What a day! Not for me but for our Lord and Saviour. I attended our Good Friday service this afternoon...it is also a veneration of the cross. I can't help it...for as long as I have been going, for as much as my mind knows that the real physical event happened 2,000 years ago, my heart breaks and when I go to kiss the feet of Jesus I weep!
Let me tell you a little story....there was a young man who died and went to hell. His pastor, who loved him, went down to hell to see if he could get him moved up to heaven. No luck. The young man's teachers and coach went down. Still no luck. His friends went down and pleaded his case. And again..no luck. Finally, his mother went down, knocked on the door of hell. When the devil opened the door she asked if she could be admitted to be with her son. There is no greater love than that of a mother...ahhhh, but there is....that of our heavenly father! Just as a mother's love for us is so encompassing that she was willing to sacrifice all to be at her son's side so much more is the love our FATHER has for us. He chose humaness. He experienced saddness, rejection, anguish, loneliness, and, yes, pain when at any time he could have chosen differently. He did it for your parents, your children, your friends, your enemies...he did it for you and me!
I gained alot from church last night...think about this. We all wear badges of love. A mother wears spit-up on her shoulder...her badge of love for her baby. Think about the flour sprinkled in a mother's hair and on her apron from spending the day in the kitchen baking her child's birthday cake...her badge of love for her child. How about the grease under a father's fingernails after fixing his young son's bicycle or his older son's car...his badge of love for his son. And don't forget the wedding rings that couples wear...yes, their badge of love for each other. Then what of the cross...that is the badge of our Saviour's love for us. Invision this...Jesus carried a long ladder over to the cross, crawled up the ladder and onto his badge of love for us...THE CROSS! Picturing him carrying the ladder and crawling up onto the cross helps to remind me that it was deliberate...purposely done...as he mounted those stairs he could have turned back at any time. But, no HE CRAWLED onto that cross deliberately and purposely so that he could wear that badge of love for us! For me, no words adequately describe the depth and breath of his love for us. I just know it is there, how big it is and how grateful I am for such a gift. Not just for myself but for my children, my siblings, my parents, my friends and yes, even my enemies.
So, tonight I am a little quieter than normal, a little meeker, a little more reflective, a little more poignant...on the other hand I am overflowing with thankfulness, gratitude, and honor. But most of all I am feeling definitely loved!
Happy Easter to all! Rejoice and declare his holy name...
Friday, April 06, 2007
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Simply True Love
I was disturbed by some articles and postings I read this morning. The opinions were ones I had heard before but had paid little attention to but for some reason this morning they saddened me! Out there are pages and pages of controversy about whether Jesus really died on Friday, whether the Bible commands us to wash each other's feet in church services tonight and if it was really Easter Sunday that he arose! These controversies reminded me of John 13:6-8 and Simon Peter's hold on legalism. Is this really what Jesus wanted us to gain from HIS ultimate sacrifice!
Remember I am a retired homeschooling mom and believe that you need to study your bible and understand what is being said. You should have opinions but this week and this week in particular you should be focusing on the meat of the passages. Do I care if Jesus was born on December 25?! NO! But I am definitely going to celebrate the birth of our king. Likewise, I don't care whether the washing of the disciples feet and the last supper was on a Thursday in April or a Monday in May! I have been going to Maunday Thursday services for my entire life. I have watched, while people I have greatly respected and admired have pulled off their shoes and socks. I have wept while my pastors, whom in my eyes are greatly respected, have knelt in front of their parishioners and humbly washed their feet! Then, for all my life, I sat at the Lord's table and taken his body and blood knowing what darkness there will be tomorrow for Jesus but what light that will be for me! For years I have felt the spirit of God move through our church during these symbolic gesture. I have seen others so moved, as I, by a taste of the realization of the enormity of Jesus' love for us through the washing of his disciples feet and the taking of his body and blood.
Yes, the service tonight might be mandated by some churches' doctrine...But it is to help bring us closer to God and to help us better understand His plan which unfolds in scripture! I read the following once about the events of this week and I am going to quote it because I could say it no better..."The meaning, then, is that Jesus, having loved his disciples prior to this great trial or crisis of his life, was not deterred from loving them by its approach, but continued to give the most precious and unmistakable evidences of his love down to the very hour of its arrival, being neither driven from such a course by the terrors of his coming hour nor wooed from it by the glorious prospects of returning to his Father". Tonight, all over the world, pastors will kneel at the feet of their parishioners in hopes of bringing God's word alive, to help open a tiny window into the sacrifice of Jesus for us, to honor and acknowledge the immense love that the Father has for us. Millions of people will come together at the Lord's table hearing the words,"Take it; this is my body....This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many". And poured out it will be tomorrow.
Over and over in the gospels there are tokens and evidence of his immense love for us. Being in human form Jesus was going to experience the betrayal, the torture, the anguish. As as he wept on Palm Sunday in Luke 19:40.. "As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, 'If you, even, you had only known on this day what would bring you peace..'", he also was sorrowful in the garden that night after the last supper..."My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me." Matthew 26:38. And then this verse is very powerful..."And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground." Luke 22:44. HIS love is so big, so infinite, so perfect, so encompassing, so immense that, even knowning what was before him, he chose to give his life for us.
There were disciples that missed the "meat" of what was happening. They brought a certain amount of legalizing and arrorgance into the last days of Jesus instead of grabbing the hem of his garments and spending those last days and hours close to our Father physically, emotionally and spiritually. And today, on christian web sites I see the same things happening. But I want to fully embrace the sacrifice and leave the debates and skeptism of when, how, and if to others. Last Sunday, I wanted to jump on that donkey with Jesus and hold onto him while he rode through the streets...couldn't do that but I was in church reaching my palms to the heavens and loudly proclaiming the hyms. Tonight, I will hang my head humbly when I see Jesus in the body of my pastor as he washes the feet of my fellow brothers and sisters. Tomorrow, I will gingerly and tenderly kiss the feet of my crucified Lord as he hangs on the cross in our wonderful sanctuary. And finally, on Sunday, I will put on my best dress and hat and joyfully exalt the name of my precious Saviour. After all, that is the least I can do for the one who sacrificed so much for me because he loves me with the purest and simplest form of "true love".
"I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them...I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am HE; I tell you the truth, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me. John 13:15-17,10-20
Remember I am a retired homeschooling mom and believe that you need to study your bible and understand what is being said. You should have opinions but this week and this week in particular you should be focusing on the meat of the passages. Do I care if Jesus was born on December 25?! NO! But I am definitely going to celebrate the birth of our king. Likewise, I don't care whether the washing of the disciples feet and the last supper was on a Thursday in April or a Monday in May! I have been going to Maunday Thursday services for my entire life. I have watched, while people I have greatly respected and admired have pulled off their shoes and socks. I have wept while my pastors, whom in my eyes are greatly respected, have knelt in front of their parishioners and humbly washed their feet! Then, for all my life, I sat at the Lord's table and taken his body and blood knowing what darkness there will be tomorrow for Jesus but what light that will be for me! For years I have felt the spirit of God move through our church during these symbolic gesture. I have seen others so moved, as I, by a taste of the realization of the enormity of Jesus' love for us through the washing of his disciples feet and the taking of his body and blood.
Yes, the service tonight might be mandated by some churches' doctrine...But it is to help bring us closer to God and to help us better understand His plan which unfolds in scripture! I read the following once about the events of this week and I am going to quote it because I could say it no better..."The meaning, then, is that Jesus, having loved his disciples prior to this great trial or crisis of his life, was not deterred from loving them by its approach, but continued to give the most precious and unmistakable evidences of his love down to the very hour of its arrival, being neither driven from such a course by the terrors of his coming hour nor wooed from it by the glorious prospects of returning to his Father". Tonight, all over the world, pastors will kneel at the feet of their parishioners in hopes of bringing God's word alive, to help open a tiny window into the sacrifice of Jesus for us, to honor and acknowledge the immense love that the Father has for us. Millions of people will come together at the Lord's table hearing the words,"Take it; this is my body....This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many". And poured out it will be tomorrow.
Over and over in the gospels there are tokens and evidence of his immense love for us. Being in human form Jesus was going to experience the betrayal, the torture, the anguish. As as he wept on Palm Sunday in Luke 19:40.. "As he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, 'If you, even, you had only known on this day what would bring you peace..'", he also was sorrowful in the garden that night after the last supper..."My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me." Matthew 26:38. And then this verse is very powerful..."And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground." Luke 22:44. HIS love is so big, so infinite, so perfect, so encompassing, so immense that, even knowning what was before him, he chose to give his life for us.
There were disciples that missed the "meat" of what was happening. They brought a certain amount of legalizing and arrorgance into the last days of Jesus instead of grabbing the hem of his garments and spending those last days and hours close to our Father physically, emotionally and spiritually. And today, on christian web sites I see the same things happening. But I want to fully embrace the sacrifice and leave the debates and skeptism of when, how, and if to others. Last Sunday, I wanted to jump on that donkey with Jesus and hold onto him while he rode through the streets...couldn't do that but I was in church reaching my palms to the heavens and loudly proclaiming the hyms. Tonight, I will hang my head humbly when I see Jesus in the body of my pastor as he washes the feet of my fellow brothers and sisters. Tomorrow, I will gingerly and tenderly kiss the feet of my crucified Lord as he hangs on the cross in our wonderful sanctuary. And finally, on Sunday, I will put on my best dress and hat and joyfully exalt the name of my precious Saviour. After all, that is the least I can do for the one who sacrificed so much for me because he loves me with the purest and simplest form of "true love".
"I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them...I am telling you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe that I am HE; I tell you the truth, whoever accepts anyone I send accepts me and whoever accepts me accepts the one who sent me. John 13:15-17,10-20
Tuesday, April 03, 2007
Three in One vs. Four in One
How big is this week to you? It is a really big week for me. This week is a three-in-oner! It is spring vacation, Master's Week (one of the most prestigious PGA tournaments) and Holy Week .
The schools, including the colleges and universities, in the area are always given the week of the Master's golf tournament off. It is one of the most important tournaments of the circuit and played right here in our town. Some residents of our fair town rent their homes out to patrons coming to the tournament. A large portion of us work the tournament, either inside the grounds...gift shops, resturants, maintanence, housekeeping...or double shifts in town to handle the visitors that come in. There are sporting event companies that bring groups of people here and they need van drivers and hostesses for their clients. Thousands of people descend on our southern doorstep and transform it into one big happy town. The sun shines, the azaleas are in bloom, the dogwoods glisten and, especially if you like golf, LIFE IS GOOD.
Spring break!!! Not much needs to be said. Breaking out of the winter doldrums with a trip to the lake or the beach or just having time to work out in the garden is much needed by now. I remember when I was a young person in school (versus an old person in school) and I knew that spring vacation meant that the end of school was approaching soon! In school, on Friday, there was an air of lightheartedness. There was alot of joking and laughing and not much schooling. Everyone was talking about what they were going to do this week. In fact, on Friday, attendance was down. Some decided to leave early for their spring vacation. Whether you physically go somewhere or not, whether you have some big plans to work or attend the Master's, whether you have things to get done at home or just want to rest, LIFE IS GOOD.
That got me to thinking about Holy Week. Jesus started this week off, on the surface, in an exciting way. He was the center of attention and was hailed as he rode through the streets. Jews threw their cloaks onto the road and others laid down branches that they had cut from their fields. "...the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: 'Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest'". Luke 19:37-38
But yet Jesus knew what was coming. He knew what was ahead this week. He knew in this one week he was going from being hailed as a king to having his authority challenged, to being betrayed by one of his own, being arrested and tried, tortured, humiliated and then hung on a wooden cross to die a slow and horrendous death. The following little passage spoke volumes to me because knowing what lay ahead for himself Jesus loved enough to weep and feel compassion for others.."as he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, 'If you,even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace-but now it is hidden from your eyes...because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to you.'" Luke 19:41, 44b.
This week I can choose the three-in-oner...or I have another option...a four-in-oner! We have a schedule of events this week that are unsurpased. Forget spring break and the Master's golf tournament. Instead we can focus on our Master's week...the second option. This week is enormous in our spiritual lives. We have four life changing events...the triumphant entrance into Jerusalem, the last supper, the crucifixation, and the resurrection. How much time have you spent since Sunday praying and studying and talking to God? Are we spending as much time spiritually contemplating where Jesus is headed this week as we are worrying about the temps at the beach? Is this just another holiday...travel and sightseeing to accomplish, presents and clothes to shop for, a big meal to focus on, guests to entertain? Do we have as much emotion for the spiritual events of this week as we do for the events of a golf tournament or how our vacation will turn out? Is this week just a passing thought or have you spent time really taking in the events of this week? How many excuses are we going to find to not attend church on Thursday and Friday?
In this one week all came together...Jesus is establishing God's eternal kingdom, a reason for the greatest celebration of all. How much honor are we giving to it?! Give yourself a little test to see and then, if need be, adjust your priorities. Fall at the feet of our Lord and ask him to help you to honor His sacrifice, not just in our talk but in our walk. Try to keep your focus on what our Saviour is doing each day this week so that you can be humbled and truly grateful for this ultimate sacrifice. And don't worry, I will be back on Thursday and Friday to give you more to think about!
"What I have said I will bring about; what I have planned, that will I do...I am bringing my righteousness near it isnot far away; and my salvation will not be delatyed. I will grant salvation to Zion, my splendor to Israel" Issaiah 47:11b,13
The schools, including the colleges and universities, in the area are always given the week of the Master's golf tournament off. It is one of the most important tournaments of the circuit and played right here in our town. Some residents of our fair town rent their homes out to patrons coming to the tournament. A large portion of us work the tournament, either inside the grounds...gift shops, resturants, maintanence, housekeeping...or double shifts in town to handle the visitors that come in. There are sporting event companies that bring groups of people here and they need van drivers and hostesses for their clients. Thousands of people descend on our southern doorstep and transform it into one big happy town. The sun shines, the azaleas are in bloom, the dogwoods glisten and, especially if you like golf, LIFE IS GOOD.
Spring break!!! Not much needs to be said. Breaking out of the winter doldrums with a trip to the lake or the beach or just having time to work out in the garden is much needed by now. I remember when I was a young person in school (versus an old person in school) and I knew that spring vacation meant that the end of school was approaching soon! In school, on Friday, there was an air of lightheartedness. There was alot of joking and laughing and not much schooling. Everyone was talking about what they were going to do this week. In fact, on Friday, attendance was down. Some decided to leave early for their spring vacation. Whether you physically go somewhere or not, whether you have some big plans to work or attend the Master's, whether you have things to get done at home or just want to rest, LIFE IS GOOD.
That got me to thinking about Holy Week. Jesus started this week off, on the surface, in an exciting way. He was the center of attention and was hailed as he rode through the streets. Jews threw their cloaks onto the road and others laid down branches that they had cut from their fields. "...the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: 'Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest'". Luke 19:37-38
But yet Jesus knew what was coming. He knew what was ahead this week. He knew in this one week he was going from being hailed as a king to having his authority challenged, to being betrayed by one of his own, being arrested and tried, tortured, humiliated and then hung on a wooden cross to die a slow and horrendous death. The following little passage spoke volumes to me because knowing what lay ahead for himself Jesus loved enough to weep and feel compassion for others.."as he approached Jerusalem and saw the city, he wept over it and said, 'If you,even you, had only known on this day what would bring you peace-but now it is hidden from your eyes...because you did not recognize the time of God's coming to you.'" Luke 19:41, 44b.
This week I can choose the three-in-oner...or I have another option...a four-in-oner! We have a schedule of events this week that are unsurpased. Forget spring break and the Master's golf tournament. Instead we can focus on our Master's week...the second option. This week is enormous in our spiritual lives. We have four life changing events...the triumphant entrance into Jerusalem, the last supper, the crucifixation, and the resurrection. How much time have you spent since Sunday praying and studying and talking to God? Are we spending as much time spiritually contemplating where Jesus is headed this week as we are worrying about the temps at the beach? Is this just another holiday...travel and sightseeing to accomplish, presents and clothes to shop for, a big meal to focus on, guests to entertain? Do we have as much emotion for the spiritual events of this week as we do for the events of a golf tournament or how our vacation will turn out? Is this week just a passing thought or have you spent time really taking in the events of this week? How many excuses are we going to find to not attend church on Thursday and Friday?
In this one week all came together...Jesus is establishing God's eternal kingdom, a reason for the greatest celebration of all. How much honor are we giving to it?! Give yourself a little test to see and then, if need be, adjust your priorities. Fall at the feet of our Lord and ask him to help you to honor His sacrifice, not just in our talk but in our walk. Try to keep your focus on what our Saviour is doing each day this week so that you can be humbled and truly grateful for this ultimate sacrifice. And don't worry, I will be back on Thursday and Friday to give you more to think about!
"What I have said I will bring about; what I have planned, that will I do...I am bringing my righteousness near it isnot far away; and my salvation will not be delatyed. I will grant salvation to Zion, my splendor to Israel" Issaiah 47:11b,13
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Learning from time in the desert
Yes, I am back after a loooong spell away...Jesus spent forty days in the desert, I have spent six months there! Well, not really in the desert, just in school. At times, talking spiritually, it has seemed like the desert. Instead of studying the historical books, I have had my nose stuck in medical terminology and anatomy. I yearn to be an expert on the book of Isaiah but instead have become quite knowledgable in Microsoft Word. But my life is changing, just as the life of Jesus is changing dramatically this week. I will talk about my life later, right now I am desperate to share with you the Lord has laid on my heart. It is my Saviour I want to share!
I want to start with the season of Lent. We are almost to the end of Lent and hopefully we have been taking a really good look at ourselves. I think of it like going to a day spa for the full treatment....you take off your clothes and wrap yourself in a towel. They take all the pretty polish off your toes and fingers and stuff cotton between each toe. Then they wash all the make-up off your face. They put hot wax all over your top lip and under your eyebrows. They brush all the body and curl from your hair, wash it and put color all over it. Then after twisting it up on your head they put a plastic bag over it or even worse foil your hair. Looking in the mirror, you don't feel beautiful, you feel stripped, naked, ugly, and you can see every flaw in your skin, every wrinkle you have, and every bald spot! To become beautified (as they say) we had to be stripped down to the bare us. Spiritually we should have done the same... stripped all the fluff away and taken a good hard look at the real me! Lent should prepare us spiritually for the gift of the ressurection and in the examination of ourselves we should be humbled and growing closer to God.
So here are some lessons I have found! First, if we are not tempted we will never know if we will really obey. We can not show obedience if we haven't had the chance to choose to obey. Our convictions are only strong if they hold up under pressure. Jesus was tempted in the desert and he had to hold up to the pressure. This gives us an example of how we should respond when we are tempted and tempted we will be. But temptation is a good thing. It strengthens us and allows us to evaluate whether we are just talking the talk or really walking we profess to believe.
Jesus was tempted when he was tired, hungry, alone and most vulerable. We need to pay attention to this and realize that the devil is looking for that window of time we are vulnerable so that he can tempt us. When we are under stress, physical or emotional we are vulnerable. When we are lonely, tired, when we have big decisions to make; he is there waiting to pounce on us. We must stay on guard at all times against Satan's attacks. Jesus is there for us, he understands that we are tempted....Hebrews 4:15 "(Jesus) has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin." He is willing and able to help us. We need to come to him!
Second, Satan used natural desires to tempt Jesus. Jesus was hungry...that is a natural desire. How often does Satan use natural desires to tempt us? Money is a natural desire, acknowledgment, attention, love and sex are all perfectly normal desires. In God's time and God's way these things can be satisfied. But, when we give in to the temptations of the devil and give in to these normal desires in the wrong time and the wrong way we are in trouble. Jesus was hungry...and he had the power to turn the stones into bread but the timing was wrong. God had him in the desert to fast, not to eat! Deuteronomy 8:3 says, "He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord."
Thirdly, Satan tried to tempt Jesus by telling him to jump from the highest point of the temple. He told Jesus to throw himself down and God would send angels to scoup him up. He was testing the emotional human need for security. Would God protect his son? Will God protect us, our families, our children? How many times does Satan use this in our lives to keep us unsteady, unfocused, unsure?! Over and over and over again! But God is not our magician in the sky. We cannot ask God to pass some security test on our demand just to reassure ourselves that his protection is over us. It says in Deuteronomy 6:16, "Do not put the Lord your God to the test". We have to know our bible, trust the words of our heavenly father and know that he is ALWAYS watching over us and protecting us. After all, he made us and loves us so much that he surrendered his son to a horrific death for us! "...this is what the Lord says-he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel; 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour." Isaiah 43:1-3. Need I say more?!
And the fourth way Satan tried to tempt Jesus out there in that old desert was by appealing to his need for status, power, achievement. Satan took Jesus to a very high mountain and enticed him with all the "kingdoms of the world and their splendor". All these could belong to Jesus if he would just bow down to Satan and worship him. How quick and easy that would be! How many times has the devil tempted us with the psychological need for power, achievement, status? How many times have we, in little ways or large ways, bought into that. Do we crave the materialism and power that the world has to offer? Take a really good look at yourself. Do you want to be in charge of that committee to serve the Lord your God or because it makes you feel powerful and better than the rest. Do you only offer yourself and your service to things that put you out there in the public display, i.e. bible study leader, Sunday school teacher, youth leader, soccer team mom. Would you be as quick to committ if no one knew anything about you and your service? Would you be as quick to offer your service if you were never seen and your name was never mentioned? No power, no admiration, no significance that the world can see. The real truth was that the kingdoms were not Satan's to give. They belong to our creator, our God. The temption for Jesus was to side step God's plan and take the world as a political ruler right then. But then what of God's plan for Jesus to save the world from sin. Satan wanted Jesus to focus on wordly power and not the plan of God. Thank God for us that Jesus resisted that temptation. Again, the scripture Jesus himself quoted to Satan was "Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only" Deuteronomy 6:13.
Will we be tempted? Yes, even Jesus was tempted. Will we fail and sometimes buy into temptation? Yes, but we have the gift of forgiveness and redemption because Jesus stayed on track with God's plan and didn't give into temptation. Can we sin less? Yes, because we have tools to help us along. We have a loving and forgiving Father who watches over us. A father that is with us always and we can call on at any time. He has given us his words to gain strength and direction from. He has also given us examples on how we should respond to temptation, his own son and his trials and tribulation in the desert. And then we also have family, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ that will help us here on earth to keep to God's plan and resist straying on a plan of the devil.
As we head into this most holy of weeks let us take a real good look at ourselves. If we haven't already, let us kneel before our Father and beg his forgiveness and ask for his help. Let us resist temptation and surrender ourselves to the Father's plan each and every day. Help us to exit the day spa being humbled, stengthened and growing closer to our Saviour!
"Listen to me, my people; hear me, my nation: The law will go out from me; my justice will bcome a light to the nations. My righteousness draws near speedily, my salvation is on the way, and my arm will bring justice to the nations." Isaiah 51:4-5
I want to start with the season of Lent. We are almost to the end of Lent and hopefully we have been taking a really good look at ourselves. I think of it like going to a day spa for the full treatment....you take off your clothes and wrap yourself in a towel. They take all the pretty polish off your toes and fingers and stuff cotton between each toe. Then they wash all the make-up off your face. They put hot wax all over your top lip and under your eyebrows. They brush all the body and curl from your hair, wash it and put color all over it. Then after twisting it up on your head they put a plastic bag over it or even worse foil your hair. Looking in the mirror, you don't feel beautiful, you feel stripped, naked, ugly, and you can see every flaw in your skin, every wrinkle you have, and every bald spot! To become beautified (as they say) we had to be stripped down to the bare us. Spiritually we should have done the same... stripped all the fluff away and taken a good hard look at the real me! Lent should prepare us spiritually for the gift of the ressurection and in the examination of ourselves we should be humbled and growing closer to God.
So here are some lessons I have found! First, if we are not tempted we will never know if we will really obey. We can not show obedience if we haven't had the chance to choose to obey. Our convictions are only strong if they hold up under pressure. Jesus was tempted in the desert and he had to hold up to the pressure. This gives us an example of how we should respond when we are tempted and tempted we will be. But temptation is a good thing. It strengthens us and allows us to evaluate whether we are just talking the talk or really walking we profess to believe.
Jesus was tempted when he was tired, hungry, alone and most vulerable. We need to pay attention to this and realize that the devil is looking for that window of time we are vulnerable so that he can tempt us. When we are under stress, physical or emotional we are vulnerable. When we are lonely, tired, when we have big decisions to make; he is there waiting to pounce on us. We must stay on guard at all times against Satan's attacks. Jesus is there for us, he understands that we are tempted....Hebrews 4:15 "(Jesus) has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin." He is willing and able to help us. We need to come to him!
Second, Satan used natural desires to tempt Jesus. Jesus was hungry...that is a natural desire. How often does Satan use natural desires to tempt us? Money is a natural desire, acknowledgment, attention, love and sex are all perfectly normal desires. In God's time and God's way these things can be satisfied. But, when we give in to the temptations of the devil and give in to these normal desires in the wrong time and the wrong way we are in trouble. Jesus was hungry...and he had the power to turn the stones into bread but the timing was wrong. God had him in the desert to fast, not to eat! Deuteronomy 8:3 says, "He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord."
Thirdly, Satan tried to tempt Jesus by telling him to jump from the highest point of the temple. He told Jesus to throw himself down and God would send angels to scoup him up. He was testing the emotional human need for security. Would God protect his son? Will God protect us, our families, our children? How many times does Satan use this in our lives to keep us unsteady, unfocused, unsure?! Over and over and over again! But God is not our magician in the sky. We cannot ask God to pass some security test on our demand just to reassure ourselves that his protection is over us. It says in Deuteronomy 6:16, "Do not put the Lord your God to the test". We have to know our bible, trust the words of our heavenly father and know that he is ALWAYS watching over us and protecting us. After all, he made us and loves us so much that he surrendered his son to a horrific death for us! "...this is what the Lord says-he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel; 'Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour." Isaiah 43:1-3. Need I say more?!
And the fourth way Satan tried to tempt Jesus out there in that old desert was by appealing to his need for status, power, achievement. Satan took Jesus to a very high mountain and enticed him with all the "kingdoms of the world and their splendor". All these could belong to Jesus if he would just bow down to Satan and worship him. How quick and easy that would be! How many times has the devil tempted us with the psychological need for power, achievement, status? How many times have we, in little ways or large ways, bought into that. Do we crave the materialism and power that the world has to offer? Take a really good look at yourself. Do you want to be in charge of that committee to serve the Lord your God or because it makes you feel powerful and better than the rest. Do you only offer yourself and your service to things that put you out there in the public display, i.e. bible study leader, Sunday school teacher, youth leader, soccer team mom. Would you be as quick to committ if no one knew anything about you and your service? Would you be as quick to offer your service if you were never seen and your name was never mentioned? No power, no admiration, no significance that the world can see. The real truth was that the kingdoms were not Satan's to give. They belong to our creator, our God. The temption for Jesus was to side step God's plan and take the world as a political ruler right then. But then what of God's plan for Jesus to save the world from sin. Satan wanted Jesus to focus on wordly power and not the plan of God. Thank God for us that Jesus resisted that temptation. Again, the scripture Jesus himself quoted to Satan was "Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only" Deuteronomy 6:13.
Will we be tempted? Yes, even Jesus was tempted. Will we fail and sometimes buy into temptation? Yes, but we have the gift of forgiveness and redemption because Jesus stayed on track with God's plan and didn't give into temptation. Can we sin less? Yes, because we have tools to help us along. We have a loving and forgiving Father who watches over us. A father that is with us always and we can call on at any time. He has given us his words to gain strength and direction from. He has also given us examples on how we should respond to temptation, his own son and his trials and tribulation in the desert. And then we also have family, friends, brothers and sisters in Christ that will help us here on earth to keep to God's plan and resist straying on a plan of the devil.
As we head into this most holy of weeks let us take a real good look at ourselves. If we haven't already, let us kneel before our Father and beg his forgiveness and ask for his help. Let us resist temptation and surrender ourselves to the Father's plan each and every day. Help us to exit the day spa being humbled, stengthened and growing closer to our Saviour!
"Listen to me, my people; hear me, my nation: The law will go out from me; my justice will bcome a light to the nations. My righteousness draws near speedily, my salvation is on the way, and my arm will bring justice to the nations." Isaiah 51:4-5
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