To me the song and the words are a reminder of the great cost that Jesus paid for my sins. He didn’t just suffer for everyone. He gave Himself specifically for me. How often do I take my salvation for granted and forget the true significance of the sacrifice that Jesus made for me. He left His home in the third heaven (John 1:14 , 2 Cor 12:2) to come down to earth. While He was here, He gave His life, allowing Himself to be tortured and crucified, so that His blood could cover my sins (Mark 15:15).

Nobody took His life; He gave it freely for the sheep (John 10:15-18). I need to be reminded of His great sacrifice, so that I can more fully appreciate the great sacrifice He made.

Jesus didn’t promise that salvation meant we would have an easy, pain-free life. In fact he promised just the opposite. If we follow Him, we will suffer. We will have tribulation in this present world. We will have fellowship in His sufferings (Philippians 3:8-10, John 15:20, 16:33).

In my personal life, I deal with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and the “sister” diseases that accompany it. In those moments when I want to scream in agony, I must remember that my pain doesn’t even begin to compare to what Christ went through. With Christ’s help, I can handle having a chronic condition. If through my suffering, one life is touched for Christ, perhaps, just one more person turns to Christ because they saw how Christ helped me through my tribulations, then I will not have suffered in vain.

Someday we will have our glorified bodies with no pain and no more suffering, but His glorified body has the reminders of what He went through for us. There is a hole in His side from a soldier’s spear and the prints from the nails (John 20:27). Thank you Jesus for making the ultimate sacrifice for me. Help me to keep that price in mind as I go about daily living.

The salvation gift was free for me, but it cost Him dearly.