Rescued!

Text and images taken from The Jesus Storybook Bible 

by Sally Lloyd-Jones, illustrated by Jago.

Then Jesus picked up some bread and broke it. 

He gave it to his friends. He picked up a cup of wine and

thanked God for it. He poured it out and shared it.

"My body is like this bread. It will break," Jesus told them.

"This cup of wine is like my blood. It will pour out."

"But this is how God will rescue the whole world. My life will break

and God's broken world will mend. My heart will tear apart

— and your hearts will heal. Just as the passover lamb died,

so now I will die instead of you. My blood will wash away

all of your sins. And you'll be clean on the inside

—in your hearts."

"So whenever you eat and drink, remember," 

Jesus said, "I have rescued you!"

The wind was picking up now, blowing clouds across

the moon, shrouding the garden in darkness.

"Stay up with me?" Jesus asked his friends.

They said yes and waited under the olive trees, but

they were tired and soon they fell asleep.

Jesus walked ahead alone, into the dark.

He needed to talk to his heavenly Father.

He knew it was time for him to die. They had planned

it long ago, he and his Father. Jesus was going to take

the punishment for all the wrong things anybody

had ever done, or ever would do.

"Papa! Father!" Jesus cried.

And he fell to the ground.

"Is there any other way to get your children back?

To heal their hearts? To get rid of the poison?

But Jesus knew — there was no other way.

All the poison of sin was going to have to 

go into his own heart.

God was going to pour into Jesus' heart all the sadness 

and brokenness in people's hearts. He was going to 

pour into Jesus' body all the sickness in people's

bodies. God was going to have to blame

his son for everything that had gone wrong.

It would crush Jesus.

But there was something else, something even more horrible.

When people ran away from God, they lost God —

it was what happened when they ran away.

Not being close to God was like a punishment.

Jesus was going to take that punishment.

Jesus knew what that meant. He was going to lose his Father —

and that, Jesus knew, would break his heart in two.

Violent sobs shook Jesus' whole body.

Then Jesus was quiet. Like a lamb. "I trust you, Papa,"

he said. "Whatever you say, I will do."