Rusty nails

"But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed." Isaiah 53.5

I wonder if those inclined to belt out Frank Sinatra's classic 'I did it my way', with all the arrogant self-assertiveness it implies, have stopped to consider its ultimate implications? Claiming sovereignty over one's life means one must also take responsibility for one's deeds and one's behaviour. That means one day facing our Maker and Judge. Doing so in the nakedness of all the mistakes and omissions and prejudices that blight our lives should give everyone pause for thought.

My personal assessment is that I wouldn't stand a chance! I say "wouldn't" because, thanks to the same Maker and Judge, I won't have to. Knowing our hopeless and loving us all the same, God sent his Son to live the perfect life so that he could die the ultimate death and pass over the unbridgeable gap, in order that we may follow and be reconciled to God. That is the significance of Isaiah's prophecy in chapter 53 of the biblical book which bears his name. Heeding that prophecy, so that 'I did it my way' becomes 'I submitted to his way', is what will secure our entry into God's Book of Life.