Decided but not Discipled...

I'm currently reading through King Jesus Gospel by Scot McKnight. The aim of the text is to explore the meaning of Gospel and Salvation as presented throughout the New Testament. His premise is that we've settled for a view of "gospel" and "salvation" that may be less than biblical. The book explores how the Gospel and Salvation are presented theologically in the New Testament (via Gospels, Paul, Peter, etc).

The foundational introduction contends that we have placed much emphasis on people Making a Decision for Jesus. However, such a decision may not be congruent with them actually becoming Disciples of Jesus.

Below are a few quotes from the opening chapter:

"The primary barrier to the power of Jesus' gospel today - that is, a view of salvation and of grace that has no connection with discipleship and spiritual transformation. It is a view of grace and salvation that, supposedly, gets one ready to die, but leaves them unprepared to live now in the grace and power of resurrection life."

"Evangelism that focuses on decisions short circuits and - yes, the word is appropriate - aborts the design of the gospel, while evangelism that aims at disciples slows down to offer the full gospel of Jesus and the apostles."

"We cannot help but conclude that making a decision is not the vital element that leads to a life of discipleship."

"Our focus on getting young people to make decisions - that is, "accepting Jesus into their hearts" - appears to distort spiritual formation... focusing youth events, retreats, and programs on persuading people to make a decision disarms the gospel, distorts numbers, and diminishes the significance of discipleship."

Images of the Cross

Often the phrase "Jesus died on the cross for my sins" is used to explain the purpose of Jesus' death. This is true, but it seems that this pat-answer is a bit flattened for what really transpired. Interestingly, the writers of the New Testament utilized a number of images, words and metaphors to communicate what happened on the cross. It's almost as if in each instance there were saying, "the cross... it's like this.... and it's like this... and it's like this" Each time pulling from another sector of life, culture and understanding. The following are a few of the images of the cross and what transpired that are found in the New Testament.

Day 40 of Lent :: Tombstone

“Mary stood outside the tomb weeping.”
John 20:11

The disciples had left everything to follow Christ.  Many had abandoned personal aspirations, hopes and dreams.  They had placed all their trust in this Rabbi – Jesus.  They believed He was about to establish a new kingdom, but now He lies lifeless within the tomb.  “What will we do now?” they wondered.  “I suppose I can go back to work with my dad,” added another.  Others sat despondently on the verge of depression, unable to sort out the events of the past seventy-two hours.

Have you ever wondered what they would have done had Jesus never risen from the dead?  I imagine they would have somehow found their way back into the rhythms of life, as they had once known it.  But who knows?  After all, Peter had once said, “Where else can we go?”  What if the tomb remained darkened with death?

Reflection: Take a few moments to reflect on this dark question:

•  What if Jesus had never risen from the dead?
  
• What would your life be like today, had Jesus never invaded the darkness of your soul?
  
• What struggles, pain, wounds, and addictions would still have you entrapped?

This may, indeed, be a dark reflection, but do not be too quick to climb out of the grave.  Allow yourself to feel the darkness of sin and death without a Savior in sight.  Allow yourself to experience the ambiguity that these first disciples felt.

Day 39 of Lent :: Good Friday

“So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said,
‘It is finished!’  And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.’”
John 19:30

“Good Friday,” Virginia Stem Owens writes, “is the day when you can do nothing.  Bewailing and lamenting your manifold sins does not in itself make up for them.  Scouring your soul in a frenzy of spring cleaning only sterilizes it; it does not give it life.  On Good Friday, finally, we are all, mourners and mockers alike, reduced to the same impotence.  Someone else is doing the terrible work that gives life to the world.”

Today, we recognize we are powerless to change ourselves or to make amends for our sins.  We stand in awe of the One Who is suffering for our sakes.  We gaze at the One who willingly laid down His life so that we may live.  Today, we are reminded again that He is everything that we need.

“As you sit and gaze, it will be born in you
that only a crucified Savior could meet your need.”
William Sangster

Prayer:  Spend a few moments gazing at the One Who suffered for your sin and died so that you may experience true life.

Day 38 of Lent :: History in the Making

“These who have turned the world upside down
 have come here too.”
(Acts 17:6)

“Not only countless individual lives but civilization itself was transformed by Jesus Christ.”  These are the words of Dr. Paul Maier, professor of Ancient History at Western Michigan University.  Professor Maier continues,

In the ancient world, his (Jesus’) teachings elevated brutish standards of morality, halted infanticide, enhanced human life, emancipated women, abolished slavery, inspired charities and relief organizations, created hospitals, established orphanages, and founded schools.

In medieval times, Christianity almost single-handedly kept classical culture alive through recopying manuscripts, building libraries, moderating warfare through truce days, and providing dispute arbitration.  It was Christians who invented colleges and universities, dignified labor as a divine vocation, and extended the light of civilization to barbarians on the frontiers.

In the modern era, Christian teaching, properly expressed, advanced science, instilled concepts of political and social and economic freedom, fostered justice, and provided the greatest single source of inspiration for magnificent achievements in art, architecture, music, and literature that we treasure to the present day.1

Prayer: Spend time reflecting on the influences Jesus Christ has had on the history of civilization.  Think about what the world would be like today had Jesus never come to earth.

But as we gaze, it is not pity that we feel,
but a profound reverence,
for there on Calvary is the great turning point in the course of human affairs.

Hughell Fosbroke

1 Quoted by Alvin J. Schmidt, Under the Influence, 8.

Day 37 of Lent :: Unlikely Candidates

He appointed twelve that they might be with Him 

and that He might send them out to preach.
(Mark 3:14)

At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, He spent all night in prayer, seeking God’s direction, and He then chose twelve individuals to be His disciples.  Consider His perspective.  As the Son of God, He was going to choose twelve men to carry on His mission on earth once He returned to the Father.  For what character and temperament qualities should He look?  What type of selective process should He use? 

Suppose Jesus had consulted a local employment agency to assist Him in His selection of future leaders.  How would this agency have assessed the twelve men Jesus selected?  Consider the following as a possibility:

Memorandum

TO:
Jesus, Son of Joseph
Woodcrafter Carpenter Shop
Nazareth

FROM:
Jordan Management Consultants
Jerusalem

Thank you for submitting the résumés of the 12 men you have chosen for management positions in your new organization.  Each of them took our battery of tests, and we analyzed the results.  Our psychologist and vocational-aptitude consultant then interviewed each one.
It is the opinion of the staff that most of your nominees are lacking in background, education, and vocational aptitude for the type of enterprise you are undertaking.  They do not have a concept of working as a team.  We would recommend that you continue your search for people of proven capabilities and managerial experience.

Simon Peter is emotionally unstable and given to fits of temper.  Andrew has absolutely no qualities of leadership. The two brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, place personal interest above company loyalty.  Thomas demonstrates a questioning attitude that would tend to undermine morale.  We feel that it is our duty to tell you that Matthew has been blacklisted by the Greater Jerusalem Better Business Bureau.  James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus definitely have radical leanings, and they both register high manic-depressive tendencies.

One of the candidates, however, shows great potential.  He is a man of ability and resourcefulness, meets people well, has a keen business mind and has contacts in high places.  He is highly motivated, ambitious and innovative.  We recommend Judas Iscariot as your comptroller and right-hand man.  All other profiles are self-explanatory.
We wish you every success in your new venture.1

Reflection: Are you glad God does not see things the way humans do? As you go through your day, reflect on the following verse.  As you meditate on it, ask God to increase your ability to see situations and people as He does.

No one’s ever seen or heard anything like this, 

Never so much as imagined anything quite like it—
What God has arranged for those who love Him.
(1 Corinthians 2:9)

1 Greg Ogden, Transforming Discipleship: Making Disciples a Few at a Time, 77.

Day 30 of Lent :: Sifting as Wheat

“And while they were eating, He said,
‘Truly I tell you, one of you will betray Me.’”
 (Matthew 26:21)

Jesus had gathered His closest friends to share the Passover meal with Him.  More important to Him than eating was His wanting to share His heart concerning the impending suffering and death He was facing.  He also announced that one of them would betray Him.

Can you imagine the feelings in the room?  Hearing that Jesus was going to suffer was a blow to the emotions, but hearing that someone among them would betray Him, compounded their anxiety.  Eyes began to roam around the room, locking on sudden expressions creeping across the faces of others.  Immediately, some pulled up mental scorecards kept over the last three years as they traveled together.  Who made the most mistakes?  On long days, which one showed a testy attitude and secretly grumbled?  The lists go on and on as each scanned his internal files for a perfect match for a possible betrayer. 

“Then they began to question among themselves,
which of them it was who would do this thing.”
(Luke 22:23)

Someone finally had the guts to speak up, “Not I.”  Then another chimed in, “Well… don’t look at me.”  In a matter of seconds, there was a buzz of grunts and self-supporting acclamations.  Looks turned to comments. Comments turned to defenses.  Finally, defenses turned to accusations.  Fingers began to point.  Emotions began to rise.  They were no longer whispering, instead, roaring voices clamored to be heard.

“Now there was also a dispute among them,
as to which of them should be considered the greatest.”
(Luke 22:24)

The best way for a disciple to prove that he was not going to be the one to betray Jesus was to prove himself to be the greatest in the room.  All those skilled at arguing employed this tactic at one point or another when they began to lose the battle of words.  This was not merely a mild disagreement.  The word translated as dispute, actually means “an eagerness to contend,” even “lover of strife.”[i]  We do not know how long this argument ensued.  We are not told what line of rationale they used to secure the upper hand.  We are not told whose voice was the loudest; however, it seems at the end of the round that Simon Peter may have been in the lead.

Jesus interrupted their petty squabbling, instructing them concerning true greatness, and demonstrating what pure service to others is.  Changing the subject rather abruptly, He turned to Peter, looked him in the eyes and said, “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat.  But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail.  And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” (Luke 22:31-32)

Reflection: Do you find yourself talking over others to add your thoughts and comments?  Are you prone to contentedly listen in order to understand another’s perspective, or do you quickly insert your own opinions?  Do you typically answer more questions than you ask?

   If so, you may suffer from the same ailment that afflicted the disciples.  That night in the Upper Room, they seemed to have lost the ability to truly listen to what Jesus was saying.  They could not hear Him over the voices of their own hearts.  They were unable to see past their own expectations, plans and desires to accurately decipher what He meant.

   The thought, “Could it be I who will betray Him?” does not seem to cross anyone’s mind.  Rather than hearts being broken that someone would actually betray Jesus, each became defensive: “I could never betray Him!” 

Prayer: “Lord, show me my heart.  When I interrupt and talk over others, convict me.  Help me to listen—truly listen—rather than become defensive.”

---

[i] Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament.

Day 27 of Lent :: Fountain of Life

“On that day a fountain will be opened

to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
to cleanse them from sin and impurity.”
(Zechariah 13:1)

The eighteenth century poet, William Cowper penned the famous words to the poem, There is a Fountain Filled with Blood. In it, Cowper vividly captures what the prophet Zechariah spoke of some five hundred years before Jesus.

There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Emmanuel’s veins.
And sinners, plunged beneath that flood,
Lose all their guilty stains,
Lose all their guilty stains;
And sinners, plunged beneath that flood,
Lose all their guilty stains . . .


E’er since, by faith, I saw the stream
Thy flowing wounds supply,
Redeeming love has been my theme,
And shall be till I die,
And shall be till I die;
Redeeming love has been my theme,
And shall be till I die.

Jesus is the only true source of life. Ironically, it was brought about through death. That’s how the kingdom of God often seems – upside down. In the garden, humanity reached for the forbidden fruit. As they freely exerted their own will, they became enslaved to their own desires. As they acted as one who ruled their own life, they suffered death. At the cross, Jesus surrendered his very life, yet resurrected all of humanity from the grave of sin. He allowed human hands and forces of darkness to nail Him to the cross in the ultimate display of evil triumph over goodness, yet in doing so He led captivity captive, dethroning powers and principalities. This, in part, is the mystery of the Gospel. The cross, once only an instrument of death, now becomes an instrument of new life.

“The very existence of the cross, and of the crucified Christ,” writes Alister McGrath, “forces us to make a crucial decision: Will we look for God somewhere else, or will we make the cross, and the crucified Christ, the basis of our thought about God?”[i]

Prayer: Must I go on, Lord Jesus? I can barely stand to see myself through the gaping wounds on Your back. My stomach churns and I want to walk away. The journey to the cross is fraught with a thousand deaths, and I’m not sure if I am prepared to embrace each one. To know the fellowship of Your sufferings is not so simple. Sustain me in my quest, dearest Savior, and I will seek to share Your sorrow.[ii]

---

[i] Alister E. McGrath, The Mystery of the Cross, 13.

[ii] Prayer by Tricia McCary Rhodes, Contemplating the Cross, 71.

Day 26 :: Healing in the Wounds

“He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross,
so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; 

‘by his wounds you have been healed.’”
(1 Peter 2:24)

Christ died for the forgiveness of sins. He suffered for the healing of our own wounds. “At the head of the procession of life,” writes Earl Stanley Jones, “is a thorn-crowned Man, His pains healing our pains, His wounds answering our wounds, His love taking our sin.”1 This is the heart of the Gospel, the restoration of our whole person. This is the beauty we discover as we reflect on the bloody, disfigured Person, seemingly, helplessly, hanging on the cross. “When we look at his cross,” Augustine reminds us, “we understand his love. His head is bent down to kiss us. His hands are extended to embrace us. His heart is wide open to receive us.”

Reflection: Are there areas of your life that have yet to experience the healing power of the cross?

    Find a quiet place. Get comfortable. Take a few deep breaths. Open your hands before the One Who’s hands were outstretched on the wooden beam of the cross. His pain was to bring you peace. The strips upon His back are for your healing. His outstretched arms, your embrace.

    Bring you life before Him – all of it – every part.

Prayer: Wounded Savior, I come before you, stained by sin. Show me any area that I’ve not willingly surrendered to You… Is there anything I’m holding back? Are there areas of my soul that have yet to know Your healing touch? (If God shows you something, spend some time telling Him about it or perhaps journaling about it. It is important to identify what He shows you and then intentionally pray-fully bring and give it to Him.) I offer you my whole life. Take my sin. Embrace my pain. Heal my wounds.

    Finish your time of prayer by simply being with-God. Rest in His peace. So feel as if you have to say anything, just be aware of His present-nearness.


1 E. Stanley Jones, Christ and Human Suffering, 169.

Day 25 of Lent :: Suffering Servant

Christ is to us just what his cross is. 

All that Christ was in heaven or 
on earth was put into what he did there . . .
Christ, I repeat, is to us just what his cross is. 

You do not understand Christ 
till you understand his cross. 
(P. T. Forsyth)

Jesus came to bring redemption and forgiveness of sins? But, why did Jesus suffer? In the Old Testament, a lamb was offered as a sacrifice for sin. Jesus was the ultimate Lamb of God, slain for the sins of the whole world (see John 1:36, 1 Peter 1:19, Revelation 5:12, 13:8). Throughout the Old Testament, a lamb was never beaten or mistreated in any way. A quick cut to the throat, the blood flowed on the altar and forgiveness was acquired. So, why did Jesus suffer? Wouldn’t His blood have been enough?

The writer of the New Testament book of Hebrews tell us that,

“We do not have a High Priest
who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses,
but was in all points tempted as we are,
yet without sin.”
(Hebrews 4:15)

Jesus offers more than forgiveness, He offers understanding. He knows what it’s like to be tempted every way. He experienced injustice and abuse. His friends betrayed Him. He was spit at, mocked, stripped naked, beaten, and raised on a stake as an act of humiliation before the masses. Jesus knows pain. He’s not aloof to human suffering, He’s been there. Why was Jesus beaten? To join us.  Why was He abused? To join us. Why did Jesus suffer? Because, we all in one way or another have suffered.

Reflection: After informing us that Jesus has experienced what we have, the writer of Hebrews encourages us to,

“Then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, 

so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us 
in our time of need.”
(Hebrews 4:16)

How does it make you feel that Jesus can sympathize with your own weakness, sin and suffering?


Of all the pains that lead to salvation this is the most pain, to see thy Love suffer.
How might any pain be more to me than to see Him that is all my life,
all my bliss, and all my joy suffer?
(Julian of Norwich)

Day 24 of Lent :: Crucifixion

“Pilate had Jesus flogged, 
and handed him over to be crucified.”
(Mark 15:15

The Romans didn’t invent crucifixion as a means of punishment, but they did all they could to perfect it. Crucifixion was designed to maximize pain and suffering. It wasn’t merely about killing someone— it was about killing someone in a cruel and excruciating way. Crucifixion was the most disgraceful form of execution. It was usually reserved for slaves, foreigners, revolutionaries, and vile criminals.


Before every crucifixion, one would undergo a flogging or scourging. The scourging was intended to bring a victim to a state just short of death. Roman soldiers were trained to do this with great precision. 

A criminal was usually first forcefully stripped of his clothes and then tied to a post. The scourging began. The brutal instrument used to scourged the victim was called a flagrum. It can readily be seen that the long lashing pieces of bone and metal would greatly lacerate the human flesh.1
This was gruesome sight. Bishop Eusebius of Caesarea, the Church historian of the 3rd century, wrote in his Epistle of the Church in Smyrna, concerning the Roman scourging inflicted on those to be executed: the sufferer's "veins were laid bare, and that the very muscles, sinews, and bowels of the victim were open to exposure."2
The Journal of the American Medical Association, published a medical study of the death of Christ. Regarding the scourging of Jesus, we read:


Flogging was a legal preliminary to every Roman execution, and only women and Roman senators or soldiers (except in cases of desertion) were exempt. The usual instrument was a short whip (flagrum or flagellum) with several single or braided leather thongs of variable lengths, in which small iron balls or sharp pieces of sheep bones were tied at intervals. Occasionally, staves also were used. For scourging, the man was stripped of his clothing and his hands were tied to an upright post. The back, buttocks, and legs were flogged either by two soldiers (lictors) or by one who alternated positions. The severity of the scourging depended on the disposition of the lictors and was intended to weaken the victim to a state just short of collapse or death. After the scourging, the soldiers often taunted their victim.

As the Roman soldiers repeatedly struck the victim's back with full force, the iron balls would cause deep contusions, and the leather thongs and sheep bones would cut into the skin and subcutaneous tissues. Then, as the flogging continued, the lacerations would tear into the underlying skeletal muscles and produce quivering ribbons of bleeding flesh. Pain and blood loss generally set the stage for circulatory shock. The extent of blood loss may well have determined how long the victim would survive on the cross. . . .


The severe scourging, with its intense pain and appreciable blood loss, most probably left Jesus in a preshock state. Moreover, hematidrosis had rendered his skin particularly tender. The physical and mental abuse meted out by the Jews and the Romans, as well as the lack of food, water, and sleep, also contributed to his generally weakened state. Therefore, even before the actual crucifixion, Jesus' physical condition was at least serious and possibly critical.1

Dr. C. Truman Davis, a medical doctor who has meticulously studied crucifixion from a medical perspective, describes the effects of the Roman flagrum used in whipping:


The heavy whip is brought down with full force again and again across [a person's] shoulders, back, and legs. At first the heavy thongs cut through the skin only. Then, as the blows continue, they cut deeper into the subcutaneous tissues, producing first an oozing of blood from the capillaries and veins of the skin, and finally spurting arterial bleeding from vessels in the underlying muscles. The small balls of lead first produce large, deep bruises which are broken open by subsequent blows. Finally the skin of the back is hanging in long ribbons and the entire area is an unrecognizable mass of torn, bleeding tissue. When it is determined by the centurion in charge that the prisoner is near death, the beating is finally stopped.2


Reflection: Based on the descriptions of what Jesus would have experienced, reflect on the following prophecy about Jesus.

Just as there were many who were appalled at him
—
his appearance was so disfigured 
beyond that of any human being
and 
his form marred beyond human likeness.

(Isaiah 52:14)

1 William D. Edwards, Wesley J. Gabel, Floyd E., Hosmer, "On the Physical Death of Jesus  Christ," The Journal of the American Medical Association 11 (March 21, 1986): 1457-1458.
2 C. Truman Davis, "The Crucifixion of Jesus," Arizona Medicine (March 1965), p. 185.

Day 23 of Lent :: Against all Odds

“This was to fulfill the word 
of Isaiah the prophet.”
(John 12:38)

There has never been another human to walk the earth like Jesus. Even centuries before He was born, prophecies were spoken about Him. In fact, there are more than 300 messianic prophecies found throughout the pages of Scripture. There has never been another human on earth to which this has been the case.

A number years ago, Peter Stoner wrote a book entitled Science Speaks.1 In it, Stoner proceeds to select eight of the best known prophecies about the Messiah and calculates the odds of their accidental fulfillment in one person as being 1 in 1017.

Imagine filling the State of Texas knee deep in silver dollars. Include in this huge number one silver dollar with a black check mark on it. Then, turn a blindfolded person loose in this sea of silver dollars. The odds that the first coin he would pick up would be the one with the black check mark are the same as eight prophecies being fulfilled accidentally in the life of Jesus.

Or to put it a slightly different way, according to the laws of chance, it would require 200-billion earths, populated with 4-billion people each, to come up with one person whose life could fulfill 100 accurate prophecies without any errors in sequence. Yet the Scriptures record not 100, but over 300 prophecies that were fulfilled in Christ’s first coming alone.2

Reflection: Some eight hundred years prior to Jesus, the Prophet Isaiah described the death of Jesus in great detail. Slowly, read it, imagine it, and allow it to begin to sink into the depths of your soul. As you go throughout the day, reflect on it. This week, commit this passage to memory.

He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by others, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem. Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him…
(Isaiah 53:2-5)

 

 

1 Peter W. Stoner and Robert C. Newman, Science Speaks: Scientific Proof of the Accuracy of 
Prophecy and the Bible.
2 Dr. Charles Ryrie.

Day 21 of Lent :: True Service

“Learn the lesson, if you are to do the work of a prophet, 

what you need is not a scepter but a hoe.”1
(Bernard of Clairvaux)

We learned in the Upper Room that the towel is a symbol of service.  As Jesus was making His way toward the hill called Golgotha, we saw the cross as a symbol of submission.  Jesus willingly accepted the cross, but the Bible tells us that Simon from Cyrene was “forced” to carry the cross. (Mark 15:21)  The question is, what about us?  When presented with opportunities of submission and service to God and others, do we accept them willingly?

“Radical self-denial,” writes Foster, “gives the feel of adventure… In service, we must experience the many little deaths of going beyond ourselves.  Service banishes us to the mundane, the ordinary, the trivial.”2  Some people only want to serve a person of greater status or serve a cause of cosmic scale. A true servant is not enamored or impressed with the size of a project, nor is he enchanted by the status or title of the person being served.  D.L. Moody, the great evangelist of the 1800’s, said it well: “There are many of us that are willing to do great things for the Lord, but few of us are willing to do little things.”  A true servant does not distinguish between the small acts of service and the large.  A true servant understands that what is done for oneself or merely done to be recognized by others will die with him.  St. Francis of Assisi captured the essence of true service in a statement he wrote, “Being the servant of all, I am bound to serve all and to administer the balm-bearing words of my Lord.”3


Reflection: Are you more prone to look for opportunities to serve others, or do you frequently expect others to serve you?  Do you discriminate when choosing whom you serve?  For example, do you willingly serve your boss but not necessarily serve someone of a lesser position?  If so, in your thinking, the service rendered to your boss may have more to do with you than with the boss.
Our world determines greatness by how many people serve you. 
God defines greatness by how many people you serve.

Prayer: “Lord Jesus, help me recognize the person You bring across my path today whom I may serve.”

Action: As you go about your day, actively look for ways to serve others.  Do not discriminate in your service.

“The greatest among you will be your servant.”

(Matthew 23:11)

1 Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, 126.
2 Ibid.
3 St. Francis of Assisi, Selections from the Writings of St. Francis of Assisi, 25.

Day 19 of Lent :: Embracing the Cross

Then He (Jesus) said to them all:
“Whoever wants to be My disciple must deny themselves and
take up their cross daily and follow Me.”
(Luke 9:23 TNIV)

Then He told them what they could expect for themselves: 

“Anyone who intends to come with Me has to let Me lead.  

You’re not in the driver’s seat—I am. 
Don’t run from suffering; embrace it.  

Follow Me and I’ll show you how.” 

(Luke 9:23 MSG)

We all have a cross to bear is a phrase used by different people in various ways, mostly as pseudo-comfort to someone who is whining about some circumstance or situation.   Jesus, however, did have a cross to bear.  His cross purchased forgiveness of sins for all who receive it.  It was an act of surrender and selfless sacrifice.  Through Christ’s bearing His cross, a means for sins to be forgiven is extended to all humanity.  While our small sacrifices will not result in the forgiveness of sins, they do often serve to reach the world around us.  As we daily learn the art of surrender and discover what it means to take up my cross and follow Christ, we take on the very nature of Christ.


Carrying one’s cross has nothing to do with a contrived self-mutilation or submission to difficulty or misfortune.  It is not about going through life with an apathetic que será será, whatever will be, will be, resignation to the challenges of life. On the contrary, carrying one’s cross has everything to do with an active, attentive, joy-filled abandonment to doing the will of Christ.  Denying one’s self is not self-abasement, but rather a radical reorientation of one’s priorities in life.  To fulfill Christ’s will does, however, mean placing the concerns of God’s Kingdom before the pursuit of our own personal kingdoms that are built on our own security, possessions, status, and power.  The world in which we live looks at a Christ-follower lifestyle as ridiculous, but to lean solely on Christ is the apex of wisdom.  The world sees the way of the cross as ultimate weakness, but it is the greatest source of strength.


Prayer: “Father God, I want to be a person who has the courage to trust Christ with everything that I am and ever hope to be.  As I go through my day(s), show me any area where I am trusting in my own accomplishments, intellect, education, status, position, or perceived importance to find my security, rather than in You alone. I am grateful for all that You have given me in this life, but may these things not be what define me.  May I truly learn what it means to deny myself, take up my cross daily and follow You.”

“The cross is laid on every Christian. 

The first Christ-suffering which every man must experience


is the call to abandon the attachments of this world.”[i] 


(Dietrick Bonhoeffer)

[i] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, The Cost of Discipleship, 89.

Day 18 of Lent :: A Different Kind of King

“They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him, and then twisted together a crown of thorns and set it on His head. They put a staff in His right hand as a scepter. Then they knelt in front of Him and mocked Him.
‘Hail, king of the Jews!’ they said.”
(Matthew 27:28-29)

Reflection: Jesus, I cringe at the pain of the thorns, but I am wounded far more deeply by the humiliation and degradation You suffered.  The very thing You came to offer us as a gift, Your Kingship, became a thing of ridicule by the Roman soldiers.  The crowds thought of a King in terms of power.  You came to be a King Who shepherds His people, Who takes responsibility for their well-being, Whose principles are faithfulness, justice, and righteousness.  And yet, people are not always ready for that kind of King.

I would like to think that I am ready to follow You, Who offer a Kingdom of peace and love.  But am I?  Am I willing to yield my ideas of what the Kingdom should be and accept the role of a servant?  Am I willing to give up my human preoccupation with power and control, and then accept a crown that is different from what I was expecting?

You accepted the Cross in the midst of mockery; You could have refused it.  What more could they have done to You?  You began this journey knowing full well where it would lead, yet I hear no words of complaint, no protestations of innocence, no cursing the injustice.    You accepted Your cross without self-pity.[i] 

In contrast, I am so prone to complain and whine about the most trivial things.  Other times, the things I face in my life are more than trivial; troubles bear down upon me, and I easily slip into self-pity.  Too often, I assume that I am the only one who bears a cross, or that my cross is larger and heavier than any others.  This is not true.  People around me often bear far more than I must bear.

Prayer: “Lord, forgive me for forgetting that in my weakness I am driven to trust You, and in that trust I become strong: ‘Your power is made perfect in my weakness.’ (2 Corinthians 12:9) Forgive my attitude of self-pity that makes me more repulsive than lovable.  I do not ask for crosses to bear, but when they come, give me the strength to bear them as I follow Your example.”

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[i] The devotional thought for Day 18 & 20 were inspired by Dr. Dennis Bratcher. http://www.crivoice.org/stations.html.

Day 13 of Lent :: Life's not Fair

“Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.” (Mark 14:61)

Jesus, I wish You would speak!  I wish You would tell them Who You are.  I wish You would confront the angry, doubt-filled crowds and the arrogant cowardice of those in power.  There must be someone who will speak up for You!  Where are the lepers who were healed?  Where are the blind who can now see?  Where are all the people who ate the bread and fish on the hillside?  Where are those who followed You so readily when they thought You would become King of the Jews?  No one speaks.  No voice in the crowd comes to Your defense.  On this day, You stand alone.

You stand before Pilate, the power of Rome: seeming weakness standing before world power.  And yet, Pilate, the ruthless enforcer for the Empire, has lost control: he cannot force You to confess; he cannot make the crowds be quiet.  With all his power, he cannot find the courage to do what is right.  Power does not always rest in the hands of Empires.  Thrones and judgment seats are not always filled with the courageous and strong.  Pilate plays it safe, giving in to the crowds for the sake of order. 

Innocent of all charges, You stood before Pilate, yet he condemned You to death.  You were silent, but so was everyone who could have spoken on Your behalf.  In some small way, we understand what You experienced.  At times, we have felt alone, been treated unfairly, seen others misuse power entrusted to them.  We have been falsely accused, and no one spoke up for us. 

Reflection: Do I respond like You did?  Or, am I prone to squeal and whine, seeking to make my case and offer my own defense?  How do I respond when life seems unfair?  Do I complain?  Do I seek the easy way out?  Do I, in my own strength, rally others to my aid?  What do I do when I do not get my way?

Prayer: “Jesus, help me to respond the way You did.  I know there is a time to speak up, but more often than not, I’ve spoken up out of fear, doubt and self-defense when I should have simply trusted my loving Father God.  Help me to see beneath the surface of my own desires and preferences to the unseen hand of God that is present in every area of my life.  God, help me to believe what Romans 8:28 says, ‘You are working all things together for my good.’”

Day 4 of Lent :: Around the Table

“I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you.”
~Luke 22:15

If you were one of the disciples, where would you have seated yourself at the table?  Would you have felt the freedom to rest your head intimately on Jesus as did John the Beloved?  Or, would you have been inclined to sit at a distance from Him?

Do you believe that Jesus longs to be with you?  He does — more than you could ever imagine. Considered the following prayer of Catherin of Siena.

When then, eternal Father, did you create this creature of yours?. . . You show me that you made us for one reason only: in your light you saw yourself compelled by the fire of your love to give us being in spite of the evil we would commit against you, eternal Father. It was fire, then, that compelled you. Oh, unutterable love, even though you saw all the evils your creatures would commit against your infinite goodness, you acted as if you did not see and set your eye only on the beauty of your creature, with whom you had fallen in love like one drunk and crazy with love. . . You are the fire, nothing but a fire of love, crazy over what you have made.

Memorize: 

“I belong to my beloved, 

and his desire is for me.” 

(Song of Solomon 7:10)

Prayer: Today, while waiting at stoplights, shopping lines and other intermittent moments, offer up this simple, yet powerful prayer to God:  “God, I belong to You.” Don’t make it anything more than that.  It is enough.

Day 3 of Lent :: The Last Meal

When the hour came, Jesus and His apostles reclined at the table. And He said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God."
(Luke 22:14-16)

Of all the ways Jesus could have chosen to spend the last hours of His life with the disciples, He chose to eat a meal. Jesus alludes to the fact that this wasn’t merely any meal, it was a meal He had “eagerly desired” to eat with them for some time. How long had He waited? Days? Weeks? Months? What about centuries? What if there were something embedded in this meal that illustrated the greatest reason God had sent Him to earth?

For most of us, meals and food are simply a means to an end – to eat, be fed, and to physically survive until the next carbo-fueling. This was not the case in ancient times. Meals were never merely for physical nourishment alone, they were for the purpose of companionship. “In Eastern cultures,” writes Ray Vander Laan, “harmony between people is not simply a matter of laws but a relationship of the heart.  In order to create or reestablish harmonious relationships, involved parties eating a meal together to celebrate their reconciliation and to covenant not to seek revenge in the future.  After the meal, neither party will ever bring up past offenses.”[i] In fact, the English word companion, is derived from the Latin roots cum (with) and panis (bread). In part, at the Last Supper, God was declaring His desire to enter into covenant companionship with us through Jesus Christ.

It is often said that, “We are what we eat.” Joseph Grassi writes that, “this motif is especially strong when the host furnishes the bread and serves it by hand after breaking it. Thus the command, ‘Take, this is My body,’ is a challenge and invitation to be truly identified with Jesus as a disciple. The shared cup strengthens and brings out the covenant aspect. For example, at a Jewish wedding, even to this day, bride and bridegroom drink from the same cup to signify their covenant with one another. Mark writes, ‘So all of them drank from it.’”[ii] This Last Supper then, was a covenant meal of peace between Jesus and His disciples. No wonder Christ had “longed” to share this meal. For it was for the very purpose of establishing peace between God and humanity that He came.

Reflection: Imagine you are sitting at a table across from Jesus. You may find it helpful to actually sit at a table with a piece of bread and something to drink. With the bread in hand, ask yourself (in the presence of God), is there anything between us? If you become aware of something, confess it to God and ask for His forgiveness. Are you able to receive His forgiveness? Is there an area of your life where you find it difficult to accept His love and forgiveness? Remember that it is with-bread (cumpanis) that we are reminded of our companionship with God through Christ. Thank Christ for the covenant that He sacrificially made with us.

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[i] Ray Vander Laan, Faith Lessons, Volume 11, 179.

[ii] Joseph A. Grassi, Jesus is Shalom: a vision of peace from the Gospels, 13-14.

Day 2 :: Redefining Greatness

“Learn the lesson that, if you are to do the work of a prophet,
what you need is not a scepter but a hoe.” 
~Bernard of Clairvaux

Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power, and that He had come from God and was returning to God. He got up from the meal, took off His outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around His waist.  After that, He poured water into a basin and began to wash His disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around Him. (John 13:3-5)

“As the cross is the sign of submission,” writes Richard Foster, “so the towel is the sign of service. When Jesus gathered His disciples for the Last Supper, they were having trouble deciding who was the greatest. This was no new issue for them. Whenever there is trouble over who is the greatest, there is trouble over who is the least.  That is the crux of the matter for us, isn’t it?  Most of us know we will never be the greatest; just don’t let us be the least.

“Gathered at the Passover feast, the disciples were keenly aware that someone needed to wash the others’ feet.  The problem was that the only people who washed feet were the least.  So there they sat, feet caked with dirt.  It was such a sore point that they were not even going to talk about it.  No one wanted to be considered the least.  Then Jesus took a towel and a basin and redefined greatness.”[i]

After Jesus finished doing the unthinkable, He turns to His disciples and says, “¹⁴Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.  ¹⁵I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. ¹⁶Very truly I tell you, servants are not greater than their master, nor are messengers greater than the one who sent them. ¹⁷Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” As we journey through Lent, may we look for opportunities to serve others.  Who are some people in your life who typically serve you? (i.e. gas station attendants, waiters, waitress, store clerks, custodians, etc.) How can you begin serving them?

Prayer: “Jesus, help me to selflessly serve others just as You served.”

A businessman once asked,

“How can you tell if you have a servant attitude?” The replay came,

“By the way you react when you are treated like one.”[ii]

  

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[i] Richard Foster, Celebration of Discipline, 126.

[ii] Lorne Sanny, Daily Walk, April 1982.

Day 1 :: Ash Wednesday :: The Greatest

“When the hour came, 

Jesus and His apostles reclined at the table.” 

Luke 22:14 

Imagine the scene. It is the last meal Jesus will share with His closest friends. In just a few days, He will find Himself gasping for His next breath as He hangs on the cross, bearing the sin and shame of all of humanity. If you were Jesus, what would you have shared with such dear companions at your last meal? Suppose you were one of the disciples at the table. For three years you have followed in His footsteps, the very dust of His sandals embedded into your cloak. You have seen Him teach, heal the sick, and now He sits before you on the verge of tears. What would be going through your mind? Would you try to offer words of comfort or encouragement? What do you say when your Mentor tells you He is soon going to die? 

It was in such a tear-filled setting that an actual argument broke out among Jesus’ closest friends.  The Gospel of Luke tells us “a dispute also arose among them (the disciples) as to which of them was considered to be the greatest.” (Luke 22:24) This is a sort of déjà vu moment for Luke. The last time Jesus tried to tell the disciples about His impending suffering, “an argument started among the disciples as to which of them would be the greatest.” (Luke 9:45) 

Some may be more accomplished at hiding their inner motives than others, but we all must confront and wrestle with our desires for greatness. Muhammad Ali’s signature line captures how so many of us think: “I am the greatest.”  Boxing promoter Don King was quoted in the Los Angeles Times as saying, “I never cease to amaze myself,” and then added, “I say that humbly.”* How would that sound if he were to say it with pride? “We have all, in our own way,” writes John Ortberg “been trying to take God’s 

place ever since Eden.”* 

Lent is a time when we specifically think about who Christ is and remind ourselves of who we are not.  As we reflect on His greatness, we are reminded of our desperate need of a Savior. Lent is a time when we come to grips with the truth that our feeble attempts to control our little world are just that – feeble. It is a time when we step down from our self-made thrones and bow before the one true and eternal God. Lent is a season when we ask God to sift our hidden desires, measure our motives, 

and purify our passions. 

Prayer: “God, forgive me for the ways I’ve placed my own desires and ambitions 

ahead of  You.  Spirit of  God, as I walk with Jesus toward the Cross, show me what 

You need to teach me.”

(*As quoted in, John Ortberg, The Life You’ve Always Wanted, 111

, 108.)