When you've been a Christian a long time, it can be hard to make sure the major events - Easter and Christmas - are meaningful. You've heard each story so many times, it's easy to let them pass by without really taking them in.
This Easter I'm thankful to my pastor for bringing up a couple of great points - one I've never really thought of before, and the other a much-needed refresher.
1) We know the end of the story
The past two weeks, my pastor has talked about the fact that we have the whole story in front of us - we know the beginning, the middle, and the end. And because we know the end, we look at the disciples and all the people who lost their faith when Jesus died, and we think, "Come on people! Where's your faith? How could you be so fickle? To welcome Jesus with palm branches, then a week later nail him to a tree... And to lose heart when He died, thinking that that's the end of the story...where's the faith??" But as my pastor pointed out, we're looking back with 20/20 vision. We know that Jesus rises from the dead, but it's very possible that many people back then did not. Even though he told the disciples before his death, they might not have understood. Or they may not have believed it when Jesus actually died - it's one thing to say you believe, it's another thing to actually believe when you're in the middle of the tough situation.
It gave me a new perspective, being in their sandals and realizing that they didn't know what was going to happen. Those must have been 3 really tough days for the disciples and everyone who believed in Jesus. Seeing Him beaten, spit on, tortured, and brutally killed...and all your hopes for who He was 'supposed' to be are dashed... A lack of faith, yes, but put yourself in that moment and you realize why that would have happened.
2) Isaiah 53
My pastor took a look at Isaiah 53 and (re)opened my eyes to the prophesy about Jesus. Isaiah 53 spells it all out. You have to read the whole chapter, but here's an excerpt:
5 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
That's exactly what happened. Seriously, read the whole chapter, it's a play-by-play of what happened to Jesus - and it was written 700 years before Jesus walked the earth. So cool, and it adds so much credibility to the story.
So, what did you learn - or re-learn - this Easter?
This Easter I'm thankful to my pastor for bringing up a couple of great points - one I've never really thought of before, and the other a much-needed refresher.
1) We know the end of the story
The past two weeks, my pastor has talked about the fact that we have the whole story in front of us - we know the beginning, the middle, and the end. And because we know the end, we look at the disciples and all the people who lost their faith when Jesus died, and we think, "Come on people! Where's your faith? How could you be so fickle? To welcome Jesus with palm branches, then a week later nail him to a tree... And to lose heart when He died, thinking that that's the end of the story...where's the faith??" But as my pastor pointed out, we're looking back with 20/20 vision. We know that Jesus rises from the dead, but it's very possible that many people back then did not. Even though he told the disciples before his death, they might not have understood. Or they may not have believed it when Jesus actually died - it's one thing to say you believe, it's another thing to actually believe when you're in the middle of the tough situation.
It gave me a new perspective, being in their sandals and realizing that they didn't know what was going to happen. Those must have been 3 really tough days for the disciples and everyone who believed in Jesus. Seeing Him beaten, spit on, tortured, and brutally killed...and all your hopes for who He was 'supposed' to be are dashed... A lack of faith, yes, but put yourself in that moment and you realize why that would have happened.
2) Isaiah 53
My pastor took a look at Isaiah 53 and (re)opened my eyes to the prophesy about Jesus. Isaiah 53 spells it all out. You have to read the whole chapter, but here's an excerpt:
5 5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
That's exactly what happened. Seriously, read the whole chapter, it's a play-by-play of what happened to Jesus - and it was written 700 years before Jesus walked the earth. So cool, and it adds so much credibility to the story.
So, what did you learn - or re-learn - this Easter?
ReplyDeleteIt's not so much what I learned, it is what I think about when I picture Jesus on the cross with the two men on either side. I was listening to a Third Day song a few years back. It talks about the two criminals and how one of them asked Jesus to remember him in His kingdom.
At the beginning of the crucifiction the Bible says one of the criminals was hurling insults at Jesus. But one of them had a change of heart. What caused that? What made that man realize that he deserved to die, but that Jesus didn't? How did he know that the bloodied and beaten Jesus was a true king? Could he read the sign above Jesus' head? Even if he could, why did he believe it? All three were in the same situation, suffering and dying.
Jesus was abandoned by his disciples, he was rejected and humiliated by the crowd that only days before had honoured him with palm branches and praises. He had been poured out emotionally, physically, and spiritually. He was bleeding from top to bottom, and he began to feel God, his Father, forsake him. I believe the criminal on the cross who believed...was a gift from God to Jesus. In the midst of all that was going on, I can only imagine that this man's faith in Jesus gave Jesus what he needed on that cross. The first believer...right there beside him. How I feel this must have comforted Jesus, to die beside someone that knew…that had faith without seeing anything but Jesus' brutally beaten and bloody body. Maybe he did see Jesus performing miracles before. Maybe he didn't believe then, but he did now. Jesus heard his words, and promised him paradise, even though moments before this man was being convicted of criminal behavior deserving the death penalty. I can't help but wonder if this man’s act of faith, gave Jesus what he needed to complete God's work. How it must have been sweetness to Jesus’ ears, that had suffered the sounds of his followers weeping and his accusers cursing and sneering...to hear “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom” (Luke 23:42). Those words would give Jesus hope, that his work was not in vain and encouragement to finish the job.