JESUS SET HIS FACE FOR THE FINISH
Jesus was determined to go to Jerusalem. As he traveled from Galilee, he sought to take the direct route through Samaria, but they would not receive him. Their rejection was a foreshadowing of the rejection he would face in Jerusalem. Yet, he was resolute, literally he “set his face” to go there.
It was time. The reason for his coming was at hand. The betrayal, the rejection, the cross, the death and the burial… all these stood between him and his ascension back to the Father. So he set his face to endure all these, looking past them to the time when he would be taken up, having completed his mission. Like a mother giving birth, who sets her face to endure the labor, Jesus set his face to endure the cross in order to experience the joy that was set before him (Heb. 12:2). Looking past the dark shadow of the cross, Jesus set his face to the bright glory that awaited him with the Father.
Those who follow Jesus have a similar way of facing life, setting their face on being with Him, they order their lives accordingly.
PRAYER: Dear Father, make us resolute to finish well for You. May we set our faces on the face of Your Son who died for us. Strengthen us to follow Jesus in all things. In His name we pray, amen.