Prisoner
Barabbas. A man that only knew murder. The bible have no records of his history, but he was a man of killing. A man who pillaged and murdered for his survival. The people hated his ways, and plotted his downfall. They succeed, and he landed in prison, waiting for his death to come. He was to die by the most gruesome death penalty ever known in Israel: Cruxification.
I want you all to imagine with me. That you are him. A sinner, thrown into prison, waiting for your death. No deed can atone for the lives you have crushed, the families you have destroyed, the people you have hurt. In that prison, darkness surrounds you, only the memories of your sin linger in the cold, lonely cell. Your anticipation: Death. The only thing that awaits you.
You wake up one morning, the day of the execution, knowing it was your last. From your cell, you could hear the yelling:
“Crucify! Crucify!”
You imagined yourself on the cross, the shame, the pain. The eyes that would stare you down till your last breath. You try to hide, but there is nowhere you can run except to the corner of the cell. What have I become? The tears start flowing down the most heartless, knowing that his life is about to end. I don’t what it to end. Can’t somebody give me another chance? But deep down, there was resignation. Who would? After the sins you have done? Your hope, crushed by the deafening sound outside…..
“We want him dead! Nail him on the cross! He deserves death!”
Their words pierce even the most steel heart. Am I not human? I still have feelings! But there is also truth in the heart. How could a man who has committed the ‘ultimate’ sin have any right to escape death?
The sound of cell keys resonating against each other signalled the arrival of the his death. The soldiers have readied themselves to bring the men out for their rightful punishment. You prepare yourself for the worst. The cell opens. The sound of creaking metal, and the cell door becomes the path to your death. The cell guard calls for your name. You look up, and walk towards what seemed like the grim reaper himself. Only death awaits. You stare blankly, waiting for the guard to end you struggle.
“You’re free to go.”
Stunned, you look and him, puzzled by what seemed to you like a dumb joke to crack at the end of your days. As you stood there bewildered, the time frustrated the guard.
” Just go. You’re released. Free. Someone’s taking your place.”
What? I’m free? Released? Someboby took my place? After all I’ve done? Who would show me such mercy? Then, the crowds resound the truth of his Messiah.
“Crucify Jesus, the son of God! Give us Barabbas!”
The saving of a life through another really is hard to comtemplate. It is even harder for us to understand why God would did what he did to save us. I think the one who really felt the saviour of our lord is the ones who are most sinful, like Barabbas. He felt the full force of Jesus’ death, and the meaning behind the gospel he left behind. If you were Barabbas, you will discover what he found out that very day when Jesus dies on the cross: I am saved and freed of my sin, because Jesus Died, FOR ME. Amen.
Translation
That day when Yu Bao Lao Shi came back to our church, she her perspicacity has inevitably spotted my yearning of becoming a translator on stage. She was spot on, saying that I looked as if I was listening attentively, trying to translate what the pastor said, and comparing it to the actual translation. You know what? She was right.
however, it is up to God who he calls upon to stand up there for him. I would continue to be what I am, the guy that translates the pastor’s sermon clandenstinely even though someone else is doing it. If God calls upon, it is by his blessing that I do his will. If not, then its ok. There is so much more positions that God has bestowed me so that I can learn and grow spiritually, and for that I thank him.
Still, Yu Bao Lao Shi has asked me to continue to ’sustain’ my inert abilities so that God can fire his arrow(me) when required. Therefore, I’ll continue to hone my english language, as well as my mandarin while I study for SATs to gauge myself as to where I stand. Was looking at the SATs vocab list, and I have a humongous pile of words unknown to me, waiting for me to uncover…… somehow, it seems more fun than games! 
