Scars

Jesus wasn't ashamed of His
scars. He didn't apologize for them

Scars, both physical and emotional, are reminders. As long as we're not ensnared by them, scars can be a good thing. The imprints of our scars contribute to who we are.

The scars on Jesus' hands remind us of His loving sacrifice.

Dawn - Wonder

DAWN
The thing I really liked about this chapter was the point made about the fact that there are differences in the narratives of the Gospel writers. And like eyewitnesses in any situation each one of them highlights something different. And for once I enjoyed James' humour when he gives an almost Monty Python type script of how the disciples could have got together to decide on their story. But this story is real and the people involved in it are real and Christ really did rise from the dead! No one stole the body; if Jesus was really dead and the body was hidden and disposed of - as some writers suggest - by His followers, what did it do for them? They were persecuted; stoned to death and imprisoned. So if they knew He was 'dead' it would have been easier to admit that and stop the persecution and go back to their normal lives! But they knew He was alive and that first Sunday was the beginning of their new life in Christ!

WONDER
Not to sure about the style of humour in this chapter - but I guess that's just me.

But I agree with James when he states that he is tired of hearing about life changing conferences and books and DVDs. I need to choose to allow Jesus to change my life - that is the only life changing I need - the transforming power of a God who loves me and wants me to have the best possible life that I can have whilst still on this earth!

And I just love the way James finishes this chapter: "Nothing was as it seemed, but actually, everything was getting back to how it was supposed to be all along.". Now that is wonderful!

Scars

It's funny how once you make the change from "Doubting Thomas" to "faithful believer" you think nothing will ever scar you again. God can heal it all...and will. But with each new scar you realize He can heal but He can't (won't?) keep you from being scarred again.

So when I read this in the poem from today's chapter it touched me pretty deeply - especially since I just finished a long weekend in the presence of my mother who has a propensity for leaving behind new scars in her wake.

but the deepest scars didn't come from the nails,
and because of that
the healing you offer isn't just skin deep,
you can heal me all the way down to the bone.
down to the heart.

I could use some of that this morning as I re-enter the part of my world where I am a confident, Christ-following woman and as I shed the skin, once again, of the girl who is constantly wounded by her mother.

Heal me to the bone, Jesus. Heal me to the heart.

joy

This chapter disturbs me for a lot of reasons: And if it isn't really true, we shouldn't believe it. Why not?
What is truth? Pilate asked that of Jesus. Truth (for many religions) is that each one of us is part of the web of life, connected to the One. That is my truth too, although I am not a Native American or a Buddhist.

If Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless. Misplaced, maybe, but hardly useless. The teachings and example of Jesus of Nazareth could stand strong in any court of sacred judgment, whether he was really raised from the dead or not. That he was is gravy. I believe He was. I have faith He was, but fear of death cannot be my motivating factor. Otherwise people who do not fear death would have no reason to believe.

It is the poem at the end that speaks most positively to me of the mystery and majesty and triumph of Jesus Christ:

i feel the touch of your hand upon me.
i feel the fire of your presence within me.
i am finally finding out what life and death really mean,
as i die to who i was
and you prepare me to be born at last.

Joy

Really what more can be said? The author has summed it up quite nicely.

Any religion that's all somber and serious isn't Christianity. Easter is not an elders' meeting; it's an end zone dance. The curse is over, death is conquered, dawn is here. The words joy and Easter may not sound the same in English, but they are synonyms in the heart of God.

I wholeheartedly agree with 1 Peter 1:8, "You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him, you trust him; and even now you are happy with a glorious, inexpressible joy." I can attest to this. Even with what I am going through with my mom right now, including her awful, awful fall yesterday, I am rejoicing. Oh, yes, she is hurt, and it looks terrible and it will take months to heal, but think about how much worse it could have been! My sister and I do not understand why He has not called her home yet, but trust in His divine timing. Through it all I am experiencing His joy and peace. If nothing more, He will be glorified!!!

"Faith leads to joy because, for all true followers of Jesus, death is only paradise in disguise. It's simply the doorway to the party swinging open at last. But for all others, death is the final trip into the tangled forest where the witch lives and all of the bread crumbs have been forever snatched away.

Terror or wonder. Doubt or belief. this moment holds the potential for either---the highway to hell or the gateway to life. Everlasting regret or inexpressible joy."

"...the rhythm of heaven echoing at last within my soul." I love this line.

Joy

“Any religion that’s all somber and serious isn’t Christianity. Easter is not an elder’s meeting; it’s an end zone dance.”

I just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to think about the look on the faces of the disciples when those wonderful women came bounding into their path with the news that they had seen the risen Christ! Part of me wonders if it was like the episode where Jackie tells Roseanne that they had just won the lottery on the old “Roseanne” show. Out of breath…unable to really comprehend what they were seeing…but still knowing that, somehow, they had to get the words out…and then the look of total confusion on everyone’s faces…and, finally, people jumping up and down, grabbing each other, overcome with joy!

It would have been something to see…

The final poem really got to me in this chapter. “I feel the touch of your hand upon me. I feel the fire of your presence within me. I am finally finding out what life and death really mean…”

Good stuff, Maynard.

Joy

Joy

“If Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless, and you are still under condemnation for your sins.”

This reminds me that there are some who live in such ‘religious-ness’, with legalism clogging their pores, and clearly under condemnation…for them Christ is still in that tomb. Or worse yet, He never came to earth to begin with. I’ve been to churches and with people like this. It’s so defeating. How can they claim victory, if they aren’t walking in that truth?

“Easter is not an elders’ meeting; it’s an end zone dance.”

I LOVE this and I pray one day to see it this side of heaven. I pray we would celebrate without the somber face of Easter, but with the CELEBRATORY DANCE of the Resurrection!

Once again his poetry spoke to me.

I did think about his implied definition for the word “JOY”, being happy or ‘joyous’. When I think of these Scriptures and the word ‘joy’ specifically, I think of the meaning I was taught in a study: emotional stability. I suppose both would apply in this circumstance. To be frightened but still emotionally stable and oh so happy that Jesus arose from the dead! They weren’t crippled in fear, they knew whatever it/he was, it was ALL GOOD! Their souls weren’t vexed by this presence, even as some doubted after all they had learned and seen.

Another good one!

Wonder

This is, by far, my favorite chapter! :) :) :) Though I'd change the title to "You Got That Right, Mr Author."

What James said bears repeating, with emphasis, and then said again:

"The gifts of the Master are these: freedom, life, hope, new direction, transformation and intimacy with God. If the cross was the end of the story, we would have no hope. But the cross isn't the end. Jesus didn't escape from death; He conquered it and opened the way to heaven for all who will dare to believe."

"Frankly, I'm tired of hearing about conferences, seminars, books and DVD's that will change my life. 'This (fill in the blank) will change your life! Attend this life-changing (fill in the blank) and you'll never be the same again! It'll be life-changing!' "

"A hernia will change your life. Swallowing two pounds of Ex-Lax will change your life. Getting bitten by a rabid dog will change your life. So will going bankrupt, joining a cult or getting a tapeworm. All of these things are very life-chainging."

"Change is not always a good thing. What I need isn't a change from one thing to another but transformation from who I am into who I was meant to become. Only when God's transforming power touches me can I begin to live the simpler, freer, fresher, more creative, more patient, more passionate, more sacrificial, riskier, rawer, more real, more love-driven life God intended for me to have all along."

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect. ~Romans 12:2

To God be ALL glory, ALL honor, ALL credit and ALL praise for His transforming work in our hearts and lives.

Wonder

"What I need isn’t change from one thing to another but transformation from who I am into who I was meant to become. Only when God’s transforming power touches me can I begin to live the simpler, freer, fresher, more creative, more patient, more passionate, more sacrificial, riskier, rawer, more real, more love-driven life God intended for me to have all along."

I bet if you walked up to anyone on the street and said, "I know where you can find freedom, life, hope, new direction, and transformation" they’d be interested to hear what you had to say.

I bet if you walked up to anyone you know and said, "I know how you can have a simpler, freer, fresher, more creative, more patient, more passionate life that is riskier, rawer, more real and more love-driven than anything you’ve ever experienced" they’d be all ears.

So why is it when the answer to both of these statements is God do they turn and walk away?

"The truth of the moment, if we let it sweep over us, is stunning. It means Jesus really is who he claimed to be…"

It’s not in a Tony Robbins’ book. It’s not on Dr. Phil. You can’t win it on the set of Oprah or buy it on a CD. You won’t find it in a bigger house or a faster car or sequestered away on a deserted island. It’s not going to happen overnight but it will happen…if you look in the right place.
Because the truth is that Jesus is who He claimed to be – the way, the truth and the life. It’s all there for the taking, folks. All you have to do is say yes to God. One little word. One simple thought. One life changing decision. (It almost seems too easy, doesn't it?)

Yeah, I want that…I want my life to be fuller and freer and mean more. I want to die for a reason and live for a cause. I want to jump off the edge of life and holler "Jesus" all the way down. I want to land in the arms of my Almighty Father and never look back. I want what others have. I want a Savior. I want life everlasting and forgiveness for my sins. I want to sing from the mountaintop and soar through the sky. I want the wind to carry my name for all eternity and I want the world to know that I was here and that I GOT IT.

And all I had to do was say...

yes.

Wonder

The first thing that struck me was in the passage from Luke 24: "Still they stood there doubting..."

I love how James takes that to the edge and shakes it up a bit in his exploration of what COULD have happened. I love that Jesus asked for something to eat. I LOVE how James words the paragraph about serving Jesus a banquet! That had me rolling and reminded me of many a HOLY prayer I've heard!

I was a bit 'bugged' that death (in his poem on page 178) had to be "she", but I suppose this is James book, so I'll 'give in' on it, LOL.

The next thing that struck me was in his discussion of change:

"What I need isn't change from one thing to another, but transformation from who I am into who I was meant to become. Only when God's transforming power touches me can I begin to live the simpler, freer, fresher, more creative, more patient, more passionate, more sacrificial, riskier, rawer, more real, more love-driven life God intended for me to have all along."

I thought about the times I felt the transformation in my own life and how it IS scary and a bit uncomfortable...at first.

The final poem of the chapter deeply touched me as well.

"questions tremble within me
like paper-thin leaves in the breeze.
but your story is stronger than my pain
and your truth is taking root in my soul.

at last my branches have
touched the edge of blueness,
easing from your caring eyes.

realization."

I don't know what else I could add but to say this poem is absolutely where I exist about 98% of my time on earth. I love that HIS story is stronger than MY pain. I love that truth can and does take root in my soul. I see that when I draw on my inner strength and find it there. It always surprises me a bit but also renews me.

I can actually visualize this poem in my own life and it meant so much to me to see it penned.

Really good chapter!

Wonder

"Jesus didn't escape from death; he conquered it...."

Many times we see people who seem to escape the consequences of their actions. Most of us try to. But then Jesus comes along and chooses not to escape the consequences of everyone else's messed up lives, broken promises, godless living - instead we can find freedom and live because He accepted the ultimate consequence - death - and removed its power forever.

Still here...

Just wanted to catch you up on me for a second and why I havent been here....

I did not find out that they were hiring a temp to take my place while I was gone or when she would be here until the day she showed up (Oct 13th).... and she is starting from scratch, meaning she has to learn all the software and how things are done.... so needless to say I have not had any time on the internet at all (and I dont want to teach her any bad habits either).... so Im afraid my participation in the book club has just not been as possible as Id like it to be....

I just must trust that God knows what He is doing....

I am still reading along with you guys and when I do have a minute, I try to catch up on the posts, but there is just never enough time to read them all, comment and do my own.... but I am still enjoying the book and reading your entries (the little mermaid one is my fave chapter lately)

Next week is my last week at work, and then Im taking a week off to "rest and nest".... Emma is scheduled to arrive 3 weeks from today - Nov. 13th.... I will try to update when we get back home.... thanks for understanding and for wondering about me..... Im still here... :)

Darkness - Scattered - Spices

Whilst I was in Fort William last week I did take time to read and now I can catch up.

Darkness: I've never had a problem with the fact that Jesus 'died'. The Romans were very good at crucifixtion; crucifixtions were carried out wherever the Romans needed to impose discipline and public order. So when someone says that Jesus probably fainted, and was revived, I know that they haven't got a clue about how this form of execution was carried out!
In this chapter I love the way that James debunks the idea of 'reasonable Christianity'. And the paragraph, on page 156, 'God's love is mysterious. Christianity will never make sense to your head. It's not meant to. But it will make sense to your heart - if you leave yourself open to the mystery of his love.', just brings home to me the fact that once again it is down to personal choice! I pray that I will never have a closed mind to the things of God.

Scattered: It must have been so scary for the disciples and their fellow believers - nothing made sense to them; it must have seemed as if they were living out a nightmare! They had had personal teaching from the Messiah himself and yet they still didn't want to hang around and be there when he rose up from the grave - they had been told often enough but was their faith so weak that they still didn't believe?
But then as James so pointedly says, 'I see myself: hiding from God like Adam & Eve, or slipping off to the field like Cain, or running into the night like Mark.'.
But I pray that I will stick around for the rest of the story and not be left in the shadows.

Spices: I just love the fact that it was the women in Jesus' life who wanted to do their duty to him. But do you know what? I don't think that they saw it as a 'duty' so much as a privilege. This was the man that they had shared a special love with. A love that was pure, honest and above reproach. Theirs was a love that the world did not understand - it was a love that enabled Jesus to allow his feet to be washed in such a way that could have been totally misunderstood and yet there was nothing untoward about it at all.
And they go to the tomb despite their heavy hearts, and their tears, to carry out a final act of love. And they are greeted by the sight of the empty tomb - Praise God!

Dawn

I liked how the author discussed the different accounts of each of the gospel writers. I've heard the argument, many times, that the Bible is somehow untrue because of those differing accounts. But just as James pointed out, eye witness accounts can be different, depending on what someone focused on, etc.

Take the birth of a baby, for example. I have a feeling that the mother's account of it would be quite different than the father's account - even though they're both in the same room and are experiencing the same event.

So one person saw one angel and another two. A minute detail that certainly doesn't change the focus of the story - Jesus rose from the dead. There is certainly agreement on that! And that fact separates Christianity from all other false religions. I can't even begin to imagine what those folllowers of the Lord must have experienced as they saw Him alive again. Pretty mind boggling, I would think.

As 1 Peter 1:8 tells us, though:

and though you have not seen Him, you love Him, and though you do not see Him now, but believe in Him, you greatly rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory

Here's where we land in history. My prayer is that we would live our lives loving, rejoicing in, and glorifying the One we cannot see now, but greatly anticipating the day we finally do!

dawn

I have often thought my death will be like that first dawn. I will wake up in surroundings I never expected, with a sense of disorientation and bafflement. Huh? You mean this is what you meant? This is what dying is all about? Are you sure? And then the angel will smile benignly or make some sarcastic remark like in Luke, and I'll still not quite get it.

Dawning comes slowly to most people. There are plenty of hints that it's on its way... the sky seems to lighten, the stars begin to fade and wink out, the birds start in their encouragement... but the actual moment that the sun crests over the horizon is not a shattering lights-off-lights-on event. Jesus had told them the whole story before. It only began to make any sense in retrospect.

Dawn

This chapter made me think back and remember momentous occasions in my life. Times like when Jim proposed, 3:00 in the morning when I ask the nurses to bring Pilot from the quarrantine room, when Pilot was 14 and taller than I he came running into the room and plopped in my lap to tell me he loved me and took time to cuddle, Pilot calling from college early in the morning to tell me that he had received one of the coveted pilot slots, pinning on his wings two years later. All momentous and wonderous events but nothing to compare to Resurrection Day!!

On so many of my momentous occasions I cried. I cried tears of joy and happiness. So I can only imagine that I would have cried too, if I had been there with Mary. I cannot even begin to fathom the emotions which each person involved went through. My mind cannot wrap around something which I have nothing to compare it. Except tears. I know there would be tears.

This is the part of history I like...no, I LOVE! He has conquered! He is victorious!!!

"O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR VICTORY? O DEATH, WHERE IS YOUR STING? ~ 1 Corinthians 15:55

Dawn

I've tried to put myself in their place. I've tried to imagine what it would be like to show up at the tomb and find the rock rolled back. Wondered what it would be I would be thinking when I saw the angel tell me he's not here because he's not dead any longer. Thought about how long I'd walk around looking for the body before I believed what I was being told.

The one word that resonates with me in this chapter is this one:

WHIPLASH.

True and total mental whiplash. I've had it before.

Looked for a purse that was no longer where I had set it down just moments before. Stolen? How could that be? I was just gone a moment...

Scanning the backyard looking for Gracie. I don't see her. The gate is still locked. How else could she have gotten out? Why can't I see her...

Standing at the luggage carousel at the San Francisco terminal. Surely this is my flight. Where's my bag? Why isn't it coming off with all the others? What do you mean you don't know what happened to it...

Mental whiplash.

But going to a grave and finding it empty? Excuse the pun but GOOD LORD!

Nope. I could go over this scene in my mind a hundred thousand times and I'd be standing there in utter confusion just like the rest of them. And, despite my inability to grasp the obvious I have to say that this is the part of the story where my feet begin to dance...

Dawn

I love the passage in Matthew 28 the most of these 4 gospel accounts. I typically love the way John writes these accounts, but in this case I love that Matthew elaborates on the 'messengers' and that his story IS a bit different as is the emphasis.

I think this is the point where the disciples and these women had to really trust the message they had been taught over the past years AND the messenger. I'm not sure that I would have held such faith. I'm not sure THEY held such faith. I think they may have struggled with doubt, afterall, the women were going to annoint a body that based on their faith shouldn't be there anyway. I mean, it shouldn't come as a surprise that Jesus is gone...yet it does.

I think what James does best is pull you in. I absolutely love his one or two line poems at the entry of each chapter and this one is no exception...

"some lights are only made brighter
by putting them out."

I love that passage. I am SO thankful that my own faith is based on what HAPPENED...not as these disciples and followers...as it happened. How hard it would have been to keep trusting that it will be as Jesus said it will be.

Dawn

"John got it. He finally understood. He believed."

I think the first time I got it...really got it was watching a cartoon version of Lewis' The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. I was only young but I still remember clearly how I could barely stand to watch as Aslan was being put to death. After all that, it absolutely stunned and amazed me when he came back to life.

Spices

I'm late posting today but it's been nice to see what all the rest of you have written. I want to focus on another part if I may...

"The disciples are still hiding, but these women aren't. They want to honor their Rabboni, and in their culture this is how you care for the dead, with burial spices."

This part of the story really touches me. Perhaps the women came out when the men did not because the men weren't used to doing such "chores" or perhaps they were still so overcome with grief that it didn't occur to them. But what I think is so amazing is the strength and dedication of these women that loved their Jesus. Isn't this how it always is? The men go to grieve in private while the women get on with what has to be done. We make the food. We watch over the grieving family's children. We check to make sure the papers and mail are brought in so no one sees a house lying empty.

This is just what women do - we care for those that need caring after. No matter the depth of grief we stand up and keep going because SOMEBODY has to make sure these things get done. More often than not, it's a woman doing them. That makes me really proud of who I am when I realize the risen God showed himself NOT to the company of men whom he loved and treasured but to the women who came to care for Him. For once, women were first. For once, we were the most honored of His people as we were the first to witness the miracle of the risen Christ.

Oh...but I get ahead of the story...

spices

but the only spice i have to offer is the salt in my tears.

Steven James is a master of understatement. Even his punctuation (without a capital i) makes us smaller in the sight of God, the Almighty, All-knowing, All-powerful. And All-forgiving. God alone knows how little and how large we are. that is enough.

And although we rejoice in the answer that we are enough, just the way we are, there is still the clamor to be more... to be more for God, for our families, for those who depend upon us. What drives us? It is not always to God's glory that we strive, but for some lack we perceive inside ourselves.

How do you care for a dead God? What a question. For those of us who live in hope and faith that this Jesus was/is the Messiah, there is no answer, because the question means nothing. God is not dead for us. For others, who still look for His coming, or believe there will never be a coming... how would they answer?

Today's chapter only raises questions inside my heart.

Spices

I liked the simplicity of this chapter. Oh yes, a lot more could have been said. But, simplicity is sometimes the best. And, I think I, too, will be simplistic.

The Sabbath was about to dawn. Jesus had finished the work of the "new creation" (2 Corithians 5:17), and now He would rest!

Spices

As I read along, I thought it very interesting - the custom of putting spices on a dead body, preparing it for burial. I really don't know any history on it, but I wonder where it came from. And why it isn't done anymore. Or maybe it is practiced in the Middle East, I wouldn't know. Anyway, it's interesting to note the tender care these people took in caring for their dead. We don't do that in our culture. We seem to be raised with some fear and intimidation of a dead body. We get it to a funeral home as quick as we can. And many people can't even look at a dead body, much less care for it. Nowadays, we don't even keep vigil over our loved ones bodies in the home, as was done back in the 20's, 30's and 40's. Curious.

What a gracious act of love these women were willing to perform for their Lord. Thankfully, for the world's sake, He wasn't there.

Spices

"But the only spice i have to offer is the salt in my tears.
that is enough."

WOW! I read this line at the beginning of the chapter and it brought so many thoughts to mind. I read the entire chapter but what struck me comes from this quote above.

I never thought about tears and how they 'spice' things. I never thought about tears being 'enough'. I guess I see, in retrospect that sometimes when I cry it IS healing and it IS the finality to some ache or pain (physical, mental, emotional...) but I never thought about what else they bring to the healing process...the spice.

I love that God, when designing us, filled our tears with salt. I love that it's strange to see how salt actually dehydrates and removes 'water' from things and yet God, in His infinite wisdom made it so our tears would run like an ocean...salty!

I love that God can do what man cannot. We spend our lives trying to replicate or 'better' something God created...or even UNDERSTAND the intricacies of his creation, yet we fall short or create it below perfection and with obvious flaws, every time!

These are the reasons I had no choice but to believe in God. No "Big Bang" could make perfection in everything on earth, sky and water...only GOD!

I realize this doesn't exactly address this chapter but this is what I got!

Scattered

Reading is interesting. It's funny how you can be reading along, when one little thing just sorta jumps out and hits you. And oftentimes it doesn't have to be a super, profound thought - just something that, I believe, God wants you (me) to take notice of. (don't end a sentence with a preposition)

Anyway, today I'm reading along in this chapter and this is what hit me:

"Because when I look in the shadows beside them, I see myself: hiding from God like Adam and Eve, or slipping off to the field like Cain, or running into the night like Mark." Yep, that's me too often - running from God, although it's not so much because "my Savior let me down." Rather it's my own shame or my own fear or my own faithlessness. Thankfully God, in His grace, doesn't let me stray very far for very long.

Since God began me on this journey of His sovereignty two years ago, I believe I really do see the 'big picture' much more clearly than I did in the past. If we fail to get a grasp on the big picture, then I think hopelessness is a really good word to describe things. We look around us, and we see just how depraved this world is, and we think, "how can things BE this horrific?" "Why do these unspeakable things occur?" But if we really think about it, we can REST ASSURED that nothing - absolutely nothing - occurs outside of the will of God. Nothing exists that can usurp His divine authority. In that we can have hope. Though we don't understand how it all works together, we can know that it does work together - for His glory and for His renown.

Let us continue pressing into Him.

Scattered

Before I post I'm just wondering if you are alright, Addie? I haven't seen you posting, which is perfectly okay, but more importantly, I haven't seen you commenting. We all know that you don't have to post to comment. Are you feeling okay? Still hanging in there? I'm missing your insights! :)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Yes, they all deserted Him. I am sure I would have been doing the same thing. Oh sure, I like to think that I would have stuck it out with Him, just like I think I wouldn't have had to wonder in the desert for 40 years. Yeah, right.

But because I know the ending of the story (sorry folks, Jules rubbed off on me!;), everyone running off brings me such encouragement. It really does. Why? Because look at who God uses to do His work. After all, the disciples did not have the Holy Spirit at this time. So once Christ left (died) I can see them believing it was hopeless. Yet, the Lord used them and uses you and me today. Isn't that mind boggling? Maybe not for you but I know myself and I am always surprised when God allows me to be part of His work. I'm always so surprised when I accomplish what He desires. Because I know myself. At my heart is a chicken. I am filled with fear. Even with blogging. Do you know how long I "lurked" around Jules and Gayla's blogs before I ever made a comment? Suffice it to say it was a long time. And my heart beat painfully fast after I hit publish.

I know I would have run. And I do not think I could have stood there at the foot of the cross as Mary, the mother of Jesus, did and like the other Mary, and John. I commend them for their love. I could not have stood there and witness them kill Christ unless Christ Himself had enabled me to do so.

Even the Passion of the Christ I mostly "listened" to rather than watching them during the beating scene. It was just too much for me.

They didn't see the big picture and I bet if we are honest with ourselves, we don't either, even living today and having His Word so readily available to us. So much of it we don't get. But, one day, we will. Hallelujah! Glory to God in the highest!

Scattered

"What name do you give to the realization that all your beliefs were a cosmic joke? That all you held as true is illusion? How do you grapple with the knowledge that your Savior couldn't even save himself? Is there a word in any language that can speak the color of that emotion?"

No, I'm sorry, but there's not.

I kept flashing back to all the "big" disappointments in my life as I read this chapter - relationships that didn't work out, championship ball games that were never won, jobs I wanted but didn't get, people I loved that got sick and never got well again...

There have been times when life has been heartbreaking for me and, yet, NOTHING compares to this. For the disciples to have witnessed this event and not have it drive them mad is almost unthinkable to me. I think had I experienced this amount of devastation it would have done me in...I really do.

Even today, right now, this very minute, while I fight off some demons of what is 'right' in faith and what is 'not' I wonder if I'm only being a fool for God. Are we all being fools for Him? But then something in my heart stirs and I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God is real...that Christ lives on...that I will spend forever in the arms of my beloved Savior one day...and the world is right again.

But if I had gone through what the disciples went through? I really can't even imagine it. My heart's been broken before but this would be a break so deep I would think there would be no recovery (at least not for three more days...)

I had to look at the name of this Chapter twice because I wasn't really sure if it read "Scattered" or "Shattered." By the time I was finished reading it I was pretty sure it was the second title.

Either one seems to fit.

Darkness

"That's how little we understand love"

I've been reading the Dune series by Brian Herbert. Much of it deals with the idea of artificial intelligence. Machines in the story are highly developed but they cannot even begin to understand humanity. One robot becomes obsessed with learning about humanity and copying them but he, of course, never becomes a human nor comes close to truly understanding them.

In a similar way, we truly do not understand God or any of the attributes that are His….like love. Who can really comprehend a love like that?

“Leave it to humans to snuff out the light of the world”.

Indeed!

Darkness

"Darkness reigned that day. And Jesus died."

This chapter was 'raw' to me. It just told it like it is and reminded us not to try to understand the why...rather to embrace the WHO and His unbelievable sacrificial love...one that I doubt any of us will ever truly understand.

This chapter reminded me of what I saw in "The Passion of the Christ". It was really hard for me to watch it. It didn't deepen my faith...it made me sick to my stomach to SEE the torture Christ endured for us...for me.

This chapter reminded me that when life was taken from Christ (on a cross), ETERNAL life was offered to each of us. This chapter humbled me and my arrogance in being a Christian, at times. It reminded me that ours isn't some pretty story...it's a war we waged against our savior to the point of death.

Again I am blessed by James pushing me to meditate and think on the death of Christ...the darkness of the world.

Darkness Part 1

Totally forgot my book at home today. I WILL post on this chapter this pm.

My apologies...

...for not posting last week. We got home from CA last Tuesday night, and I shoulda posted Wed and Fri. BUT, I was either too busy or too lazy. Usually I post from work, and today I forgot my book. I promise to get my act together and catch up soon!!

Darkness

This is the very best kind of story. Yes, Jesus died. But without that death, the shedding of His perfect blood, we would not have a happy ending. And anyone who believes in Christ will have a happy ending. Guaranteed!

"It is finished!" What does that mean? It stands finished, and it always will be finished! Just think of all the prophecies which became fulfilled at this moment. Just think of the once-for-all-sacrifice for sin which had now been completed.

It is God's very death which gives us LIFE! This life comes "through His name." What is His name? "I AM" offers the lost sinner all that he needs.

I believe I shared this in our last book discussion. I can't remember. But, eternal life is not "endless time." Goodness, even lost people who do not believe in Christ are going to live in hell forever. "Eternal life" means the very life of God experienced today. I truly believe that. It's the quality of our life, people! Not the quantity of time, even though the quantity is mind boggling. It is the spiritual experience of "heaven on earth" today. Because Christ died on the Cross, the Christian does not have to die to have this eternal life; he possesses it in Christ today. That means ME. That means YOU! If you have believed. It isn't necessary to "see" Jesus Christ in order to believe. People were saved, are being saved, and will be saved, not by seeing, but by believing.

The record is here in His Word. It's all we need. "So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God" (Romans' 10:17). When you read His Word you come face to face with Jesus Christ. The same Jesus who hung on the Cross and DIED. You can read about how He lived, what He said, and what He did. All of the evidence points to the conclusion that He is indeed God come in the flesh, the Saviour of the world.

For the people who don't know Him...I pray that you would let yourself "suppose". No, it doesn't make sense, but just suppose....I know when I trusted Him my life was transformed. Absolutely transformed.

Darkness

When I was a little girl, age 8 or 9 maybe, I remember asking my mom what the term "Good Friday" meant. We had heard about it in church the week before and I didn't quite grasp the meaning that we'd call the day that Jesus died, "GOOD Friday." I remember that good Friday it was dark and rainy and very cold. My mom told me it was because all of heaven was crying in rememberance of that day.

I don't know how the world withstood the death of its own maker...I really don't. We didn't just kill the man we knew as Jesus that day - we killed God. How does the world keep turning when something like that happens? It's beyond my comprehension.

I was mentoring a woman this past year who told me she simply could not believe that Jesus actually died or that he actually rose again from the dead. It seemed too far fetched to her. I told her to join the club...that it took me the better part of my life to finally have faith enough to believe that this inconceivable act actually happened. I didn't really have any words of wisdom for her except to explain how the soldier slid the sword beneath his ribs, ensuring he did actually die. How the two men really did prepare him for burial and then layed him in a sealed tomb. She just stared at me like I was speaking a foreign language. I know...I know...it seems absolutely unbelievable...

And yet...

God is alive now, today, inside my heart. How could God have died on the cross and and now be alive if He didn't find a way to conquer death? It is the ultimate mystery and the ultimate gift, all rolled into one. The hows and the whys are beyond my comprehension but not the gift of His love...that part I understand loud and clear.

Wounded.

"He felt the pain of a soul abandoned by God"........"Jesus felt the flames of hell lick at His spirit"

FOR ME!!!

Thank you Lord.......and we cannot turn away from Jesus' suffering because that would mean that He died in vain!

Father, I cannot even begin to express myself about what you did for me. I am a sinner saved by grace and that torment that your son suffered was for me, even if I had been the only person on the earth. Thank you. Amen.

Such inadequate words because I continue to live my life in the shadows and yet, there is a light at the end of the tunnel; and no it isn't something coming towards me, it is the Light of the World drawing me out of the darkness.

skull hill

No. There's nothing I can do. Nothing anyone can do..... Everything is wrong.

That's exactly how I feel some Good Fridays. I cannot wrap my mind around the concept, the need for a sacrifice. If we have offended God, then get rid of us. If we are an experiment gone awry, then dump us in the trash and start over with some new species which will obey unquestioningly, which will not be led astray by snakes, demons and worldly cares or pleasures. But to love so deeply someone or something that just keeps on disappointing... that you have to hang yourself up on a cross with nails... I don't get it.

The story of the Little Mermaid makes more sense (although not much). I never liked Hans Christian Andersen's tales... too dark—and rarely a happy ending that I could see. But in some ways it helps to think of God's love as genuine, as longing, as selfless as that little mermaid's. I think the secret is in the foam. To me it looks like foam... bubbles on the top of the sea. But the foam is a part of the entirety of creation: part sea, part air, part frothy bits of the scum. It flows everywhere with the tide, unimpeded by any other desire except to be. Maybe that is what God wants for us.

Skull Hill

"Love isn't forensic and sterile; it's sacrificial.

Grace isn't a decree; it's a gift"

I never really understood why Jesus died for us on the cross until I read this chapter. The story about the mermaid was exactly what I needed to take something that just didn't quite make total sense to me finally MAKE total sense to me. I see the whole truth of it now and it touches even deeper than it did before.

Sacrifice.

Grace.

God.

Wounded

"the greatest scars
are not found in wounded hearts,
but in overlooked ones.

there is no greater pain
than the ice of loneliness."

This IS absolute truth. The thing that still astounds me is seeing people search and search and try to 'heel the hurt' with a thousand things other than Jesus. From what I hear from others it's almost always because it seems to 'easy'.

I loved this chapter and could certainly concur with what it said. I think my own journey has been witness to the hell of isolation and hopelessness that often shadows. I loved the way the chapters pull from previous lessons and I reflected back to 'shadow' and to some of the earlier chapters when I reflected on this.

This is also the first chapter where I did NOT like how James worded a portion. He reminds us that "Jesus begged God for another way to rescue his bride, but the all-knowing God could think of no Plan B." I totally disagree.

God could easily have just spoken forgiveness or even just had Jesus beaten for our sin...but He CHOSE death on the cross and the ultimate separation of Jesus into hell to achieve our salvation and redemption. God knew how the price would be paid. He knew in the beginning. For me to suppose He didn't makes him less than God.

Overall it again spoke volumes to me. I love James' poetry and his simplistic writing that would speak to a secular world as easily as an OVERLY-religious world. I love that he includes the spirituality in each chapter. It's not all black/white writing...it is elusive and hard to grasp and sometimes poetic and symbolic...yet it speaks loud and clear to me!

Thanks to Jules for sticking with us during the drought. I'm back on track! and loving this book!

Wounded

I literally cringed when reading about how the author was burned when he was just a baby. My husband was seriously burned when he was about 20 and in the army. He was camping with friends when a thunderstorm arose. As he was walking toward their fire he was carrying kerosene in a styrofoam cup. Lightening struck near him and at the same time a huge thunder clap sounded. It startled him so much he threw the kerosene back on himself. The lightening hit right at the fire causing the fire to light the kerosene. He became a ball of fire. All he could think about was running to the lake. Thankfully, one of his buddies ran after him and tackled him to the ground rolling him around until he could get the flames out. They threw him in the car and took off for the nearest town, several hours away. Once there, they found a doctor who took one look at him but wouldn't treat him. Gave him some morphine and a towel to bite and sent them on their way. Two and half more hours and they got him back to base and to the base hospital. The pain was so excruciating for him. The morphine could not stop the pain completely. It bore into his soul. I just cannot imagine a little baby having to experience being burned like that.

When I talked with my hubby waaaaay before he was my hubby, I was a new believer but he wasn't anything. I asked him to "just suppose, theoretically, there was a heaven and a hell. Which team would you want to be on?" Well, after his burn experience he said of course he wanted to be on heaven's team. That began the fight for his soul. Ten months later he became a child of God! :) A whole year later we were married! :D

Well, enough! See how easily I get sidetracked?

One of the best statements was on pg. 145, "Those who refuse to enter God's story on His terms will regret it for eternity." We all think we know what is "right." Or, like James' said we think God will grade on a curve. But no matter how loving God is we have to remember He is also just. And because He IS just He will not let justice slide. He can't. So know matter how "sincere" one might be, if he isn't following God's plan, then he will just be "sincerely wrong" for eternity. And, eternity is a VERY long time.

Wounded

For so many years, I simply couldn’t understand it. God let his own son die on the cross. No matter how they explained it to me, I just couldn’t get a grip on it. God is love but He did this? God left His own Son hanging on a cross to die? God took my punishment out on Jesus?

I simply couldn’t wrap my brain around it.

But then my heart changed.

I remember watching "The Passion of the Christ" on DVD one afternoon shortly after my little close encounter with the Holy Spirit and I had to keep pausing the tape. I was in emotional shambles by the time I got to the end of the movie. Somewhere, somehow, I finally "got it." And once I did, there was no turning back. Everything clicked into place and the pain of what Jesus bore because I am a sinner literally broke me. I walked around in pieces for weeks afterwards.

It wasn’t until a few weeks later that I found out what "brokeness" is all about – how God will break you down in order to build you back up better than before. Man, was that painful – I couldn’t stop crying; I couldn’t stop begging for mercy. I couldn’t believe He did that for me.
It started me on my journey with Christ and I’ve never looked back. I’ve also never forgotten what He went through for me. It still humbles me to this day. May I never live to see a moment of life where I ever discount what He took on in order for me to come to sit at the feet of God.

My first Easter meant so much to me. Between the Lenten prayer blog and the meditations I was writing for Good Friday at my church, I was immersed in it all once again. I’ll never forget the morning I pulled out of my neighborhood and saw the black organza fabric blowing in the breeze over the large wooden cross of the Baptist church across from my house. I ran home and grabbed my camera and walked across a parking lot to shoot off a few pictures. Seeing that black fabric over the cross was one thing but seeing the sun shine through the black fabric was quite another. I realized that nothing could block out the light of our Lord.

Then, I realized if I didn’t get going I was going to seriously be late for work, I turned to walk back to the car. The moment my back was to the cross I heard, "Never forget what this feels like – never again turn your back on the cross that Jesus died on for you." I took a few more steps to my car and grabbed onto the hood to keep from falling to my knees - sobs racking every muscle in my body. That day, Jesus became personal to me and it has stayed with me ever since. Once you learn that lesson, the gratitude that you carry with you lasts your entire lifetime.

Friend

This weekend has been full to overflowing for me and I haven't had much sleep to top it off. :) After the Beth Moore conference (which was totally fabulous---55 ladies went forward from the ages of 14 to 78!) and then two blogging friends whom I had never met stopped in on their way back to Colorado Springs, spending last night with us. We stayed up till 2 am talking and LAUGHING!!!! It was great. However, the piper had to be paid this morning when they wanted to be back on the road at 8:30 am.

There were several parts that really struck me. I think of all the chapters to date, this one by far, has been my favorite. The first thing which popped out at me was in the first paragraph where James says, "...in every situation, the way Jesus responded was the most loving way anyone could ever respond. When I look at things this way, I often discover that love looks different than I expect it to." This struck me so profoundly. I haven't ever looked at Jesus' responses to people in light of His love. As I think back through different Bible passages it causes me to see things in a different light. Very, very interesting to me!

I shuddered when I read the paragraph which states: "Judas' life had been an open invitation to Satan for a long time. Finally, the tempter just came in and shut the door behind him." Doesn't that send chills down your spine? It has such a sense of finality.

Another powerful sentence and "right on" biblically is "But guilt doesn't save anyone." When I was reading how Judas was gripped with guilt he committed suicide, I thought of the milk man so consumed with guilt who killed the Amish girls and then killed himself.

I love how Jesus continually offers us His very life to grab on to. So many people walk away. How sad. I've heard it said many times that someone literally has to trip over Jesus to go to hell. "But Judas walked away."

Friend

"Judas betrayed you for thirty pieces of silver.
Forgive me for all the times Ive done it
For free."

How haunting.... I loved this reminder by James.... Its certainly not a new thought... its one Ive pondered over many times, but it is a good reminder....

Too many times I look at the crucifixion story and question why everyone did what they did - Peter's denial, the crowds crying 'crucify', Judas' betrayal, the fleeing of the disciples.... I used to think I would have done things differently than they did.... now Im not so sure.... especially when I look at some of the decisions Ive made in my own life - that were nowhere near up to the pressure of the people involved in the crucifixion story.

I watched Instinct last night (good movie, by the way). And the main themes (for me, anyway) were that of human nature and protecting your family. It hit true on alot of points.... especially the human nature - it is always the same - sinful, violent, self-seeking.... it definitely opposes all that Jesus held dear.... and yet, He offers us a way out - He wants to call us "friend."

That is a strange paradox. I guess because it too, is contrary to human nature. We dont forgive so easily. And rarely do we offer second chances unless we see that we will also get something out of it. But that is exactly what Christ does.... and if we let Him, He can change us into that as well.

I found it very interesting that Jesus didnt call that many people "friend", although James is wrong, He does use it toward His disciples in John 15:15 (NIV), Jesus says…. “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”

Thank you, Lord Jesus, that You love us and call us friend....

friend

What a hard lesson this chapter uncovers... Love does not conquer all, no matter what I've been told. (At least not in the way I'd like to imagine.) And the word friend has many meanings, many undisclosed meanings. "A friend is someone who likes you." was a slogan a few years ago. Not necessarily so. A friend is someone you can trust to tell you the truth as they perceive it and then walk away. To love you so deeply that the outcome of your hearing that truth doesn't matter. Their job was to speak it, not force it upon you.

The story of Judas has always been an enigma to me. What was his motivation? Was he trying to force Jesus' hand... to bring the Kingdom (the one he expected) into being? If so, he hadn't been listening close enough to what Jesus was really saying. On the other hand, what if the Gospel of Judas has some truth to it, and Jesus needed a betrayer? And Judas was the only one he could trust? What kind of friend is required for such a plot?

I will not know the answers to such questions until it doesn't matter anymore. What irony.

Friend

"Love has to let the beloved choose. Judas had made his choice. Jesus had to let Judas walk away because he wasn’t ready to embrace the kingdom life. He’d never been ready. The lover gives the beloved a chance to say yes before stepping over the threshold. For three years Judas had said no."

I think this part of the life of Jesus holds one of the most important lessons one can learn and that is what real love looks like:

Real love doesn’t have to be reciprocated to be powerful.
Real love provides opportunity and time for the feelings of love to take root.
Real love is given with total disregard of what the other person might do with it.
Real love doesn’t always have a happy ending.

We like our stories all tied up nice at the end with a big, pretty bow. I know I, too, have tried to figure out how maybe Judas was spared from hell for what he did to Jesus because I simply cannot stand to think that Judas could have spent all that time in the presence of Christ and still done what he did to Him. I want the happy ending but not even the love of Jesus can counter what this one man did with it.

But that’s not where the happy ending lies in this story. The happy ending lies in the resurrection of our Lord and Savior – not in the betrayal of someone Jesus once called "friend." Real love doesn’t always have a happy ending – at least not where you’d most expect to see it – but real love does have a profound effect on people. Even Judas realized what he had done once he stood in the shadow of that love. Even he, the ruthless and greedy man that he was, couldn’t hold out forever. Real love changes us – even the hardest of men can’t escape its depth and endless boundaries. Jesus loved Judas enough to let him go and, in the end, it was the undoing of Judas.

"Judas betrayed you for thirty pieces of silver. Forgive me for all the times I’ve done it for free.

Thank God that real love knows forgiveness and compassion or I suspect we’d all meet with a fate the likes of which even Judas could not have imagined.

Garden.

This chapter does it for me - the best so far by a big, big margin.

I have thought often about the anguish that Jesus felt in the garden. To know what you are going to go through and know that there is no turning back - it just makes me feel so weak. I would like to believe that if I knew what I was about to go through as I died then I would face it willingly because I would have the knowledge that I was going to see my Lord face to face!

But Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world, was, "...distressed, horrified, alone, crushed with grief, in agony, sweaty and face first to the ground.". And Praise God, Jesus chose to go God's way!

Something else I've thought about is that if, for instance, I could see that I was about to have a car crash and there was no way of avoiding it, then I like to think that I would say something like, " I'm in your hands Father." and not just panic.

We all have the choice of comfort or pain - the right way / the wrong way. We make choices every day of our lives - what to do; what to watch on the TV; how we treat other people; how we just spend our days; what we allow ourselves to think about.

I pray that my faith will be big enough to say "Yes" to God no matter what the cost.

Thank you Jesus for saying "Yes" to the cross for me. Amen.

Friend

I liked this chapter. I love how Jesus was a friend to Judas right to the end. I feel so sorry that Judas never truly realized who Jesus is - that he took his own life still trying to handle things his own way. Isn't that what our society tells us to do - handle things on our own? Be independent. Be strong. Don't need anyone. Don't trust anyone. And isn't the result the same in the end? A pointless end. Hopeless. Lost.

If only Judas would have stayed around to see the rest of the story unfold,
he might have seen his friend once again.

Garden

It's the garden that helps me view the cross with some perspective. I've grown up knowing the story of the cross and it's easy to lose sight of just how much Jesus suffered....after all, Jesus knew this wouldn't be the end....and He is God... But the agony of the garden always reminds me of just how much Jesus was facing. So many times the anticipation of something is almost worse than the actual event.

And yet, Jesus went through with it..when He didn't have to. The only thing that compelled Him was obedience to His Father and the knowledge that each of us were completely doomed without His sacrifice. I can hardly believe that Jesus didn't just come to the conclusion that we were not worth all of this.

Garden

Why would Christ wrestle with what was before Him? Was it because the crucifixion was the most horrible way to die? Was it because of the night which lay before Him? Was it because He struggled with experiencing the "waves and billows" of God's wrath (Ps. 42:7)? Was He struggling with the part of meekly submitting without any battle?

Oh yes. He was fully human. And He would suffer humanly speaking. But the one thing with which He wrestled was being separated from the Father. As the author says, "And no pain from here to eternity is greater than the pain of knowing God has turned His back on you." [pg. 133]

We, as believers really cannot fathom that. Not from the perspective of the Father turning His back on you, abandoning you. But turn the tables....how many times do we, as faithful believers, turn our back on God. When I see what Christ was willing to do for me, for you, for all of us, it truly defines what Love is. And yet, time after time I so easily choose something "else" over God.


AND CAN IT BE

And can it be that I should gain
an interest in the Savior's blood!
Died he for me? who cause his pain!
For me? who him to death pursued?
Amazing love! How can it be
that thou, my God, shouldst die for me?

He left his Father's throne above
(so free, so infinite his grace!),
emptied himself of all but love,
and bled for Adam's helpless race.
'Tis mercy all, immense and free,
for O my God, it found out me!
'Tis mercy all, immense and free,
for O my God, it found out me!

Long my imprisoned spirit lay,
fast bound in sin and nature's night;
thine eye diffused a quickening ray;
I woke, the dungeon flamed with light;
my chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed thee.
My chains fell off, my heart was free,
I rose, went forth, and followed thee.

No condemnation now I dread;
Jesus, and all in him, is mine;
alive in him, my living Head,
and clothed in righteousness divine,
bold I approach th'eternal throne,
amd claim the crown, through Christ my own.
Bold I approach th'eternal throne,
and claim the crown, through Christ my own.

Public Service Announcement

~*~*~*A Public Service Announcement~*~*~*

I've discovered a new blogging friend who writes beautiful poetry! In light of what we are discussing today I thought you would enjoy reading his latest poem. Click HERE to pop on over to his place. Tell John I sent you all! :)

Garden

"I think we all reach the question of the garden at some point in our lives. A moment comes when we have to decide: Will I go my way or God's? Will I follow my path or his? Will I choose the sensible, practical route of doubt, or is my faith big enough to say yes to God no matter where it leads or what it means?"

You know, if I were God, I think I would take a brand new Christian, give him a little time to get his feet wet, really start to experience what Christianity is all about and then BAM! I'd clearly lay his life plan out in front of him while the iron is still burning hot in his heart. Yes, there's much to be said for experience but a new Christian is almost guaranteed to say "Yes!" to Jesus because they are just do darn happy to finally have their eyes opened to life. Seems like a home run to me. I mean, afterall, if you were wanting someone to join a convent or move to Zimbabwe or become a priest, that would certainly be the time to announce it. :-)

But I digress...

I don't think there is anything scarier in the Bible than the part where Jesus is in the garden. It's one thing to agree to do this when you're Jesus hanging out in the galaxies with the Father and the Holy Spirit but come on down and experience pain - physical and emotional - and tell me you don't waiver a bit. I bet there was some pretty intense grieving in that garden. Saying "yes" to death is just not how we're made as humans. We go kicking and screaming because this is LIFE, afterall!

And we'll never know exactly why Christ wanted the cup taken from Him or why He struggled with it for so long when He already knew the end result but I have to think it was Jesus's most human hour. We can sacrifice a lot for our God but laying down our actual physical life has got to be the ultimate expression of love and worship.

To be honest with you, this is one of the parts of the story I like best because, to me, it proves that Jesus was who He said He was. He might have wrestled with God about it but you don't see Him panic and run. You don't even see Him put up a fight. He just takes it and takes it and takes it. To me - this shows that He was no ordinary man. The intense feeling of "fight or flight" would surely have overwhelmed an ordinary man...

God's Object Lessons...Part 1

This is an interesting tidbit. First the people had to single out from their flocks the handsomest, healthiest looking yearling. Then the family had to watch it carefully for four days before the Passover to make sure it was healthy and perfect in every way. During this period of close observation, they fed and cared for the lamb. Can you imagine the little children and how attached they would become to the lamb? Then it would become time for the head of the house to plunge the knife in to draw its life's blood. The lesson was painfully sad...God's holiness demands that He judge sin, and the price is costly indeed. But He is also merciful and provides a way of escape (redemption).

The innocent Passover lamb foreshadowed the One who would come centuries later to be God's final means of atonement and redemption. The parallels are striking.

THE PASSOVER LAMB WAS MARKED OUT FOR DEATH
In Isaiah 53:7 is the prophecy that the Messiah will be led as a lamb to the slaughter; 1 Peter 1:19-20 says Jesus was foreordained to die before the foundation of the world.

THEY WATCHED THE PASSOVER LAMB TO SEE THAT IT WAS PERFECT
According to Deuteronomy 15:21, only that which is perfect can make atonement. Jesus the Messiah presented Himself to Israel in public ministry for three years and showed Himself perfect in heart and deed toward the Father. Even Pilate found no fault in Him. Hebrews 4:15 says that He was tempted (tested) in all points, yet was without sin; 1 Peter 1:19 describes Him as a Lamb without blemish or spot.

THEY ROASTED THE PASSOVER LAMB WITH FIRE
Fire in Scripture speaks of God's judgment. Isaiah foretold that the Messiah would bear the sins of many, be wounded for sins not His own, be stricken with God's judgment, and be numbered with transgressors. As Jesus the Messiah suffered the fire of God's wrath and judgment, He cried out from the cross, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" (Matthew 27:46). Second Corinthians 5:21 says, "He [God] has made Him [Christ] to be sin for us...that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."

NOT A BONE OF THE PASSOVER LAMB WAS BROKEN
The Roman soldiers did not break the legs of Jesus as they did the legs of the other two men. Redemption through the death of the Passover lamb was personal as well as national. Even so, salvation must be a personal event. In Exodus 12:3, the commandment is to take a lamb, a nebulous, unknown entity, nothing special; in Exodus 12:4, God says "the" lamb. Now his is known, unique, set apart. Finally, in Exodus 12:5, God specifies, "your" lamb; each redeemed soul must appropriate the lamb for himself. Doesn't that bring to mind the verse in Galatians 2:20..."The life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God [the Messiah], who loved me, and gave himself for me."

THE BITTER HERBS
The bitter herbs are a reminder that the firstborn children of the people of Israel lived because the Passover lambs died. God created man to gain life through death, to receive physical sustenance from the death of something that once was alive, be it plant or animal. Even so, the believer in the Messiah Jesus receives new life through His death as the Lamb of God.

THE UNLEAVENED BREAD
Leaven in the Bible is almost always a symbol of sin. The putting away of all leaven is a picture of the sanctification of the child of God. In teaching His people this truth, God did not leave them to grapple with abstractions. Leaven was something that every housewife, every cook, used in everyday life. The feel, the smell, the effects of leaven had obvious meaning.

The word for leaven is chometz, meaning "bitter" or "sour". It is the nature of sin to make people bitter or sour. Leaven causes the dough to become puffed up so that the end product is more in volume, but not more in weight. The sin of pride causes people to be puffed up, to think of themselves as far more than they really are.

The ancient Hebrews used the sourdough method of leavening their bread. Before the woman formed the dough into loaves, she pulled off a chunk of the raw dough and set it aside in a cool, moist place. When it was time to bake another batch of bread, she brought out the reserved lump of dough. This she mixed into the new batch etc, again, setting aside a small lump. Each "new generation" of bread was organically linked by the common yeast spores to the previous loaves of bread. The human race bears this same kind of link to the sin nature of our first father, Adam. Jesus spole of leaven as false doctrine and hypocrisy (Matthew 16:11-12; Mark 8:15; Luje 12:1, 13:21).

The apostle Paul, in 1 Corinthians 5:6-8, spoke of leaven as pride, malice, and wickedness. He said, "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that you may be a new lump [a new person] as you are unleavened [cleansed]. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us."

On the other hand, Paul described the unleavened bread as sincerity and truth. The Hebrew word matzo (unleavened) means "sweet, without sourness."It typified the sweetness and wholesomeness of life without sin. It foreshadowed the sinless, perfect life of the Messiah, who would come to fulfill all righteousness and to lay down His life as God's ultimate Passover Lamb. They did not put away leaven in order to be redeemed; rather, they put away leaven because they were redeemed.

THE BLOOD ON THE DOOR
See Exodus 12:22. Several times Scripture mentions a special mark that will secure immunity from destruction for those who fear the Lord. One such text is Ezekiel 9:4-6; two others are found in Revelation 7:2-3 and 9:4.

God commanded the sons of Israel to mark the doors of their dwellings with the blood of the Passover lamb. The "basin" mentioned in Exodus 12:22 was not a container in the sense in which we use the word basin today. The word is the Egyptian sap, meaning the threshold or ditch which was dug just in front of the doorways of the houses to avoid flooding. The people placed a container in the ditch to prevent seepage. The Israelites killed their Passover lambs right by the doors, where they were about to sprinkle the blood, and the blood from the slaughter automatically ran into the depression (the basin) at the threshold. When they painted the blood on with the hyssop "brush," they first touched the lintel (the top horizontal part of the doorframe), then each side post (the vertical sides). In doing this, they went through the motions of making the sign of a bloody cross, the prophecy of another Passover sacrifice to come centuries later. Thus, the door was "sealed" on all four sides with the blood of the lamb, because the blood was already on the bottom. Isn't that just like a picture of the suffering Messiah? Blood above where the thorns pierced His brow, blood at the sides, from His nail pierced hands, blood below, from His nail pierced feet.

Then add Jesus' words and the symbolism just about jumps off the page. "I am the door; by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture" (John 10:9). The Israelites went in through the blood-sealed door on that first Passover night and found safety. Protected and redeemed by the sacrificial blood, they went out the next morning and began their journey toward the good pasture, the promised land. We who are redeemed by the true Passover Lamb find safety in Him from God's judgment, and, because of Him, we look forward to a future, eternal haven in the very presence of the Almighty, in the city whose "builder and maker is God" (Hebrews 11:10).

Ancient Seder and the Last Supper...Part 2

It is my understanding that the earliest known rabbinical commentaries were edited and compiled into one authoritative body of religious thought, called the Mishnah, sometime between A.D. 100 and 210. The Mishnah covers every aspect of Jewish religious life and presents a picture of the customs, traditions, and observances at the time of Christ.

The ceremony included ritual hand washings and set prayers. They drank four cups of wine as a symbol of joy. The Passover wine was red and mixed with water. From a passage in the Mishnah (Pesahim 7:13), it would appear that the wine was warm because the water was heated. If this is true, then the wine graphically represented the blood of the Passover lamb, as well as being a symbol of joy.

We know that the Passover ordinance commemorated Israel's historical redemption from Egyptian slavery. But equally important was the hidden symbolism of a greater, future redemption, which one day would free all those who cried out to God in their sin and despair...a redemption for all people, Jews and Gentiles, to bring them into a new and eternal relationship through King Messiah. How sad when the fulfillment of of the promise was at the door, few recognized it.

The picture of that Last Supper comes into sharper focus when the account of Scripture is compared with the ancient order of the Passover service. Well, at least I think so. :)

THE KIDDUSH:
And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: for I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come (Luke 22:17-18).

THE FIRST WASHING OF HANDS:
He riseth from supper, and laid aside His garments; and took a towel, and girded Himself...and began to wash the disciples' feet (John 13:4-5). (Table of food brought; bitter herbs dipped in salt water; table of food removed; second cup of wine poured; ritual questions asked; ritual answer given; table of food brought back; explanation of lamb, bitter herbs, and unleavened bread; first part of Hallel; second cup taken; second washing of hands; one wafer of bread broken; and thanks over bread recited.)

BROKEN PIECES OF BREAD DIPPED IN BITTER HERBS AND CHAROSETH, AND HANDED TO ALL:
And when He had dipped the sop, He gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon (John 13:26).
Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly. He then having received the sop went immediately out (John 13:27b, 30a).

(The Paschal meal eaten; hands washed a third time; third cup poured.)

BLESSING AFTER MEALS:
Jesus the same night in which He was betrayed took bread: and when He had given thanks, He brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me (1 Corinthians 11:23-24).

BLESSING OVER THIRD CUP (CUP OF REDEMPTION):
After the same manner also He took the cup, when He had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me (1 Corinthians 11:25).

(Third cup taken; second part of Hallel recited; fourth cup poured and taken.)

CLOSING SONG OR HYMN:
And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives (Matthew 26:30).

Now let's look at the meaning behind it all. :) The first hand washing by the host set him apart from the rest of the company. It showed that he was the most important person at the table. In washing the disciples' feet, Jesus used this part of the regular ritual to teach His lesson of humility and love. He acted out the role of a slave when He girded Himself with the towel and washed their feet. He knew that the Father had given Him all things; even the wind and the sea obeyed Him. Yet He humbled Himself. He taught them that it was not the ceremonial rite, but the act born of faith and love, that was important. And so He took upon Himself the most humiliating task and truly loved them all to the end. He even washed the feet of Judas!

It was during the ceremony of dipping the second sop into the bitter herbs that Jesus said, "One of you shall betray Me" (Matthew 26:21). Peter motioned to John, who was reclining so that he leaned on Jesus' bosom, to ask who the betrayer was. Jesus whipered His answer: "He it is, to whom I shall give a sop" (John 13:26).

One might wonder why John did nothing to stop Judas. I know I have wondered. But it must be remembered that the statement could have been taken to mean any one of them at the table. They all partook of the sop, although Judas probably received it first. After the sop, Judas went out into the night to finish his Satan-inspired work. Because he left before eating the Passover, he had, in effect, excommunicated himself from the congregation. Neither did he have any part in the new memorial that came after the supper.

The bread that Jesus broke for the bitter sop was not the bread of which He said, "This is my body" (Matthew 26:26b). That came later. We see this from the account that He took that bread after He first gave thanks at the end of the meal; then He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me" (Luke 22:19; cf. 1 Corinthians 11:24).

Not only were the words shocking. It was a very unusual act, for after supper no other food was to be eaten. Jesus here instituted the new memorial. He was teaching the disciples in cryptic terms that after His death, the Paschal lamb would no longer have the same significance. It was the memorial of physical, historical redemption, but only a shadow of the ultimate redemption soon to come. He was about to become the better sacrifice, to die once, for all (Hebrews 9:14-15, 23-26). Looking to the time when Israel would be left without an altar and without a sacrifice, He used the aphikomen (after dish) for the first time to represent not only the Paschal lamb, but His own body!

And then He took up the wine again and prepared the third cup for them: "Likewise, also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you" (Luke 22:20). He who was the great "I AM" come in the flesh had stood before them on other occasions saying, "I am the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6); "I am the door" (10:9); "I am the light of the world" (8:12); "Before Abraham was, I am" (8:58). Now He had one more great truth to impart to those who could receive it. He was telling them, in effect, "I am the true Passover Lamb who will be offered up for your redemption. This warm, red wine, which you drink tonight as a symbol of joy, is to remind you evermore of My life's blood, which will be poured out as an atonement for you!" Doesn't that just give you chills to imagine yourself sitting in that room and hearing this?

The gospel accounts of the Last Supper mention only two of the four seder cups...the first and the third. According to early Jewish tradition, these two were the most important. The first cup was special because it consecrated the entire Passover ritual that followed. But the Mishnah states that the third cup was the most significant of all. The third cup had two names: the "cup of blessing," because it came after the blessing or grace after meals, and the "cup of redemption," because it represented the blood of the Paschal lamb. It was of this cup of blessing that Paul mentions in 1 Corinthians 10:16: "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?"

Broken

Passover and the Last Supper are rich in meaning for us as believers! It's really a shame the author kind of glosses over it. There is such depth and richness when the Last Supper is compared to its forerunner, the Passover. I will try not to get carried away but this always excites me!

When Abraham, the first Hebrew, left Ur of the Chaldees to follow the call of the living God (doesn't that give you goose bumps?), he sacrificed a life of comfort and ease. Ur was no village. From the comfort, advantages, and sophistication of Ur, Jehovah called Abraham and his family to a seminomadic way of life. Now, they were not nomads in spirit, for they had God's promise of the land; but, in fact, they did not possess it. They wandered with the seasons, seeking pasture for their flocks, but they also tilled the ground. They buried their dead in permanent caves, an act of faith that showed they believed that one day the land really would be theirs! They trusted God for future stability and a permanent home, but they knew it was not yet time.

Jump ahead to the drought and famine which drove Jacob, a grandson of Abraham, to leave Caanan for the promise of food in Egypt. They become very comfortable there. They established themselves and grew. The Hebrews felt respected and secure. They prospered for hundreds of years! The children of Israel were so comfortable and secure that it was easy to forget that Egypt was not the land God had promised to their fathers. Maybe some of them even forgot God Himself?

Then comes a pharaoh who "knew not Joseph" (Ex. 1:9). He feared the numbers and the strength of the Hebrew foreigners and so turned against them and made them his serfs. Now the land no longer belonged to them, they belonged to the land, to Egypt and to the pharaoh, who was Egypt. You know the rest of the story the people cried out to God for deliverance. And deliver them He did.

Hence, they were required, if they desired to be spared, to substitute a life for a life. They were to take a lamb, and kill it...and take the blood and strike it on the two sides posts and on the upper door post of the houses. When the Lord saw the blood He would pass over their house.

Now, this isn't the usual "pass over" word which has a meaning of stepping or leaping over something to avoid contact. I think the common Hebrew verb for that is "a-bhar, or gabhar." Instead the word used is "pesah." Now, this is neat. The word is used in the same sense in Isa. 31:15: 'As birds flying, so will the Lord of Hosts defend Jerusalem; defending also He will deliver it; and passing over He will preserve it'. The Lord's Passover, means such sheltering and protection as is found under the outstretched wings of the Almighty! Doesn't this give a new fulness to those words...'O Jerusalem! Jerusalem!...How often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen does gather her brook under her wings' (luke 13:34)?

It wasn't merely that the Lord passed by the houses of the Israelites, but that He stood on guard, protecting each blood-sprinkled door! (check out E#x 12:23b)

I know, I'm getting long here. But check out what the ancient Seder (Passover) and the Last Supper have in common. I'll just list it quickly but you should really go in depth to the meanings behind it all and realize when Jesus celebrated the Last Supper He was teaching the disciples in cryptic terms that after His death, the Paschal lamb would no longer have the same significance. It was the memorial of physical, historical redemption, but only a shadow of the ultimate redemption soon to come. He was about to become the better sacrifice, to die once, for all (Heb. 9:14-15, 23-26).

God put into motion the restoration of His relationship with man through His people, Israel. He proposed to Abram in Ur. He betrothed Himself to Israel at the Passover, and He married the nation at Sinai. But Israel was no stronger in spiritual resolutness than the rest of humanity all the way up to today. At times she strayed and became an unfaithful wife to Jehovah. But, despite it all, He looks upon her with compassion and love and has promised to restore her once again, and with her all other nations who are willing. Therefore, when the Messiah of Israel came as the Word made flesh, He proposed that loving relationship with God to all humanity. He betrothed Himself to those who would believe and accept Him at Calvary. The consummation of that marriage is yet to take place when He returns for us, His beloved, the Bride called out from among believing Jews and Gentiles.

Since this is so long...I apologize...I can get carried away...but since it is so long I won't mention the different steps of the Passover meal and what they stand for compared to the Last Supper and how they are the same representation and the meanings. If you desire that, let me know in the comments and I can either wright another post about the two meals and their shared meanings or I can email you with the infomation.