Engraven On His Hands

A good friend once told me, "If you're going to talk about Christ, you need to first talk about love." I have thought about that over and over, and I believe it's true. Christ is love!

In Isaiah 49:16, the Lord says, "Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me." This reminds me that Jesus Christ knows each of us individually and loves each one of us on a level I believe human language doesn't have the words to describe. Jesus Christ is our Redeemer. And if you are redeeming something, I believe you have to know that something very deeply and personally. You know all the details of what you are redeeming, down to the smallest and most important details.

“I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands”. . . .Not written your name on my hands with ink . . . but graven!

I believe that as He suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the cross, and voluntarily took our sins upon Himself, He saw each one of us individually. He saw our lives. He knew the mistakes we were going to make, and He took each sin, each heartache, each injustice, and each trial we would ever have and then took them upon Himself. Our limited minds can't comprehend the grandeur and majesty of it all. It is beyond human understanding!

I find it very interesting that the risen Lord, now possessing a perfect, glorified body, has kept the nail prints in His hands. The disciples who were gathered together saw them. In John 20:19-20, after appearing to them and saying, "Peace be unto you," He showed unto them His hands and His side.

Thomas was not there. When the others told him they had seen the Lord, he said, "Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe." Eight days later, Jesus appeared again, and Thomas was able to witness for himself that Jesus lived. He was resurrected. Then Jesus admonished him, "Be not faithless, but believing" (John 20:27).

There is a similar account in 3 Nephi 11:8-14, in the Book of Mormon, another testament of Jesus Christ. Jesus came down, stood in the midst of the people, and said, "Arise and come forth unto me, that ye may thrust your hands into my side, and also that ye may feel the prints of the nails in my hands and in my feet, that ye may know that I am the God of Israel, and the God of the whole earth, and have been slain for the sins of the world."

Jesus Christ is LOVE. We are all graven on the palms of His hands. He knows us all individually and personally with a love that we can’t comprehend. That kind of love is what found me when I was going through some hard times.

Ben Fuller has so many great songs, many that really hit home to me. One I can really relate to is his "Chasing Rebels." My life has not always been like it is now. I had a tough go of it where I wandered off the path. Hard days! Sad and lonely days . . . Days of despair and confusion. I am so grateful for what Ben Fuller describes as "an unrelenting coming for you Savior," who loved me so much that He came looking for me, wrapped His arms around me, put the right people in my path, and brought me back home. Once again I have found peace and happiness. I'm not saying life for me now is always a bowl of cherries, but challenges with the Savior by my side and an eternal perspective are much easier than going at it alone.

Jesus Christ is Love! And life holds so much more peace and purpose with Him by my side. I hope the same is true for you. If it's not . . . I challenge you to Find Jesus Christ. See what He can do for you!