Passion by Susan L.

  If you ask anyone who has seen Mel Gibson's "The Passion" what moment in the movie stood out for them the most, the responses are as varied and individual as each of us. For me it was when the two Mary's gathered cloths and tenderly cleaned up the blood of the Lamb that had been spilt during Christ's scourging. It drove home just how much was shed for us so we may be forgiven of our sins once and for all. Every lash of the whip laid the mark of sin on Jesus' back. This was the burden He took to the cross.
  I know my own sins well enough. He carried the sins of the whole, entire world. A weight I cannot even begin to imagine.
  Whenever I take communion, although the shared ritual of using a communal cup is not part of the church I belong to, I am reminded of the price He paid. Holding the humble, little plastic cup gives me an opportunity to draw nearer my Lord in gratitude. It floods up from every corner of my soul because without Him, without the blood that was spilled, I would not be here.
  Jesus knows all the trials I have been through. He suffered through them even as He gave the gift of communion to His followers: betrayal, denial, rejection. It is His cup, the Holy Grail a baby Christian pursued, that I freely partake of. A cup that has grown to mean so much more.
  I have been forgiven. I will never be alone.
  If you don't know Jesus as your Lord and Saviour, I invite you to ask Him into your life. There's no prep, no requirements, only that you ask.
  "Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for the remission of sins." (Mat 26:27-28)