From a Curse to a Blessing
School is just around the corner, Father, and today was full of preparation – a bus driver meeting, following by a 6 hour long open house to meet families. Needless to say, I am worn out. May our time together be restorative and uplifting. Amen.
Mark 15:1 (<<click to read the passage)
Very early in the morning the leading priests, the elders, and the teachers of religious law—the entire high council [the Sanhedrin]—met to discuss their next step. They bound Jesus, led him away, and took him to Pilate, the Roman governor. (NLT)
One single verse…but as the notes in my study Bible* state, these few words speak volumes. Here is the note;
Why did the Jewish leaders send Jesus to Pilate, the Roman governor? The Romans had taken away the Jews’ right to inflict capital punishment; so in order for Jesus to be condemned to death, he had to be sentenced by a Roman leader. The Jewish leaders wanted Jesus executed on a cross, a method of death that they believed brought a curse from God. They hope to persuade the people that Jesus was cursed, not blessed, by God.
This belief was founded on Deuteronomy 21:23.
…the body must not remain hanging from the tree overnight. You must bury the body that same day, for anyone who is hung [who is hung on a tree] is cursed in the sight of God. In this way, you will prevent the defilement of the land the Lord your God is giving you as your special possession. (NLT)
They may have considered themselves scholars of God’s Law but in their foolishness, they were condemning the Author of the Law for in Galatians 3:13 it states,
But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” (NLT)
And this verse then reminds me of a statement by Joseph son of Jacob (Israel) in the book of Genesis when he revealed himself to his brothers who had sold him into slavery, setting the stage for his eventual rise to power in Egypt, with only Pharaoh himself holding more power than he. He said,
You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people. Genesis 50:20 (NLT)
God took what was meant to be a curse and made it to be a blessing for all of mankind! The goal of the Jewish leaders was to destroy and all along God’s goal was to save!
Lord Jesus, it makes no difference how awful this world becomes – it seems that it can get no worse – but regardless You – the sovereign King of all that has been, all that is and all that will be – You, Jesus, will have the final say! You will judge the living and the dead. You alone will save and You alone will condemn. Almighty God, Your will will be done!
*The Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
Aug 22nd, 2019, Thurs, 8:44 pm
A Timely Rooster
Father, I am so weary tonight. Help me to clearly hear You speak through the fog that is in my mind. Amen.
Mark 14:66-72 (<<click to read the passage)
Traditionally roosters are the alarm clock of the farm. As the first rays of sunlight break the horizon, they announce its arrival with a loud “cock-a-doodle-do”, if you will.
I’ve never lived on or near a farm to testify to that fact but one thing I can say is, they don’t limit themselves to crowing at the break of dawn. I’ve heard roosters belonging to neighbors of my in-law’s crow at all times of the day. The same goes for roosters on my bus route.
But I would dare say that the rooster in today’s passage was following his Creator’s directive. He was to crow twice and on cue to boot.
Poor Peter…he was where most disciples were not – in the courtyard of the high priest where Jesus was being tried – but he had reached the limit of his nerve.
Two times a servant girl grilled him on the fact that he was an associate of Jesus – and he emphatically denied it…two times!
Then one of the bystanders with whom the servant girl had spoken stated, “You are in fact one of them, for [it is clear from your accent, that] you are a Galilean, too.” v70 (AMP)
And this time “he began to invoke a curse [on himself] and to swear [an oath], ‘I do not know this man you are talking about!’” – denial number three…
And this time it was just a simple denial, he invoked a curse on himself. The footnotes of the Amplified Bible state,
In Judaism such a curse took the form of “May I always be afflicted if I am not being truthful,” or “May I bury my son if…,” or “May I never see the comfort of Zion and Jerusalem if…,” etc. (as found in the Talmud).
That was some pretty strong language! He was a fisherman, after all. But the words had no sooner left his mouth when that “rooster crowed the second time.”
You might as well have slapped Peter across the face! That instant the rooster crowed “Peter remembered what Jesus said to him: ‘Before a rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.’ And thinking of this, he began weeping [in anguish].” v72
Yes, he was standing in that courtyard with only John daring to stand any closer but in that instant, all of his efforts were for naught. He was undone by his own actions and had been called out (crowed out?) by a common farmyard animal. The rooster had proclaimed it for all to hear.
Lord Jesus, again Peter’s example stares us in the face and unfortunately for us many times it is a mirror. We are just as guilty as Peter was… But, praise Your name, we are not stuck in that predicament, no more than Peter was. We can humbly stand before You knowing that You understand us and though we have egregiously hurt You, You forgive us when we ask, for You love us beyond measure.
Forgive me, for I stand in that spot more often than I care to admit. Amen.
Aug 21st, 2019, Wed, 9:03 pm
Finger Pointers
What a day, Father! Good interactions, burdensome news, productive worship preparation, celebratory invitations, and sweet time with my favorite girl. I am so blessed to be where You have me! And You can use me in all circumstances.
“Hold me fast, let me stand in the hollow of Thy hand; keep me safe ‘til the storm passes by.” – Mosie Lister, 1958
♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦
Though there have been many good things about today, the burdensome news has been just that…burdensome. It has truly been weighing on my heart. It started yesterday and continued to build today. It only affects me indirectly but someone who I hold in high regard is in the midst of it.
My struggle with it all is that our society has overwhelmingly become a society of finger pointers. And it is not just discreet pointing with whispers uttered behind covering hands. We are all about yelling and accusing and blaming and shaming (a whole new twist to an old disgusting habit).
I strive to use Social Media for good – I share insights, humor and the beauty of God’s creation. But for many, it is a weapon to maim and hurt.
But it goes far beyond that medium and reaches from the heights of power to the depths of mediocrity. It really shouldn’t surprise me but a good part of our culture is as ungodly as all get out. (We serve ourselves and ourselves only!) But boy, are we quick to point out other’s faults. We are aghast that people would do the things they do. But of course, we are innocent! We are in no way guilty of any wrongdoing! (Insert sound of rejection buzzer!) We are all guilty!
For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Romans 3:23 (NLT)
As these thoughts have been going through my mind the last couple of days. First of all, I remember being told as a child that when you point your accusatory finger at someone that we cannot forget that we have three other fingers pointing back at us!
And then the story of the woman caught in adultery and brought before Jesus comes to mind. The Law of Moses called for the guilty parties to be stoned to death (note not just the woman but the man was guilty, but it was all an attempt to get Jesus in trouble). But Jesus was the Author of the Law, and his response?
“…let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” John 8:7 (NLT) (See Romans 3:23 above)
I sure wouldn’t be able to stand in that line. And that is why in this story, no one else could either.
Lord Jesus, help us, right now, to set our minds to the good! May we quit accusing and begin loving – not in the shallow way of humanity but in a genuine way. May we love the way we have been loved by a perfect, holy God. Enable us to make a difference in Your world!
Aug 20th, 2019, Tues, 7:56 pm
Put into Order
It is a Psalm kind of night!
1 O Lord, you have examined my heart
and know everything about me.
2 You know when I sit down or stand up.
You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
3 You see me when I travel
and when I rest at home.
You know everything I do.
4 You know what I am going to say
even before I say it, Lord.
5 You go before me and follow me.
You place your hand of blessing on my head.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too great for me to understand! Psalm 139:1-6
Mark 14:53-65 (<<click to read the passage)
As the portion of the Psalm above states, God knows “everything about me”. And I am a firm believer that God does all kinds of things through and for us when we are striving to be in the center of His will for our lives. But along with that is the fact that when we are outside of His will for our lives, I believe He limits what He does through and for us. I am not saying he won’t do those things but if we are out of sync with Him, things just don’t come together.
As we move on through this passage in Mark 14, we see this whole idea fleshed out pretty well. The religious leaders are literally drooling in anticipation of bringing this troublesome (putting it mildly!) young prophet’s life to an end. They have bided their time and, at least in their eyes, it is way overdue and He is going to get what is coming to Him.
You would think they would have had their act together. They’ve had ample time but, nope, it is one huge mess of contradictions. They can’t get their story straight – mainly because they can’t really make a case for execution for getting your feelings hurt and having your toes stepped on. It’s hard to make an argument for not playing the game the way they deemed it necessary to play.
Jesus clearly knew what was what. He knew the players – “everything about [them]”. He knew their thoughts. He knew their plans. He even knew their confusion. He also knew that He had to be given up as a sacrifice so that sin and death and hell – all of it – could once and for all be defeated. So, He did what He does best. He stepped in and put things into order (He excels at that!) for they certainly were all a jumble. He said what He needed to say to get the result that needed to be gotten. When asked, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” He said, “I am. And you will see the Son of Man seated in the place of power at God’s right hand and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
And with that – His fate was not sealed because fate had nothing to do with it – God’s plan…the plan He had put into place long before humanity had even come into being…with that plan, Jesus crossed the threshold. Jesus’ time had come. And He would reclaim His own. He would pay the price, that only He could pay, so that we, His beloved, could be redeemed.
Aug 19th, 2019, Mon, 8:41 pm
Give What You Can Give
Father, thank You for enabling me to communicate Your Word. You have called me to proclaim it and I pray that You continue to use me to do so. I am just a conduit for You to use. May it always be so. Amen.
Mark 14:53-65 (<<click to read the passage)
Many of us like Peter because we can relate to him on so many levels. He was definitely an “open mouth insert foot” kind of guy. He liberally spit out whatever popped into his head. And though in many ways he was a coarse, rough-necked fisherman, he also had a sensitive heart. Not that long ago, when asked, he had identified Jesus as the Messiah. No one had told him that. The disciples had not been discussing it – no, the Father had revealed it to him! (Matthew 16:15-17)
In the very next section of Scripture, Peter does what he swears he would never do – he denies Jesus. But I want to stress what we find at this point in time in Scripture.
They took Jesus to the high priest’s home where the leading priests, the elders, and the teachers of religious law had gathered. Meanwhile, Peter followed him at a distance and went right into the high priest’s courtyard. There he sat with the guards, warming himself by the fire. vs53-54
When they arrested Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, everyone scattered, and Peter was no exception. But the Gospels tell us that when Jesus was taken before the religious leadership to be placed on trial that another disciple who was “acquainted with the high priest…was allowed to enter the high priest’s courtyard with Jesus” (this was probably John) and Peter – catch that – Peter was close behind. He couldn’t enter the high priest’s home but remained in the courtyard. (John 18:15)
Yes, Peter in a matter of minutes would do the unthinkable – he would deny that he even knew Jesus – but now he is as close to Jesus as he can get. I’m sure Jesus’ heart ached for Peter but I would think that He found some solace in Peter’s presence. He would fail but he was sure trying hard to be what he needed to be. He didn’t understand what all was going on but that didn’t stop him from doing what he could. It may have been broken but he gave what he could give.
I, for one, think that that is highly commendable. He had to have been scared. He was confused but he loved Jesus and gave as much of himself as he could. It was only when the questions got pointed that he caved in on himself.
Lord Jesus, we are all vulnerable to failure. And I am sorry to say that way too often I am more than vulnerable – I just plain fail. But as You knew Peter, You know me. You know I love You. You know that I truly desire to do everything I can. But we both know that, in and of myself, I will fail… Only in You can I be victorious. Only in You can I be what You have called me to be. Peter learned that lesson the hard way…and so have I. Thank You for Your long-suffering love…
Aug 18th, 2019, Sun, 5:48 pm