Be a Mentor!

For several Sundays, we have heard about two new projects in Lincoln County: the new Big Brothers/Big Sisters program, and the Lincoln County Afterschool program. Both are meant to fill some serious gaps in the lives of young people in our area. Studies have shown that mentoring is a huge need with our kids. Mentoring provides encouragement-one of the Christian imperatives that our church is based on. Encouragement provides hope. And a child who sees the world through hopeful eyes can do something significant with his or her life. In order for these to be successful, we must support them. You can be the person to make a difference by getting involved in one of these programs. Please consider volunteering. Email us for the necessary forms.

Day 7: Holy Saturday

Holy Saturday is a day of waiting. It is the day of the closed tomb. We wait to see what will happen. We wait in anticipation for the great work of God.

There are two sides to the cross. On one hand, the cross is condemnation, it is judgment upon sin. It stands as a reminder of the horror of sin and its ultimate cost. We focused on this reality of the cross yesterday. But that is not the whole story. We also must remember that Jesus did this for us ultimately out of love. The crucifixion that Jesus endured was born of God’s great unquenchable love for His people. He desired to save us, to rescue us from sin, and bring us back to Himself.

It seems counterintuitive to look at the cross and see love. But this is exactly what John tells us in his first letter: “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us,” 1 John 3:16. Because God loves us and desires to restore relationship with us, God did what we could never do. Jesus atoned for sin in his own body, so that we could have fellowship with God. Why did Jesus accept the cross? The writer of Hebrews tells us that because of “the joy set before him.” It was for this: the joy of relationship and communion that Jesus went to the cross. And Hebrews also tells us that because of the cross, God “will remember their sins no more.” All condemnation is gone and only joy remains for those who are united to God through the atoning suffering of Jesus.  

The motivation behind the cross is God’s deep love for his people, that he would rather take sin upon himself than condemn us for it. And the result of the cross is love, the possibility that we can enter into a relationship and experience of God’s great love and acceptance.  Perhaps the most famous Bible verse sums it up best: “For God so loved the world that He gave his only Son….”

Easter is about love. Do you know God’s love? Do you know that God loves you and accepts you? Have you opened your heart to receive that kind of love? It is a life-transforming love. No one who feels it and receives it can remain the same. We are made new in God’s love. The old is gone and the new has come.

Day 6: Good Friday

 

The Last Supper prepares us to understand the death of Jesus on Good Friday. It is not a tragic accident, a cosmic mistake. It is not the just the death of another criminal, or the sad end to another failed prophet with messianic delusions. It was God’s way of atoning, accounting for sin, bringing judgment on sin, while at the same time reconciling his people to himself.

Good Friday is the dark day of the Christian calendar. Traditionally the churches would be draped in black. It is a day of mourning. Although we live in the light of the resurrection, we should not forget that salvation came at a cost, the cost of the life of the Son of God. We should not reduce the emotional range of our faith on joy alone. While in this life, our joy is mingled with sadness. And the Lamb that sits on the throne is a slain that has been slain. So we give one day to remember and mourn for the price that was paid, for the willingness of Jesus to endure suffering and shame and go to the cross for us.  

 Quiet your soul. Read the story of the crucifixion Mt:27:1-60; Mark 15; Luke 23; John 18-19.

Wear a sign of mourning, black clothing, or a black ribbon or armband. Or put a symbol of mourning up in your home. Keep a somber place in your heart – even as you go about your day, fulfilling your responsibilities. This is a day for confession and acknowledgement of our own sin that brought him to the cross. In your prayer time, remember these things. Today we acknowledge our sin atoned for on the cross. But this isn’t the whole story. Tomorrow, we look at another side of the cross.

 

Day 5: Maunday Thursday

Maunday Thursday is best known as the day of the Last Supper. Read it in Matthew, Mark, Luke. The Gospel of John focuses intently on the Last Supper, giving it four chapters (out of 21 chapters in the whole book, making the Last Supper almost 20% of the Gospel!!) You can read the basic story in John 13, read ch. 13-17 for John's entire acount.

Jesus and his disciples gathered for the Passover Meal, the ancient Jewish ritual meal that commemorated the exodus from Egyptian slavery. The Exodus began with the coming of the Angel of Death who passed through the land of Egypt and took the first born from every family. But the Jews were instructed to sacrifice a lamb. They were to take the blood and put it on the doorway of their homes. This blood was the sign that death had already visited that home. The lamb was thus the substitute for the death of the first born, and the Angel of Death would PASSOVER the house, sparing those inside.

The Passover contains the precursor for Christ’s death on the cross. As the lamb was sacrificed so the family could live and go free, so Jesus Christ laid down his life so we could go free. All of those who are covered by the Passover sign, the blood of the sacrifice, are redeemed from death, called out of slavery, and into abundant life.

In sharing the Passover with his friends, Jesus was in a sense enacting his own death that was to come. In fact, he took the bread and broke it and said “This is my body” and he took the cup and said “This is my blood.” In doing so, he identified himself with the Passover sacrifice. We remember this truth in our communion meal, the Lord’s Supper. We will deal more with this tomorrow on Good Friday.

I am struck, though, by the intimate setting in which Jesus reveals these things. The Passover is a family meal. The whole family gathers together and spends the evening together at home, sitting elbow to elbow around the table, sharing a meal, talking about spiritual things and enjoying each other’s company. It is a time of close companionship.  Those gathered at the table that night were the friends, the family, of Jesus.

Jesus didn’t give himself to us in a huge covenant ceremony to a whole nation. He didn’t reveal himself on a mountaintop with thunder and lightning and great fear. Instead when God came to us in Christ, he came close to us, as close as friends sitting around table. He laughed with us, cried with us, taught us, and yes died for us. But he did all this as our friend, our family, our brother.

Do you know Jesus as a friend? God is not distant, terrible, or frightening. In Christ, He comes close, he shares himself, he wants to be know by us. He calls you by name and brings you into the family, the full circle of divine love. Think about the ways you understand and experience God. Is friend one of those ways? Come sit at the table with Jesus. He is inviting you.

Day 4: Spy Wednesday

The account of Judas betraying Jesus is a major part of the Easter story, appearing in all four Gospels. You may know the basic outline of the story:

1) The Jewish authorities were looking for a way to get rid of Jesus, but if they arrested him openly they were afraid of a riot. This fear of a riot is a clue that the whole city of Jerusalem did not turn against Jesus. He was a popular figure. To avoid public outcry, the authorities needed to get rid of him quietly. But Jesus was almost always with a crowd. Read it here.

2) So when Judas showed up and agreed to lead them to Jesus when he is alone, the authorities were excited. What motivated Judas to take this step? Luke tells us that “Satan entered Judas.” Judas was troubled or tempted by something, and Satan presented him with a terrible solution. Read it here.

3) At the Last Supper, Jesus stated that someone would betray him. Judas left the meal and went to the authorities. Read it here.

4) Later that night, while Jesus prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, Judas led the authorities to the place where they would arrest him. He greeted Jesus, calling him “Rabbi,” or “teacher,” the same word that Mary Magdalene will later use when she first recognized the resurrected Jesus. Judas approached Jesus and kissed him, signaling to the authorities which man to take. Jesus was arrested quietly, just as the authorities hoped. Over the next few hours, Jesus’ fate was sealed before most people were even out of bed. The only ones who knew about the arrest, the disciples, fled in terror and were unable to mount any sort of defense of their master. Read it here in Mark, and then here in John.

 

5) After his arrest, Jesus was taken to a midnight meeting of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish religious court. There he was condemned to death and plans are made to hand him over to the Romans. By morning, it was all set. Whatever Judas had expected to happen when he betrayed Jesus, this was not it. Something had gone terribly wrong. Judas was struck with regret for his actions. He tried to change the situation, returning the blood money to the authorities. But nothing could stop what had been set in motion. The priests were unrelenting, and Judas was overcome by grief. He threw the money to the ground and left, later committing suicide. Read it here.

 

This is a complex story that deals with loyalty, betrayal, temptation. Judas has gone down in infamy as the betrayer of Jesus. Yet at the same time, he was used as a pawn by higher powers. Then he is kicked to the curb, abandoned when he was no longer useful to them, something that Jesus would have never done. Judas clearly did not mean to get Jesus killed. Some say he wanted to force Jesus’ hand, to start the revolution that would put Jesus on the throne. Or perhaps it was a desire for revenge at a perceived slight? Perhaps he just gave into an opportunity to feel wanted and needed, to gain the respect of  the important people. The scriptures do not tell us more, only that his choice led irrevocably to the crucifixion of Jesus. Jesus was not only abandoned by his friends, but betrayed by one whom he loved, as Psalm 41:9 says.

The story of Judas helps us to connect emotionally with Jesus, to feel the sting of betrayal. When we read this story, we know him as the man of sorrows acquainted with grief (Isaiah 53:3). And because we know Jesus that way, we must learn loyalty and honesty in our relationships. Strive for sincerity in your relationship with Jesus. Our attitude toward him should be one of love and obedience. That’s it. Not a desire to use Jesus for our own gain or our own purposes. Would we use Jesus in order to be well-known, to forward our own agenda, or to look good in the eyes of others? Would we act close to him at times, and then turn around and act like his enemy? Sincerity means being genuine, honest, and pure. In your prayer journal today, write down one thing you can do to be more sincere in your relationship with Jesus. Let our lives be marked by a fierce loyal love for the one who bore our sin.

Day Three: The Greatest Commandment

 After arriving in Jerusalem, Jesus spent time each day teaching in the Temple courts. The Temple was built as a series of concentric spaces each one more holy than the next, beginning with the Outer Court and culminating in the Holy of Holies, the innermost sanctum of the Temple:

1) The Outer Court (i.e. the “Court of Gentiles), accessible to almost everyone.
2) The Court of Israelites, reserved for all Jewish males who were ritually pure.
3) The Court of Prayer, also known as the Court of Women, not because it was only reserved for women, but because women could proceed no farther. Both men and women could enter this court, talk to priests, pray, observe the proceedings, bring their sacrifices. Women had a balcony built for them to separate them from the men.
4) The “Court of the Priests”, where only the priests could enter.
5) And the “Holy of Holies”, accessible only once a year by the High Priest.
(This list accessed from http://dailyminyan.com/2012/05/30/court-of-the-gentiles-in-the-jewish-temple-clearing-up-misconceptions)

This illustration shows the lay out of the Temple and its environs during Jesus' time:

It was while he was teaching in the Temple courts that Jesus was tested by the Sadducees and Pharisees (Mark11:27-33) and taught about many things, including new parables and the signs of the end times. He also summed up the Christian’s moral obligation in two great commandments: to love God and to love others. Read about it in Matthew 22:34-40, and Mark 12:28-34.

The energizing core of every Christian life should be a radical love for God and a radical love for others. This is how we seek to express ourselves into the world. So we should ask ourselves: do our lives look this way to the world? When people see your life, will they be struck by how it reflects these central values of our faith?

But the teaching of Jesus goes even farther. Because the “greatest commandment” isn’t simply a duty, a requirement that we are bound to fulfill. It isn’t just pie in the sky. Where does our ability to love like this come from? It is a response to God’s great love. The greatest commandment arises not from the Law but from something else, something better. The Gospel of John tells us that during the Last Supper Jesus gave a “new” commandment: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another,” John 13:34. The key words here are: “as I have loved you.”

 

The love of God is displayed most powerfully and meaningfully during the Easter season when Jesus lays down his life for us.  It is because of this unmerited, unquenchable, sacrificial love of God for us that we in turn can respond with the deepest love of our soul for others. Because God first loved us and gave himself to us in Christ, we to can respond to the world out of a heart of love. When we realize the great love that God has for us, every other motivation is burned away:  the fear, greed, lust, hate, selfishness which used to motive our interaction with the world.  All that is left is the pure response of love. Because He first loved us, we can love God with our whole heart and love our neighbor as ourself.

At Easter, we are powerfully reminded of God’s love. What are three barriers that get in the way of you really loving God and others around you? Write them down. Pray about them. Ask God to help you creatively overcome any barrier that waters down your response to Christ. Let Christ’s love arise and live in your heart.

Day 2: Clearing the Temple

The ministry of Jesus was always edgy and slightly counter-cultural. This is nowhere more apparent than when Jesus clears out the market in the Temple. Read about it in Matthew 21:12-17; Mark  11:15-19; Luke19:45-48. This was a radical act by Jesus. He struck a blow at the very heart of Jewish religious life. The Temple was the center of Jewish spirituality, the one place where worship to God occurred.

By clearing the Temple, was Jesus condemning Judaism? No. He was condemning what Judaism had become, and the Jewish establishment that had allowed it to get to such a low point. No, it was not idolatry or blasphemy, not Baal worship or indecency that was going on. Rather, practicalities had crept in, obscuring and altering the purpose of the Temple. Some people were using the Temple courts as a shortcut through town. And a market had grown up in the courts to facilitate the worship services, selling the animals necessary for sacrifice and changing money used for offerings.

In some ways these practical additions were useful. For instance, when Joseph and Mary went to the Temple to present Jesus after his birth, they offered a pair of doves or pigeons. Where did they get those? Very possibly from the stalls near or in the Temple courts! Yet, the traffic and commerce in the Temple had gotten out of hand. It distracted from the real purpose of the Temple, the worship of God. Perhaps Jesus had gone there to teach in the Temple courts and couldn’t be heard over the loud noise of bustling and haggling! The focus on God was lost amid the clutter and busyness. The priests had not protected the Temple as a place of holiness and worship.

There is so much to do, so many demands on our time that practicalities have a way of overwhelming everything else. Have practicalities claimed your life and taken over your time? Is there any space or time left for deep worship?  We need both in our life: we need to deal with the practical concerns of daily life but we also need a zone of spirituality uncluttered from daily demands in which we can focus on God and the state of our own souls. Do you protect a zone of spirituality in your life untouched by the practical concerns of life?

Like Jesus we occasionally need to go in and “clear the Temple.” We must protect the zone of spirituality in our lives from the clutter that threatens to overwhelm it. Clear out a place in your home where you can focus on prayer. Clear out a time in your day when you push aside “practical” concerns to focus on God. Clear out a space in your mind and heart that you will keep free for worship and devotion to God. Holy Week, when we are preparing for Easter, is a great time to do this. Clear the Temple of your soul so Jesus can come in.