The Cross

I'm getting to the end of the book of Mark now. . . Having spent the last several weeks learning about Jesus' life and ministry, it is especially meaningful to read about His death. I am so deeply moved and encouraged when I think about the fact that he willingly walked the way of the cross. He chose to obey His father and fulfill the scriptures.

Sometimes I think we loose sight of the enormous sacrifice that Jesus made. We minimize it in so many ways. . . It hit me again today as I was reading in Mark 14. . .

They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, “Sit here while I go and pray.” He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed. He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”

He went on a little farther and fell to the ground. He prayed that, if it were possible, the awful hour awaiting him might pass him by. “Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”

Why would Jesus be so crushed with grief? Why would he beg his father to change the plan? Because the pain and agony He was about to face was excruciating. Maybe we tend to minimize the cross because Jesus was God. . . So we subconsciously think that it wasn't really that bad. That somehow He didn't really feel the pain because, after all, He was God. But I think we have it backwards. I think Jesus felt all of the physical pain one could possibly bear in His body because He was fully human - and He felt all of the grief and anguish He could possibly bear in His soul because He was fully God, carrying the sin of the world.

Whatever the reasons are that we minimize the cross, this passage is an in-your-face reminder that the burden Jesus carried was bigger than anything any one of us has ever experienced. . . He willingly walked to the cross not because His "God-ness" eased the physical pain and agony of the cross, but because His love for us propelled Him forward and led him to endure the pain and agony of the cross.

We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Think of all the hostility he endured from sinful people; then you won’t become weary and give up. Hebrews 12:2-3

You are the joy that propelled him forward. You are the reason that He endured. You are the soul that He died to save. . . Do not become weary, and don't ever give up. The Creator and Sustainer of the universe is on your side. And there is no length to which He will not go to draw you into His arms of love.

Mighty is the power of the cross.

Food for my Soul. . .

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

and on that note. . .

have a good day friends.

the Lamb

I am still reading through the book of Mark. This morning I was so moved and encouraged by both the biblical account and the thoughts that my bible study author shared that I want to pass them along to you. I was reading Mark 14:12-26, where Jesus is celebrating the Passover meal with his disciples (you can find the original instructions for the Passover meal in Exodus 12). But very quickly it becomes obvious that this is not the Passover meal of old. If you have a moment, grab your bible and read through both Mark 14:12-26 and Exodus 12:1-20.

Here are Tim's thoughts and reflections:

The first Passover meal was held on the night before a great deliverance - a deliverance from physical slavery. The Lord's Supper was held on the night before an even greater deliverance - salvation from sin and death itself!

This is a tremendous claim. Jesus shows a tremendous "audacity" in changing and revising a Passover meal that Moses said was to be done as a perpetual ordinance. He is saying something like this: "My death is the central and climactic event toward which the whole story of the people of God and the history of salvation has been moving. Every other deliverance by every other leader, every other sacrifice by every other prophet, priest, king, and hero - have all been pointing to this night. This is the climax of all history. I am about to deal with evil and sin and death once and for all."

What a powerful explanation of the truth of Jesus' death and resurrection! He is the fulfillment of every Old Testament prophesy and practice. He is my Passover Lamb, whose blood assures my safe passage into an eternity with my Maker.

Tim ends the study by saying:

If you stopped Israelites in those days and said, "who are you and what is happening here?" They would say: "I was a slave, under a sentence of death, but I took shelter under the blood of the lamb and escaped that bondage, and now God lives in our midst and we are following him into the promised land."

That is exactly what a Christian says today.

So, if you stopped me this very morning and asked, "Who are you, Erin, and what is happening here?" I would say this:

I was a slave, under a sentence of death, but I took shelter under the blood of the lamb and escaped that bondage, and now God lives in our midst and we are following him into the promised land.

My God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. . . and He will finish the work that He began in me, and in this world. Thank you for cross, Lord, and for the perfect spotless Lamb who paid our price and suffered our punishment. . . You are awesome.

Committed: Part 2

Tuesday is cleaning day at my house. . . as I've been marching around with my Windex and broom I've been contemplating this morning's post. I want to clarify one important point (if you haven't read that post yet you should probably read it first. . . ).

There are moral guidelines that should impact the life of every single believer. There are rules that we should follow. It isn't that we get to live these willy-nilly, "whatever you prefer" kind of lifestyles, but that our love for God spurs us on to obey Him when and where He calls for obedience. The mistake we often make is applying God's laws above and beyond the point that He requires, therefore creating a tiered version of Christianity in which only those who follow all of the 'extra' requirements are truly mature and spiritual.

So, while it is vitally important to extend grace toward each other as we each strive to walk with Jesus as closely as we can, it is also important to recognize the truth of His word and hold each other accountable to His good, holy, and righteous standard.

If you love me, you will obey what I command. John 14:15

(now that I am rereading this I am quite certain I have already written pretty much this exact same thing before. . . hmmm)

Committed

What does it look like to be committed to the Christian life? I remember a mentor once saying that she thought all Christian women had to wear denim jumpers and big bows in their hair. There is nothing wrong with a tasteful denim jumper - but if you met this friend of mine you would know that it would be a painful death to her sensitivities. . . Maybe you have had similar thoughts - not specifically about jumpers - but about the conformity of the Christian life.

And this is where the Christian church has done an incredible disservice to the world around us. We have encouraged this conformity complex in our communities. First of all, we do conform to each other, and then, we actually make rules over and above what the bible asks of us that force us to conform even more. I don't think this is a good idea. When we get specific in areas that God was not specific, we risk missing the point and making Christianity something it is not.

Jesus addresses a similar issue with the Pharisees. They had placed a huge emphasis on hand-washing rituals (among other things) and were confronting Jesus as to why His disciples were not following their rules. His response to their rule-making ways is this:

You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to the traditions of men. Mark 7:8

We must be very careful not to turn the Christian life into a list of rules and traditions that God Himself never asked of us. The truth is that the expectations for the Christian life are very high, and the cost for truly following Jesus is great. But it isn't as black and white as some believers want to make it with their legalistic rule-making.

Yes, as we seek to be like Jesus we will start to look a bit the same. For one, we will all start displaying the fruits of the Spirit. We will be loving, forgiving, patient, kind, generous, and on and on. We will also all live for the same purpose - to draw the world around us into a love relationship with Jesus Himself. We will be on a mission that could cost us our life - or at least our reputation and popularity.

So in some senses, we will conform. But in other ways we will be beautifully, marvelously different! When we follow Jesus we don't lose the personality traits that God gave us from birth. I long to be a part of a Christian community that is diverse, creative, and sometimes even slightly offensive. That might sound weird to you - but if we were a group of believers who were reaching our communities for Jesus then we would continually have nonbelievers and new believers in our midst. . . and though our hearts are forever changed the very moment we come to accept Christ as our Savior, the life transformation is a process that usually takes time. So in my mind, a truly living, powerful group of Christians will always include people who don't really look or act like "proper" Christians.

So can we please let go of the rules that bind us together on false terms? Can we stop obsessing about superficial things and get to the heart of the matter? The heart, after all, is what Jesus cares most about. If we are going to be a group of people who bring healing, love, and hope to a desperate world around us we need to be sure that we're getting the message right - and not weighing it down with unnecessary obligations.

I don't have to wear denim jumpers or bows in order to be a fully committed Christian. I just have to surrender the whole of my life to Jesus.

Simple, or not.

One of the teachers of religious law was standing there listening to the debate. He realized that Jesus had answered well, so he asked, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”
Mark 12:28-31

Convinced

It is a beautifully blustery fall day here in the northwoods. I just wrapped up a bible study that my good friend and I lead with our high school girls. Let me tell you - there is nothing greater than sharing what God is teaching us with those we love. I am so excited to see sparks of faith in each of these girl's lives. I know that they are all in different spots, wrestling with different things. . . but they each possess a similar desire - however small or great - to know Jesus and learn what it really means to live for Him.

I long for each of them to come to a point of complete surrender. . . I long for that same thing for all of us! Because if I have learned anything during these last few months of growing with Jesus, it is that this is all real. He really lived. He really died. And He really offers us new life when we surrender all of ourselves to His leading.

I may not know much, but of this - I am convinced.

Conflicted

I have been going back and forth about writing this post all day. . . The truth is that I am feeling incredibly conflicted about some of the things I've been writing about and analyzing in the last few days and weeks. It isn't that I feel that any of it is untrue, or unimportant. . . more that I am not confident about how it will be or has been received.

This whole last year God has been doing a huge work in my heart and life. I am back to a place of longing to spend time in His word - actually dragging myself out of bed (happily, I might add!) at ungodly hours of the morning to be with Him in quietness before the kids get up. The most miraculous transformation in my mind, though, is the way that He has broken me free from chains that have held me for years! I haven't just avoided certain habitual sins - I have actually lost an appetite for them altogether.

And yet, every day that I draw closer to Him I also see myself continuing to make selfish, self-centered choices. I'm not perfect, and although I can say that I am more like Jesus today than I was a year ago - it would take more than eternity for me to reach that ultimate goal!

That said, this life transformation has to do with finally and fully surrendering myself at the foot of the cross. Recognizing that when Jesus said, "Come, follow me," He really meant it - in the most all-consuming way possible! It requires humility. . . putting myself aside and looking to glorify and honor Him in everything. It isn't about me becoming awesome. It isn't about me at all. . .

But I am afraid that in recent posts you might have left feeling that I have judged the whole world and found it wanting. Like somehow I have achieved truth and knowledge all I my own and everyone else is wandering aimlessly and purposely.

The truth is, some of you are. And I do believe that the Bible is the whole truth for the whole world for all of time. And I believe that though there are many interpretations of this ancient text, there is one correct way to read, understand, and apply all of God's word.

But any frustration that I have expressed in these recent days is aimed at those who claim to follow Jesus but don't really want to know what that actually means. They confess him with their lips, but do not acknowledge Him in their hearts. And if you believe that all of the bible is really true, then you must know that when those individuals face Christ on the last day, His response to them will be, "I'm sorry. I never knew you."

I am frustrated sometimes. I long for every single one of you to experience true life and true freedom. . . I long for our church to rise up and be a light in this community and world. I don't want to be arrogant or prideful, somehow assuming that I have this awesome faith and unparalleled understanding. . . I just want to know Jesus Christ and Him crucified. . . I just want to live for Him.

So maybe this post is partly an apology, and partly not. I'm sorry if my frustration has been a stumbling block, or if it has confused you, or if you haven't understood my true intentions. But I'm not sorry for speaking the truth as plainly and simply as I see it.

What's the point of all this if we can't at least speak truth?