Category Archives: Holy Week

March 30, 2013 · 12:02 am

Holy Saturday

8940635-largeO Grave Where Is Thy Victory?

Job 14:1-14 or Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-24; Psalm 31:1-4, 15-16; 1 Peter 4:1-8; Matthew 27:57-66 or John 19:38-42

Jesus did not rest in the grave. We say in the Apostle’s Creed that before His resurrection He descended into hell. His mission remained the same: “To seek and to save those who are lost.”

Therefore it says,

“WHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH,
HE LED CAPTIVE A HOST OF CAPTIVES,
AND HE GAVE GIFTS TO MEN.”

(Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.)   (Ephesians 4:8-10)

In a moment of greatest defeat we discover the greatest victory. Do we dare participate in this victory? If so, let us first taste of this defeat. It is a defeat of our flesh. It is a defeat of our will. It is a defeat of our pride.

Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same intention (for whoever has suffered in the flesh has finished with sin), so as to live for the rest of your earthly life no longer by human desires but by the will of God. You have already spent enough time in doing what the Gentiles like to do, living in licentiousness, passions, drunkenness, revels, carousing, and lawless idolatry. They are surprised that you no longer join them in the same excesses of dissipation, and so they blaspheme. But they will have to give an accounting to him who stands ready to judge the living and the dead. For this is the reason the gospel was proclaimed even to the dead, so that, though they had been judged in the flesh as everyone is judged, they might live in the spirit as God does.  (1 Peter 4:1-6)

Perhaps some of us are still dead in our sins. Now is the time to hear the message of the Gospel. Now is the time to live in the Spirit and die to the flesh. Now is the time for God’s favor. Now is the time for salvation. Jesus is our Passover. God has passed over our sins because Jesus took them upon Him on the cross and paid the penalty for us. Can we neglect such a great salvation?

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him. God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will.  (Hebrews 2:1-4)

If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.  (Hebrews 10:26-27)

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March 29, 2013 · 12:01 am

Good Friday

Behold the Lamb of God

Isaiah 52:13-53:12; Psalm 22; Hebrews 10:16-25 or Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9; John 18:1-19:42

Long before the cross was even an instrument of torture and death there was prophecy concerning a certain death by crucifixion:

He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isaiah 53:3-6)

Though the reason and purpose of this death may be obscured by certain scholars and theologians, Isaiah clearly explains its purpose. This is the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world.

Long before anyone had experienced this torturous death we have a perfect description of what it might be like. Not only that but we are given a picture of certain events that foretell a very specific crucifixion:

I am poured out like water,
and all my bones are disjointed;
my heart is like wax,
melting within me.

My strength is dried up like baked clay;
my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.
You put me into the dust of death.

For dogs have surrounded me;
a gang of evildoers has closed in on me;
they pierced my hands and my feet.

I can count all my bones;
people look and stare at me.

They divided my garments among themselves,
and they cast lots for my clothing.  (Psalm 22:14-18)

How do we respond to all of this? In the face of so great a sacrifice on our behalf what are we to do?

Therefore, brothers, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that He has inaugurated for us, through the curtain (that is, His flesh); and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water.  (Hebrews 10:19-23)

The finality of Jesus’ earthly ministry is assured. He was obedient to the Father, even to death on a cross:

Later, knowing that everything had now been finished, and so that Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.   (John 19:28-30)

Our earthly ministry still remains. It is a time to draw near to God otherwise Christ’s sacrifice for us was in vain.

For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first.

For it would be better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment handed on to them.  (2 Peter 2:20-21)

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March 28, 2013 · 12:00 am

Maundy Thursday

valentin-de-boulogne-the-last-supperHoly Communion

Exodus 12:1-4, (5-10), 11-14; Psalm 116:1, 10-17; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26;  John 13:1-17, 31b-35

Let us begin by saying that Jesus’ last supper with His disciples was not the Seder. It was not the Passover meal. This was a time of preparation for the Passover. The Passover meal could not be served until the slaughtering of the lambs outside the city which would occur the next day.  (Of course, Jesus, the Lamb of God, would also be slain on that same day which we call Good Friday.)

Jesus was doing something new. It was not a reenactment and remembrance of the Jewish Passover and escape from Egypt, although what He was about to do would be related to that event in a significant and spiritual way. Jesus was instituting a new meal that He told His disciples to observe in perpetuity.

The Apostle Paul writes about this special meal in today’s Epistle Lesson:

For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.  (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)

What was Jesus doing with His disciples? He was proclaiming His death before it actually happened. He said that His body was going to be broken and that His blood was going to be shed. He was saying that He was going to be the last lamb to be sacrificed for the sins of the people. He was to become the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world once and for all.

How is the Holy Communion related to the Jewish Passover? We remember that the blood of the lambs were sprinkled over the doors of Jewish homes so that the angel of death would pass over them as they prepared to escape from Egypt the following day. Jesus’ blood covers us so that we might escape the punishment for our sins and be set free from the bondage of Sin to live in newness of life in Christ.

Jesus was rehearsing with His disciples what He would be doing in a symbolic way. The bread represented His body and the wine represented His blood. He was not only rehearsing. He was asking His disciples to keep in their memory what He was about to do by partaking of this special meal as often as possible. They would not just be remembering with their minds what had happened but they would actually be participating themselves in the event of His saving act on the cross by reenacting the event in a spiritual way which is mysterious and not fully explainable, but altogether real. John’s Gospel speaks of both the power and the necessity of the Communion service.

Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in them. Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Your ancestors ate manna and died, but whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”   (John 6:47-58)

As disciples we not only need to remember Jesus’ sacrifice, but to experience and participate in His sacrifice. We do this by observing what we now call the Holy Communion or Eucharist. We need to feed on Jesus for spiritual sustenance which helps us to strengthen our faith.

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March 27, 2013 · 12:00 am

Wednesday in Holy Week

The Betrayal of Jesus

Isaiah 50:4-9a; Psalm 70; Hebrews 12:1-3; John 13:21-32

When Jesus had said this, He was troubled in His spirit and testified, ” I assure you: One of you will betray Me!”

The disciples started looking at one another—uncertain which one He was speaking about. One of His disciples, the one Jesus loved, was reclining close beside Jesus. Simon Peter motioned to him to find out who it was He was talking about. So he leaned back against Jesus and asked Him, “Lord, who is it?”

Jesus replied, “He’s the one I give the piece of bread to after I have dipped it.” When He had dipped the bread, He gave it to Judas, Simon Iscariot’s son. After [Judas ate] the piece of bread, Satan entered him. Therefore Jesus told him, “What you’re doing, do quickly.”

One of the definitions of betrayal is “to reveal or disclose in violation of confidence.” In order to betray someone we must first gain a confidence and avoid suspension. Judas was part of Jesus’ inner circle. He was entrusted with the common purse. None of the disciples would have suspected Judas of being a betrayer.  They were evidently surprised when Jesus said that one of them would betray Him.

Satan is the master of betrayal. To do it well one will need his help. But why would anyone want to do such a thing? We might lose more than we gain. The betrayal might backfire on us. We might lose friends. We might lose our reputation. Unfortunately the spirit of betrayal blinds us to these consequences.

Betrayal comes from a different perspective than a Christian one. The Christian is concerned about the well-being of others. Betrayal is a very selfish act and does not taken into consideration the needs or views of others. The betrayer sees only his or her point of view and acts accordingly.

The most serious offense is a betrayal of the Gospel. We are capable of doing that. Ministers and elders of the Gospel do such things. Why? Because our often limited understanding of the Gospel becomes the “gospel” for everyone else. We may believe that we have a privileged position with God in understandings His Word. We feel close to His heart and purposes. We then impose our interpretations of the Gospel on others rather than continually allowing the Gospel to interpret us.

Judas had his very narrow viewpoint. Later, when he discovered he was wrong he felt great remorse. But he did not repent! God is always ready to forgive us when we go astray when we sincerely repent. Let us not let our pride and arrogance stand in the way of His grace towards us. And let us especially not allow this to adversely effect others lest we become a stumbling block to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

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March 26, 2013 · 12:00 am

Tuesday in Holy Week

1128_044219510_p_348Children of the Light

Isaiah 49:1-7; Psalm 71:1-14; 1 Corinthians 1:18-31; John 12:20-36

Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.”  (John 12:35-36)

We have been called  by Jesus to walk as children of the light. However, if we need to justify ourselves or our actions in any way then our walk in the light is most difficult indeed. The Pharisees made a practice of justifying themselves but they failed miserably. Jesus could easily see through them as He sees through us.

If we are not careful we could be easily overlook the very key that makes walking in the light possible. Jesus said: “Walk in the light while you have the light.” Jesus is the light that we walk in. We can walk in truth, honesty, and transparency when we are walking with Jesus, because we can trust Jesus to do the justifying for us. He has borne our sins for us on the cross.

While we have Jesus we should walk in Him. He extends His hand to us but we must grasp it. Though He warned the Pharisees they could not listen. If we reject His great sacrifice then all we have left is darkness, both in this world and in the next. There might be a time when we do not have Jesus. All anyone can attempt to do without Him is to coverup. In this case, darkness is preferred. Yet darkness is only a temporary solution. Ultimately, it is no solution at all. Why should we depend upon deception when we can depend upon God?

Consider your own call, brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by human standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are, so that no one might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, in order that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”  (1 Corinthians 1:26-31)

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March 25, 2013 · 12:01 am

Monday in Holy Week

Mary-Washes-Jesus-s-Feet-jesus-11078625-635-450The Costly Sacrifice

Isaiah 42:1-9; Psalm 36:5-11; Hebrews 9:11-15; John 12:1-11 

Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?”  (John 12:3-5)

We may do “good” by giving to the poor, provided our motives are pure. (Judas Iscariot’s motives were not.) Nevertheless, our good works will not purify us. If we ignore the passion and purpose of Christ we will miss the mark.

When Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation), he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. For if the blood of goats and bulls, with the sprinkling of the ashes of a heifer, sanctifies those who have been defiled so that their flesh is purified, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to worship the living God!  (Hebrews 9:11-14)

What does our love of Christ cost us? What do we give to Him to demonstrate our love? Mary sacrificed all that she had for her Savior. It is not that she purchased His love. She gave out of joy because she already knew that she had His love. Do we know the love of Jesus? If so, how do we demonstrate that we love Him in return?

Your love, O LORD, reaches to the heavens,
and your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the strong mountains,
your justice like the great deep;
you save both man and beast, O LORD.
How priceless is your love, O God!
your people take refuge under the shadow of your wings.
(Psalm 36:5-7)

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