THROUGH YOU

 APRIL 29, 2022

I'm forgiven
Because You were forsaken
I'm accepted
You were condemned
I'm alive and well
Your Spirit is within me
Because You died
And rose again

Amazing love
How can it be
That You my King
Would die for me
Amazing love
I know it's true
It's my joy to honor You
In all I do I honor You


PSALM 44

4 You are my King and my God,
who decrees victories for Jacob.
5 Through you we push back our enemies;
through your name we trample our foes.
6 I put no trust in my bow,
my sword does not bring me victory;
7 but you give us victory over our enemies,
you put our adversaries to shame.
8 In God we make our boast all day long,
and we will praise your name forever.


Colossians 1:15-18

15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.

Ephesians 1:3-10

3 Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus the Anointed One, who grants us every spiritual blessing in these heavenly realms where we live in the Anointed—not because of anything we have done, but because of what He has done for us. 4 God chose us to be in a relationship with Him even before He laid out plans for this world; He wanted us to live holy lives characterized by love, free from sin, and blameless before Him. 5 He destined us to be adopted as His children through the covenant Jesus the Anointed inaugurated in His sacrificial life. This was His pleasure and His will for us. 6 Ultimately God is the one worthy of praise for showing us His grace; He is merciful and marvelous, freely giving us these gifts in His Beloved. 7 Visualize this: His blood freely flowing down the cross, setting us free! We are forgiven for our sinful ways by the richness of His grace, 8 which He has poured all over us. With all wisdom and insight, 9 He has enlightened us to the great mystery at the center of His will. With immense pleasure, He laid out His intentions through Jesus, 10 a plan that will climax when the time is right as He returns to create order and unity—both in heaven and on earth—when all things are brought together under the Anointed’s royal rule.





We often think of grace as solely a New Testament concept. The apostle Paul said “I can do all things through Christ”, and he was also the one who said “anything I do, I only do it because Christ does it in me.” Likely most of us are aware that Paul's writings and theology comprise a great deal of the New Testament. Let us remember, however, that Paul was a Jew who had studied the Books of Moses (Torah) and had been raised in the history and teachings of the law and the prophets. What we discover in the scriptures is that God did not suddenly try a new approach, grace was always reflected in God’s ways. God's people never were able to achieve anything on their own strength, any experiences of achievements were only because God was present with them and for them.

Psalm 44 acknowledges such truth. “Through you” it keeps repeating. In you, God, we trust.

If we have victory it's because of you!

If we have life, it is because of you!

If we have forgiveness, it is because of you!

Isaiah 26:12 says “Lord you establish peace for us; all that we have accomplished you have done for us."

God's worshippers stand back and say “Amazing! Amazing! You are amazing God!!” only through you do we have anything at all. No wonder “we will praise your name forever.”


TAKE AWAY

What has Christ graciously an amazingly done for you?

What do you have in your life but you would not have without him?



Take a few minutes and make a list of your response’s to these questions.

GO IN PEACE

 APRIL 28, 2022

Mark 5:34

He said to her, “Daughter, your FAITH has healed you. Go in PEACE and be freed from your suffering.” 





Could you even imagine it? Twelve years.


For twelve years, this woman had been in a constant state of suffering. For twelve years, she had been suffering not only physically from her issue of blood, but also financially and socially. Her relationship with others, even her relationship with God, was defined by her physical ailment. She could not come into contact with those around her for fear of causing them to be ritually impure. She was unable to go to the Temple in order to connect with her God. Alone. Afraid. Broken. Cut Off.



Twelve years.



And then.



One day in close proximity to Jesus, she thinks. “If only I could get close enough to touch the fringe of his garment and I’ll be healed.” Pushing her way through the crowd, maybe crawling, her eyes see Jesus and seeing the fringe of his robe she reaches out, in fear mixed with faith.



We are told, immediately she was healed. Do not miss the fact that this story is not just about a Physically healing. This woman also experiences Emotional healing. Social healing. Everything in her life is made new again through the touch of faith and the power of Jesus.



But this is not the ending of this encounter. Jesus calls her out. “Who touched me?” I believe that Jesus question could be understood in this way, Jesus is saying, “Someone here in this crowd of people has faith. Someone here believes who I am.”



The woman, steps forward, in fear and trembling. She kneels at Jesus feet and pours out her story of 12 years of suffering.


Jesus says to her “Go in peace. You are free.”

The peace that Jesus speaks of is the peace of God we looked at yesterday in the Hebrew word shalom. Do you recall what we said? 

The Hebrew word for peace, shalom, means finished, fulfilled, perfected, completed, harmony with oneself and others, welfare, safety, universal flourishing, delight, and wholeness in life. 

Shalom is about freedom. Shalom is living in holistic restoration, every part of you made whole and new again in God. To have the shalom of God rest on you was to experience the life God intended all humankind to live in, one that was whole and free, redeemed, and restored.


So, this woman walked away from Jesus with much more than just her bleeding cured. She is noticed, affirmed, confirmed in her faith, and restored. “Daughter,” Jesus calls her. A term of endearment and affection and restored status. Daughter. And then he bids her go in peace, healed, restored, renewed beyond even her wildest dreams. She walked away with her entire life given back to her, every aspect made whole and free, just as it should be.


TAKE AWAY

Where do you need the shalom of God to invade your life?



Where do you need your life restored to you?



What broken places do you need made whole again?

 

JEHOVAH-SHALOM

 APRIL 27, 2022

JUDGES 6:23-24

The Lord said to him, “Peace! Do not be afraid. You are not going to die.”

24 So Gideon built an altar to the Lord there and called it The Lord Is Peace.



One of God’s names in the Bible is Yahweh-Shalom, which means the Lord is Peace.

The sixth chapter of Judges describes how the Midianites terrorized the people of Israel, making their lives miserable, torturous, and destitute. During this situation, God called a man named Gideon from the weakest clan, Manasseh, to lead the people of Israel against the Midianites. Gideon considered himself to be the least in his father’s house and felt totally inadequate for such a calling. We read of the reluctance of Gideon to say yes to God, but the angel of the Lord spoke these words to him “Peace! Don’t be afraid! You are not going to die!” This event had a major impact on Gideon, so much so that he built an altar and named it Adonai-Shalom. Gideon went on to defeat the Midianites in the power and presence of Jehovah-Shalom.

The Hebrew word for peace, shalom, means finished, fulfilled, perfected, completed, harmony with oneself and others, welfare, safety, universal flourishing, delight, and wholeness in life. Yahweh-Shalom means that God is our source of all these blessings.

Cornelius Plantinga explains shalom like this: “In the Bible, shalom means universal flourishing, wholeness and delight — a rich state of affairs in which natural needs are satisfied and natural gifts fruitfully employed, a state of affairs that inspires joyful wonder as its Creator and Savior opens doors and welcomes the creatures in whom He delights.” (Not The Way It is Supposed to Be)

That’s what we long for in our journey toward physical and spiritual health: flourishing, wholeness, and delight. Picture the doors flung open and our Prince of Peace welcoming us into a space of thriving abundance like that.

Jesus knew that His followers would face challenges and dangers in living, like Israel in Gideon’s day, so he gave us a promise “peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful” (John 14:27).

In a world where people are increasingly overwhelmed by stress, conflict, anxiety, and financial, emotional, and physical uncertainty, the presence of Jehovah Shalom provides a peace that passes all understanding (Philippians 4:6).


We all are aware that we cannot control the uncertainties and circumstances of life, but in the presence of Jehovah-Shalom, we can find hope, joy, strength, and peace to face each day.

“Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit” 

2 Thessalonians 3:16

PASS THE PEACE

 APRIL 26, 2022

Luke 24:36

36 While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.”

John 20:19

19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”

Romans 1:7

7 To all in Rome who are loved by God and called to be his holy people:
Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 1:3

3 Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.




In our Sunday talk this past week one of the points we made was that resurrection living pursues peace. Simply put the teaching was that as Jesus pursued peace, and as Jesus gave to his followers his peace in John 20, so also Jesus gives his peace to modern day disciples, those who “have not seen, and yet believed.”

The followers of Jesus are a community, a resurrection community, that actively pursue wholeness and well-being, restoration, and reconciliation because that is the way of Jesus. I wonder if the “witness to the world” spoken of in John’s gospel is the “peace” that is demonstrated by Jesus community as they do life together. So maybe the challenge to us is to pursue peace, and to Pass the Peace to others, both in the resurrection community, among our sisters and brothers, and indeed beyond to all people.


Some of you are aware of an ancient practice in worship referred to as the passing of the peace. 

The Peace of Christ be with you, we say

       And also with you, is the response.    

Passing the peace is a tradition rooted in Scripture that embodies our identity as peacemakers. Remember Jesus words in Matt. 5:9? "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." And 2 Cor. 5:20 “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.” Biblical teachings like this point us in the direction of the Jesus way of peace, and in some ways it encourages us to train our hearts, hands, and words toward actions of peace.

Perhaps this practice of passing the peace is a training exercise for resurrection living. It’s a dress rehearsal of sorts. Passing the Peace provides us with an opportunity to practice extending our desires for wholeness with one another. These moments give us the opportunity to share with one another the desire for reconciliation. The lived reality of being church or family or coworkers or neighbors is that we’re not always going to be “holding hands and singing around the campfire,” as someone has said.


These thoughts have me wondering if perhaps we should include the Passing the Peace in worship more. Richard Voelz suggests that in the Passing the Peace we are communicating the following:

“In this moment I want to promise to live in a way with you that promotes the way of reconciliation and restoration. If our relationship is fractured, I want to help repair it. If I know you are hurting and broken, I want to be part of helping to restore you.”

If the community of Jesus, the resurrection community, exhibit this way of peace, perhaps the world around us would want to know more about the “peace of Christ that passes understanding”.



Prayer of Peace

Peace before us,
Peace behind us,
Peace under our feet.

Peace within us,
Peace over us,
Let all around us be peace.

Christ before us,
Christ behind us,
Christ under our feet.

Christ within us,
Christ over us,
Let all around us be Christ.

—based on a Navaho prayer, David Haas

 

PEACE TO YOU

 APRIL 25, 2022

John 14:27

27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Micah 5:4-6

4 He will stand and shepherd his flock
in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.
And they will live securely, for then his greatness
will reach to the ends of the earth.

5 And he will be our peace
when the Assyrians invade our land
and march through our fortresses.
We will raise against them seven shepherds,
even eight commanders,
6 who will rule the land of Assyria with the sword,
the land of Nimrod with drawn sword.
He will deliver us from the Assyrians
when they invade our land
and march across our borders.





Let me ask you this, have you ever awakened after a nights rest knowing that no matter what the day brought, everything was going to be fine? Peace is a wonderful feeling, isn’t it. We know it when we experience it, and if we are honest, we all want more of it. “I just need a little peace,” we often say.

In John 14:27, Jesus says, “Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Jesus doesn’t say we won’t have trouble; He says we don’t have to let ourselves be troubled. We can experience peace. Peace is a resting in the knowledge that we are held by a good God, and this knowledge provides us with a confidence about life. I do not believe for one second that God wants us to live a “troubled” existence, therefore I believe wholeheartedly that we can live in peace wherever life takes us, and whatever life takes us through, we can walk confidently through the peace the God brings into out lives.

This steadfast peace comes from knowing God, experiencing God, and trusting God with the fine points of our lives. Just like we note in the Bible’s image of sheep in the care of a good shepherd. “He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth” (Micah 5:4).

I am not suggesting that experiencing God’s peace is a snap. The Christian life is a beautiful and fulfilling journey as we daily offer space for God to work. You see, No matter what situations are that we go through, the Bible and our lived experience tells us that we are not slugging it out alone, but that we have someone watching over us. Yes, at times we can’t always see God’s hand at work, but believe me we can rest secure in knowing God is on the scene. There is a worship song that puts it like this: “God works in ways we cannot see,” and then boldly the song declares, “He will make a way for me.” If we can believe and trust truth like this, the “peace of God that passes all understanding” is not far from us.

TAKE AWAY

How do you bring peace to your daily life?

What do you do when you feel someone or something around you getting ready to disrupt your peaceful day or peaceful place?

How can you help bring peace to someone’s life today?

NOT SO FAST

 APRIL 23, 2022

Matthew 28:5-7

"The angel said to the women, 'Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: "He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him." Now I have told you.'"

Earlier this week I came across the following Prayer Ideas that offer us some time to linger with the Easter message. I have found, that so much builds up toward Easter Sunday and the Day of Resurrection, that we move past this event to quickly. But Easter Sunday is just the beginning of a time called EASTERTIDE, in which historically the followers of Christ in many Christian traditions spend several weeks letting the message of Resurrection sink in and transform.

Today I just wanted to post some ideas from Lysa TerKeurst blog that I thought were a helpful way of praying through the Easter story in Matthews Gospel. I pray that you may find it helpful too. What follows is Lysa presentation.

I keep my Bible open to the place where the angel spoke to the women at the tomb. And I tangle my thoughts around His words from Matthew 28 as six prayers emerge ....

• "Do not be afraid," - God, I hand over to You those things that make me so afraid. Resurrect the parts of my faith squelched by fear.

• "I know that you are looking for Jesus," - God, when my soul is searching, help me know the answer to every longing can be found in You.

• "He has risen," - God, the fact that Jesus is risen should lift my head, my heart and my attitude. Help me to live today as if I really believe this with every part of my life.

• "just as he said," - Jesus, You keep Your promises. Help me live as though I believe that with every part of me. Help me trust You more, obey You more and resemble You more.

• "Come and see," - Jesus, You had the angels invite the women in to see for themselves that You had risen. You invite me into these personal revelations every day. Forgive me for sometimes rushing about and forgetting to come and see for myself ... You, Your Word, Your insights.

• "Then go quickly and tell his disciples," - Jesus, I don't want to be a secret keeper with my faith. I want to be a bold and gracious truth proclaimer. For You. With You. Because of You.

AMEN!

WHAT is NEXT?

 APRIL 21, 2022

 Philippians 3:10

 I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead.

Here is a question for us to think about today.

What were the days 

following Jesus’ resurrection 

like for the first disciples?

Jesus had died, they witnessed his death and experienced the trauma and grief of that death, and they also saw with their own eyes that he was dead no longer. Just as He promised, He had overcome death, the last enemy. But what did it all mean?

My thought is that it must have taken time for Jesus’ followers to grasp the events that had taken place the previous week. It wouldn’t be an easy thing to process all this stuff, would it? However, before returning to his Father, Jesus helped His followers, as he had done so often in his pre-resurrection ministry, to realize some of the implications of their experience. We read “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets he (Jesus) explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself. Lk. 24:27


His death and resurrection were not some deviations in God’s plan. They were the plan. Luke 24:26 asks, “Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” His defeat of the grave anticipated the time when all of creation would be “set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.” Rom. 8:21



The resurrection of Jesus Christ is meant to change our lives. Far too often in my faith journey I have found myself on the wrong side of Easter. Has that happened to you? What I mean is I live as though Jesus is still in the tomb, I do not live in the freedom and liberty that the resurrection invites us into. I continue to battle harmful attitudes and actions in my own strength, I am ashamed to say that there are times when I pursue life outside God’s provision in Christ, and battle with nagging fears. Can any of you relate to this?

Here is the good news, the God of Resurrection is the loving and patient God who comes along side of us in our doubts, in our missteps, in our fruitless life pursuits, just like Jesus did with his disciples following the resurrection. They doubted, remember Thomas? They were behind locked doors of fear. Some went back to fishing. Yet Jesus comes to them, not shaking a finger at them because they were struggling to comprehend something he told them would happen, rather Jesus comes, the Bible tells us and gently helps them comprehend the implications of resurrection life. Sometimes I need that. I am willing to guess that some of you do too.

May we allow our loving Jesus to lead us to what we might call the “right side of Easter”, that place of new life, new hope, and boundless opportunities.

 

 

RESURRECTION MATTERS!!

 APRIL 20, 2022

Pictured above are a wonderful tradition in the UKRAINE and among Ukrainians here in Canada of Painted  Eggs called PYSANKA. 

They are rich in symbols of Creation, New Life, Blessing and Hope. 

1 Corinthians 15:17-19 

“if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.”

 

If Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, we’d have no reason to celebrate Easter. Without the resurrection, as Paul points out in our reading from 1 Corinthians, our faith is pointless, “futile”, that we are to be pitied for believing what amounts to “fake news”.

If Jesus wasn't resurrected, we would not have hope. If Jesus wasn't resurrected, we’d have no way to be liberated from the sins that hold us captive (1 Corinthians 15:16-19).

Jesus did rise. He is alive. So, Resurrection Matters!!

Let's look briefly at three reasons the Resurrection matters:

1. The resurrection proved God’s faithfulness.

Because Jesus conquered death, we have hope. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. (1 Peter 1:3). Because Jesus rose from the dead, we have proof that God keeps His word and provides a better future for us than we could ever plan. Jesus fulfilled Old Testament promises by connecting people to God. We are reminded through story, account and statement that God is the same yesterday, today and forever. God kept His word then, which means we can place complete confidence in Him to keep His word now.

2. The resurrection confirmed Jesus’ words.

Everything Jesus said would have been discredited if He hadn’t been resurrected. His credibility was on the line, and Jesus’s resurrection proved what He said was true. The post-resurrection appearances of Jesus confirm the reliability of his word and promises. If Jesus has power over the “last enemy” death, then his promises and words can be trusted. Do you remember the gathering of Jesus followers near the end of Matthew where Jesus commissioned the disciples and us? “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20).

3. The resurrection provided evidence of Jesus’ power.

Jesus was resurrected, and we too experience resurrection in our lives. Jesus resurrects us, too. We don’t just believe that HE IS RISEN, we get to experience His resurrection in our own lives. New Life, transformational change, astonishing healing, a loving disposition are all outcomes of the resurrection life. The resurrection allows us to move forward in life with Christ in us and with us (Romans 6:6-8) The gospel underscore Jesus’ power and love over sin, nature, and disease and death. Jesus power breaks the chains that hold us back, and He gives us the new life experience that we could never accomplish on our own.

The resurrection matters because it’s the most significant demonstration of who Jesus is. The resurrection matters because Jesus is still alive and at work in us, and our world today.

Where do you see resurrection today?

PRACTICE RESURRECTION

 APRIL 19, 2022

1 Peter 1:3-9

3 Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. 6 In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. 7 These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed. 8 Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, 9 for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

What drives your life this week? Your SMART phone? The busy schedule? The pressure of a friend? Worries and fear about the future?

Guess what…Christ is Risen!

 

 And that means your life doesn’t have to be driven by things that are secondary to the greater priorities God has for our lives. Resurrection level priorities.

We must look for signs of resurrection, where do you see Resurrection around you, your neighborhood, our world? The signs of new life, a fresh movement of God’s spirit, a place of transformation. I have been thinking since Sunday’s talk that maybe we should start praying each day as we begin our daily routines, God give me the eyes to see your work of resurrection around me.

I wonder if we prayed a prayer like that if the outcome might be an ability to see two things, where resurrection is happening, but also where resurrection is needed. As we saw in the Gospel story on Sunday, sometimes we see but we don’t see. In other words, we have our stones that need to be rolled away to, so that our spiritual eyes are open.

I believe this will take on different looks depending on who we are and the circles we move in.

Maybe it is praying for or with a friend who is hurting or taking time to read with a child; shine Light in that darkness.

Maybe it is something more “global” as reading up on what is happening to the Christians being persecuted and praying for them; or the concerns and desperate needs for refugees, praying for peace in our messy shaken world, shine Light in that darkness.

How about telling someone today how your life was encouraged by Christ’s presence during Holy Week; practice resurrection.

Or call someone you haven’t reached out to in a while, just check in see how they are doing, shine some light in their loneliness,

Could there be a situation with someone that we need to forgive and just say: “I’m sorry for holding the grudge. I was hurt but I want to encourage our friendship much more than I want to hold onto the past, practice resurrection.

Offer grace where it is totally undeserved and unexpected, practice resurrection.

Look at the person sitting across from you at the table. Ask them how their day went. Listen. Practice Resurrection.

LOL that's a Good One!

 APRIL 18, 2022

Isaiah 35:10

10 and those the LORD has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.

How should you celebrate the day after Easter?

With a good laugh, of course.

Better yet, with a party, a really fun party. Far from being a strange, new idea, this is actually a long-standing tradition rooted in good Christian theology and practice.

I am told it began hundreds of years ago. “A monk, was pondering the meaning of the events of holy week, with its solemn observances of Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and the astonishing, earth-shaking events of Easter. "What a surprise ending," he thought. Then suddenly, like a bolt of lightning, he had a new insight. His hearty laugh startled his fellow monks, breaking the silence of their contemplation.”

"Don't you see," he cried, "It was a joke! A great joke! The best joke in all history! On Good Friday, when Jesus was crucified, the devil thought he had won. But God had the last laugh on Easter when he raised Jesus from the dead."

The monks called it "the Easter laugh." The idea spread rapidly, and the day after Easter became known as a "Day of Joy and Laughter" in Orthodox, Catholic, and many Protestant countries. In homes and churches, it became common to celebrate God's great joke on the devil with joke-telling sessions. It became the custom even in monasteries. Especially in monasteries.


I read just the other day that a group known as The Fellowship of Merry Christians who began to urge churches and prayer groups to revive this very old custom and hold Easter Monday parties or to have Holy Humor Sundays.


That’s a very good idea, don’t you think? Celebrating “the Easter Laugh”, holding a day or a Sunday for Joy and Laughter.



Yet there is a great biblical truth that drives this practice. The Cross, the symbol of Roman torture and execution, a symbol of anger and hate and brutality, is transformed by God into a symbol of LOVE. “Greater love has no one than this, that they lay down their life for another”. The Easter story of Christs resurrection is God’s great exclamation point that emphasizes for us the power of love. This love creates and promises hope, renewal, change and newness. The resurrection becomes a symbol of hope and grace and amazing love.

God is still at work. God works in situations that seem utterly hopeless and bleak before he brings surprise endings and has the last laugh.

So, tell your best joke today! Have a day of Joy and laughter, as you continue to rejoice as people of the risen king!



Nehemiah 8:10


10 Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to hose who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”

THE DAY IN-BETWEEN

APRIL 16, 2022

Today is called by many in the Christian Tradition HOLY SATURDAY. I call it the “DAY IN BETWEEN”. Yesterday was Good Friday, we attended services perhaps, listened or read a devotional, or thought about what occurred on a Friday a long time ago and what Jesus went through and how he lovingly suffered a cruel death that we might live a “life full of hope.”

Holy Saturday really hasn’t been significant in my Holy Week reflections to be honest. After Good Friday my thoughts head toward tomorrow, Sunday, EASTER Sunday and its Celebrative features.

This year, it is Saturday that speaks to me just now, the day in between, the day of dull numbness after the events of the previous twenty-four hours, the day when there is no hint that the pain and fear of the moment will ever subside. What did the disciples do? How did they comfort each other? Did they even try? Or might they have stumbled through that Sabbath completely unaware of what was going on around them, fearful of a suddenly and unknown future, and unable to even imagine putting the pieces of their lives back together?

My thoughts have wondered if this in-between day is important because like so many of us the deep longing that will likely never be satisfied is an experience, we know all to well, perhaps more so than the agony of Good Friday or the joy of Easter.

When you lose a loved one, when your marriage fails, when your dream job evaporates, when you receive a devastating diagnosis, when your livelihood disappears, when…. Each of us has likely gone through moments of tremendous disappointments like these and more. Maybe Holy Saturday speaks to me more profoundly this year, because I am grieving, the death of my Father-in-law, the death of a very dear Aunt last week, the death of a very dear friend, and officiating at the life celebrations of several families during these last two years.

I think we all know that hardest days are usually the ones that come afterward. Days after the funeral, when the calls and visits stop. Weeks after the divorce, or loss of employment, when sympathetic friends no longer check in, as often. The time in between the diagnosis and treatment when there is absolutely nothing you can do.

I am thinking that these are the experiences that Holy Saturday speaks to, for they are the experiences of Jesus’ disciples ahead of Easter, struggling through the absolute uncertainty of what their future might possibly hold that is worth living for.

This Holy Saturday, that seems particularly to be the case, for my family, our community, well really across Our Canada, and around the world. Talk of loss and death, to natural causes, to disease, to accidents, the horrors of war and tension, struggles of refugees, shootings in our neighborhoods, housing pressures and crisis, Covid variants and 6th wave talk. We, too, live in a time of waiting and longing. Wouldn’t you agree?

Perhaps that is why it’s important to remember this day. Because while the disciples stumbled through their routines, and while we try to carry on with our lives, I want you to hear, really hear what I am about to say. Even in our waiting and longing, on an in-between day, God is not absent nor inactive. Indeed, as we know, God was preparing to raise Jesus from the dead and provide the turning point of all history, fashioning a new and open future that none on that Saturday could imagine. Perhaps on this HOLY SATURDAY, we might reap spiritual benefits by remembering the promise of Holy Saturday that, God is not finished yet. We might recall that God’s favorite thing to do is to show up where we least expect God to be and to surprise those of us who have given up on God, and so can no longer imagine what redemption and love and blessing and grace feel like.

This day of Holy Week, Holy Saturday, is a day that I believe captures the painful rhythm of our lives of waiting and longing, yet also invites us to hear the promises that God is still at work, eager to surprise and redeem us and the whole creation.

 

THIS IS AMAZING GRACE

 APRIL 15, 2022

*****  NOTE    *****

Today you have 2 options for our Devotion. 

OPTION 1: Read the Devotion as presented.

OPTION 2: Scroll to the bottom of the devotion for a Video of Good Friday Reflection with Scriptures, song, and today's  Devotion. The video is a 20 minute long reflection.

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LET'S BEGIN WITH PRAYER


Holy and loving God,
as we prepare to set aside our busyness
and to focus intently on Jesus’ suffering and death,
we ask for eyes to see all of the amazing things that Jesus’ death means for understanding you, your love, and our salvation.
In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.


John 19:17-18


17 Carrying his own cross, he went out to the place of the

Skull (which in Aramaic is called Golgotha). 18 There they crucified him, and with him two others—one on each side and Jesus in the middle.





“They crucified him…” these three words are the climax of the earthly life of Jesus. They are the climax of an amazing love story, the story of God coming among us to save, to rescue, to provide a new and living way.



The Gospels tell us that Jesus spoke seven very meaningful words from the cross - seven times he expressed words that grew out of the depth of his soul; seven times he spoke words of compassion and concern, forgiveness and commitment.



Here’s what he said that day:



• Father forgive them for they know not what they do

• Today you will be with me in paradise

• Mother, your son; son, your mother

• My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

• I thirst

• It is finished!

• Father into thy hands I commit my spirit.

Yet in reality I believe Jesus said even more much more than these amazing words could say. He spoke something to the world, to all humankind, without using another word. It is what we read between
the lines, so to speak, it is what we feel, even through the mocking of the bystanders and the weeping of his Mother and friends, we sense this hushed wordless message.


Even though darkness covered the earth at the time of his death, the darkness was punctured with a ray of light.


And the light made an announcement! What is it that Jesus said without saying another word? What Jesus was saying without speaking and what we are mindful of this day is grace, amazing grace!


In his book, “What’s so amazing about Grace?” Philip Yancey says: “Grace means there is nothing we can do to make God love us more - no amount of spiritual calisthenics and renunciations, no amount of knowledge gained from seminaries and divinity schools, no amount of crusading on behalf of righteous causes. And grace means there is nothing we can do to make God love us less.”



In addition to everything else that Good Friday means, it reminds us that God is gracious,  generous, forgiving and inviting.


God is the giver, grace is the gift. And the cross is the price of this costly grace. In the words of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “Only a wounded God can help us.”

From the cross-God’s grace is whispered for all to hear. Correction, from the cross grace is shouted for all to hear. The death of Jesus set’s God’s grace loose in the world. The unspoken message of the

cross invites us all to believe, to worship, to step into that ray of light that pierces the darkness, and allow our lives to be transformed by grace, bit by bit, moment by moment, to get involved in the life-long process of “being conformed to the likeness of Christ” as Paul wrote  years later. That transformation results in the foundational likeness that Christ came to reveal, the likeness of love.



LET’S PRAY



May the Christ who walks on wounded feet
walk with you on the road.

May the Christ who serves with wounded hands
stretch out your hands to serve.

May the Christ who loves with a wounded heart
open your hearts to love.

May you see the face of Christ in everyone you meet,
and may everyone you meet see the face of Christ in you. Amen.

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ARE YOU AFRAID OF FEET?

APRIL 14, 2022

 

John 13:34-35

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.”

Jesus was not fearful of feet. We are probably all familiar with the story of Jesus washing the disciples’ feet. Jesus and the disciples have gathered in the upper room to participate in the Passover Feast. As the evening meal is being served Jesus does something unusual. John described what Jesus does “so He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist. After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him.” John 13:4-5

Jesus takes on a task that most of us would find very uncomfortable. Think about it you are at our next Communion Service and following the Lord’s Table celebration it is announced in response to the message of communion that we are going to have a foot washing Ceremony. A basin is brought forward in preparation for this ceremony. How many of us would be comfortable with participating? How many of us would need a washroom break at this point? Some people actually are afraid of feet. There actually is a phobia associated with feet called podiaphobia. Those who suffer from it can have high levels of anxiety at the thought of having feet exposed to them. Can you imagine suffering from this phobia, it must be terrible to battle this.

Jesus, it appears was not uncomfortable at all about washing feet. John’s gospel instructs us about what motivated Jesus to take this action. In John 13:5 it says, “Having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.” Love is the motivating factor for all of Jesus’ actions. Through his actions Jesus teaches his disciples an important lesson.

“When He had finished washing their feet, He put on His clothes and returned to His place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” He asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” John 13:12-17

Jesus sets an example for the disciples in His willingness to do a task that no one else in a position of leadership would be willing to do. You see Jesus is not like many leaders today that have a motto “Do what I say”, rather Jesus says, “Do What I Do?” When we love each other we will want to serve each other. Even the tasks that we would not want to do can become possible, even enjoyable, when we love each other the way Jesus wants and invites us too.

Today is Thursday, and many Christians know today as Maundy Thursday. The word maundy means “a new commandment” and is derived from the Latin word Mandatum in translating Jesus’ commandment in John 13:34-35.

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all will know that you are my disciples if you love one another.”



May we all, as Jesus Followers,  be known by our love!

Who Am I?

APRIL 13, 2022

Matthew 26:1-16

When Jesus had finished all these sayings, he said to his disciples, 2 “You know that after two days the Passover is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.”

3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, 4 and plotted together in order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. 5 But they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.”

6 Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, 7 a woman came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table. 8 And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this waste? 9 For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.” 10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me. 11 For you always have the poor with you, but you will not always have me.

12 In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial. 13 Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.”

14 Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.



Mark 14:1-11

14 It was now two days before the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And the chief priests and the scribes were seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him, 2 for they said, “Not during the feast, lest there be an uproar from the people.”

3 And while he was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, as he was reclining at table, a woman came with an alabaster flask of ointment of pure nard, very costly, and she broke the flask and poured it over his head. 4 There were some who said to themselves indignantly, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? 5 For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.” And they scolded her. 

6 But Jesus said, “Leave her alone. Why do you trouble her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 7 For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me. 8 She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burial. 9 And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her.”

10 Then Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve, went to the chief priests in order to betray him to them. 11 And when they heard it, they were glad and promised to give him money. And he sought an opportunity to betray him.


Luke 22:1-6

The Festival of Unleavened Bread, which is also called Passover, was approaching. 2 The leading priests and teachers of religious law were plotting how to kill Jesus, but they were afraid of the people’s reaction. 3 Then Satan entered into Judas Iscariot, who was one of the twelve disciples, 4 and he went to the leading priests and captains of the Temple guard to discuss the best way to betray Jesus to them. 5 They were delighted, and they promised to give him money. 6 So he agreed and began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus so they could arrest him when the crowds weren’t around.





Is Jesus the Messiah or not? Who is this? These kinds of questions figured prominently in the minds of everyone Jesus interacted with, just as it does for us today. The personal response to Jesus is highlighted in the Gospels, whether they decided to believe Him and positioned themselves and their hearts to follow him, was an extremely important and great decision.

The Sanhedrin, the Jewish Religious authorities, saw the great things Jesus did. Some, those who would admit it, admired His teaching, yet they were more concerned how Jesus’ popularity, miracles and teaching might affect their position in society. Like most people in powerful positions, they wanted to protect their clout as teachers and leaders, so the Sanhedrin tried to trap Jesus with questions and plotted to end His life. Of course, the didn’t recognize that it was through death that Jesus would accomplish his God given call. (see Romans 14:9)

Judas, the one who would betray Jesus, walked with Jesus for three years. There is a caution here, isn’t there? You can spend a lot of time around Jesus and His people without a surrender to his purposes as his follower. This was Judas’ story. Perhaps he believed by helping the Sanhedrin get rid of Jesus he was opening a door to a place of honor or prestige in the future. Judas was not able to comprehend the nature of Jesus kingdom, that Jesus came to build a spiritual kingdom, one marked by sacrifice and servanthood.

I find the anointing at Bethany one of the more powerful passages in the New Testament. This woman had the distinction of anointing Jesus’ body before His death. She took her perfume, her costly perfume, and knelt at Jesus' feet. She bowed before Jesus in adoration, reverence, and gratitude and opened her most precious possession, and drenched Jesus' feet with it. Her outward actions signified the attitude of her heart.

Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends” John 15:13. That is what Mary did that day to Jesus, and it is ultimately what Jesus does for us.

In these days of Holy Week, leading up to Easter, it is beneficial to pause and consider who we think Jesus is. You will recall Jesus asked his disciples the question Who do people say I am? Yet, he was more interested in the answer to his follow up questions “who do you say I am?

Is Jesus a threat to our current way of life like He was to the Sanhedrin?

Is Jesus someone we have followed because we believe it will bring some special distinction as Judas did?

Or is Jesus, the Christ, the son of the living God? The one who we call the leader of our life, to whom we offer our praise, gratitude, and worship in a way similar to Mary?

These are questions worth considering today.

 

HELP OR HOORAY?

APRIL 12, 2022

PSALM 118

19 Open for me the gates of the righteous;
I will enter and give thanks to the Lord.
20 This is the gate of the Lord
through which the righteous may enter.
21 I will give you thanks, for you answered me;
you have become my salvation.

25 Lord, save us!
Lord, grant us success!

26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
From the house of the Lord we bless you.

28 You are my God, and I will praise you;
you are my God, and I will exalt you.

29 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever.

I have been doing some study and reflection on the Holy Week scriptures through the Lent Season. I want to share with you a bit of a word study today about the word HOSANNA. We sing this word in several songs that we sing in worship not just on Palm Sunday but throughout the year.



Most of us are familiar with the New Testament readings when it says in three different places, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" Matthew 21:9, 15; or, "Hosanna in the highest!" Mark 11:9, 10; or simply, "Hosanna!" John 12:13. What is interesting is that the word Hosanna appears only in one Old Testament passage, that passage is in Psalm 118.



Psalm 118 is the last of the so-called “Hallal Psalms” or “Praise Psalms” which began in Psalm 113. This group of psalms was recited at most of the main Jewish festivals, so it would not have been unusual to hear these words being sung by pilgrims making their way to Jerusalem near Passover. In fact, the Hallal Psalms are sung at the conclusion of Passover meals to this day. (it is actually a good exercise to read these Psalms) These praises, combined with royal symbol of Jesus riding on a donkey, the song of the people took on a much greater significance.



Our English word "hosanna" comes from a Hebrew phrase "hoshiya na" found in Psalm 118:25 where it carries the meaning “Save, Please!” or “Help me, Save me!” As you can tell, it is a cry to God for help. Hoshiya na! “Help, save me.”



But something happened to that phrase, hoshiya na. The meaning changed over the years. In Psalm 118 it was immediately followed by the exclamation: "Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!" The cry for help, hoshiya na, was answered almost before it came out of the psalmist's mouth. And over the centuries the phrase hoshiya na stopped being a cry for help in the ordinary language of the Jews. Instead it became a shout of hope and exultation. It used to mean, "Save, please!" But gradually, it came to mean, "Salvation! Salvation! Salvation has come!" It is the bubbling over of a heart that sees hope and joy and salvation on the way and can't keep it in.



So "Hosanna!" means, "Hooray for salvation! It's coming! It's here! Salvation! Salvation!"

And "Hosanna to the Son of David!" means, "The Son of David is our salvation! Hooray for the king! Salvation belongs to the king!"

And "Hosanna in the highest!" means, "Let all the angels in heaven join the song of praise. Salvation! Salvation! Let the highest heaven sing the song!"

The crowd in the Gospel are not praying for salvation, they are welcoming salvation. Hosanna eventually became more a shout of praise than a request for salvation. In Psalm 118, as noted above it was a request for God’s blessing, and it is followed by the granting of the request. The priests reply with God’s answer, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the LORD! We bless you from the house of the LORD” (v. 26). In other words, the people see in Jesus the answer to their request.

So, hosanna used to be a request, “save us, please!” but it has been transformed into a praise, “you have saved us!” This crowd celebrates because their king has arrived.


When we sing "Hosanna" from now on, let's make it very personal. Let's make it our praise and our confidence. The Son of David has come. He has saved us from guilt and fear and hopelessness. Salvation! Salvation belongs to our God and to the Son! Hosanna! Hosanna in the highest!