A Minute In It - Remembering The Sacrifice

A minute in Gods' word will change your life.  Today, we remember the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior.

The Crucifixion

32 Along the way, they came across a man named Simon, who was from Cyrene,[g] and the soldiers forced him to carry Jesus’ cross. 33 And they went out to a place called Golgotha (which means “Place of the Skull”). 34 The soldiers gave Jesus wine mixed with bitter gall, but when he had tasted it, he refused to drink it.

35 After they had nailed him to the cross, the soldiers gambled for his clothes by throwing dice.[h] 36 Then they sat around and kept guard as he hung there. 37 A sign was fastened above Jesus’ head, announcing the charge against him. It read: “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.” 38 Two revolutionaries[i] were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left.

39 The people passing by shouted abuse, shaking their heads in mockery. 40 “Look at you now!” they yelled at him. “You said you were going to destroy the Temple and rebuild it in three days. Well then, if you are the Son of God, save yourself and come down from the cross!”

41 The leading priests, the teachers of religious law, and the elders also mocked Jesus. 42 “He saved others,” they scoffed, “but he can’t save himself! So he is the King of Israel, is he? Let him come down from the cross right now, and we will believe in him! 43 He trusted God, so let God rescue him now if he wants him! For he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’” 44 Even the revolutionaries who were crucified with him ridiculed him in the same way.

The Death of Jesus

45 At noon, darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. 46 At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli,[j] lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”[k]

47 Some of the bystanders misunderstood and thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah. 48 One of them ran and filled a sponge with sour wine, holding it up to him on a reed stick so he could drink. 49 But the rest said, “Wait! Let’s see whether Elijah comes to save him.”[l]

50 Then Jesus shouted out again, and he released his spirit. 51 At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, rocks split apart, 52 and tombs opened. The bodies of many godly men and women who had died were raised from the dead. 53 They left the cemetery after Jesus’ resurrection, went into the holy city of Jerusalem, and appeared to many people.

54 The Roman officer[m] and the other soldiers at the crucifixion were terrified by the earthquake and all that had happened. They said, “This man truly was the Son of God!”

55 And many women who had come from Galilee with Jesus to care for him were watching from a distance. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary (the mother of James and Joseph), and the mother of James and John, the sons of Zebedee.

The Burial of Jesus

57 As evening approached, Joseph, a rich man from Arimathea who had become a follower of Jesus, 58 went to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. And Pilate issued an order to release it to him. 59 Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a long sheet of clean linen cloth. 60 He placed it in his own new tomb, which had been carved out of the rock. Then he rolled a great stone across the entrance and left. 61 Both Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting across from the tomb and watching.  Matthew 27:32-61 (NLT)

When Not If

But I have pleaded in prayer for you, Simon, that your faith should not fail. So when you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:32 (NLT)

Jesus was on his journey to the cross where he would make a public forever statement about forgiveness. And in this conversation with Peter, Peter was so sure of himself. He stood there and spoke words about facing death for Jesus and being in it all the way. He didn't know his heart would betray him. But Jesus did.

Isn't it the same with us? We betray Jesus every time we choose a path other than the one that he wants for us. Every time we say "No, Lord. That's too hard." or "This is too uncomfortable." or "I want to do it my way." We may not say it exactly like that but, whenever we do what we want instead of what Jesus wants, we are acting like Peter. And like Peter, we may not know ourselves as well as we think we do, but Jesus knows us.

Why did Jesus make this statement to Peter? Wouldn't the cross have been enough of a You are forgiven statement for Peter and for us? Somehow, I don't think so. I think we would look at that and say "But I denied him. That doesn't apply to me." So Jesus made sure that Peter knew that after all was said and done, there was still a plan for him. He said "When you have repented and turned to me again." When not if. Jesus let him know that there was still a plan for his life. And when he said that to Peter, he said that to us.

I don't know about you but I find great comfort in this story. I have denied Jesus with my decisions and I have made some terrible mistakes in my life. But Jesus was praying for me.  He was saying "When you have repented and turned to me again, strengthen your brothers." He is saying the same to you. 

No matter what you have done, no matter where you have been, grace is greater than all that. You are forgiven.

Not So With You

Jesus called them together and said, “You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  Mark 10:42-45 (NIV)

It was his last days before he was to face the cross head on. He was trying to share some last lessons with the disciples. Important lessons. Things they needed to remember. But, they were distracted.

What were they distracted with?  They were distracted with who was going to be most important in his kingdom. They were jockeying to see who would rule. I would scoff at this and say "Really?" but I can't. Because I look around our world and I look at myself in the mirror and my brain still goes to this same place. As much as I hate it, those thoughts still pop into my head. What was Jesus' response?

Not so with you.

No matter what the world is doing, no matter how important you think it is to be important, you need to be different.

Jesus, Savior of the World, came as a servant. That is our model. Feeling like we've done something important or great; that is not what matters. What matters is did we point to Jesus enough. Does what we are doing cause people to reflect on him alone.

Not so with you. I need to repeat this to myself over and over again. 

Jesus, make me different. Amen

You'd Think I'd Get It By Now

Wait patiently for the Lord.  Psalm 27:14 (NLT)

Last night I had a dream. I dreamt that I was supposed to stand up in front of people and say something about my experience with God. I prayed and prayed and asked God what he wanted me to say but the answer never came.

In my dream, I was stressed and worried. I kept trying to figure out what God wanted. Sounds like a nightmare doesn't it? The clock was slowly clicking down and pretty soon it was my turn. When I stood up, I knew exactly what to say. It was all there, clear as a bell.

When I woke up, today's text was in my head. It reminded me of two things. One, to wait on the Lord doesn't mean to stand around and do nothing. It means to continue to seek him and listen to what he has to say. Two, it also means not to stress about what you are waiting for. While you are seeking God, stop worrying.

God always shows up. He may do it in the last second before you need it but he always shows up. Maybe that's where the word patiently comes in. This seems to be the same lesson I have to learn over and over again. Wait and trust. Trust and wait. Somewhere along the way I forget and have to relearn it.

The amazing lesson I've learning in all this trusting and waiting? That when God does show up, his plan was better than mine. He works everything out according to his divine purpose and that nothing, absolutely nothing, is impossible.

Decisions, Decisions, Decisions

Every day I feel like I make a bazillion decisions.  Some of them are good, productive and fun. Some of them not so much. Yesterday, someone asked a question that had me re-evaluating one of my decisions.  I don't know about you but I find this particularly annoying for a variety of reasons that have to do with workload, etc.

This morning, I woke up read an email about this and became annoyed again. (I probably shouldn't read work emails before my worship.) Anyway, I prayed because I knew the spirit in me wasn't God's spirit. I prayed for wisdom. And then, I sat down for my worship. 

In true God fashion, he revealed texts in his Bible that helped me understand what wisdom looks like. He helped me see that the place my heart and head were were not his space. I love how God uses his Word to convict us.

But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness. James 3:17-18 (NLT)

So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 1 Peter 1:13-15 (NLT)

And my life verse:

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
    do not depend on your own understanding.
Seek his will in all you do,
    and he will show you which path to take.  Proverbs 3:5-6 (NLT)

Today, as you and I go about our days and make a bazillion decisions, let's remember what making God-like decisions should look like. And let's have our first decision be to reflect Jesus in all we do.

Are You Helping Satan?

For the accuser of our brothers and sisters
    has been thrown down to earth—
the one who accuses them
    before our God day and night.  Revelation 12:10

It is not secret that Satan accuses us. As the Bible says, he prowls about as a roaring lion seeking to devour us (1 Peter 5:8). It is his desire to bring us down. In Revelation we are told that he accuses us before God day and night. Over and over again.

When I read this verse I wondered, Do I help him? Do I help Satan accuse my brothers and sisters by talking about them? Do I share stories that are not uplifting? Do I do it and stand behind a bunch of excuses that sound like there is a good reason for my sharing? I think sometimes we gossip or share things about others that we should not share and excuse ourselves with some trumped up guise that we think makes it alright.

The thought horrified me. The horrifying thought? That I am helping Satan in his battle against us by doing the same thing he is doing. Instead, I should be aligning myself with Christ and defending everyone against the lies that are being told.

There are three questions you can ask yourself before you repeat something about someone. The origins of these are disputed but the questions are excellent!

Is it true?
Is it kind?
Is it necessary?

When I ask myself those questions before I speak, I've found that an awful lot is eliminated. It's a good reminder. I do not want to help Satan destroy any of God's kids.

The next verse in Revelation 12 says:

And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
    and by their testimony.
And they did not love their lives so much
    that they were afraid to die.  (v 11)

Satan will be defeated by the blood of the Lamb first and our testimony second.  What will be your testimony? Will the words you speak reflect the Christ you know?

Changing Color

Come now, let’s settle this,” says the Lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool. Isaiah 1:18 (NLT)

As I look out the window this morning, I see a beautiful landscape of white. White covering the grass and the roads and white decorating the tree branches to paint a picture of breath-taking beauty.

Yesterday, that same view was a mud-covered landscape from the rain and sleet that fell. What a difference a day makes. I can't help but think of God's statement to us that even though we are covered with sin and look dirty and unclean, in just a blink of an eye, we are made perfect.

In less time than you can imagine, you are sparkling white, clean with no traces of any imperfections. That's his promise. He is calling you to glisten. Go, talk to him and he will make you white as snow.

Do You Hear That?

My child, listen to what I say,
    and treasure my commands.
Tune your ears to wisdom,
    and concentrate on understanding.
Cry out for insight,
    and ask for understanding.
Search for them as you would for silver;
    seek them like hidden treasures.
Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord,
    and you will gain knowledge of God.
Proverbs 2:1-5 (NLT)

We had the pleasure of having my father-in-law live with us for a while. And even though it was our pleasure, it was not without its challenges. One of those challenges was a few years down the road when he would get his time mixed up.  He would wake up in the middle of the night or early, early in the morning, get dressed and go downstairs expecting everyone to be up.

Now, I get up early so I can spend some uninterrupted time with God.  I need this to start my day on the right footing. And Baba needed to sleep. It was important for his health. The first time Baba showed up downstairs way too early, I was taken by surprise. But as this habit continued, I learned to listen for him.

I listened for every creek of the floor, every slipper drop or the door to his room opening. I did this as I went through my morning routine being acutely aware of what he was doing all the time.

Baba has since gone to be with Jesus but the other day it occurred to me that if I could get used to listening for Baba so closely, what was preventing me from listening for Jesus so closely?  Could it be that we hear what we get accustomed to hearing?  Take mothers for example, they can hear their child doing something from rooms away (or not hear them which is a sure indicator that something is amiss.)

Maybe when we say "I can't hear God" it is because we are not tuning our hearing to him. Could it be that we don't hear him because we aren't really listening for him and the other noises in our lives are getting it the way? What would happen if we were constantly listening for the Voice or the lack thereof? Wouldn't we get so used to hearing it that we knew the sound immediately? What a difference that would make in our world....