Blog Archives
Will the American Church Embrace Martyrdom? Why it Must!
Martyrdom of Saint Andrew (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Devotional Thought of the Day:
8 But when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be filled with power, and you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem, in all of Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8 (TEV)
10 Then I heard a strong voice out of Heaven saying, Salvation and power are established! Kingdom of our God, authority of his Messiah! The Accuser of our brothers and sisters thrown out, who accused them day and night before God. 11 They defeated him through the blood of the Lamb and the bold word of their witness. They weren’t in love with themselves; they were willing to die for Christ.Revelation 12:10-11 (MSG)
35 Women received their loved ones back again from death. But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. 36 Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons. 37 Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. Hebrews 11:35-37 (NLT)
12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6:12 (NLT)
Martyrdom.
Pictures of Stephen being stoned, with a smug young man named Saul standing in the distance. That same man, being beheaded. Peter and Andrew being crucified. The list of things in the Hebrews passage above, describing the end of life of many believers. In modern days, Jim Elliot and his fellow missionaries being killed, or the people in countries in the Middle East and Asia being killed because they went to church. Churches blown apart by suicide bombers.
Will it happen here? Will we be called upon to be Martyrs? Are the “restrictions” being place on believers in the public square and in public education and in the Healthcare Mandate the forerunners of a great persecution of the church?
Will the American Church fight against martyrdom, run from it, or in faith, embrace it?
Will we wait until we are truly persecuted to embrace it?
You see, martyrdom is not just dieing as victims, matter of fact, a victim mentality is foreign to the idea of martyrdom. We’ve lost the true concept of the word, which is to bear witness, no matter what! Martyrdom means to testify and to “prove”, to stand behind that testimony, even if it means our life.
It is what we are commissioned to do, from the very moment of our baptism. It is our call as the church, to be so focused on the mercy and grace and love of God, that our very lives testify to this relationship God wants with everyone.
Martyrdom is our mission, our apostolate, the reason why we aren’t taken to heaven when God calls us and makes us His own. In order to be martyrs, we embrace sacrifice, suffering and even persecution the way Christ did, not struggling against it, It takes a a special attitude. It means that we have to realize that those who would annoy us, try to restrict us from expressing our faith publicly, those who mock us, and even those who are determined to physically abuse or kill believers, they are not our enemy. They are the ones we have been sent to love, to show mercy to, to share the reason we have hope, no matter what we have to endure to testify to God’s love and mercy for them. We have to get out of our mind that they are the opposition. They are the ones we are called to be martyrs for, even as we pray for them as Stephed did in Acts. Asking that God would NOT hold their sin against them.
That’s martyrdom.
We need to embrace it, we need to have the trust in Jesus, that as we live, testifying to His love, that He will give us the strength to endure in Him. That He will give us the words, and the strength to love, even as He calls us to be His witnesses, His martyrs.
May His church always embrace that call.
Lord Have Mercy!
Related articles
- Persecution, Martyrdom, the Love of Christ…. and a hard lesson in prayer (justifiedandsinner.com)
Advent Devotion: Convenient, Comfortable Christianity? Hmmm…
William-Adolphe Bouguereau (1825-1905) – The Flagellation of Our Lord Jesus Christ (1880) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Devotional Thought of the Day:
But when the Son of man comes, will he find any faith on earth? Luke 18:8b (NJB)
57 As they travelled along they met a man on the road who said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ 58 Jesus answered, ‘Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.’ 59 Another to whom he said, ‘Follow me,’ replied, ‘Let me go and bury my father first.’ 60 But he answered, ‘Leave the dead to bury their dead; your duty is to go and spread the news of the kingdom of God.’ 61 Another said, ‘I will follow you, sir, but first let me go and say good-bye to my people at home.’ 62 Jesus said to him, ‘Once the hand is laid on the plough, no one who looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.’Luke 9:57-62 (NJB)
650 When will you realise that your only possible way is to seek sanctity seriously. Make up your mind—don’t be offended—to take God seriously. That levity of yours, if you do not fight against it, could end up by becoming a sad and blasphemous mockery. (1)
Yesterday we began Advent, that time of year where we build expectation of Christ’s return, as we consider life prior to the Incarnation.
It is hard to look back, without considering the voices of the prophets, and their call on the people of God to take their relationship with God seriously. Their reminders that we have a relationship with God who has made it possible, and that we should neglect that relationship.
Yet too often we do.
Advent seeks to shake us from that – to prepare us for Christ’s coming – not just the 6 lbs 8 oz Baby Lord Jesus, lieing in a smelly feeding trough, but the returning Lord who gave it all, for us.
It’s a startling image in this day where peopel are put out if they are asked to pay more in taxes, or meet the expecations others place on their time and their lives. We want to be served instantly, we want it our way, we want things to be convenient, and comfortable, with no sacrifice and no cost.
We hear that salvation is free, that God paid all the cost for our sins, with Christ dieing on the cross, and we rejoice. We focus on that part of the message of God. We love it, rejoice in it, willing share that part with others.
But we don’t want the inconvenience of being in a relationship with God. It might be uncomfortable, He might ask us to sacrifice something, to downscale our lives in order to help others. He might ask us to spend time with Him, and with those people at church that aren’t like us. He may ask some of us even to suffer for the faith, and how many of us are really willing to do that?
SO the prophetic question is asked – do you trust God? Are you willing to trust Him, even if it seems to mean some personal cost? What if it means giving up a personal dream, or embracing discomfort? What if it means being alienated from family? What if it means our friends turn their back on us, because we won’t be there when they want us to be, because of our commitments to serve others, especially those others they might consider “less deserving”? Will you trust God, when it costs you a little of what it cost Jesus, the shame He embraced on the cross? Are you willing to trust Him enough that you would embrace suffering, if it meant one more person would know Christ?
Remember why – it was for the joy awaiting Him, the joy of sharing His glory with you! The joy of bringing you into the glory and love that is shared between this Triune God we worship.
Is your trust in Him, your love for Him enough to embrace a inconvenient, uncomfortable messy way of life?
Look beyond the manger, and the shining stars and “cute” depictions of the birth of Christ. Look at the rejections He endured, Look at the cross He bore, and the investment He’s made, promising you the Holy Spirit, the Comforter. KNow His faithfulness, His trustworthiness, His love and mercy….
and embrace a life of faith and trust…. knowing that no other life is worth living.
Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 2728-2731). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Related articles
- You Must Be Ready…but How? (justifiedandsinner.com)
- Sacraments and Sacramentals: Advent (simonebrosig.wordpress.com)
- How to Build the Church (justifiedandsinner.com)
- “We’ll get together then, God. You know we’ll have a good time then! (justifiedandsinner.com)
I Have Certainly Seen, I Am Aware, I Have Come Down!
I Have Certainly Seen, I Am Aware,
I Have Come Down…
Exodus 3:1-15
† Jesus, Son, Savior †
It is my prayer for you, that you realize the grace of God, that His merciful love and peace wash over you, cleansing you, as we realize that He has come to us!
The Burning Bush? Big Deal…
It draws our attention like a moth is drawn to a flame, like the day after thanksgiving gathers shoppers to stores. Like chocolate draws the attention of some people… or like Best Buy adds draw William’s attention… well and mine.
Yet in our Old Testament reading this morning, it is about as important on its own as the color and smell of the sheep Moses shepherded.
Burning Bushes are interesting, they get our attention, they call us to look at this passage, they gain our attention.
But this passage is about the burning bush. It is about what God reveals to Moses, something that after this week of challenges I don’t just want to preach about. I need to know it as you do. I need to know it is as true for us, as it was for Israel.
Verse 7, slightly adapted:
7 Then the Lord told us, “I have certainly seen the oppression of you my people. I have heard your cries of distress because of the trauma life is tossing at you. Yes, I am aware of your suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue you.
God says,
I have certainly seen….. I am aware…. And
I have come down
Our struggle – we aren’t sure if He sees, if He is aware…
I think we get that God has come down in the past, in the time where He walked with Abraham, or Moses, or when He inspired King David to write incredible songs of transparency and praise. We know He was there for the prophets. Yet when God talks so passionately about His people, about seeing them and being aware their troubles, and coming down to rescue them, I think we lose something in translation.
Because we use the pronoun “them”, rather the “us”
There are days I wonder, does God see us the way He saw Israel, does He know the pain we endure, whether it is our grief, or our anxieties. When our complaints and our brokenness seem unheard, seem that they do not gain His attention. Just like Israel, crying out for His help, as they struggled under oppression in Egypt. Faith is realizing the them is us.
So that we can cry out like the man who encountered Jesus, “Lord, we trust in you, help us trust in you!”
We look around to see if there is a burning bush nearby… or maybe we check with our friends, or maybe even our pastor, to see if they’ve seen one. After all – Moses was not outside the Starbucks in Cairo, Egypt when the people were crying out. He was out in the desert, out in the wilderness, trying to avoid his own problems. Hmmm.. maybe I should check with my friends in Anza and Yucca Valley, see if they’ve seen our bush?
I have to be honest in this, there are the days, where like the Israelites wandering in Sinai, I wonder if it would be better to go back to New Eng..err Egypt. That the problems and sufferings might have been less there.
We are not the super-heroes of the faith. Matter of fact, if we read their stories, Abraham, and Moses, David and Jeremiah were not superheroes either. They struggled as we do, to see God’s presence, to see God’s faithfulness.
Otherwise, why do burning bushes and arks of the covenant exist?
Because we need to know this: that He sees us, we need to know He is aware… and to remember He has come to rescue us. We need something to distract us from our normal grind of life, to call us to realize that we stand on Holy Ground… not because of a burning bush or a beautiful sanctuary, but because we live in God’s presence.
But He has… and He therefore comes down!
We are not in the situation Israel thought they were in, when Moses turned back to see phenomena, and instead realized He was in the glorious presence of God. We are in the journey from that place, on our way to the Promised Land, the place God has set aside for us to dwell with Him eternally.
He has come down! He is guiding us, even as He guided them through the Sinai. We are not in paradise, in heaven just yet. He calls us together like a shepherd gathering a flock, like Moses was sent back to Egypt to go get God’s people. Because our oppressors have been defeated.
It is not in today’s reading but not long after that the miracle at the Red Sea happened. Like this it was prophetic, a picture of our baptism. When the Israelites walked through that sea – it was to get to the other side. Passing through the sea was to get them to the place where God arranged for them to live in His presence. However, those that oppressed them died in the water, they did not pass through it.
Just like that is our baptism, where the goal is not just the removal of our sin, not just to unite with Christ’s death, but with His resurrection as well. Though we pass under/through the water of baptism that which would and could separate us from Jesus does not. It died – then and there. Our oppressor and the sins which enslaved us died and lost all authority over us there.
Because God saw, and was aware of our situation, and came down to rescue us. The rescue is only the beginning, even as sending Moses to Egypt was only the beginning for Israel!
And He is still here… because He has seen, and is aware… and is with you
Flash forward 1500 years, to two more mountains, the first and encounter between another tree, and another man, another appointment arranged by God. The second mountain, where that man would turn to his apprentices, to send them back to their lives, to free others still captive in sin, still oppressed by it.
Christ would die on that cross, and I pray that everyone we come in contact would turn to look at that tree, on which God was killed, yet would live.
It is that other mountain, that I would look at, to close this sermon and lead us toward prayer. The words that we know, but again, that we miss part of at times. The words that send us back out into our worlds, back to the places where people need to know God’s love.
18 Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. 19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20 (NLT)
All authority is invested by the Father in the Son, and even as the Father sends the Son, so He sends us. Just like Moses was sent. The key is in the other part of the passage that is underlined.
I am with you… the same message that Moses would hear… as he was sent to deliver people from bondage. The same message those people would hear, as God guided them to the Holy Land. The same promise made to us when we were called into this relationship, the same promise made to every believer, as they are sent to free others from the bondage of sin.
He is with you.
He certainly sees, He is so aware, and He’s come down to rescue us.
That’s what the tree on the mountain that wasn’t consumed by fire was really about.
That’s what the parting of the water of Red Sea was about.
That’s what the cross on another mountain is about…
That’s what the water of baptism is about..
And it is what this altar, and this meal is about…when we, as Moses was told remember His name.
7 Then the Lord told us, “I have certainly seen the oppression of you my people. I have heard your cries of distress because of the trauma life is tossing at you. Yes, I am aware of your suffering. 8 So I have come down to rescue you.
And He brings us into His peace, His indescribable peace that passes all understanding, where Jesus will keep us, mind and heart, safe and secure; for the Lord dwells with you! AMEN!
One of the greatest blessings, that (or those) who annoy us?
Devotional thought of the Day:
Romans 8:26-28 (NJB) 26 And as well as this, the Spirit too comes to help us in our weakness, for, when we do not know how to pray properly, then the Spirit personally makes our petitions for us in groans that cannot be put into words; 27 and he who can see into all hearts knows what the Spirit means because the prayers that the Spirit makes for God’s holy people are always in accordance with the mind of God. 28 We are well aware that God works with those who love him, those who have been called in accordance with his purpose, and turns everything to their good.
250 We could get rid of so much neurosis and hysteria if people were taught—together with Christian doctrine—really to live as Christians: loving God and knowing how to accept things that annoy us as a blessing from His hand! (1)
Romans 8:28 is often used by those who minister and serve others, when we want to bring comfort to people. Especially those in deep trauma and those who have to deal with the impossible. Those times when we don’t know what to ask God, those times when all there seems to be, is pain.
Those times when we don’t want to admit we are over our heads. Like when the pain of loss of a loved one stops us from being able to think or act.
But what about the other times? What about the times (and the people) that a so frustrating its silly? When they just bug us to no end? What about when they drive us bonkers with the way they see things, when the situation is so…oddly broken that we can’t do anything? When the questions asked are such that we just don’t even know what to say?
Are these times really blessings? Are these people really a great blessing from God’s hand?
According to scripture, they are!
Talk about requiring us to have faith! To trust in God!
But that’s what Romans 8:28 says. Everything is turns out to be for our good.
Even the frustrating, even the annoying, even that which is so broken, so wrong, that it is silly.
So what do we do in those times? What do we do when we can’t find the answer?
Just pray, just put it in God’s hands, let the Holy Trinity bring you comfort and a sense of peace that also passes all understanding. Let the Holy Spirit interpret, and then trust in the God who sent His son, who died for us on a cross.
That everything would be a blessing, that everything would work out right.
I know – that doesn’t make sense to our rational, logical, minds.
Neither does the cross.
But the One who promised that the cross would be a blessing – that looked forward to it for the joy set before Him. He’s the One who also promises that all will work out for our best. Even the frustrating, even the annoying…
Even that which causes us to scratch our head, look to the heavens… and say…
Really?
Yes!
Lord Have Mercy!
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 1230-1232). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
In Hard Times Like These… hug Christ
Baptism of Christ. Jesus is baptized in the Jordan River by John. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
1 That is why we must hold on all the more firmly to the truths we have heard, so that we will not be carried away. 2 The message given to our ancestors by the angels was shown to be true, and those who did not follow it or obey it received the punishment they deserved. 3 How, then, shall we escape if we pay no attention to such a great salvation? The Lord himself first announced this salvation, and those who heard him proved to us that it is true. 4 At the same time God added his witness to theirs by performing all kinds of miracles and wonders and by distributing the gifts of the Holy Spirit according to his will. Hebrews 2:1-4 (TEV)
When the branches are united to the vine they grow to maturity and bear fruit. What then should you and I do? We should get right close to Jesus, through the Bread and through the Word. He is our vine… We should speak affectionate words to him throughout the day. That is what people in love do. (1)
Been through a bit of stress this week… and part of me wants to lock myself in a room – or dive into a book or a video game. It takes a lot to make me go introverted… and while it is a defense mechanism… it is dark at times when you are alone. (What is really hard is when I need to do the opposite – and have many people encouraging me to climb into my hole and lock them out..)
I added 10 people to our prayer list this morning…. people recovering from surgery. People mourning friends who we won’t see until we are before the throne, I’ve talked too others, very afraid of another war, and others whose finances are so stretched beyond belief. These are hard times, for so many, times of tears and weariness and emotional exhaustion.
THe strength we have, if at all, in these times, is remarkable and extraordinary. It comes from deep within us… yes, even as it is not ours, and is clearly something alien to our basic nature. It is because at such times, everything is cut away, and we find ourselves in Christ’s embrace. And there, we find His heart, and the strong beat of life that calms our soul.
When my 6 year old was an infant, he used to go to sleep at night in my arms with his head over my heart. Because I have two artificial heart valves – my heart literally clicks. Its funny – on the nights when he 2-4 and was scared or sick and desperately asks to sleep in our bed – he usually ended up with his head pressed (not just touching) about the same place – or against my back – where he could hear my heart click. I can only imagine it brought him comfort and security. He could rest.
We need to be like that with Jesus, that close, that spiritually aware, that intimate, that involved in the relationship. As Escrvia says – we do this with the Bread and in the Word, as we connect to Jesus, to our Lord. As Lutherans our way of saying this is through word and Sacrament. For as we hear the word, the Holy Spirit, the Lord and giver of life does more than just “teaches” us, that word is planted in us and grows, and we don’t just know it academically, but intuitively, with all that we are. The same thing as we commune with God, and notice it is not you or I, but we…. the family of God. It is these times we see Christ, revealed to us is His very Heart, the love He has for us… and how He has taken us into His heart, even as the Holy Spirit abides in ours.
There is a part of me that hates these hard times… I despise the pain, the abslutely… stripped feeling I have. The seeming loneliness, the emotional rollercoasters…
Yet there is a part of me that has learned to deal with them… to welcome rather than run… because I know in these times… the Lord who makes us one with Him is there… ready to love, ready to show mercy… ready to embrace us….
And for that… what else can we do but adore Him?
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 1683-1686). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Related articles
- What can be done to help??? The greatest thing… prayer! (justifiedandsinner.com)
- The Heart of Theology & the Heart of Ministry is the Heart of Christ (justifiedandsinner.com)
- Love Them, Love Them, Love Them: Discipleship lessons from the gym…and Coach C (justifiedandsinner.com)
- Real Prayer…Changes things… Will you? (justifiedandsinner.com)
Take Up Your Cross and Walk with Jesus
38 Anyone who does not take his cross and follow in my footsteps is not worthy of me. 39 Anyone who finds his life will lose it; anyone who loses his life for my sake will find it. Matthew 10:38-39 (NJB)
“989 Come, now! After saying so often, “The cross, Lord, the cross,” it is obvious you wanted a cross to your own taste.” (1)
It is pretty obvious that the culture in America doesn’t handle suffering and death all that well. Heck, we don’t even handle getting old that well, as our bodies begin to groan and ache. We find ways to hide the effects of suffering and the problems we endure, and if we can’t, we try to ignore it, shove it in a corner. Or we try and use it to get some kind of attention, as if we can play the martyr, or even top someone else’s martyrdom.
We don’t even like to see others suffer, and far too often, we leave them alone in it. Abandoning them because if we have to face their pains, their burdens, we might have to deal with our own as well. So getting down in the dirt, embracing the pain, being for them, no, that’s not where God wants us. Even pastors do it, as that open congregation must have less suffering and sacrifice than the one we are at. Congregations as well – as they look for another pastor, thinking that it’s his fault that the church isn’t what we think it should be. Indeed, how much time do we spend looking with envy at where the grass is greener? How often do we disrespect God by coveting the lives, the things, the churches that others have?
Like St Josemaria says…. we want a cross we like, burdens that we don’t lose sleep over, the perfect cross that doesn’t hurt, that doesn’t cause our bodies to scream out in pain, or cause our soul agony. One made by Sealy Posturpedic, with massage units.
No pain and maybe we gain.
Yesterday, I learned for a moment to greet a cross with a sense of joy. After having been away to bear a cross I whined and complained about, (and still am! My wise wife warns people for my sake not to bring up the pain!) I was able to be with my church family. A family that has and is bearing much pain, hardship, illness, and brokenness. I am sure there are others who deal with more, but the people I care for…together in Christ we’ve endured. We even know why, as we regularly greet each other with the phrase, “the Lord IS with you”. We’ve come to rely it so much.
As we waited for service – people came up to me – to add prayers. Some with tears, some barely able to say the words. Others added them afterward, in scratched out writing on paper crumbled and slightly damp. Two more were added from requests from friends via electronic media. Thirteen prayers total – added to a nearly full back and front half page. We pray a lot around here… because we have the need, and that’ has grown over the years.
As we looked at the Lord’s prayer, and why our prayers are answered, I felt more and more at home. As we struggled in prayer, as we worshipped the God who calls us to talk to Him, to lay our burdens upon Him, more and more peace flooded into our brokenness, bringing the healing and trust in God that we don’t have on our own. Our communion time, our passing the peace, were all incredibly….good? beneficial? moments of great awe?
As I look back on it. all I know is this, the pain and burdens we gave to God,… we trusted He would deal with in all wisdom and love. The things we celebrated, the joy and peace we know are evidence of His glorious presence.
We took up our cross – and we realized, consciously, subconsciously, that we were in His presence, we were with Him…..and the crosses were dealt with, and we relaxed with our God, We rested with Him. We dwelt in the presence of God, but we knew it. Taking up our cross is not just a matter of not hiding from the pain, it is a matter of embracing Jesus.
Now to remember that again today… as new crosses are embraced, new things endured, and can even become a joyous occaison, as we walk with the Lord who took the cross meant for us.
English: The lord’s prayer in Manchu (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2010-11-02). The Way (Kindle Locations 2298-2299). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Related articles
- A Sermon on the Lord’s Prayer (justifiedandsinner.com)
- We must bear our cross….an powerful observation…. (justifiedandsinner.com)
When All Seems Meaningless….
6 And Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, two of the spies, tore their clothes in sorrow 7 and said to the people, “The land we explored is an excellent land. 8 If the LORD is pleased with us, he will take us there and give us that rich and fertile land. 9 Do not rebel against the LORD and don’t be afraid of the people who live there. We will conquer them easily. The LORD is with us and has defeated the gods who protected them; so don’t be afraid.” 10 The whole community was threatening to stone them to death, but suddenly the people saw the dazzling light of the LORD’S presence appear over the Tent. Numbers 14:6-10 (TEV)
“To begin is for everyone, to persevere is for saints. May your perseverance not be a blind consequence of the first impulse, the effect of inertia; may it be a reflective perseverance.” (1)
It was once said that “life is suffering”. Another wise man, wrote that all is vanity, it is all meaningless. While both were significantly wiser than I, I know the feeling after a week among church leaders in my denomination. It may only be my thinking, but we spent several million dollars on a convention that did nothing, but remanded more things to study, and ignored the issues we all wanted to work through. Even if we would have come to the table with extremely divergent ideas.
Add to that 12 hours days, some people I dearly care for going through tremendous trauma, some really meaningless and almost incomprehensible theology reading for a class I am taking and a long flight and time change, and as I sit to write my blog and then my sermon,
It is far too easy to be like Israel, approaching the promise land and wondering – why go on? Why keep pushing through this “stuff” (insert any term relating to digestive system end product) and fighting the system? Why not just go back to places like Eqypt, as the Israelites wanted to, where at least the pain and suffering where known and you could brace yourself for them? Why push through to a land of promise that we will have to fight to enter? Even as we realize the threat isn’t external, but internal?
Why go on?
As I read the account this morning from scripture, I am reminded why I preach, and the message that I will share tomorrow, and indeed the entire service is gear to a fact that is far too often overlooked.
The LORD is with us and has defeated the gods who protected them; so don’t be afraid.”
All our false gods, all our struggles, all the sin that would so easily ensnare us has already been defeated. God has won the battle, He has overcome. His promises are to that extent, if we can remember to hear them.
THe people there, ready to take out their angst on others, ready to through it in and abandon their mission, give up on the course God sent for them needed to remember this simple thing – “The Lord is with us!” That changes everything.
The look to the place where God put His name, where He promised He would be for them… and He was there. His promises, His presence, His glory shown as He was where He promised He would be, in the midst of His people. As He has been, ever since.
That is why gathering together, as the Body of Christ is so critical. We need our Calebs, our Joshuas, those who lead us to remind us of this… to drag our eyes to look to Him, not to the past where we were comfortable, but even to embrace the journey and battle we have until we reach the “promised land”, that place where we will finally see Him face to face, the place were others will find themselves because Jesus was there for them, even as we are there for them. The strength to persevere is indeed there for saints… because He is with us, and He is our perseverance.
The Children of Israel Crossing the Jordan (illustration by Gustave Doré) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Go with God this day… and know that He is the reason you have hope!
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2010-11-02). The Way (Kindle Locations 2286-2288). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Related articles
- What’s in you? (justifiedandsinner.com)
Cross or Crucifix, Palms or Passion
Česky: Kříže – symbol utrpení Ježíše Krista a jeho ukřižování (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Devotional thought of the day… as we prepare for Holy Week:
14 As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died. 15 It doesn’t matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. 16 May God’s peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God. Galatians 6:14-16 (NLT)
Over the years, I have had a number of people who ask me why I, a “protestan” pastor (which I do not consider myself to be – but that’s another conversation) wear a crucifix more often than I wear a cross. Its the same reason the Sunday of Christ’s Passion – the celebration of the depth of His love, is so much more than Palm Sunday…
My answer is simple – it is where my hope is founded, it is what makes a difference in my life, it is what sustains me, as I face the crap of this world, the sin and trauma that just can rip your heart apart, and the sin and trauma that is my own, which then crushes that heart, with the force a sledgehammer.
It is why the drama of Palm Sunday, when the masses are crying out Hallelujah – and Hosanna, and Blessed is He that comes in the name of the Lord, is so ironic, and in a way painful. I can’t but hear under the praises, the same voices starting their other cry, the one that will call for this same man to be crucified, to be tortured and killed. There is great irony in that, in the second cry, as it is heard and acted upon, they will realize the glorious nature of God’s love.
It is why I would rather cling to an old rugged crucifix, than just an old rugger cross. For in baptism – I am joined to Christ there as Paul talks about in Romans 6 and Colossians, It is there at the cross – that a circuimcision of my heart takes place, as God separates my sin and all unrighteousness from me, as He signs adoption papers, as He declares me justified, as I receive the most incredible gift, as I enter into fellowship with the Holy Spirit.
Why do I wear a crucifix more than I wear a cross?
Simple – I desperately need to remember He died for me… and as I share in His death, so too I share in His new life.
That He has had mercy on us,,,, despite the cross.
2 Let us keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who leads us in our faith and brings it to perfection: for the sake of the joy which lay ahead of him, he endured the cross, disregarding the shame of it, and has taken his seat at the right of God’s throne. Hebrews 12:2 (NJB)
Related articles
- THE PALM AND THE PASSION: HOMILY FOR THE PALM SUNDAY Rev. Fr. Boniface Nkem Anusiem PhD (frbonnie.wordpress.com)
- PALM SUNDAY and HOLY WEEK (wtmcclendon.wordpress.com)
- The cross isn’t a fashion statement, it’s a passion statement (quinersdiner.com)
The Blessing of Pain?
A favored quote from the Princess Bride:
“Life is pain, highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something.”
There is a lot of pain in the world, even as there is a lot of beauty in the world. There is no way to doubt that, and we can only deny it so long. Occasionally, we get a glimpse of something that is both, tied in a paradox that can be enjoyed and suffered through.
But let’s be honest – most pain sucks!
Rarely, do we see the beauty in pain, the glory of God revealed in trauma. It is very difficult, for the pain grabs our focus. It dominates us, it pushes us down, and yes it causes us to doubt. To doubt those around us, to doubt ourselves, to doubt God.
Yeah – it’s time to stop playing games – because of the levels of pain, it causes us to doubt God.
Even pastors, perhaps especially pastors.
Even apostles – hear how God had Paul reveal that in his own life.
4:7 Yet we who have this spiritual treasure are like common clay pots, in order to show that the supreme power belongs to God, not to us. 8 We are often troubled, but not crushed; sometimes in doubt, but never in despair; 9 there are many enemies, but we are never without a friend; and though badly hurt at times, we are not destroyed. 10 At all times we carry in our mortal bodies the death of Jesus, so that his life also may be seen in our bodies. 11 Throughout our lives we are always in danger of death for Jesus’ sake, in order that his life may be seen in this mortal body of ours. 12 This means that death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. 2 Corinthians 4:7-12 (TEV)
While I know I exaggerate the pain I have to endure, these words of Paul so incredibly describe some days I have. It can be my pain, but often it’s the pain that people I walk alongside develop. The pain endured by people struggling with the loss of a spouse, or losing a parent. The people who are dealing with job sresses, or dysfunctional family members and dysfunctional families. The pain due to lack of trust, the pain of betrayal, the pain of opposition as we try to bless those opposed to us.
As we are troubled, as we doubt, as we deal with enemies, as we are “badly hurt”, how can we say this can be what this same Paul promises (speaking for God) that “all things work for good, for those who love God?”
The ability to endure such times, is to know the difference comes from seeing, knowing the relationship we have with the God. TO begin to grasp the life that is united with Christ’s cross, which happened to us in baptism (see Romans 6:1-8)
Knowing that we endure in Christ (scripture talks about us as being hidden in Christ as well) we begin to look to Him in the midst of trauma, in the midst of pain. We find His presence, and we find it very dear – even when we can’t see the fulfillment of the prophecies, when we can’t find the joy in the journey.
But we begin to trust, even in the midst our doubt – ever more and more, His presence. We realize our pain can cause us to run to God, as we look to Him for some hope, some sense of peace… and that is when the miracle occurs…. Like the disciples in the boat, we realize the Lord is with us… and the storms don’t die down, the pain doesn’t always diminish. But God’s presence becomes the dominant part of our life, not the pain… we begin to find ourselves ministering to others when they observe the pain..we find our spiritual senses more attuned, and eventually trying to praise God ….for in the midst of lament, we find some of the most honest, most dependent worship there is….
And that is when pain….becomes a blessing.
When we realize HE IS HERE… when we realize the Holy Spirit is called the “comforter”, the One who comes alongside, for a reason…
HE IS HERE!
And that is more than enough…. even though we can never explain how….
