Risen With Christ

Colossians 3:1-4

I don’t mean to be morbid here, but think back to the last time you were at an open coffin wake.  As you looked at the body of your deceased friend or loved one, one thing you could be certain of is that, regardless of whether they were in heaven or not, they had no more concerns about anything in this life.  They did not care whether the stock market rose or fell.  They did not care about the price of gasoline or groceries, nor whether the repairs on the house got taken care of or not.  The things of this world no longer hold any interest to people who are dead.  That is the message we have from today’s Scripture in Colossians, though with a little twist.

Our brief Scripture today comes from the middle of St. Paul’s letter to the church in Colossae, a city in southwest ancient Turkey.  As in all of his epistles, Paul’s audience were assumed to be primarily believers, those who had already put their faith and trust in the Lord Jesus as their Savior.  As our passage begins the phrase “If then” would be better translated as “since”. (vs. 1).  Paul leaves no doubt that what he said was Biblical truth, not an “if” but a “since”.  What he said was certain.  Because of our union with Jesus Christ we spiritually entered into His death and resurrection the moment we were saved, and are now alive in Him.  When Jesus was crucified, our sinful old nature was crucified and buried with Him.  When He rose from the dead on the third day, our new nature also rose again.

Paul continues on to remind the believers that their old nature is dead, and their new nature is alive and a part of Christ (vs. 3).  The penalty for our sins was paid, and we arose with Jesus to a new life.   Because of this, the apostle urges us to set our hearts on things that are above, in other words, putting heaven’s priorities into our daily practice (vs. 2).  This means concentrating on the eternal rather than the temporal.  Just as those lying in the coffin don’t care about the latest headlines in the news, we should not be preoccupied with things to do with the world.  Instead, we should look at life from God’s perspective and seek what He desires.  Our whole disposition and way of thinking should point itself towards the things of heaven.  The dead do not care about all of their belongings any more either, so we, if we are believers and thus raised with Christ, should not become too attached to physical belongings which are only temporary.

Now that we are raised with the Lord Jesus, our life is deposited with Him (vs 3).  The world, our spiritual enemies, and Satan will try to attack us, but our life is concealed and safe with Him.  Our life now belongs to the spiritual and heavenly realm, so we should be seeking matters and interests pertaining to heaven, and not to earth.  Since our real home is with the Lord in heaven, the things of this world should not hold such a great desire for us.

When we accept Jesus as our Savior, our old, earthly nature is dead.  As we let Him live within us, so that He can shape us into what we should be, we change our moral and ethical behavior.   Jesus gives us the power to live for Him now, and He gives us hope for the future (vs. 4).  We can live in great anticipation of His return.  We can fix our hope firmly on Jesus’ promise that we will live together with Him in glory forever.

The resurrection of Jesus was not just something that happened 2,000 years in the past.  It affects all believers today, as well.  Believers are already raised to a new life.  We can claim the power of the risen Savior every day.

Are you living as if Jesus had not risen from the dead?  Do you go through life without joy or peace?  We don’t have to live that way, because those who are Christians have also been raised with Him to new life!

The Lord Has Become My Salvation

Psalm 118:14-29

Many of us are familiar with ticker-tape parades, having seen one at least in news footage.  They usually take place in very large cities where tall buildings line the streets.  Shredded paper and confetti are tossed from the windows as some celebrity who is being honored parades down the street.  Though a number of cities have held them, including my hometown of Chicago, New York City is most renowned for holding ticker-tape parades.  These parades are given in honor of military heroes, political figures, sports celebrities, astronauts, and other notable people that we choose to honor.  Our psalm speaks of a triumphant parade, and Who is being honored.  Let’s look at this second half of Psalm 118.

Just like some of our ticker-tape parades would be for military generals following victory at war, when a king would return home from victory in battle in ancient Israel, they would be greeted by the people with cheers and music.  If they were godly kings, such as David, they would go to the Temple to offer a thanksgiving sacrifice to God.  When Jesus came into Jerusalem the week before He was crucified, people shouted praise, and He was the sacrifice.  In verse 25 we read how the people cry out “save now” to the Lord.  “Save now” translates to “hosanna” in Hebrew.  Those were the words that the crowds shouted to Jesus on Palm Sunday.  Yet a few days later they were shouting for Him to be crucified.  How quickly the crowds can change.  Those who are paraded today can be booed and canceled tomorrow.

Now we can sing Jesus’ praises because He has gotten victory over death and brought us salvation (vs. 17).  Our hope is in Jesus Christ, who rose from the grave, and gives eternal life to all who trust in Him.  We praise Jesus for His resurrection!

One highlight of our psalm is verses 22-24, which are prophetic of the Messiah, Jesus Christ.  Verse 22 speaks of a cornerstone, which is the first stone set in the construction of a building’s foundation.  It is positioned carefully, because all other stones are set in reference to this stone, determining the position of the entire building.  Without a good cornerstone, the building is in danger of collapse.  Our psalmist indicates that the people rejected the cornerstone that was set, but that it then became the chief cornerstone.  This was spoken in reference to the Messiah Jesus.  The Jewish religious leaders rejected Him (Matthew 21:42), actually having Him killed, but God raised Him from the dead, and He is now seated at God’s right hand, the Chief Cornerstone of the Church.  The Apostle Peter declared that God made Jesus both Lord and Christ (Acts 2:36).  Peter identified the chief cornerstone as Jesus (Acts 4:11; I Peter 2:7).

Just days before His crucifixion, the Lord Jesus told the Parable of the Vineyard, one of His very last parables (Luke 20:9-19).  In that parable, He spoke of the rejected son of the vineyard owner, and likened that to the rejected stone which became the chief cornerstone.  Jesus was that rejected stone.  The Jewish leaders were the builders who rejected Him, the One who came to deliver and save the nation.

Jesus also gave reference to verse 26.  He taught in Matthew 23:37-39 that the nation of Israel would not see Him, their Messiah again after His Ascension until they could genuinely offer these words to Him, which will not be until Jesus’ Second Coming.

As we look over these last verses I want to point out verse 24.  This is a verse that I say most every day upon first getting out of bed.  For a stretch of my life, when going through some very difficult times, I was not all that eager to get up and start another day.  I would have preferred to remain in bed, pulling the blanket over my head, and not face another day.  But the Lord showed me that He has blessed me with another day, a new day with new opportunities.  Each day is a gift from God, and we should rejoice and be glad in it.

In closing, no matter what we may be going through, we can get our strength for it from the Lord (vs. 14).  We don’t need to depend on our own weakness.  When we are discouraged, and depressed, and fearful, Jesus will give us a new song.

Who Will Roll Away The Stone?

Mark 16:1-8

Have you ever felt like the walls of your life are just closing in on you?  Problems on this side, worries on that side, add in several fears.  You are just surrounded with trouble.  Today as we look into Scripture for Easter, the Resurrection of the Lord, we will look at three women, whose day started like that, but ended so much better.

As our passage from the Gospel of Mark opens, we read of three women who had been followers of the Lord Jesus throughout His ministry, heading to the tomb of the Savior.  Late in the afternoon of Friday, the dead body of Jesus had been removed from the cross, and laid in a nearby garden grave which was lovingly donated by Joseph of Arimathea (Matthew 27:59-60).  Now that the Sabbath was over, the women wanted to perform the ritual anointing of the dead.  It was dawn, and the sun was just coming up over the horizon.  This had been a very difficult, stressful, and horrific past several days for them, along with the disciples and their other friends.  Jesus was dead, crucified like a common criminal.  Due to His sudden arrest and execution, they had not been prepared with everything necessary for His burial and anointing, and then they could not do anything over the Sabbath.  Now was the first time they were able to perform this loving ritual.

As they approached the tomb the women realized a seemingly huge problem.  How would they get into the tomb?  There was a massive stone in front of the entrance.  Scholars have estimated that this stone could easily have weighed over 3,000 pounds, way too heavy for three women to easily move.  And these women were probably not comfortable asking the Roman guards that the Jewish leaders had stationed around the tomb for any help.  “Who will roll away the stone?”  This was a big worry.  They couldn’t handle it, and they had no solution.  What were they going to do?

However, when they arrived, they saw that this problem of theirs was already taken care of.  The stone had been rolled away! (vs. 4).  Like many of our worries, God had already taken care of it for them!  He had provided a solution to their problem, and also a gift beyond all hope!  In the tomb the women met someone who looked like a young man, but who was actually an angel.  He gave them a message for the disciples, and especially Peter, that Jesus had risen (vs. 5-7).  The women were afraid, and quickly left, telling no one.  However, as we read in the other Gospels, any reluctance to tell the disciples was quickly dispelled, and they did indeed tell them (Matthew 28:8; Luke 24:9).  Will we be silent with the message of Jesus’ death and resurrection?  Or will we use the empty tomb and the proclamation of His resurrection as a starting point to take the message of the Gospel to everyone without fear?

The angel specifically said for them to be sure and tell Peter.  As I spoke about in my previous devotional, Peter had denied, with curses, knowing Jesus three times, and felt broken because of that.  Yet in spite of Peter’s denial, Jesus had not disowned or deserted him.  He wanted Peter to know that He had risen and come back, just as He said, and that He had forgiven him.  Peter was included, not cast out!  When we stumble and fall, no matter how grievously, if we confess and repent, the Lord will forgive us, as well.

There are some further thoughts to take note of from the Gospel account of the Resurrection.  Even the Jewish leaders did not deny the reality of the empty tomb.  They just concocted a story, a lie, that the disciples had stolen His Body (Matthew 28:11-15).  However, neither the disciples, nor these women, could have overpowered a unit of Roman soldiers that the Jewish leaders had demanded to be stationed there.  Another thought, the angels did not roll away the stone so Jesus could get out.  They did it so that others could get in and see for themselves that Jesus had, indeed, risen from the dead, just as He said!

In closing, there is no invitation by the angels to stay at the tomb.  The invitation is to go and follow where Jesus is leading (vs. 7).  We are to follow the risen Savior.  And remember, no burden is too heavy for God to carry, and no stone too large for God to move.  We never need to worry about who will roll away our stones!

When The Rooster Crowed

Luke 22:54-62

As we look back over our life so far, many of us can pick out one, or maybe more times when we did something that we are terribly ashamed of, times when we were a big disappointment to ourselves and others.  If we could go back and change things, do it differently this time, we would.  Sadly, we can’t.  Thinking back, we hang our heads in shame, and maybe even cry.  Our Scripture today, as we close out Holy Week, tells the account of a very sad event from the Gospels, and that is when the Apostle Peter, the leader of the Twelve, did something that he vowed he never would do, and that was to deny the Lord Jesus three times.  Let’s take a look at that sad time.

Prior to the events in our Scripture, Jesus had been in the Garden of Gethsemane with His disciples.  It was now the middle of the night, and Judas came with some soldiers and Temple guards and betrayed Jesus.  He was arrested and led away.  The other disciples all fled, and Jesus was led to the High Priest’s house where He was interrogated.  This is where our Scripture begins.  Peter truly loved the Lord Jesus, and after the guards left with the Lord in chains and shackles, he followed at a distance (vs. 54).  Not too closely, as he was still quite afraid, so he stayed back, but he did follow.  When we follow Jesus at a distance, though, we are much more apt to get into trouble, which Peter found out.

Peter saw Jesus being taken into the High Priest’s house, and decided to stay in the courtyard in order to find out what would happen.  In Biblical times a person’s courtyard or patio was not as private as one today might be.  Anyone could come in, sit, rest, etc. and go on their way.  That night there were a group of people there, some servants, some of the guards, and others.  Peter thought he could casually join them and no one would notice (vs. 55).  However, that wasn’t the case.  One of the servant girls noticed him, and recalled having seen him with Jesus before (vs. 56-57).  Possibly earlier in the week she had seen and heard Jesus teaching, and remembered seeing Peter with Him.  Peter got scared.  With some guards right there, and this woman being a part of the household of the High Priest, he could possibly get arrested himself!  Peter feared for his own safety, and quickly told her she was wrong.  He didn’t know Jesus.

A short while later another person in the courtyard said the same thing, that they recalled Peter being part of Jesus’ group.  Peter even more emphatically denied it.  Then someone spoke up and said Peter was part of Jesus’ group because he had the Galilean accent (vs. 58-60).   A third time Peter, in great fear, denied knowing Jesus.  Matthew even records that Peter cursed and swore that he didn’t know the Savior (Matthew 26:74).  Immediately a rooster crowed.

Yes, the rooster crowed, and Peter heard it, bringing to his mind what Jesus had told him just a few hours earlier, that he would deny Jesus three times before the rooster would crow (Mark 14:30).  At this moment, too, something also occurred that we often don’t remember.  We all recall the rooster crowing, but how many remember that at that moment the Lord Jesus was taken from Caiaphas’ house, and as He crossed the courtyard, He looked directly at Peter? (vs 61).  This was the lowest moment in his whole life!  Not only did Peter do something he vowed he would not do, and the rooster reminded him of that, but at that moment, Jesus was brought out and He looked directly at Peter, who then left and wept bitterly (vs. 62).

Peter wept bitterly. Not only had he denied the Messiah, but also turned away from a very dear Friend who had loved and taught him for three years.  Peter had said he would never disown Jesus, despite His predictions (Luke 22:33-34)  But when he became frightened, he went against his promise.  Peter couldn’t stand up for Jesus for 12 hours.  Peter knew he failed as a disciple and friend, and broke down in sobs.

Jesus looked at Peter in that moment.  What kind of look was it?  Was it compassion?  Disappointment?  Resignation?  Sorrow?  Love?  The Scripture does not say.  I am thinking that it was a mixture of all of those, but most likely especially one of love and forgiveness as He saw how devastated Peter felt at that moment.

Peter made a big mistake, one that might seem impossible to overcome.  However, Jesus sees beyond the mistake to the heart of His disciple.  Later, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, after the Resurrection, Jesus would remind Peter of who he really is, and Whose he is (John 21:17).  He reminded Peter that he was to feed, to lead and teach Jesus’ sheep, Peter’s fellow believers.  Whatever our greatest heartache or regrets are, we can turn them over to Jesus.  He will forgive, as He did for Peter. That moment when the rooster crowed did not define Peter.  It was the moments with Jesus, and serving Him, that did.

The Last Supper And Judas

Mark 14:17-26

In today’s Scripture, midway through Holy Week, we will look at the Last Supper, along with Jesus’ words about the one who would betray Him.  These are some of the last moments Jesus would spend with His disciples, for in less than 24 hours He would be crucified and die.  Let’s take a quick look at both of these events which happened the evening before Good Friday.

In my previous devotional, we looked at Jesus washing the feet of His twelve disciples, and the lesson He was teaching them.  After He was through, the Savior and the disciples gathered around the table in the upper room, to celebrate the Passover meal.  What Christians call the Last Supper was Jesus’ final Passover meal.  There are generally three different beliefs about the Last Supper, also called the Eucharist, among various Christian denominations.  Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and the various Orthodox churches believe in transubstantiation, where the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus.  Lutherans believe in consubstantiation, where they believe that the  Body and Blood of Jesus is present with the bread and wine, but they do not believe it transforms into it.  And most Protestants believe that it is symbolic, that the ceremony is just done in remembrance of that event.  I am not going to get into who I think is correct or not correct, and will just say that those are the three general interpretations.

Jesus had a serious reason for instituting a new Passover.  The bread was His Body, soon to be tortured and broken on the Cross (vs. 22).  The wine was His Blood, soon to be shed on the Cross (vs. 23-24).  Like the Passover lamb, Jesus died in our place to free us from sin.  His innocent Blood paid the price of death for all who believe.  Jesus took two traditional parts of the Passover meal, the passing of the bread and the drinking of the wine, and gave them new meaning as the sacrifice of His Body and Blood, showing the significance of what He was about to do on the Cross.

Jesus’ death on the Cross seals a new covenant between God and people.  The old covenant involved forgiveness of sins through the blood of an animal sacrifice.  Instead of a spotless lamb, Jesus offered Himself, the spotless Lamb of God, as a sacrifice that would forgive sins once and for all.  Jesus was the final sacrifice for sin, and His Blood sealed the new covenant between God and man.

Let us also take a quick look at what the Lord Jesus had to say about His imminent betrayal and the one who would commit that betrayal (vs. 17-21).  Jesus knew there was a traitor among the group, and His announcement of such caused some dismay and distress among the group.  Only Jesus and Judas Iscariot knew for sure who He was talking about.  Yet each disciple questioned whether it might have been them (vs. 19).  Betray Jesus?  Certainly not!  But who could swear that they would never, ever be capable of something like that?

At the time of the Last Supper, Judas Iscariot had already determined to betray Jesus, yet he was a cold-blooded hypocrite as he shared this Passover meal with Jesus and the other eleven.  Not only did he betray Jesus, he ate this meal with the Lord, showing the enormity of the offense.

Even though it was predestined that Jesus die for our salvation, that did not make the guilt of those involved with His death any the less (vs. 21).  Jesus’ sacrificial death did not excuse those who brought it about.  Judas Iscariot’s eternal punishment will be terrible.  The severest punishment is reserved for Judas and others like him (Hebrews 10:29).  We are responsible for believing or not believing, and there is a terrible consequence for those who will not believe.  I pray that you are included in those who believe.  If not, will you turn to the Lord Jesus without delay, and ask Him to be your Savior?

Foot Washing

John 13:1-17

Do you have a certain task that you have to do every so often, one that you really dislike doing?  For whatever reason, you really don’t like doing it, and if possible, you might try to leave the task for someone else to do.  For me, the task I really dislike is changing and cleaning out the cat litter box.  I do love our two cats, along with our tiny little poodle, but I don’t enjoy cleaning out the cat’s box!  Other people might have different tasks that they really dislike.  In our Scripture for today, we read about a task that needed to be done, but everyone thought it was beneath their dignity, and refused.  Let’s see what happened.

Israel had a warm and dry climate.  The people in the days of the Bible would wear sandals instead of standard shoes.  After being outdoors and doing a lot of walking, one’s feet would get dusty and dirty.  When coming inside from the outdoors, washing of one’s feet was necessary.  Because this was a humiliating task, only the lowliest and menial of servants would perform that duty.  It was beneath the dignity of even the “regular” servants to do, so the lowest ones were let to perform that for the family and guests.

On the night before Jesus would be crucified, He and His disciples had gathered in an upper room to celebrate the Passover meal.  This was a borrowed room, and there were no servants present.  After a long and warm day, after a stressful week, everyone wanted to relax and enjoy the Passover meal.  However there wasn’t a servant present to do the dirty task of washing the feet, and none of the disciples volunteered for the task.  They all thought that was beneath them, especially when the twelve were always arguing among themselves as to who was the greatest.  Their pride kept them from humbling themselves among the group.

Naturally, Jesus observed all of this.  As the master, the leader, the teacher of this group, as the Messiah, the Son of God, it would have been His right to pick one and tell them to perform the task.  However, Jesus did not do that.  Instead, He took a large bowl, a pitcher of cool water, and a towel, and got down on His knees, and performed the task that only lowly servants did (vs. 4-5).  Jesus was the model servant, and He showed His servant attitude to His disciples.  They had not wanted to wash their peers' feet, but Jesus, God incarnate, got on His knees to them and performed the servant’s task.

Not only was this cleansing their feet from the dust and dirt of the day, this was also symbolic of spiritual cleansing, and a model of Christian humility and selfless service.  Each of the disciples noticed that their Master was performing this task, and were probably embarrassed.  When Jesus got to Peter, he told Jesus to stop, that He didn’t need to perform that lowly task on him (vs. 6-8).  Peter was indignant that Jesus would stoop so low as to wash his feet.  Jesus had meant to show that this was also symbolic of spiritual cleansing, of salvation through Him.  However, Peter did not see the symbolism of that involved.  The Savior had to point out that unless one is washed clean through Him, then he has no part in Him (vs. 8).  Unless the Lamb of God cleanses a person’s sin, one can have no part with Him.

Peter did not want to be left out of a relationship with Jesus!  He wanted all in!  “Wash all of me!” he said (vs.9).  Jesus instructed them that once they have initially been washed and cleansed in salvation, that never needs to be repeated.  We can never lose our salvation.  We do, though, need constant washing for the forgiveness of our daily sins as we battle sin in the flesh (vs. 10).

Afterwards, Jesus put the bowl, pitcher, and towel away and rejoined them at the table.  He taught them a special lesson in humility and having a servant’s heart and attitude with one another (vs. 12-17).  No more “I’m the greatest!” attitude for them.  His children must love and serve one another.  Jesus frequently taught that to be a leader, one must be a servant.  Are we willing to take the lower spot, or do we always feel that we have to be in the spotlight, in the grand positions?  Are we willing to do the thankless tasks, even tasks that others shun, or do we want all of the applause?  We must be willing to serve in any way that glorifies God.

In verse 12 we read that Jesus finished washing the disciples' feet.  He left no one out.  This means that He also washed the feet of Judas Iscariot.  Jesus washed the feet of His betrayer!  He gave His betrayer equal attention.  Are we willing to love and serve others just as much?  Jesus gave us an example to follow.

A Lavish Display Of Love

Matthew 26:6-13

During Holy Week this year I thought that I would do something just a little different.  Instead of using the Scriptures from the Lectionary of the Book of Common Prayer, which I usually follow for my devotionals or meditations, I decided to pick four Scripture passages of events that happened during the last week of Jesus’ life, ones that are generally overlooked in the Lectionary.  Today’s Scripture gives the account of a woman’s great sacrifice for the Lord, and how Jesus promised it would be remembered.

As our Scripture opens, it is a few days before the Last Supper and Jesus’ crucifixion, and He and His disciples were invited to dinner at the home of one, Simon “the Leper” (vs. 6).  We can safely assume that Simon no longer has this dreaded, contagious skin disease, as those with this disease were always quarantined, living in isolation outside of town, far away from the general population.  In fact, they had to call out “Unclean!” if anyone would come near.  So the fact that Simon is back among people, living in Bethany, a nearby suburb of Jerusalem, and having people over for dinner, shows that he no longer was leprous.  There is even a possibility that Simon could have been one of the many lepers that the Lord Jesus healed, and this meal was just a token of his thankfulness for what Jesus had done.

As Jesus and His disciples, and any other guests were seated around the table, a woman came in and began to anoint Jesus.  In Biblical days, particularly with more wealthier households, meals were often served in a courtyard or patio, which were only semi-private.  That would be cooler, with a nice breeze, rather than in a hot, crowded, stuffy room inside a house.  Thus, someone from the outside could enter without raising a disturbance.  This woman, as we shall see, was criticized for what she began doing, not for entering in uninvited.

This woman, who some believe was Mary, the sister of Martha and Lazarus, and also lived in Bethany, began pouring very fragrant oil upon the head of the Lord Jesus (vs. 7).  This was oil that was used when preparing a body for burial.  The ancient Jews did not mummify or embalm bodies like the ancient Egyptians did.  They would loosely wrap a body in linen cloth, after anointing the body with fragrant oils and ointments.  These would only preserve the body for a few days, and would cover up the stench of decay.  This was a task that the women in the household would do.  Naturally, everyone at the table noticed her doing this, as the scent of the perfume spread.

As this woman proceeded to anoint the Lord Jesus, some of the disciples noticed that the particular oil she was using was one that was extremely expensive.  This was not an oil that someone would have just picked up at their local supermarket for a few dollars.  This was one that would have been purchased at a great expense, one that would have been a great sacrifice to have bought.  And here she was, liberally pouring this on Jesus while He was alive.  Some of the disciples immediately began to criticize her, acting all pious and sanctimonious, saying that she could have sold that and given the money to the poor (vs. 8-9).  This was mainly said by Judas Iscariot (John 12:4-6).  Since he held the group’s money bag, and would frequently help himself to it, he would have loved to have gotten his hands on the huge value of that perfumed oil!

Jesus knew why this woman was doing this (vs. 10-12).  By anointing Jesus while He was still alive she proved that she believed in His resurrection.  She was showing her devotion right then, as she knew His Body would not decay, and thus would not need the oil.

In this passage, Jesus was not advocating that we neglect the poor (vs. 11), as there are countless verses all throughout the Bible where we are told to care for and help the poor, the widow, and the orphan.  What Jesus said here is reminiscent of Deuteronomy 15:11. Jesus was highlighting the special sacrifice this woman made for Him.

There is a higher priority than any other earthly ministry that we can do, and that is the worship that we render to the Lord Jesus.  This woman was very willing to take an expensive burial oil, worth multiple thousands of dollars, and lavishly pour it upon the Lord Jesus, to show Him her love, devotion, and worship.  The Lord rewards faithful devotion to Him.  What she did was memorialized in God’s Word forever (vs. 13).  What are we willing to do or to sacrifice for Jesus?