars are many times the causes for the emotional scars. However, living in the past, we will never find the way to healing, for pain returns every time we think about it and bitterness brings us sickness that affects the heart, liver, blood pressure, kidneys. Our Lord desires our emotion to be clean and free from it. The tongue is a weapon that causes great pain and scars in our emotion, for it is the peace taker. The Bible warns us of it in several passages. The book of James, for example is very clear about it. He said, “The tongue is a fire of wickedness set among our members, contaminating and depraving the whole body and setting on fire the wheel of birth, being itself ignited by hell; the human tongue can be tamed by no man. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison” (James 3). Scars caused by the tongue can lead even to death. David prayed, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer” (Ps. 19: 14).
Our Lord YAHSHUA suffered much from the tongues of His own people. However, there were no scars left on His soul that affected Him emotionally. His heart was free from bitterness, but full of love and forgiveness. So much so, that He took their own cross and died in their places, forgiving and saving them by the shedding of His blood. Let our scars be testimonies that edify and lift one from their own pain, for by His own “stripes we are healed and made whole.” Through every stripe applied on YAHSHUA’S body by sinners, He offered forgiveness and healing instead. At the insults thrown at Him, nailing Him to the cross, He prayed, “Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do.” So, He died. Loving, forgiving sinners who hated Him and scarred Him. The story that the scars on His body is: “For God so greatly loved the world that He gave up His only begotten Son, so that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16)
May we erase every scar left in our soul through forgiveness, as we were forgiven, following the example YAHSHUA gave us.
