Happy Easter!
Bookmark To:
{ 4 comments }
Posts tagged as:
Jesus
OK, so I said I had some more Christmas crafts to do this week.
David and I, mostly it was just me this time, made this banner.
I just printed some letters out on card stock, cut them out and then traced them on some scrapbooking paper. Most of this was too difficult for David, but I thought he would at least help me with the glueing. He’s fascinated by adhesives of all kinds. You should see what he can do with a roll of Duct Tape. (Or Duck Tape as he calls it.)
But David was totally not interested at all in my little project. Well, he did pick out the different paper patterns that I used.
This was actually inspired by a project I found on Because Babies Grow-up .
Boy, do you know how hard it is to find anything Christmas related, craft projects or otherwise, that actually have something to do with Jesus? It’s really pretty sad.
So that was our Merry activity for Wednesday.
A river flows through the little town that we live – I’d say near, but we’re about 2, 657 miles out in the country beyond that town, though our mailing address bears its name. There’s a nice walkway that goes along the river through the center of town, and every year the city puts up a large Christmas lights display along it. You can see them from the road OK, but it’s our tradition to take a walk every year along the riverwalk and little parks that it connects to see the lights up close.
So last night we bundled up and headed out.
The old houses and store fronts downtown have a pretty, Victorian feel, and at the center of town is an old brick factory building that used to house a paper mill. By day it’s an ugly, abandoned industrial lot, but at night during Christmas time it’s lit up with candles in the windows, and looks very picturesque in the dark against the snow. The old mill race is still there along the river, and also train tracks that once brought and took loads from the mill.
If someone would give me a really fancy DSLR camera I’d take pictures of it for you. My Kodak Easy Share reveled nothing but a big, black hole unfortunately.
But the light displays photographed better. Here’s David by the sleigh.
The carousel is my favorite.
This train is actually on the old railroad bridge that goes across the river to the mill.
And then there are these frogs that sit on a dock floating on the river. David loves the frogs. The city places a speaker outside next to the frog display, and you can “hear them” croaking Jingle Bells. I think that’s kind of clever and funny, but then I’m easily entertained.
Bookmark To:
{ 1 comment }
The night before Jesus’ death on the cross, after The Last Supper, he goes with his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane. It is there that we see Jesus at what I think is his most human. It is a poignant, touching and even heart-wrenching scene. While Jesus was holy, perfect and with out sin, he was not with out the ability to feel emotional and physical pain.
Mark describes this event in chapter 14 of his gospel. Jesus tells the the disciples,
“My soul is over-whelmed with sorrow to the point of death,”
and asks them to keep watch while he prays. The Mark says after that, “he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him.”
Mark records Jesus’ prayer as this,
“Abba, Father, everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
Luke expands on this in his gospel in chapter 22 verses 43-44 saying after that, “An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.”
Jesus returns to the disciples only to find that they’ve been sleeping as his agonizes over what he knows will come in the morning. Two more times Jesus leaves to pray and returns to find them sleeping. The last time he returns he knows there is no other option.
“Are you still sleeping? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”
Guards who work for the Jewish Chief Priests arrive. Judas points out who Jesus is by kissing him. The guards take him way to appear before the Chief Priests. As he’s being hauled off Jesus says,
“Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with clubs and swords to capture me? Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple and the courts, and you did not arrest me, But the scriptures must be fulfilled.”
Then Mark writes perhaps one of the saddest statements in the Bible, verse 50 of chapter 14, “Then everyone deserted him and fled.”
We can only imagine Jesus mental turmoil that night. He knew in a few hours he would be subjected to beatings so severe those alone should have killed him. Then he would be forced to carry his own heavy cross to the site of of Crucifixion. They would pound nails through his hands and feet to hang him on the cross. They would place a crown of thorns upon his head. They would mock him and ridicule him even as he was dying. They would offer him only vinegar to quench his thirst. They would pierce his side with a sword.
Jesus suffered real physical pain the day he was crucified. That night he is so beside himself with the burden he must carry that he feels the knowledge of it alone is enough to kill him. Of course he cried out to God, asking if there was any other way. In his prayer he calls God “Abba”. Abba is a very intimate Hebrew word used between father and child, like our English word Daddy. The King of Israel, the Son of God, lies prostrate on the ground like a child crying out for his Daddy, asking him to spare him the coming pain. Yet he understands the ultimate decision is God’s. He knows he must do as God commands and fulfill his plan. “Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
Haven’t we all been there? Facing some insurmountable situation, at our wits’ end, nowhere else to turn? Feeling that certainly this trial will be the death of us? The only thing left to do is humble ourselves and cry out to God.
God answered Jesus by sending an angel to strengthen him. But he did not take the difficult task of dying on the cross from him.
Has God ever laid a task out before you to complete or alloed you to be in a situation that was difficult? Something you would rather not do? Didn’t you bargain with him? Beg him give you another route to take?
Jesus is in such despair the Bible tells us that he sweat blood. I have felt grief, I have felt fear, but never more than what brought tears to my eyes. I can not imagine the inner struggle it must take to cause a person to sweat blood.
When Jesus sees the armed men coming for him, he knows it is time for him to fulfill God’s plan for him. He doesn’t try to flee, he doesn’t try to physically overcome his captors. He goes willingly, even speaking with a hint of humor and sarcasm in his voice.
“Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with clubs and swords to capture me?”
To put it in today’s term, “Get real! I’ve been hangin’ around here all this time and never shown any threat of violence. Why do you think I would now? Come, on. Is all this really necessary? Let’s just get this over with!”
In fact, before Jesus is taken off, hot-headed Peter cuts the ear off one of the men. Jesus heals him. Not the action of a hostile criminal.
Jesus is taken away and as Luke says, everyone deserted him. Have you ever been in the midst of difficult times and felt alone? Perhaps people who you thought were your friends or even family members who you believed loved you, abandoned you rather than offering their support.
God didn’t have to come to us in human form as Jesus. Jesus didn’t have to suffer and die on the cross. Surely our all-knowing, all-powerful God could have devised any number of ways to cleanse our sins and provide our salvation. Or God could have just smote us all, wiped mankind off the earth all together, and started over.
But God didn’t. He came to us as a baby with humble beginnings. He grew into a man who had no possessions or home. A man who gave his life in the most terrible kind of suffering for us that we might live eternally with him in Heaven someday.
God loves us. He loves us so much that he was willing to walk more than a few miles in our shoes. No matter the hardship you are facing there is always one you can turn to who understands. Jesus knows your physical pain. Jesus knows your emotional suffering. Jesus understands when you ask, “God, isn’t there any other way?” Jesus knows the paralyzing fears you face. Jesus has felt the sting of loneliness.
But even if everyone else has left you, Jesus will not abandon you. Jesus will be with you always. Jesus knows the strength God will give you to face tomorrow. Jesus knows the comfort God will bring to your grief. Jesus knows God will be faithful to complete his work.
You can not say, “Jesus, you just can not understand.” He does, and he wants to take you to his Daddy, your Daddy. He wants you to know his Father as intimatley as he does.
No Not One
Word Written by Johnson Oatman, Jr.
There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus
No, not one! No, not one!
None else could heal all our souls diseases
No, not one! No, not one!
Jesus knows all about our struggles
He will guide till the day is done
There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus
No, not one! No, not one!
No friend like Him is so high and holy
No, not one! No, not one!
And yet no friend is so meek and lowly
No, not one! No, not one!
There’s not an hour that He is not near us
No, not one! No, not one!
No night so dark but His love can cheer us
No, not one! No, not one!
Bookmark To:
{ 0 comments }
Matthew 28
“After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.’ Now I have told you.”
So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them. “Greetings,” he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshiped him. Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”
Maybe it just seems too fantastic of a story. Some one dead and buried came back to life? Everything you know about the human existence tells you it’s not possible for Jesus Christ to be resurrected after being crucified on the cross. But it did happen.
There is solid evidence that proves Jesus did come back from the dead. Truth or Tradition is a website dedicated to spreading the truth of Jesus Christ. They’ve published a booklet, Beyond a Reasonable Doubt – 23 Arguments for the Historical Validity of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. You can read it in its entirety on line and order a free copy. Here are just a few of the arguments they highlight.
1. The resurrection narratives have the ring of historical truth
The resurrection narratives bear unmistakable signs of being historically accurate. The earliness of these accounts, at a time when hostile witnesses were present, would have made a fabrication unlikely and dangerous. There is agreement on the main facts and great variety in the witnesses given, yet they are not a mere repetition of some standardized story with all the discrepancies worked out. Indeed, the accounts of Christ’s resurrection appearances are clearly independent of one another, as their surface dissimilarities suggest.
3. The empty tomb is a historical given
No reputable New Testament historian doubts the historical fact that the tomb in which Christ was placed after his crucifixion was empty. Therefore, there are only three explanations for it. Either his enemies took the body, his friends took the body, or Jesus was raised from the dead. The first possibility is extremely unlikely, because his enemies would have certainly displayed his body if they could have, in order to humiliate his disciples, quell the rumors of his resurrection, as well as to cut short any new religious movement that threatened their Mosaic traditions.
It is equally unlikely that his friends would have taken his body, because after his crucifixion they were profoundly disappointed and discouraged men who did not believe that he would be resurrected. It is absurd to think that under these conditions they would invent a scheme in which they would steal away the body to fabricate a story they obviously did not believe.
7. His enemies would have produced his dead body to silence the believers
If he did not rise from the dead, what became of his body? If his enemies stole it and never showed it openly, that would have encouraged the very rumors of a resurrection that they were very anxious to prevent. But the decisive proof that his enemies did not take the body is that they surely would have quickly produced it with great fanfare, for they stopped short of nothing to discredit the story.
9. A non-Christian historian testifies in support of the resurrection
Josephus, the first-century Jewish historian, wrote about Jesus Christ and the growth of Christianity as follows:
And when Pilate, at the suggestion of the principal men amongst us, had condemned him to the cross, those that loved him at the first did not forsake him; for he appeared to them alive again the third day; as the divine prophets had foretold these and ten thousand other wonderful things concerning him. And the tribe of Christians, so named from him, are not extinct at this day.
Though some have tried to dismiss this corroborating secular testimony as fraudulent, this is unlikely because Josephus’ writings were well received at the time of their writing by both Jews and Romans. He was even made an honorary Roman citizen.
16. The unanimous testimony of eye-witnesses, who could not all have been deceived or deluded
Some critics say that the early Christians had a vision or an hallucination of Christ after his death, in the same way people today claim to have “seen” the pop icon Elvis Presley. Could it not have been an ecstatic vision? A dream? A fantasy of an excited imagination? Perhaps an apparition? None of these is at all probable, for different groups of people do not keep on seeing the same hallucination. 500 people in a crowd would not all dream the same dream at the same time.
Go ahead and question the reality of the resurrection and of Christ, then do the research. Lee Strobel, one of the most well-known Christian apologists today did just that. A staunch atheist with a law degree, he set out to prove the story of Christ was false. Instead, the evidence he uncovered through his research so overwhelmingly proved that the Biblical Jesus and the events involving him were true, that he became a Christian. He went on to write several books including The Case for Christ in which he details the evidence that changed his mind. Josh McDowell was another skeptic. He too set out to prove Christianity false. After examining the life of Christ he also came to the only conclusion that made any sense, it was true. He accepted Christ as his savior. McDowell wrote the book Evidence that Demands a Verdict where he examines the C.S. Lewis Trilemmathat if Jesus is not the Lord he can either only be a liar or a lunatic. Would a liar die for his claim? Jesus was wise, self-controlled, loving even toward his enimes. None of those characterize a lunitic. I would encourage to read either of these books as well as C.S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity where he writes about the trillema if you have questions about the truth of Christ, or if you want to be able to better answer others’ questions.
The Easter season is the perfect time to begin to discover the truth of salvation offered to you through the sacrifce on the cross and ressurection of Jesus Christ. If you already believe, learn more so that you can share it with others.
1 Corinthians 15:20-22
“But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.”
Bookmark To:
{ 7 comments }
Mark Chapter 11:1-9
As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, saying to them, “Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you doing this?’ tell him, ‘The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.’ ” They went and found a colt outside in the street, tied at a doorway. As they untied it, some people standing there asked, “What are you doing, untying that colt?” They answered as Jesus had told them to, and the people let them go. When they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks over it, he sat on it. Many people spread their cloaks on the road, while others spread branches they had cut in the fields. Those who went ahead and those who followed shouted,
“Hosanna!”
“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”
“Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David!”
“Hosanna in the highest!”
Jesus entered Jerusalem and went to the temple. He looked around at everything, but since it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the Twelve.
The week leading up to that first Easter began with what we celebrated yesterday as Palm Sunday. Jesus road into Jerusalem on a donkey, declaring himself King of Israel.
Hundreds gathered in the street to see him. They honored him by waving palm branches and scattering them in the street as he passed by.
They shouted “Hosanna!”
Only days later would these same people shout, “Crucify him!”
Why?
The Jews wanted an earthly king. They wanted someone to buy their independence as a nation with military might, and give them worldly power and gains.
Hosanna is translated as, “Please save us now! Please help us now!” Jesus did come to save the Jews, but not the way they wanted. He came offering eternal salvation, not power and wealth.
Those people who lined the street that day missed the big picture of eternity, because they were to worried about their earthly agenda.
Jesus came to save not only the Jews, but each and everyone of us. If you do not know him this Eater season, call out to him, “Please save me now!” Believe on him, receive his love and acceptance. Take the gift of salvation freely offered to you.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16
If you do know him, but are struggling in some way, call out to him, “Please help me now!” Cast all your cares on him. He wants to be your Prince of Peace.
“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:7
Look beyond the things of this earth to an eternity in heaven with our Risen Lord!
Bookmark To:
{ 0 comments }
This morning my son was watching The Prince of Egypt, the Dreamworks cartoon version of the Bible story about Moses leading the Children of Israel out of captivity in Egypt. I took a break from doing housework and sat down to watch with him just as God appeared to Moses in the burning bush. Suddenly my throat tightened, tears started running down my cheeks. I must have heard this Bible story more than a hundred times in my life. Never before had I been so moved by this tale. Now this story animated for children was making me cry?
As the recreation of this ancient scene played out, I watched the bush burn and listened to God lay out his commands and exact details of his plan for Moses. I thought to myself, “Hump! Must be nice. God, why can’t you ever put a burning bush right in my path to get my attention, and then tell me exactly what to do? Moses had it easy. I’d have no problem being obedient if you were that direct with me. Why can’t you ever just make it easy for me?”
The tears came when I heard that still, small voice speaking in my heart, “Daughter, I’ve put a thousand burning bushes in your path. The problem is most of the time you walked right by them. Moses stopped and looked at the bush. But you, you just keep running after things you’ll never find.”
Oh, how the truth of that struck at my very soul! I thought of the times I did see the bush and stopped to listen to God, trust God and follow his plan. But then I recalled other times that I ignored the bush and passed right by. I recalled times when even worse, I poured water on the bush and put out the fire completely.
I continued to watch the movie, snuggling my son close. Mose was obedient and did as God instructed. After 12 terrible plagues, God ground Pharaoh down, and he let the Israelites go. God used Moses to free his chosen people and lead them out of Egypt.
Just as Moses thought they were home free, the Children of Isreal encountered the Red Sea before them and a regretful Pharaoh’s army at their backs. But God wasn’t about to deliver his beloved people from slavery only to let them parish on the spear of a tyrant. First he put a pillar of cloud between the Israelites and the Egyptian army. The Bible says, “…The cloud brought darkness to one side and light to the other side; so neither went near the other all night long.” Exodus Chapter 14:19-20 Then even more amazing, God commanded Moses to lift up his staff and God, “…Drove the sea back with a strong east wind and turned it into dry land. The waters were divided, and the Israelites went through the sea on dry ground, with a wall of water on their right and left.” Exodus Chapter 14:21-22 Can you imagine what was going through the minds of the Israelites? Once the shock wore off, I would have hightailed it to the other shore away from those tsunamis waiting to happen on both sides of me. What goes up must come down. This portion of the story ends with Pharaoh’s army being swallowed when the walls of water collapse, and the Israelites making their escape into the dessert.
The deliverance from slavery, a rescue from an avenging army. This is what God wants to do for us if we will just stop and look at the bush and listen. What are you enslaved too? He wants to free you from it. You simply must confess your sin and accept the salvation that God offers all of us through the death and resurrection of his son Jesus. For we who believe are all God’s chosen people. “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Galatians 3:29
Even after we receive his salvation, God will continue dot our path with burning bushes. We must learn to recognize those bushes, heed his call and do his will. When those bushes lead to what seem to be insurmountable circumstances, he won’t leave you to flounder on your own. If he can deliver 600 thousand men and their families from over 400 years of slavery by parting seas and conquering a king, think what he can do for you. I can think of many times in my life that God intervened, helping me conquer certain defeat.
My eyes are open anew to looking for those burning bushes on the side of the road. And I pray that my son might also learn to look for God, hear his voice and be obedient.
For the whole story of Moses and his adventures with the children of Israel, read the Bible books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. You’ll be amazed at the events that unfold. Even Hollywood couldn’t come up with a story like this.
Bookmark To:
{ 0 comments }
“Mommie go faster!” My son has recently become a backseat driver.
“I can’t go faster, buddy. It’s icy and we’ll get into an accident if I drive too fast.”
“Why is it icy?”
“Well, it rained last night, then it got cold and the water on the road turned to ice.”
“Why?”
“When water gets cold it freezes. That makes ice.”
“Why?”
I take a deep breath, and study the trees as we pass by while I try to think of an answer that will end the interrogation. I settle on an elementary science lesson. Too much for him to understand, but perhaps pondering the information will stop the questions. “Water has three states. Liquid, Solid and Gas. When water is warmer than 32 degrees, but cooler than 212 degrees its a liquid, like when you drink it. When it’s 32 degrees or colder it’s ice, like the cubes in your soda at McDonalds. When it reaches 212 degrees it turns into a gas, like the steam that you see coming out of a pot of water Mommie has on the stove.”
There is silence for a few seconds. I think I’ve won this round then, “Why?”
Now I’m getting frustrated, and reasonable answers are quickly escaping me.”Because that’s the way God designed the science of water to work.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s a very creative God.”
“Why?”
“Because he’s all powerful and all knowing.”
“Why?”
“Because that’s just the way it is. God just is.”
“Why?”
“Because there are some things God doesn’t tell us the answer to. We just have to have faith.”
“Why?”
“Because faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”
”Jesus is up in the sky. We can’t see him.”
Relief washes over me. He’s finally changed the subject. “God is up there too. God is Jesus’ daddy, remember? They’re in heaven, and the angels are up there too.”
“Uh huh. But my Daddy is down here. He’s not up in the sky. Why are the angels up there?”
“They, uh,” searching for an explanation a three year old can understand, “they work for God.”
“Do they have powers too?”
“Well, kind of. They help God, and he gives them powers to help him sometimes.”
“What they dos?”
“Sometimes they come down to earth to help people. Sometimes they’re just up in heaven worshiping and praising God.”
“Why they worship him?”
“Because he’s wonderful and great. He rules over all things.”
“Uh huh, because he has powers like Superman.”
“Kind of, but God is real. Superman is just imaginary. God’s the only real superhero.”
“Uh huh. Does God have a cape?”
“Um, I’m sure if he wanted one he could have one. Oh, look, we’re here. Come on, lets get out of the car.”
“Can God fly?”
“Yes, I’m sure God can fly.”
“I can’t fly.”
“No, no you can’t.”
“Why not?”
“That’s enough science and theology for one day. We’ll discuss the physics of aeronautics tomorrow, O.K.? Now get out of the car.”
Bookmark To:
{ 0 comments }
