Can’t Keep A Good Man Down

By Jarrod Spencer –

One of the things I enjoy doing is playing. I enjoy playing around with my family. I enjoy playing sports. Because I’m human, I cannot just go and go and go; there are times when I need a rest. However, I enjoy playing so much that even after a bit of a rest, I want to be right back in the middle of things. A little “out-of-breath” is not going to stop me from continuing to participate.

Jesus also slowed to take a rest. He left His Deity and allowed His human side to rest. I use this word to describe a momentary time between humanity and ascension. Jesus needed to give up His weak flesh for our sake. Jesus died and was put in a tomb, taking a rest. This period of time allowed people, both good and bad, to wonder. They wondered if He would rebuild as He said He would. They wondered if people would try to steal His body. Others probably just wondered. However, their wondering didn’t change His plan. They all discovered that a little death was not going to stop Him from participating in eliminating sin.

The following are lyrics from the song “You Can’t Keep a Good Man Down” by Newsong.
“When they nailed Him to the cross
by His hands and His feet
and they put Him in the ground.
Three days later
everybody found out
that ya can’t,
No you can’t keep a good man down.”

The word “good” in the title is not quite strong enough to describe Jesus. A stronger word like awesome, magnificent, unbelievable, first-class, superior, overwhelming, breathtaking, amazing, or remarkable, may have been a little bit closer to a description of our Savior.

Jesus died for our lying, cheating, murders, denials, addictions, etc. Jesus didn’t just die on the cross and then put in a grave to stay forever. Jesus escaped the grave allowing us to escape the nastiness of sin’s sentence to the grave. Because He escaped, we do not have to remain in the grave. How can we respond to something of that magnitude?

“God is good, all the time, and all the time, God is good.”

PRAYER: Dear God, I am eternally thankful that I do not have to remain in the grave because You raised Jesus from the grave many years ago.

“‘Don’t be alarmed,’ he said. ‘You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him’” (Mark 16:6 NIV).

Today’s devotional is by Jarrod Spencer. He is a seeker of God’s surprises in everyday life, looking for ways to be used by God to minister to others. He has a passion for encouraging people through the written word and exercises that passion with blogging and sending out a weekly text of encouragement. You can read more of his writings at http://jarrodspencer.blogspot.com and his church’s website is http://www.colbychurch.com.