Good Friday

 

When we look at the Cross we come face to face with ourselves and what we have done. 

Ever since Adam and Eve the human race has thought IT was God. 

From Genghis Kahn to Alexander the Great to Julius Caesar to Napoleon to Hitler to Stalin and everyone in between who wanted their own Kingdom to rule over. 

Ever since Cain killed Abel, brother has been killing brother. 

What started as one brother killing another turned into over 600,000 brothers killing each other in the Civl War. 

Over the last 5 thousands years, 1.7 billion people have died in wars. 

And now we are capable of killing 6 billion people in a matter of days and months with nuclear war. 

And then there is Genocide.  

A term thrown about daily it has now become so common. 

10 million Jews in the Holocaust. 

20 million died in Stalin’s gulags. 

40-80 million were killed in China’s Cultural Revolution. 

There are families that do not speak to one another;

Cities filled with violence and crime. 

Churches are divided over who is orthodox and who is not. 

And all of this comes from the seeds of hatred, anger, pride, greed, envy, gossip, and revenge that are rooted in the human heart. 

And all of this is on display for us to see on the cross. 

We had all gone astray like sheep, each following his own way. 

But the Lord laid upon Him all of our guilt. 

He was pierced for our offenses and crushed for our sins. 

Our infirmities He bore. 

Our sufferings He endured. 

Like a lamb He was led to the slaughter;

And by His wounds we were healed. Is. 52-53

When we look at the cross we see who we are and what we have done as individuals and as a race. 

But when we look at the cross we see not only who we are and what we have done we also come face to face with the love of God. 

For God so loved the world that He sent His only Son not to condemn it but to save it. 

While one will hardly give up one’s life for a good person,

God shows His love for us that while we still sinners, Christ died for us. Rom. 5:8

This is why it is called Good Friday

Because God is so Good that He gave up His only son to death not for a good person but for a sinful one. 

This is how Good God is. 

When we look at the cross, we come face to face with who we are and what we have done and Who God is and How much He loves us!

Holy Thursday

 

It was Passover and every Jew had gathered as they had done for over 2 thousand years. 

They were re-living for themselves their own Passover. 

They were going to sacrifice a Lamb. 

 And the blood of the Lamb was going to be poured out on the doorposts of their homes. 

And The flesh of the Lamb was going to be eaten;

And they were going to be set free from slavery and led to the Promised Land. 

This Passover however was different from all the others. 

This night, as Jesus gathered with His disciples in the upper room. 

He Himself was the Lamb of God Who was to be sacrificed. 

The flesh of the Lamb that was going to be eaten was His own. 

As He said, “Take this all of you and eat of it,

For this is My Body, which will be given up for you.”

And the Blood of the Lamb that was shed was His own,

As He said, “Take this all of you and drink from it;

For this is the Chalice of My Blood;

The Blood of the New and Eternal Covenant 

Which will be poured out for you and for many;

For the forgiveness of sins.”

Tonight is our Passover, our Paschal Feast. 

As Christians have done for over 2 thousand years. 

We have gathered around the Table of the Lord. 

Whose flesh we will eat

And Whose Blood will be poured out. 

So that we may be set free from all that holds us down and all that holds us back 

So that we might enter the Promised Land

The Kingdom of Heaven. 

Wednesday of Holy Week

 

One can only betray a friend. 

This is what makes betrayal so painful. 

For if an enemy had done, it would be expected;

But when it is done by a friend or a brother,

It is unexpected. 

Judas had lived with Jesus for 3yrs. 

He had seen all the miracles and heard all of the parables. 

But he still betrayed Him. 

How could he do such a thing?

We hear all of Jesus’s parables in the Gospels. 

We receive His Body and Blood at Communion. 

How can we betray our neighbor with Gossip?

How can we turn our back on those in need?

How can we fail to forgive those who hurt us?

The betrayal of Jesus comes in many forms great and small. 

Maybe we should not be so quick to say,

“Surely, it is not I, Jesus.”

Tuesday of Holy Week

 Roosters!  Jn. 13:36-38

Roosters announce the dawn. 

As soon as they see the first light of day,

They crow!

And tell the whole world the sun is coming. 

A rooster crowed early Good Friday morning. 

It announced to the world that Peter did not know Him!

It announced not once; not twice but three times

That Peter denied Jesus.  

Thank God there are not roosters around to announce to the world

Every time we deny Jesus by our words or our actions. 

Or maybe if they did;

We might wake up to what we have done,

And weep as Peter did. 

Monday Holy Week

 How generous are we with God? Jn. 12:1-11

Lazarus was dead and buried. 

After Jesus rose him from the dead. 

How could Mary his sister ever thank Jesus?

one night when Jesus came to their house for dinner,

She took a jar of oil and anointed His feet. 

Not just any oil;

300 days wages worth of oil!

Her generosity knew no bounds. 

How generous are we in return for all God has done for us?

Palm Sunday

 

The Procession of Palms 

Leads to the way of the cross. 

The shouts of Hosanna give way to cries of crucify Him. 

One week later The adoring crowds are all gone,

As Jesus dies alone. 

Where did everyone go?

 Everyone loves Jesus when He talks about love and forgiveness,

But as soon as He mentions the cross,

Everyone scatters. 

This is how it usually goes. 

The cross is where the rubber meets the road. 

Where Faith is tested and Loved is revealed. 

And Jesus finds out just how far we will follow Him.

We know how much Jesus loves us because He embraced the cross. 

Embraced it with nails!

In His hands and His feet. 

How does Jesus know if we love Him?

When Jesus looks down at us from the cross,

How does He know we love Him?

What have we sacrificed?

What crosses have we embraced?

Jesus’ Love for us is obvious. 

is our love for Him just as obvious?

Friday 5th Week of Lent

Performing Good works Jn. 10:31-42

Jesus told the Pharisees to believe Him 

Because of the works that He does is a sign that the Father sent Him. 

What do our actions tell others?

Do our actions tell others that we are Christian?

That we are Really Christian!

Or part time Christian?

Or sort of Christian?

How can we expect anyone to believe in Jesus

Unless our actions do measure up with what we say about Jesus?

Thursday 5th Week of Lent

Abraham our Father in Faith Gen. 17:3-9

Why is Abraham our “Father in Faith?”

Because it takes Faith to believe that as an old man,

God is going to bless him with descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky. 

Because it takes Faith to Pack up everything and let God lead you to a foreign land. 

Because it takes Faith to be willing to sacrifice your own son,

When God asks you to. 

When we seem to have nothing,

And when life takes us to unexpected places,

And we lose those we love,

Call upon Abraham;

For he knows what you are going through

And will show you how to hold on to your Faith. 

Wednesday 5th Week of Lent

 Slaves of Sin Jn. 8:31-42

Jesus told the people that everyone who commits sin 

Is a slave of sin. 

How?

Because when a person hates, hatred gets a hold of them. 

When a person is greedy, greed gets a hold of them. 

When a person is promiscuous, lust gets a hold of them. 

It is the same with gluttony, pride, jealously and every other sin. 

Sin gets a hold of us and will not let go. 

And we become slaves of sin. 

We think we can walk away and change whenever we want;

But not really. 

Sin has a much stronger hold on us then we realize or want to admit. 

And only Jesus can set us free,

Truly free!