tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71720615651667537172024-03-27T10:42:46.072-05:00Elliott's Museselliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.comBlogger1277125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-89688975283787454362024-03-27T10:42:00.000-05:002024-03-27T10:42:10.744-05:00Day 37, Wednesday – “After Jesus’ Death, Part 1”<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Bible
gives us a glimpse of what happened after Christ’s death on the Cross, and what
it meant for the Church, and in Heaven.
In Part 1, I want to look at what happened on earth and the netherworld,
after his death. We have some biblical
references, and also some creedal statements that the Church confesses. We learn from this that Jesus’ death wasn’t
the “end” as we think of the earthly life we live. For now, we’ll pass over the resurrection,
saving that for Easter Sunday. There
were some immediate physical things, and there were also some mystical things
that followed.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“Now
there was a man named Joseph, from the Jewish town of Arimathea. He was a
member of the council, a good and righteous man, who had not consented to their
decision and action; and he was looking for the kingdom of God. This man went
to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. <br />
Then he took it down and wrapped it in a linen shroud and laid him in a
tomb cut in stone, where no one had ever yet been laid. It was the day of
Preparation, and the Sabbath was beginning. <br />
The women who had come with him from Galilee followed and saw the tomb
and how his body was laid. Then they returned and prepared spices and
ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment” (Luke
23:50-56).<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">All four
Gospels share this story, with some minor differences. John’s Gospel tells us that Nicodemus came
alongside Joseph of Arimathea to carry the body to the tomb and prepare spices
for the body after Passover was over.
Jesus died at 3:00 p.m. on Friday, and Passover would have begun by 5:00
p.m., so they had little time to get Jesus into the tomb and roll the stone
across it. John’s account does not
mention the presence of the women. Luke
does not name the women, but Matthew and Mark both state that Mary Magdalene,
and the other Mary, the mother of Joses.<a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Both of these had been at the Crucifixion, and they were witnesses, along with
Joseph and Nicodemus, that Jesus was placed in the tomb and the stone was
rolled over the entrance, and sealed.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">We know
from scripture that when a person dies, their soul lives on, though the
physical organ of the body is dead. With
Jesus, it’s a bit more complicated.
Jesus was both human and divine, fully united in both natures. Upon death, his human nature died, but his
divine nature could never die. Still,
the living soul of Jesus was not in his body anymore, even as our soul is not
in our body upon death. Where was Jesus’
soul? He had told the thief on the
cross, “<i>Today you will be with me in Paradise”</i>, which tells me that
Jesus’ soul and his divine nature were in heaven. Yet, there’s more to consider.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">The Apostles Creed, in part, makes this
statement: <br />
<i>I believe in God, the Father almighty,<br />
Creator of heaven and earth,<br />
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,<br />
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,<br />
born of the Virgin Mary,<br />
suffered under Pontius Pilate,<br />
was crucified, died and was buried;<br />
he descended into hell;<br />
on the third day, he rose again from the dead;<o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Jesus
submitted his life to end in death – death on the cross. He died a real death,
a physical death. There were heresies in
the early church that said that God abandoned the physical Jesus and rescued
the divine Jesus before his death. That
is false. Another heresy said that Jesus
didn’t die, he only appeared to die.
That is false. We know that those
are false, and have some hint of what happened after Jesus' death, and what the
Creed means by “he descended into hell” by what the Apostle Peter wrote.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“For
Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he
might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the
spirit, in which he went and proclaimed to the spirits in prison because
they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah,
while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were
brought safely through water”<br />
(1 Peter 3:18-20).<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Christ’s death, as Peter reminds us, is propitiatory and vicarious – <i>“suffer
once for sins”</i>. Jesus' death fully
accomplished all that God needed to make unrighteous humans into righteous
saints. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Why did
Jesus go to hell? Peter takes us back to
Genesis 6, when “spirit” beings sought to cohabit with human beings, and God
sent a deluge upon the world to destroy all but the eight people in Noah’s
family. Let’s first note that Peter says
Jesus went to “<i>the spirits in prison”.</i>
The Creed says, <i>“Jesus descended into hell”. </i>Hell is like a prison. The Hebrew word for Hell is “<i>Sheol”</i>
and Hell in Greek is <i>“Hades”.</i>
Both meant “the place of the dead”.
Yet, Jewish Rabbis didn’t teach that there was only one dimension of
Hell – which was suffering. Instead,
they taught that Sheol, or Hades, was divided into two parts. In one of Jesus’ parables, he speaks of a
separation between those who abide in the good side of Hades and those who
abide in the suffering side of Hades. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">“There
was a rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and who feasted
sumptuously every day. <br />
And at his gate was laid a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who desired to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table. Moreover, even
the dogs came and licked his sores. <br />
The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s side. The
rich man also died and was buried, and in Hades, being in torment, he lifted up
his eyes and saw Abraham far off and Lazarus at his side. And he called out,
‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his
finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.’ <br />
But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received
your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is
comforted here, and you are in anguish. And besides all this, between us and
you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here
to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us”’ (Luke 16:19-26).<o:p></o:p></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">Peter is
referring to a deeper dimension of Hell when he refers to a “prison” that held
those spirit beings who came to destroy all of humanity. In his second letter, Peter adds this information:<br />
<i>“… God did not spare angels when they sinned but cast them into hell and
committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment” (2
Peter 2:4).</i><br />
The word translated Hell is a different word, “<i>tartaroō, </i>which is “the
deepest abyss of hell”. One thought is
that Jesus went to proclaim to them his victory over Sin and death – they were
defeated and mankind was restored. The
other dimension of Jesus’ descent into Hell follows the theme of releasing the
souls of the faithfully departed who awaited Jesus’ death and eventual
resurrection and ascension. <o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">He descended among the dead. His
soul, separated from His body, joined the holy souls awaiting the Savior in the
Land of the Dead, including the thief on the cross who would join Jesus in
“paradise”. His descent among the dead brought to completion the proclamation
of the Gospel and liberated those holy souls who had long awaited their
Redeemer. The Gates of Heaven were now open, and these holy souls entered
everlasting happiness in God’s presence. (We’ll look at that tomorrow in part
2). Jesus did not deliver those souls damned to eternal punishment in hell nor
did He destroy hell as such; they remained in that state and place of damnation
begun at the time of their particular judgment.
<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">What Jesus did upon his death was
release those awaiting heaven. Why were
they waiting? Jesus had to be “<i>He is
the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the
dead so that he might come to have first place in everything”(Colossians 1:18).
</i>The Apostle Paul also wrote, <i>“Therefore it is said, "When he
ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive; he gave gifts to his
people." (When it says, "He ascended," what does it mean but
that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended
is the same one who ascended far above all the heavens so that he might fill
all things) (Ephesians 4:8-10).</i><o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;">An ancient Homily of the early
Church for Holy Saturday captured this event: <br />
<i>"The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep. The earth
trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and He has
raised up all who have slept ever since the world began.... He has gone to
search for our first parent, as for a lost sheep. Greatly desiring to visit
those who live in darkness and in the shadow of death, He has gone to free from
sorrow the captives of Adam and Eve, He who is both God and the Son of Eve...
'I am your God, who for your sake have become your Son... I order you, O
sleeper, to awake. I did not create you to be held a prisoner in hell. Rise
from the dead, for I am the life of the dead."<o:p></o:p></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="color: #2f5496; font-family: "Calibri Light",sans-serif; font-size: 13.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-themecolor: accent1; mso-themeshade: 191;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p>
</p><div><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><i><span style="font-size: 9.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-family: "Source Sans Pro",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></i></span></a><i><span style="font-size: 9.0pt;"> “There were also women looking on from a
distance, among whom were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the
younger and of Joses, and Salome”(Mark 15:40).</span></i><i><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 9.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
</div>
</div><div>
<div id="ftn1"><p class="MsoFootnoteText"><br /></p>
</div>
</div>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-57867728200143731842024-03-26T09:54:00.003-05:002024-03-26T10:51:45.206-05:00Day 36 (Tuesday of Holy Week) – “Father, Into Your Hands I Commit My Spirit”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Yesterday
we began to look at – what I believe – were two simultaneously spoken words of
Jesus as his dying words on the cross.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The first of these was from the disciple John, who heard Jesus’ words </span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">“It
is finished”</i><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">John records that
Jesus then “</span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">gave up his Spirit”.</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Luke,
probably in interviews with various people –
maybe Mary Magdalen, or Mother Mary - adds to the final words from one of those who was also standing there and connected Jesus' words to a dramatic event that demonstrated the finality of Jesus’ work on the cross.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“It was
now about the sixth hour, and there was darkness over the whole land until the
ninth hour, <br />
while the sun’s light failed. And the curtain of the temple was torn in
two. Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, “Father, into your hands
I commit my spirit!” And having said this he breathed his last” (Luke
23:44-46).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In our
journey with Jesus to Jerusalem, we witnessed his resolve to finish the work of
redemption that His Father sent him to do.
Jesus was sent into the world by the Father and was purposed to die for
the Sin of the world. Yesterday, we
witnessed that Jesus “<i>gave up his spirit</i>” – i.e., Jesus was in control
of his life and his death. The darkness
outside witnesses the gravity of His death – which was to defeat Satan and
Sin. He then speaks – softly, I think –
to the Father’s will - <i>"Father, into your hands I commit my spirit".<br /></i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOYL7hFJ8GUsEM4JInKBaGjqrHIqABOeO7aL4L5cB8H9uenij5WCaEfut-2p4zJUD6X2iN3-cPe1QVCoIieyP4ipr2ykxOFEajtx9ENOv4Ywb3KlGKCvkaxBYMFOmYMQqxbJJ0bXaqjfNWR7WivRgvL-68rkru_O4B6Q-XrRynChIBwXeh05etIGg_uc4/s669/crucifixion.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="375" data-original-width="669" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOYL7hFJ8GUsEM4JInKBaGjqrHIqABOeO7aL4L5cB8H9uenij5WCaEfut-2p4zJUD6X2iN3-cPe1QVCoIieyP4ipr2ykxOFEajtx9ENOv4Ywb3KlGKCvkaxBYMFOmYMQqxbJJ0bXaqjfNWR7WivRgvL-68rkru_O4B6Q-XrRynChIBwXeh05etIGg_uc4/w320-h179/crucifixion.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
words come from Psalm 31, <i>“In you, O LORD, do I take refuge; let me never be
put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me! Incline your ear to me; rescue
me speedily! Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me! For you
are my rock and my fortress; and for your name’s sake you lead me and guide me;
you take me out of the net they have hidden for me, for you are my refuge. Into
your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God” (Psalm
31:1-5).<o:p></o:p></i></span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus, truly
human, and truly divine is the perfect sacrifice for our Sin. Sinless in his life, he took our Sin upon
himself and gave to us his righteous perfect sinless life. It was the Love of God that motivated God to
do this for us giving His Son as our substitute. The Apostle Paul wrote it this way to the
Corinthians:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“For the
love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died
for all, therefore all have died; and he died for all, that those who live
might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was
raised...For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we
might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5: 14-15, 21).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Christ
Jesus appeared as the “<i>lamb of God who takes away the Sins of the world</i>”
– the Paschal Passover lamb. This is the
culmination of all redemptive history and proves both the love of God and the
faithfulness of God in his covenant toward us.
The curtain is torn in two because there is no other sacrifice needed
than the one Jesus made on the Cross. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">As Jesus
commits his life to the Father and breathes His last, one can wonder what those
around the Cross thought. We don’t have
to go far in our reading to know there was at least one who knew what Jesus had
done.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now
when the centurion saw what had taken place, he praised God, saying, ‘Certainly
this man was innocent!’” (Luke 23:47).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Christ
Jesus abandoned his life to the Father, as each of us must do. Jesus’ earthly life lived for God, now comes
to an end. Jesus, the “word-incarnate”, uttered
his last words, but the two words that stand out are “Father”, and “Thy hands”. Those two words are the keys to our dying
someday. In His life on earth, he always
did the work of His Father, the Abba (Papa) whom he encouraged his disciples to
put their faith and trust in.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Our
Father, who is in Heaven,<br />
Hallowed is thy name,<br />
Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done,<br />
On earth, as it is in Heaven…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal">
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">One day
we will come to the end of our lives, and my hope, personally, is to be able to
say </span><i><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Father, into thy hands I commit my spirit.”</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">
Peace</span><span face="Calibri, sans-serif"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-26056189232161539762024-03-25T10:05:00.000-05:002024-03-25T10:05:29.526-05:00Day 35, (Monday) – “It is Finished…Father, Into Your Hands, I Commit My Spirit”<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We began
last week to look and ponder, Jesus’ final words while he hung on the
cross. Traditionally called “the Seven
Words”, these are seven statements Jesus made from the cross. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">His
first words were for various people: <i>“Father, forgive them; for they know
not what they do”</i> – to the Jews and Romans who are crucifying him. <i>“Truly I say unto thee, This day you will
be with me in paradise”</i> – to one of the thieves hanging next to him who
asks Jesus to remember him in Heaven.
And finally, to his mother, and the disciple John, who Jesus chooses to
care for his Mother, Mary – “<i>Woman, behold thy son! and Behold thy mother!”<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> Then Jesus’ words express his deep suffering,
and he speaks to His Father quoting from Psalm 22, which both expresses his
pain, but also speaks of his triumph – “<i>My God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me?”.</i> He is humanly
expressing his suffering and follows that with a simple statement – <i>“I
thirst”.</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It is
very near the end of Jesus’ suffering, and there are two words left. Today we want to ponder those two words,
which I believe are spoken simultaneously – <i>“It is finished”, </i>and,<i>
“Father, into your hands I commit my spirit”. </i> The Apostle John is standing at the cross with
Jesus’ mother, Mary, and Mary Magdalen. Although they were most likely spoken
together, I’ll take them separately today and tomorrow. John
records the first of these words that Jesus said:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“A jar
full of sour wine stood there, so they put a sponge full of the sour wine on a
hyssop branch and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the sour wine,
he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John
19:29-30).</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">When
Jesus said “<i>It is finished”</i>, he was speaking of the fulfillment of all
the work the Father had given him to do – it was completed, fulfilled,
finished. God had spoken to Adam and Eve
in the garden after their Sin that he was going to send one who would <i>“he
shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15b). </i>God’s
promise to the first parents was being fulfilled. Jesus is bruised, terribly bruised, but he
has a bruised heel, while the enemy, Satan, is forever bruised and Satan’s
power is rendered obsolete.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
words “it is finished” demonstrate that Jesus is not a passive victim, but was
offering himself as the sacrifice – the paschal sacrifice – to the Father for
the Sin of the world. Jesus bore the
ugliness and treachery of Sin, and his blood was shed, as the Paschal lamb was
killed. There is one sacrifice for Sin
that could fulfill the everlasting need for a “once and for all sacrifice”. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“For
Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of
the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God
on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest
enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would
have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is,
he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the
sacrifice of himself” (Hebrews 9:24-28).</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">As Jesus
hung on the cross, he saw all that this accomplished. Jesus’ death for the Sin of the World was death
to death! Indeed, Christ Jesus said it
before it all occurred: <i>“And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw
all things to Myself” (John 12:32).</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What did
Jesus see from the cross? He saw a world
that was about to change, and God’s Kingdom, his Church, would spread out over
the whole of the world, and instead of feeling shame for Jesus’ death on the
Cross, the Church would “boast” of God’s redeeming grace for those who turn to
the Cross and put their faith in Jesus’ finished work for them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Redemption
is Christ’s finished work. Atonement is
the gift of His life born of love and mercy.
It is a gift from God that was given to us – the very best gift we could
ever hope to receive!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br clear="all" style="mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" /></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-48918732283903808142024-03-24T10:26:00.001-05:002024-03-24T11:06:52.433-05:00 The Sixth Sunday in Lent – “Palm Sunday”<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">On this
day of celebrating Christ’s Resurrection, we come back to the beginning of
Jesus’ final week, when on this Sunday, we call Palm Sunday, Jesus rode into
Jerusalem on a donkey – a servant’s animal – and as he entered, people began to
take palm branches and lay them down on the road, crying out “</span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Hosanna! Blessed is He Who Comes In the Name of the
Lord”.</i><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">In the Gospel of Matthew, we
read this:</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now
when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives,
then Jesus sent two disciples, <br />
saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you
will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. <br />
If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and
he will send them at once.” <br />
This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, <br />
“Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble,
and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.’” <br />
The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. <br />
They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he
sat on them. <br />
Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut
branches from the trees and spread them on the road. <br />
And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting,
“Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest!” <br />
And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying,
“Who is this?” <br />
And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee”
(Matthew 21:1-11). <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><v:shapetype coordsize="21600,21600" filled="f" id="_x0000_t75" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" stroked="f"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">
<v:stroke joinstyle="miter">
<v:formulas>
<v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0">
<v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0">
<v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1">
<v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2">
<v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth">
<v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight">
<v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1">
<v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2">
<v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth">
<v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0">
<v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight">
<v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0">
</v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:formulas>
<v:path gradientshapeok="t" o:connecttype="rect" o:extrusionok="f">
<o:lock aspectratio="t" v:ext="edit">
</o:lock></v:path></v:stroke></span></v:shapetype><v:shape id="Picture_x0020_1" o:spid="_x0000_s1026" style="height: 151.2pt; margin-left: 239.8pt; margin-top: 337.1pt; mso-height-percent: 0; mso-height-percent: 0; mso-height-relative: margin; mso-position-horizontal-relative: margin; mso-position-horizontal: absolute; mso-position-vertical-relative: margin; mso-position-vertical: absolute; mso-width-percent: 0; mso-width-percent: 0; mso-width-relative: margin; mso-wrap-distance-bottom: 0; mso-wrap-distance-left: 9pt; mso-wrap-distance-right: 9pt; mso-wrap-distance-top: 0; mso-wrap-style: square; position: absolute; visibility: visible; width: 228pt; z-index: 251660288;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<v:imagedata o:title="" src="file:///C:/Users/ellio/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.jpg"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">
<w:wrap anchorx="margin" anchory="margin" type="square">
</w:wrap></span></v:imagedata></v:shape><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What is noticeable in Matthew’s account
is the geography that he made note of for Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. As Jesus and his disciples got near Jerusalem,
they came first to Bethpage, a small village east of the Mount of Olives. They had begun their journey to Jerusalem
from Bethany, another small village east of Bethpage. Then they climbed the Mount of Olives, and
here, the vista of all Jerusalem lays before them. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy-VpZ0MIw5P9R2jfBWoUVFhsmL3i4c21jALdZ8RVuptQSNh6ls0Pz-CqlTje6sAaqNpMsd8ukEKQnXTCHinel9EdvMYiVzwYcxIyjoSswILiXXgu-qqr_ZLag7qE7-BdPPf1jUF-vvGKbU0HkCtTeM_XJap60kvnD1SKTUOL9yHvP_m8s4K3L97WLSGA/s2048/jerusalem%20from%20mt.%20of%20olives.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1358" data-original-width="2048" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy-VpZ0MIw5P9R2jfBWoUVFhsmL3i4c21jALdZ8RVuptQSNh6ls0Pz-CqlTje6sAaqNpMsd8ukEKQnXTCHinel9EdvMYiVzwYcxIyjoSswILiXXgu-qqr_ZLag7qE7-BdPPf1jUF-vvGKbU0HkCtTeM_XJap60kvnD1SKTUOL9yHvP_m8s4K3L97WLSGA/w320-h212/jerusalem%20from%20mt.%20of%20olives.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We might
ask, “Why did Matthew speak of the geography of Jesus’ journey from the east of
Jerusalem to enter into Jerusalem that day?”
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I
believe the answer lies in a story from the Old Testament book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel prophesied during the deportation of
Jews to Babylon in the 6<sup>th</sup> century B.C. During that time, Ezekiel saw the “<i>Shekinah
– which is the glory of God</i>” leave the Temple through the entrance of the Eastern
gate and then saw the Shekina move across the valley east of the city over the Mount
of Olives. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">First, the
glory of God left the Temple: “<i>Then the glory of the LORD went out from the
threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubim. And the cherubim lifted up
their wings and mounted up from the earth before my eyes as they went out, with
the wheels beside them. And they stood at the entrance of the east gate of the
house of the LORD, and the glory of the God of Israel was over them” (Ezekiel
10:18-19).</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Then
glory of God (Shekinah) moved across the valley over the Mount of Olives: “<i>And
the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city and stood on the
mountain that is on the east side of the city” (Ezekiel 11:23).</i> This was Ezekiel’s way of saying that God’s glory
would not reside in Jerusalem because of its wickedness and lack of repentance
for their Sin.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Later,
in Ezekiel, something occurs that foretells a future hope – the Messiah will
come.<br />
<i>“Then he led me to the gate, the gate facing east. And behold, the
glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east...As the glory of the LORD
entered the temple by the gate facing east, the Spirit lifted me up and
brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the
temple” (Ezekiel 3:1-5). <o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Ezekiel
saw a future time when the glory of the Lord would return to the Temple. When?
He prophesied a Prince, the Messiah would come and God’s glory would return. <br />
<i>“Then he brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary, which faces
east. And it was shut. <br />
And the LORD said to me, “This gate shall remain shut; it shall not be
opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the LORD, the God of Israel, has
entered by it. Therefore it shall remain shut. <br />
Only the prince may sit in it to eat bread before the LORD. He shall
enter by way of the vestibule of the gate, and shall go out by the same way” (Ezekiel
44:1-3)<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus’
entry from the east is purposeful. Jesus comes riding a donkey as a humble
servant, but also as the nation’s Messiah, the one who God had promised would “come
in the name of the Lord”. Jesus enters Jerusalem in fulfillment of another Old
Testament prophecy in the book of Zechariah: <i>“Rejoice greatly, O Daughter of
Zion! Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and
having salvation, gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a
donkey.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> Jesus rides into Jerusalem and is hailed by
the people as their King. The streets of Jerusalem, the royal city, are open to
Him, and like a king, he ascends to His palace, not a temporal palace but the
spiritual palace that is the temple, because His is a spiritual kingdom. He
receives the worship and praise of the people because He deserves it. No longer
does He tell His disciples to be quiet about Him but to shout His praises and
worship Him openly. <i><o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">By
faith, we celebrate with the crowd from 2100 years ago. Jesus has come and blessed is He who comes in
the name of the Lord! For many, Jesus is
their Savior, their Lord, and today they will worship Him as God Incarnate –
Jesus Christ, our Lord. For others Jesus
is an interruption, a person who has captured the hearts of the world, but not
for them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">For five
weeks we have been on this Lenten Sojourn.
We have entered into a time of reflection, repentance, and renewal of
faith. This final week is a sobering
reminder of why this is necessary for us to do.
We are the crowd crying out “<i>Hosanna…”</i> and we are the crowd, just
five days later, crying out, <i>“Crucify Him, Crucify Him”</i>. Our joy of Christ becomes one that is turned
when we realize what Christ Jesus entered into Jerusalem to do – to die on the
cross for our Sin. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">So, we
pause, and ask, “Who am I?” Am I one
with the crowd, singing His praise, welcoming him into my life, my home, my
family? Am I with him at times, and
turning away from Him when His commands become inconvenient? Am I a disciple who follows joyfully when all
is well, and flees when all is not?
Where is my heart? Let’s take
this week ahead to look within, and look by faith, and look to love, our Savior
and our Lord – Jesus Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p><p>
</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-40540923592935276962024-03-23T19:40:00.008-05:002024-03-24T13:24:54.884-05:00 Day 34, (Saturday) - “I Thirst”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Most
people are familiar with the life and work of the famous “Mother Teresa of
Calcutta”.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">If there’s anything that you
need to know about her, it is the words “I thirst”.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The words spoken by Jesus on the Cross come
from deep within his pain and suffering.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Mother Teresa felt the pain and suffering of the people she served in
Calcutta, India, and when it came to describing to others what she was doing to
serve the poorest of the poor, she simply said, “</span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">I thirst</i><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">”.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">It was her way of describing Mother Teresa’s
longing for the Heart of Jesus in reaching out to those who were suffering.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Mother
Teresa grew up in Macedonia, next to Greece.
At an early age, she felt the heart of Jesus was everything. By age 12, she knew she wanted to be a
missionary. She joined “the Loreto
Sisters” at age 18, and immediately applied to go to their mission in Bengali,
India, where she was sent the next year.
In the Loreto community, she was a teacher. Ten years later, on a train, at age 36, she
encountered, what she said was “<i>a call within a call</i>”. What became of that was – as she described –
“<i>a burning thirst of Jesus for love and for souls”.</i> At first, her spiritual directors and
leaders did not want to approve of her request – to found a missionary
organization. She was undeterred, and
she wrote to the Bishop saying, “<i>Don’t delay, your grace, don’t put it
off…it is the heart of Jesus in his suffering, and He thirsts for love and
souls”.</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It's
easy for us to look at Jesus’ words on the cross and read into them a mere
physical desire for something to drink.
It is just two words, <i>“I thirst”.</i>
Yet, Jesus knew that his soon-coming death was how God, the Father,
would satisfy the “soul thirst” of many.
Jesus’ thirst is from his heart, and comes deeply within his soul and
spirit. It is a thirst of the Spirit for
the souls of people that Jesus cries out for.
His thirst is one of his love going out to all who would come to
him. He had said it before…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“On the
last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone
thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture
has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he
said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as
yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John
7:37-39).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">If we
step back from the literal words, we see something that is rather amazing. God, in Christ Jesus, is crying out for us –
he wants us. He thirsts for us to
discover his love, to live knowing he is ours, and we are his. Does Christ need to earn us? No, for we belong to God in creation, but in
our drifting, our darkened, often soul-less state, we forget that we belong to
him. Now, Christ Jesus, from the cross,
speaks to his heart’s desire – “<i>If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and
drink!”.</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">As we
get closer to Good Friday, and Easter Sunday, let us – from deep within – long
for Christ’s thirst for love. Let us
cast off any negative thoughts from within that we are not worthy, or that God
doesn’t really know who I am, or I have failed him much too often. Let us remind ourselves of Christ Jesus’
short, short prayer from the Cross – “<i>I thirst</i>”, and his plea to us, “<i>Would
you come?”</i> His water is himself, and
he is full of life to all who will receive Him – the one who suffered for us!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I will
add, that Mother Teresa’s Missionary of Charity organization did not take off. She spent years agonizing over her work. She felt inadequate, and disappointing, and
was frequently discouraged. Later she
wrote of her life for years as living “<i>a dark night of the soul</i>”. Later, through several honest, vulnerable
conversations, she came to realize that her life mirrored the “thirst of
Jesus”, and allowed her to comprehend, spiritually, the heart of Jesus in his
suffering. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Let us
remind ourselves, that the sometimes frequent dark-night times, when we feel
alone, even if surrounded by family, and friends, is not a source of
discouragement but can allow us to become centered on Jesus’ suffering, and
draw us closer to understanding the heart of Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In
Mother Teresa’s book,<i> “A Life for God: Mother Teresa Treasury”, </i>her
compiled life is published at her death in 1997. On one particular page she wrote:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“Suffering
has to come because if you look at the cross, he has his head bending down – he
wants to kiss you – he has both of his hands open wide – he wants to embrace
you. He has his heart opened wide to
receive you. When you feel miserable
inside, look at the cross and you will know what is happening. Suffering, pain, sorrow, humiliation, and feelings
of loneliness, are nothing but the kiss of Jesus…your suffering is a gift from
God…between you and Jesus alone inside.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<div><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Source Sans Pro",sans-serif; font-size: 8.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 8.0pt;"> </span><span lang="EN-GB" style="font-size: 8.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB;">From “A Life for God: Mother Teresa Treasury”, Harper-Collins,
1996, page 139.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-86327389428119488062024-03-22T09:08:00.001-05:002024-03-24T13:24:30.817-05:00 Day 33, (Friday) – “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The
first three words of Jesus were about individuals.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The last four are personal and directed
towards God, the Father.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">He begins with
a heart-wrenching plea that is like so many who are suffering to the point of
death.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now
from the sixth hour, there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour.
<br />
And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying,
“Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken
me?” Matthew 27:45-46 <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It is
noon, and for the next three hours, Jesus is going through agonizing pain and
suffering. Matthew and Mark (written from Peter’s memory) record these words,
and both make a point to say that darkness had descended upon the land. The sky turned a deep, deep grayish black as
if a storm was coming. Jesus, who is
Christ, the Messiah, is also the Son of God, and his cry is one of separation –
the feeling of being separated from the Father as he takes on the Sin of all
mankind.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
Father did not abandon, or leave his Son, but Jesus felt the full weight of the
Sin of the World, and the justice of God against that Sin. In his human/divine nature, Jesus had never
sinned and didn’t know what Sin, guilt, or shame from Sin felt like. The words Jesus speaks are a quote from Psalm
22:1, where David wrote them at a time when he felt alone, under the weight of
trying to survive as King Saul repeatedly hunted him in order to kill him. King David is confessing that God will not
abandon him, even if he cannot see what he is doing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Many of
the Church Fathers experienced what they referred to as a “<i>dark night of the
soul”</i>, which has to do with the experience of being in the “dark”, they
couldn’t find God amid their turmoil and suffering. When I read these words Jesus spoke, I think
of soldiers on a battlefield who lay dying of their wounds and cry out for
their mother, or their father. They just
want someone they know loves them to be alongside their suffering. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
Father did not abandon his Son, but he allowed him to experience the suffering
that would pay for the Sins of the world.
While Psalm 22 recounts this suffering, Jesus’ quoting from it surely
reminded him and us that God would deliver him from the suffering and that as a
result, all nations would worship God.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“The
afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the LORD!
May your hearts live forever! All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn
to the LORD, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you. For
kingship belongs to the LORD, and he rules over the nations”. <br />
(Psalm 22:26-28).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus’
words cry out to the Father, confident in hope that his suffering was not in
vain and that his death will lead to the nations of the world to faith in
God. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Are you
in a dark time? Does God seem far
away? Let’s remember that God is
faithful…trust in Him. Offering your
suffering up to God, who will never “leave you nor forsake you”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br clear="all" style="mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" />
</span>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-74686885906043721002024-03-21T12:31:00.001-05:002024-03-24T13:24:15.461-05:00 Day 32, (Thursday) – “Woman, Behold, Your Son… Behold, Your Mother”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The
third words Jesus spoke from the cross give witness to Jesus’ selfless
compassion and humble adoration of His Mother, Mary.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">While most of Jesus’ followers had scattered
amid the fear of their arrest, Mary, along with Apostle John did not flee.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Instead, they came to the cross to be with
Jesus as he suffered.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Jesus had spoken
words of forgiveness, and words of assurance to the one criminal, and now, amid
his suffering, he looked down to see His mother and the Apostle John, and spoke
these words of compassion:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“When
Jesus saw his mother, and the disciple whom he loved standing near, he said to
his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold,
your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home” (John
19:26-27).</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It might
seem strange to refer to his mother Mary as “Woman”. We might hear that as disrespectful. It was not the first time Jesus had spoken to
his mother that way. At the wedding of
Cana, Mary realized the wedding hosts had run out of wine, and she went to
Jesus to ask him to do something about their needs. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“When
the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, "They have no
wine." <br />
And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what concern is that to you and to
me? My hour has not yet come." <br />
His mother said to the servants, "Do whatever he tells you" (John
2:3-5).</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus'
words to his mother were consistent with Jewish culture. “Woman” was a dignified way of referring to a
woman who deserved honor and respect. When Jesus refers to his mother as “Woman”, he
is showing his deep respect and honor for her.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus,
hanging on the cross, looks down at the woman whom God had chosen to carry him
in her womb, birth him in a manger, and watch him grow up and become the Savior
the angel had told her he was to become.
Now, recognizing that “<i>his hour had come</i>”, she is both grieving
and giving thanks to God who sent his Son into the world to save all those who
would put their faith in Him. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Did she
remember the words of God in the Garden of Eden? In the Garden, Adam and Eve chose to disobey
God and eat the fruit of the tree. God
spoke to the Serpent, and to Eve, saying: <i>“I will put enmity between you and
the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring, he shall bruise your
head (that is Satan), and you shall bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15).</i> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Did Mary
know that her Son, hanging on the cross, was delivering a death blow to the
head of Satan? Did she remember the words of Simeon who met her and Joseph when
they brought their eight-day-old Son to the Temple for his naming and
circumcision? It was a momentous time
and the words Simeon spoke were prophetic.
Did Mary recall them?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“Now
there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous
and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon
him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see
death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the
temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him
according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed
God and said, “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace,
according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have
prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the
Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” <br />
And his father and his mother marveled at what was said about him. <br />
And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child
is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is
opposed (and a sword will pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts
from many hearts may be revealed” (Luke 2:25-35).</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Did Mary
realize that a sword was piercing through her soul? I think she did.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">To Mary,
Jesus said, “<i>Woman, behold, Your Son</i>”.
Jesus is suffering, but he wants his Mother to know that she is not
going to be alone. During much of Jesus’
ministry, Mary was not at the forefront.
She also had to see her Son as the “Son of God”. Now, she sees the fruit of her womb as the
Savior of the world the angel Gabriel had told her he was to be. Then, Mary was fearful. The angel Gabriel
said to her, “<i>Do not be afraid, Mary”.</i>
She listened to his words and responded by saying “yes” – <i>“And Mary
said, “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your
word.” And the angel departed from her” (Luke 1:38)</i>. The disciples had fled, but she knew Jesus
was destined for the cross, and once again, she needed to be there to say
“Yes”.<i><o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">To Mary,
Jesus speaks compassionately, humbly, and to comfort; and to John, he speaks
forth his future – <i>“Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple
took her to his own home”. </i>Why
John? There’s a great deal of doubt
whether Jesus had brothers and sisters.
The early Church fathers believed that when Jesus’ family was referred
to in the scriptures, they were cousins, aunts, etc…and not children of
Mary. This makes sense when we realize
Jesus was entrusting his Mother’s future to John, a disciple, but not a family
member. Yet, the position John assumed
as the one who would care for Mary for the rest of her life had to be both an
honor and a task Jesus had equipped him to assume.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Church
history does not have complete records of all that occurred after Jesus’
ascension and the Church began to expand.
We know John ended his life after an exile on the Island of Patmos,
which is separated from the western coast of modern-day Turkey and corresponds
to the record of John serving as a Bishop in Ephesus. Mary, estimating biblical time, had to be in
her late 40’s by the time of Jesus’ death
– perhaps even in her early 50’s.
By the year 50 a.d., Mary would have been in her late 60’s, or early
70’s. It seems clear that by the end of
John’s life (estimate 96-100 a.d.), Mary had already gone on to heaven to be
with her Son. Early church tradition claims that John took Mary with him to
Ephesus, and that seems substantiated by early church father’s writings in the
100’s. He is the last Apostle to die, and the only one who did not die as a
martyr.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus’
words were spoken first to Mary, and then to John. He loved both of them and honored his Mother
and John with these words. John is a
type of the Church. As Mary was
entrusted to raise her Son that he might accomplish the Mission the Father had
sent him to do, so also John is entrusted to care for the person Jesus loved,
and after Mary, for the Church, which is Jesus’ bride that he loves.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-60924436859855935632024-03-20T08:48:00.001-05:002024-03-24T13:24:06.198-05:00 Day 31, (Wednesday) – “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">As we
listen to Jesus’ words on the cross, there’s a pattern present.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">He speaks to the Father to ask forgiveness
for the Jews and Romans in his first words and then follows with this word to a
criminal, one of two who are hung on their crosses on either side of him. Soon, he will speak to His Mother, Mary and to his beloved Apostle, John.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Two
others also, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him. <br />
When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified
Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left… <br />
One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding him and saying,
"Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!" <br />
But the other rebuked him, saying, "Do you not fear God, since you
are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed have been condemned
justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this man has done
nothing wrong." <br />
Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom." <br />
He replied, "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise"
(Luke 23: 32-33; 39-43).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
early church named this criminal who prayed to Jesus as <i>Dismas</i> – a
fitting name for a man who is hanging on a cross and all looks dismal. In many
expositions, he is referred to as a “good thief”, while his fellow thief is the
instigator for what is happening. Both
Dismas and his friend had been condemned to die by crucifixion for their crimes
– whether it was thievery or something else.
While they were guilty, Jesus hung on the cross as an innocent
victim. The first criminal spoke in the
language of desperation but not repentance.
He spoke the words he probably heard on the cross that many in the crowd
were saying – <i>“the people stood by watching; but the leaders scoffed at him,
saying ‘He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God…”
(23:35).</i> He heard them and like many
others, wanted Jesus to get off the cross and save himself and them also. His language is one of derision – a sort of
mocking plea for Jesus to do something <i>IF he was the Messiah!</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
second criminal was named “Dismas” and he acknowledges his guilt – <i>“we
indeed have been condemned justly…we are getting what we deserve”</i>, but he
recognizes Jesus’ innocence – <i>“this man has done nothing wrong”.</i> We might think that he is not sure of Jesus
except that he makes his plea for mercy and grace in what follows – <i>“Jesus,
remember me when you come into your Kingdom.”</i> He has a “late faith” in life, but one that
Jesus accepts – <i>“truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">He had
probably lived a hard life. Criminals at
this time were often poor, and homeless, and turned to violence and theft,
robbery, to live. We tend to emphasize
the words “<i>in paradise”</i>, for it is the place where heaven exists. Yet, the words that should leap out at us are
<i>“You will be with me”</i>. He is not
going to heaven just to get in, but he is going to join Jesus in his death on
this day.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus’
second prayer was more of a promise, but then all prayers are potentially
promises of God. “<i>Let thy will be
done”</i> is a prayer with a promised answer from God. Jesus is the hope of
heaven and is the promise of our desire to be with Him in his glorious heavenly
paradise. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Two men,
two words from them, two futures.
Suffering beguiles our faith if we let it. We want God to meet our needs – our way. I’ve met too many people who have told me
they left the church, and faith, when someone close to them died or
suffered. Job didn’t understand His
suffering. My friend has been battling ALS for almost four years now, and I have
asked God for a miracle for almost four years now. Yet, the point from these words of Jesus is
that the outcome of earth that leads to paradise comes from faith in Jesus, not
our expectations.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Dismas
did not ask Jesus to get him off the cross.
He did not even ask him for mercy.
His request came from a simple humility.
Faith is a simple humble response to God. Dismas was forgiven, his sins erased, and as
he died on the cross, his soul escaped the sin-sick world he had lived in and
entered into Paradise in union with Christ Jesus. Would that we could remember the faith of
simple humility every day to the last day of our life.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-6304054641809427692024-03-16T17:37:00.004-05:002024-03-24T13:23:51.379-05:00 Day 30, (Tuesday) – “Father forgive them, they do not know what they are doing”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">When we
recall that Jesus was whipped, and tortured, a crown of thorns was placed on
his head, and he was hit, spit on, and mocked, we might be shocked to hear the
first words that come from the cross – </span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> “Then Jesus said, "Father,
forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing" (Luke 23:34).</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus
had taught us in His teaching on the Mount – <i>“You have heard that it was
said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you,
Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:43-44)</i>. He rebuked the disciples when they wanted to
call down fire on those who sought to undermine Jesus’ ministry. When it came to “love your enemies”, Jesus
showed us how to do it.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Who did
he forgive? He forgave Judas who
betrayed him. He forgave Caiaphas who
manipulated people to get Jesus condemned.
He forgave Pontius Pilate, who tried to excuse himself from
responsibility by washing his hands. He
forgave the soldiers who brutally treated him leading up to and including being
nailed to the cross.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus
forgave us! <i>“But God proves his love
for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. <br />
Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by his blood, will
we be saved through him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies, we
were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more surely, having
been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. Romans 5:8-10<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“All of
us once lived among them in the passions of our flesh, following the desires of
flesh and senses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else. <br />
But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved
us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together
with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and
seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, (Ephesians 2:3-6).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">One of
my favorite prayers, probably repeated several times a day is “Lord, have mercy
upon me/us”. While I may not be Judas, I have betrayed my Savior. While I may have not beaten Christ with a
whip, I have turned my back on him and sinned against him. Jesus was not just praying for those who had
done these things to him, but for all of us, down through the ages who need
God’s mercy and grace.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">At one
point in Jesus’ sermon on the Mount, he reminded us of the great need for
forgiveness. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“For if
you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive
you; <br />
but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your
trespasses” (Matthew 6:14-15).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In 1972,
Corrie Ten Boom was a popular speaker who told her story of surviving the Nazi
concentration camp at Ravensbruck. The
prison camp that infamously had exterminated thousands of Jews and other groups
of people, had a garrison of guards that often treated the prisoners
inhumanely. Corrie Ten Boom survived due
to a clerical error that set her free, but her sister, her brother, and her father
did not. Still, she wanted to tell the
story of their suffering from a God-ward point of view, especially in Germany
where – she felt – many Germans had suffered under Nazi terror. In 1947, she spoke at a German church in
Munich. Later she wrote of that night
when her world would forever change:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Many people in the church, hearing that God, forgiving our sins, does
not remember them anymore, silently got up, took their coats, and silently
left… The ruthless war left too many scars and pain in their hearts. After the
service, Corrie was approached by a bald man in a gray overcoat and a brown hat
in his hand. He smiled and bowed politely. Corrie looked at him attentively,
and a blue uniform and a cap with a cockade flashed in front of her eyes, and
on it was a skull and two crossed bones. She immediately recognized him as a
former overseer, one of the most cruel punishers and escorts in the Ravensbrück
concentration camp, an SS officer. She remembered the shame with which she, her
poor sister Betsy, and other women walked naked in front of the guards, and in
front of this man. Corrie writes of a deep inner struggle: “Here he stood
against me with an outstretched hand, and I heard his voice: “Froilian, how
nice it was to hear that God casts all our sins into the depths of the sea, and
remembers them no more.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">He was talking, and I, who had just spoken so confidently about
forgiveness, stood and rummaged in my bag in embarrassment, unable to reach out
my hand to him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“You mentioned Ravensbrück in your speech,” he continued, “and I was a
warden there. But since then I have become a Christian and I know that God has
forgiven me for all the cruelties that I have committed. And yet I would like
to hear a word of forgiveness from your lips, Fraulein. Can you forgive me?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Her sister’s slow, horrific death resurfaced in Corrie’s memory…<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 27.0pt;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The man stood with outstretched hand, hoping for forgiveness. It only
lasted a few seconds, but to Corrie, they seemed like an eternity. She continued,
“Jesus, help me,” I prayed to myself, “I can reach out to him, and that’s all I
can do on my own, but You give me the right feeling.” Corrie held out her hand
to him – the former prisoner – the former camp guard. “I forgive you, brother…
with all my heart.” She later wrote: “I have never felt God’s love so keenly as
I did in that moment. But even then I understood that it was not my love, but
God’s. I tried to love, but I didn’t have the strength to do so. But here the
power of the Holy Spirit was at work, and His love … “After that, she had every
right to say:” Forgiveness is a volitional decision, and the will can function regardless
of the temperature of the heart” and again: “Memory is the key not to the past,
but to the future.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Father,
forgive them, for they know what they do”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<div><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 9.0pt;"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Source Sans Pro",sans-serif; font-size: 9.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></span></a><span style="font-size: 9.0pt;"> There are many places that record her story of this
incident. I found this online at
https://www.corrietenboom.com/<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
</div>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-18785008087591510612024-03-16T17:36:00.001-05:002024-03-24T13:23:37.639-05:00Day 29, (Monday) – “The Seven Words on the Cross”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The
final words that Jesus spoke were from the Cross where he was crucified by the
collaborative efforts of the Jewish rulers and the Romans. Jesus was hung on the cross, according to the
Gospels, at the “</span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">6<sup>th</sup> hour”</i><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">.
The Jewish measurement of time means Jesus’ crucifixion began at 9:00
a.m. While weakened from the Roman
physical beatings and torture, Jesus was able to speak seven last times before
his physical body succumbed to death.
Over the next few days, leading us to Holy Week, I’d like to think,
ponder a bit, on what these words should mean to us.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
seven last words were traditionally part of a Good Friday service. The significance of Jesus’ suffering, and
these words are important for our faith.
One author wrote: <i>“When we
suffer the most … we can cry out and God will save us…Jesus is on the cross;
his nerves, his body, his blood, and his anguish is ours. And in the midst of
this excruciating pain he makes the ultimate confession: There is a God and God
will hear me. How many times have we allowed ourselves to bear the depth of our
soul to God?”<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It is
here that we understand God’s love and his co-suffering in our sufferings. It is here that we understand how to “offer
up” our pain and suffering to God who adds our sufferings to Christ – even as
the Apostle Paul said…<br />
<i>“I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am
completing what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body,
that is, the church” (Colossians 1:24).</i><br />
The Apostle is not saying Christ’s suffering lacked completion, but instead, he
is saying that our suffering is added to Christ’s suffering, which in his body,
is added to the Church.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">God used
the number seven throughout the Scriptures to remind us that something is
completed in this. God created the world
in six days, and rested on the seventh day to show it was completed. The Sabbath was declared to be the seventh
day. Seven was the yearly number of
feasts, all in seven days. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus’
words on the Cross, completed his mission – to be God’s eternal Sacrifice for
Sin:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<table border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="MsoNormalTable" style="background: #F8F9FA; border-collapse: collapse; border: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-yfti-tbllook: 1184;">
<tbody><tr>
<td style="background: #EAECF0; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Sayings
of Jesus on the cross</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
</td>
<td style="background: #EAECF0; border-left: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Matthew</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
</td>
<td style="background: #EAECF0; border-left: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Mark</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
</td>
<td style="background: #EAECF0; border-left: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Luke</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
</td>
<td style="background: #EAECF0; border-left: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">John</span></b><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></b></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Father, forgive them; for they know not what they
do.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">23:34</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Truly I say unto thee, This day you will be with
me in paradise.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">23:43</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Woman, behold thy son! <i>and</i> Behold
thy mother!</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">19:26–27</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">27:46</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">15:34</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">I thirst.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">19:28</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">It is finished.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">19:30</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="border-top: none; border: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">23:46</span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
</td>
<td style="border-bottom: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-left: none; border-right: solid #A2A9B1 1.0pt; border-top: none; mso-border-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-left-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; mso-border-top-alt: solid #A2A9B1 .75pt; padding: 2.4pt 4.8pt 2.4pt 4.8pt;"></td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peace</span><br clear="all" style="mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" />
<span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-72576385013643872962024-03-16T17:34:00.000-05:002024-03-16T17:34:07.553-05:00 The 5th Sunday in Lent – “Our Confession of Christ Jesus in Worship”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">On this fifth Sunday in Lent, we
return to the Big Picture of Christ Jesus’ redemption – the Incarnation, His life and
ministry, His death, burial, and Resurrection. All these we confess in the Nicene
Creed.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The Creeds arose out of the early
centuries of the Church when communication took a lengthy time to do.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Many new churches cropped up through the
early Church Father’s efforts to evangelize into new areas.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">By the 4</span><sup style="font-family: trebuchet;">th</sup><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> century, many heresies
had also come into the church that needed to be addressed.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The early Church Fathers sought to
bring an orthodox confession of faith that would be embraced by all of the
Church, whatever their ethnic origin or location. For example, the Apostle Paul wrote – what we
believe – is an early confession of faith within the local parishes he
established. In writing his letter
(Epistle) to the Philippians he writes this creedal formula:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Have this mind among yourselves,
which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not
count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking
the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. <br />
And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to
the point of death, even death on a cross. <br />
Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is
above every name, <br />
so that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on
earth and under the earth, <br />
and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God
the Father” (Philippians 2:5-11).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">There’s uniformity in the creeds
because they are universal communal expressions of faith in Christian
belief. The Creeds brought the church
together, to preserve the orthodoxy of the faith, and to remember the
foundation of the Church in Christ Jesus’ life, death, burial, and resurrection. Originally most of the creeds were probably
orally shared. The New Testament often
used the phrase – <i>“received and passed on to you”</i> to make clear these
were beliefs that were of universal certainty.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Some of the early ones were very
basic. In the Apostle Paul’s letter to
the Corinthian church, written early in the decade of 50’s a.d., Paul
writes: <i>“Now I would remind you,
brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you
stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I
preached to you—unless you believed in vain. <br />
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that
Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was
buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures” (1
Corinthians 15:1-4).</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Why were they needed? In many Churches, Gnostic heresies had begun
to pollute the clear Apostolic teachings of the early Church concerning the
person and work of Jesus Christ. As the
Apostles died, the second generation of Apostolic leaders, followed by the 3<sup>rd</sup>,
4<sup>th</sup>, 5<sup>th</sup>, etc… maintained the orthodoxy of the Church
across the vast areas of Europe and Asia through the Creeds. When the heresies
came – Gnostic, Docetism, Ebionitism, Modalism, and Arianism – the Church
brought the orthodoxy of the Creeds to witness the truth and expose the
lies. The early Church, after the
persecutions began to die off, tried to address these errors in Church councils
where Bishops, Theologians, and Teachers of the Church came together to
formulate updated creeds. The first of
these was in Nicaea, in modern-day Turkey, and is considered to be the first of
seven worldwide councils of the Church.
The Nicene Creed that came out of this council is a standard for the
Christian faith. The main issue it
resolved was that Christ Jesus was of the same Substance (<i>homoousios), </i>which
in the Creed meant Jesus was “<i>consubstantial”</i>, or “<i>of the same
substance as the Father</i>”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Unfortunately, it did not
permanently stop the growth of Arianism – a group that denied the equality of
Christ with God, the Father, saying God created Christ as his firstborn. In 381 a.d., the second Council of the Church
gathered in Constantinople. It is created
the “<i>Nicene-Constantinople Creed</i>”, which is usually referred to as the
Nicene Creed, and affirms the co-equality of the Godhead as the Father, the Son,
and the Holy Spirit. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">There would be five more major
Councils of the Church before the major confessions of the Church were
resolved…and then, they did not stay resolved!
Still, the next time you say the Creed, remember that our confession of
faith, communally, comes from the 4<sup>th</sup> century Church Fathers. If you can, memorize it, and let it be a part
of your daily confession of faith:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The Nicene Creed<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I believe in one God,<br />
the Father almighty,<br />
maker of heaven and earth,<br />
of all things visible and invisible.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,<br />
the Only Begotten Son of God,<br />
born of the Father before all ages.<br />
God from God, Light from Light,<br />
true God from true God,<br />
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;<br />
through him all things were made.<br />
For us men and for our salvation<br />
he came down from heaven,<br />
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,<br />
and became man.<br />
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,<br />
he suffered death and was buried,<br />
and rose again on the third day<br />
in accordance with the Scriptures.<br />
He ascended into heaven<br />
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.<br />
He will come again in glory<br />
to judge the living and the dead<br />
and his kingdom will have no end.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord,
the giver of life,<br />
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,<br />
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,<br />
who has spoken through the prophets.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I believe in one, holy, catholic and
apostolic Church.<br />
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins<br />
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead<br />
and the life of the world to come.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-18126698692098944182024-03-16T08:17:00.005-05:002024-03-24T13:23:23.344-05:00Day 28 (Saturday) – “The Significance of the Cross”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Yesterday
we walked through the events that led up to Jesus carrying his cross to
Golgotha, where he was to be crucified.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Over the next week, we will walk through Jesus’ words on the Cross.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Yet, I wanted to pause to consider the Cross
of Jesus Christ.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">For many Christians,
the significance of the Cross is that it is symbolic.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">That is partially correct.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Jesus had said to his disciples, and others, </span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">“Whoever
does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me” (Matthew 10:38).</i><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">In this sense, Jesus was calling his disciples,
and those who said they wanted to follow him, to be willing to go through
whatever it takes, including suffering and death, to be His believing follower.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">What lay ahead for him in his journey was the
Cross.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The Romans
didn’t invent the idea of a cross for crucifixion, but they perfected its use as
a death penalty for those whom they deemed to be a threat to Rome. The Romans hung their victims on a cross of
wooden materials, sometimes in the shape of a T, and sometimes in the shape of
an X. Either way, the cross was meant to
humiliate the victim and warn the populace not to defy Roman authority. The use of the cross and crucifixion as a death
penalty had been a part of the ancient world before Rome, but most historians
agree that Rome made an art out of it. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Given
that crucifixion was seen as an extremely shameful way to die, Rome tended not
to crucify its citizens. Instead, slaves, disgraced soldiers, Christians,
foreigners, and — in particular — political activists often lost their lives in
this way. The practice became especially
popular in the Roman-occupied Israel. In 4 B.C., the Roman general Varus crucified
2,000 Jews, and there were mass crucifixions during the first century A.D.,
according to the Roman-Jewish historian Josephus.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The Romans
began, as they did with Jesus, by whipping their victim with whips made of sharp
bone pieces, and metal pieces, opening up the back to the bone and excessive
bleeding. They wanted the victim to have
no energy to resist, and ultimately to succumb to pain that weakened them. They forced their victim to carry the <i>patibulum,</i>
the upper portion of the cross beam which was tied to their arms and hands to
the place of their execution. Then, the
victim would be tied or nailed to the patibulum. After that, the patibulum was
lifted and affixed to the upright post of the cross, and the feet would be tied
or nailed to it. While the victim
awaited death, soldiers would commonly divide up the victim's clothes among
themselves. But death didn't always come quickly; it took anywhere from three
hours to four days to die. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus
was given a cross beam to carry to Golgotha.
His wrists were nailed to the cross beam, and then he was lifted upright
and nailed his feet to the upright post where he hung for six hours. He suffered beyond our imagination. To the Roman soldiers, and many of the Jewish
people, they looked upon him with derision – Jesus was a trouble-maker, a
nobody from Galilee, a so-called Rabbi, or Prophet, but no more than a commoner
who dared defy Rome and got justice he deserved. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">No one
during that time wore a symbol of a cross around their neck. Yet, the Cross
became a powerful symbol for the early church.
The Apostle Paul writing to the churches in Corinth and Galatia said:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“For the
message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us
who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“May I
never boast of anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the
world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Galatians 6:14).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWVIj_xYXedB1GAoSW3U3Tb9PD3WA1O0_1U0EoScub7r9TIrUcM3ebmIJMqQEtZWzK52Wj3k5O97JKvokiLZcaZ3Qm9vAcu9E1bjcdmAzDxRW3JJqSmvY1dg5V33BJcMtyEGv3VFUHpbBBB85bktguO_EwmDzB3ReofCZ5W_TWMMAB9IzSle1fgWzbtGw/s251/Alexamenos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="251" data-original-width="220" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWVIj_xYXedB1GAoSW3U3Tb9PD3WA1O0_1U0EoScub7r9TIrUcM3ebmIJMqQEtZWzK52Wj3k5O97JKvokiLZcaZ3Qm9vAcu9E1bjcdmAzDxRW3JJqSmvY1dg5V33BJcMtyEGv3VFUHpbBBB85bktguO_EwmDzB3ReofCZ5W_TWMMAB9IzSle1fgWzbtGw/s1600/Alexamenos.jpg" width="220" /></a><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">A famous
piece of early-third-century Roman wall art, the “<i>Alexamenos graffito</i>,” depicts
two human figures, with the head of a donkey, arms stretched out in a T-shaped
cross, with the caption “<i>Alexamenos worships his god</i>.” The caricature
of “<i>Alexam</i></span><v:shapetype coordsize="21600,21600" filled="f" id="_x0000_t75" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" stroked="f">
<v:stroke joinstyle="miter">
<v:formulas>
<v:f eqn="if lineDrawn pixelLineWidth 0">
<v:f eqn="sum @0 1 0">
<v:f eqn="sum 0 0 @1">
<v:f eqn="prod @2 1 2">
<v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelWidth">
<v:f eqn="prod @3 21600 pixelHeight">
<v:f eqn="sum @0 0 1">
<v:f eqn="prod @6 1 2">
<v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelWidth">
<v:f eqn="sum @8 21600 0">
<v:f eqn="prod @7 21600 pixelHeight">
<v:f eqn="sum @10 21600 0">
</v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:f></v:formulas>
<v:path gradientshapeok="t" o:connecttype="rect" o:extrusionok="f">
<o:lock aspectratio="t" v:ext="edit">
</o:lock></v:path></v:stroke></v:shapetype></span><v:shape id="IMG_740d7e0b-9327-47f2-91ab-4da6c2de29c6" o:spid="_x0000_s1026" style="height: 188.15pt; margin-left: 113.8pt; margin-top: 0; mso-position-horizontal-relative: margin; mso-position-horizontal: right; mso-position-vertical-relative: margin; mso-position-vertical: top; mso-wrap-distance-bottom: 0; mso-wrap-distance-left: 9pt; mso-wrap-distance-right: 9pt; mso-wrap-distance-top: 0; mso-wrap-style: square; position: absolute; visibility: visible; width: 165pt; z-index: 251659264;" type="#_x0000_t75">
<v:imagedata o:href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/ab/Alexorig.jpg/220px-Alexorig.jpg" src="file:///C:/Users/ellio/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image001.jpg"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">
<w:wrap anchorx="margin" anchory="margin" type="square">
</w:wrap></span></v:imagedata></v:shape><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">enos</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">,” offering prayers to this crucified figure
was a way of depicting Christ with a donkey’s head and ridiculing his god.</span></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"><br />Christianity
was outlawed at the time in the Roman Empire and criticized by some as a
religion for fools. But for Christians, the cross had deep meaning. They
understood Christ’s death on the cross as confirmation of Christ’s work as a
Paschal sacrifice which was “completed” by God’s raising him from the dead
three days later. This Resurrection was a sign of Christ’s “victory” over sin
and death.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Early Christians, frequently
referred to Christ’s cross as a “</span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">victorious Cross.</i><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">As Christians,
we are convinced that Jesus’ death on the cross meant that death and Sin were
conquered. The Apostle Peter said it
like this: <br />
<i>“He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins,
we might live for righteousness; by his wounds, you have been healed” (1 Peter
2:24).</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">One of
the many symbols for Christians around the world is to make the sign of the Cross
over themselves. Why do it? It is an ancient custom that began in the early
centuries as a way of greeting, as well as praying to God the Father, the Son, and
the Holy Spirit. The </span><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">words in the
Sign of the Cross prayer are…“<i>In the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen</i>.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">While you pray this prayer, you
make a cross on your body starting with your right hand on your
forehead for the word “Father,” in the middle of your chest for the word “Son,”
on your left shoulder for the word “Holy,” and on your right shoulder for the
word “Spirit.” The motion is forehead, chest, left shoulder, and right
shoulder. You can end by saying “Amen” and placing your hands together in
the middle, like traditional “praying hands.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I do it several times a day, for
it reminds me in a prayerful way that I belong to Jesus who loved me by dying
for my Sin on the cross.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br />
Peace<o:p></o:p></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-48614675948673259232024-03-15T09:10:00.002-05:002024-03-24T13:23:09.983-05:00 Day 27, (Friday) – “Good Friday?”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">On the Friday
of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem, Jesus is accused by his own people – mainly by
the religious rulers and is crucified by the Romans under Pontius Pilate.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">On Thursday evening, Jesus had taken his
disciples to the Garden of Gethsemani.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">For
Jesus, midnight did not lead to sleep.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Jesus’ day begins with His arrest following Judas’ betrayal.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Judas leads the band of Jewish authorities to
the garden and there Jesus is arrested.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">They
take Jesus first to the elderly (former) High Priest, Annas. He had turned over His High Priestly duties
to his son-in-law, but he was still the power behind the Jewish leaders.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“So the band of soldiers and their
captain and the officers of the Jews arrested Jesus and bound him. <br />
First they led him to Annas, for he was the father-in-law of Caiaphas,
who was high priest that year. <br />
It was Caiaphas who had advised the Jews that it would be expedient that
one man should die for the people” (John 18:12-14). <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peter, and most likely John,
followed behind, and the unnamed disciple had some standing with the High Priest
and was permitted to enter the courtyard to watch the proceedings. Peter is confronted for the first time when a
servant asks if he is not one of Jesus’ followers, and he emphatically denies
it. John records what he saw next:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“The high priest then questioned
Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. <br />
Jesus answered him, “I have spoken openly to the world. I have always
taught in synagogues and in the temple, where all Jews come together. I have
said nothing in secret. Why do you ask me? Ask those who have heard me what I
said to them; they know what I said.” <br />
When he had said these things, one of the officers standing by struck Jesus
with his hand, saying, “Is that how you answer the high priest?” <br />
Jesus answered him, “If what I said is wrong, bear witness about the wrong; but
if what I said is right, why do you strike me?” <br />
Annas then sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest” (John 18:19-24).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus’
time there is short, and soon He is passed on to Caiaphas. Caiaphas is not interested in hearing from
Jesus, or learning from him…he wants Him out of the way. The trials, according to Jewish law, are illegal.
They are sham trials because they are not objectively looking for the truth,
but have determined that Jesus must die.
Caiaphas is politically motivated, so he calls an “illegal” meeting of
the council – the Sanhedrin – to whom the Romans had given power to govern
their religious affairs.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now the chief priests and the
whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put
him to death, but they found none, though many false witnesses came forward. At
last two came forward and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the
temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days.’” <br />
And the high priest stood up and said, “Have you no answer to make? What is it
that these men testify against you?” <br />
But Jesus remained silent. And the high priest said to him, “I adjure you by
the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.” <br />
Jesus said to him, “You have said so. But I tell you, from now on you will see
the Son of Man seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of
heaven.” <br />
Then the high priest tore his robes and said, “He has uttered blasphemy.
What further witnesses do we need? You have now heard his blasphemy. <br />
What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.” <br />
Then they spit in his face and struck him. And some slapped him, <br />
saying, “Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck you?” (Matthew
26:57-68).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In all
likelihood, it is early in the morning, and daylight is beginning to emerge. The charge against Jesus is based on his own
words, but taken out of context. When
Jesus declares his authority on earth and in heaven, they have had enough. Of course, Jesus had not threatened to
destroy the Temple, but he spoke of the temple of His body which was about to
be destroyed and would be restored in three days. They didn’t ask what he meant because they
weren’t interested in who he was, or what he was about to do. Who is Jesus?
The Christ, the Son of God, the Son of Man, the Messiah. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Now begins
the earnest torture of shaming, and humiliating Jesus, even spitting on him and
hitting him. Jesus is the suffering
servant of God as the prophet Isaiah had prophesied 700 years previously. In this humiliation, Peter responds to
questions of whether he was a disciple of Jesus by denying he knows Jesus for
the third time – “<i>and immediately the rooster crowed” (Matt. 26:74).</i> It was of God’s will that none would stand
behind Jesus in His suffering. He alone
had to face the wrath of God for the Sin of the world. Peter, ashamed, and humiliated,
leaves weeping. Now, all the disciples are
scattered…Jesus is alone. Soon, daylight
comes, and the actions begin to move faster.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“When morning came, all the chief
priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to
death. And they bound him and led him away and delivered him over to Pilate the
governor (Matthew 27:1-2).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwTLLwUxSm6NefjGF4fbTQN6761z20zSJIhM0l2oq3ZDKNMn7RsdmNg-m7QFhOXo8jisjqgyfUkIwzdPQwVy_vtsEYQnZdG1FC_TY_4lVQylbZzMD00qCQtWNCjHtvtAr3bCD9-CXgWwCEJbgq8_F2qFoOLbWRBEMUj0KxqG7ix7OW3yBvCx28Nt669B0/s1024/Jesus-Before-Pilate-2-1024x788-2476473602.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="788" data-original-width="1024" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwTLLwUxSm6NefjGF4fbTQN6761z20zSJIhM0l2oq3ZDKNMn7RsdmNg-m7QFhOXo8jisjqgyfUkIwzdPQwVy_vtsEYQnZdG1FC_TY_4lVQylbZzMD00qCQtWNCjHtvtAr3bCD9-CXgWwCEJbgq8_F2qFoOLbWRBEMUj0KxqG7ix7OW3yBvCx28Nt669B0/w200-h154/Jesus-Before-Pilate-2-1024x788-2476473602.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Now it is Friday morning, and the
Jewish leaders turn Jesus over to the Romans, because, though they had
condemned Jesus, the Jews did not have the authority to crucify Jesus – only Pilate
had that power. Jesus appears before Pilate two times…and once in between before Herod
Antipas. The charge before Pilate is
what the governors were most concerned with…Insurrection.<o:p></o:p></span></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now Jesus stood before the
governor, and the governor asked him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus
said, “You have said so.” But when he was accused by the chief priests and
elders, he gave no answer. Then Pilate
said to him, “Do you not hear how many things they testify against you?” <br />
But he gave him no answer, not even to a single charge, so that the governor
was greatly amazed” (Matthew 27:11-14).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Luke’s
Gospel records that Pilate passed Jesus along to Herod Antipas because Herod
was the Roman ruler in Galilee. Herod
had wanted to meet Jesus, in hopes that he could see him perform one of his
signs, but eventually Herod returned Jesus to Pilate for a second time without
any charges against him. Pilate is not
sure what to do, he vacillates knowing that Jesus is a problem, but Roman law
demands a just sentence, and Jesus is not an insurrectionist. Pilate offers a solution in offering to
release Jesus over the true insurrectionist, Barabbas, but the leaders will not
have any of that. <br /> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now the
chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and
destroy Jesus” The governor again said to them, “Which of the two do you
want me to release for you?” And they said, “Barabbas.” <br />
Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called
Christ?” <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">They all
said, “Let him be crucified!” And he said, “Why, what evil has he done?” But
they shouted all the more, “Let him be crucified!” (Matthew 27:20-23).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It is
early Friday morning, and Jesus has the whole world turned against him. All
turned brutal and the painful suffering only intensified:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Then the soldiers of the governor
took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole
battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and
twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in
his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King
of the Jews!” And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the
head. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe and put
his own clothes on him and led him away to crucify him” (Matthew 27:27-31).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">It was
9:00 a.m. when they arrived at Golgotha – the place of the crucifixion.<br />
</span><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“And they
crucified him and divided his garments among them, casting lots for them, to
decide what each should take. And it was the third hour when they
crucified him”(Mark 15:24-25).<o:p></o:p></span></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
disciples have all scattered, fearful of their lives that the Jewish leaders
and the Romans would hunt them down and kill them also. Judas had taken the 30 pieces of silver and
returned them to the High Priest. He was
distraught, and though regretting what he had done, he did not repent, but
instead went out and hung himself.
Pilate had washed his hands of the whole incident. He felt no responsibility for ordering Jesus’
death. Caiaphas and the rest of the council thought, “<i>There, now we are rid
of this problem.”</i> Everyone justifies
their actions, and no one understands their guilt, their Sin, and their need
for Jesus.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Beloved,
remember this…all of this was done according to God’s will. Sin is not excused or overlooked, it is paid
for…sacrificially…the Passover lamb is to be slain. Jesus is the “<i>lamb of God who takes away
the Sin of the world”.</i> His blood
forever is about to be spilled as the Passover lamb. We remember in our creed… <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“I believe in God,<br />
the Father almighty,<br />
Creator of heaven and earth,<br />
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,<br />
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,<br />
born of the Virgin Mary,<br />
suffered under Pontius Pilate,<br />
was crucified, died, and was buried”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Yes, there
is more, and we praise God for the more.
What is it we should see on this day – today? We should see that there’s a bit of all of
these people in us. We fail to stand up
as Peter did. We fail to take
responsibility as Pilate did. We fail to
repent and blame God as the Council did.
When we remain silent we continue to say “<i>Crucify him</i>”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Over the
next few days, we will return to the cross, for there is much to learn from
what happened there on that infamous Friday, we call Good.<br />
<br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-83328595795469167022024-03-14T10:48:00.001-05:002024-03-24T13:22:59.188-05:00 Day 26, (Thursday) – “Holy Thursday and the Last Supper”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">In Lent,
we come to what the early Church Fathers called the “Tridium”, which comes from
the Latin meaning “three days”.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The
Tridium is considered to be the three most sacred days of the Church year.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">It begins on Holy Thursday evening at Sundown.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">This is called “Holy Thursday” because it is
the initiation of the Apostles to the Eucharist, or as is sometimes called “the
Lord’s Supper”.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Good Friday comes next,
then on Saturday, the great Easter Vigil where historically, the new believers –
the Catechists – were baptized and celebrated their first communion.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Sunday is the celebration of the Resurrection
on Easter.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
early church celebrated on Sunday, even though for a while many of the Jewish
believers (the Apostles, Paul, etc…) continued to go to the Synagogue to share
the Gospel of Jesus, the Messiah. After
the Jews banned the Jewish Christians, Sunday developed in the commemoration of
the resurrection of Jesus on that first Easter morning. Easter became tied in the calendar to a date
near the celebration of Passover.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">By the
fourth century pilgrimages to Jerusalem to celebrate what was called “the Great
Week” included Holy Thursday, Good Friday, the Easter Vigil, and Easter Sunday. This established a pattern that would continue
to exist, even though changes were made along the way and certain liturgies sometimes
fell out of place. Still, today, in the Church
these four services of the Holy Week – the Great Week – remain. Lastly, while
these four liturgies, or celebrations, seem to be separate, they are not. They represent one continuous celebration of
the passion, death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">All of the
Gospels recall the events on this Thursday evening when Jesus brought his
disciples, including Judas to an Upper Room…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now on
the first day of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Where
will you have us prepare for you to eat the Passover?” He said, “Go into the
city to a certain man and say to him, ‘The Teacher says, My time is at hand. I
will keep the Passover at your house with my disciples.’” <br />
And the disciples did as Jesus had directed them, and they prepared the
Passover. When it was evening, he reclined at the table with the twelve. And as
they were eating, he said, “Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” <br />
And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, “Is it
I, Lord?” <br />
He answered, “He who has dipped his hand in the dish with me will betray me. <br />
The Son of Man goes as it is written of him, but woe to that man by whom the
Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not
been born.” Judas, who would betray him, answered, “Is it I, Rabbi?” He said to
him, “You have said so” (Matthew 26:17-25)<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_qwZ9zOosAPoR-3IsswD1k_Cfa9kCG9jpVN2kSAflMK0ObqR5BdQQEjl1ZsQ3-nNneh_WJr3-4UazUcDzeWqcQxAIvBfVKQjoU1mFfbGhVIzjiFFKUa_7AQRIqu93B-vmoXW-lyNk84V5IZt8jzWNUgKub95rKSCSZFjiKMOo76obYFpRfWq_tdhUyUw/s1650/b4774815223304677ca7f432cb9c22dc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1100" data-original-width="1650" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_qwZ9zOosAPoR-3IsswD1k_Cfa9kCG9jpVN2kSAflMK0ObqR5BdQQEjl1ZsQ3-nNneh_WJr3-4UazUcDzeWqcQxAIvBfVKQjoU1mFfbGhVIzjiFFKUa_7AQRIqu93B-vmoXW-lyNk84V5IZt8jzWNUgKub95rKSCSZFjiKMOo76obYFpRfWq_tdhUyUw/w200-h133/b4774815223304677ca7f432cb9c22dc.jpg" width="200" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus
said, <i>“My time is at hand”.</i> From the
beginning, he had made it clear that the Father was in charge of the events
that would lead up to his death. He
comes to Passover, which is the Jewish feast that celebrates – through sacrifice
– the work of God to free the nation of Israel from Egyptian slavery. Jesus is going to free the world from the slavery
of sin. Jesus instructs his disciples to
go into Jerusalem to prepare the Passover meal.
Mark and Luke tell us that they went to a place with an “Upper Room”. The Passover meal began at sundown (evening)
and in a popular manner, Jesus is not sitting at a table, but reclining at a
table with the twelve disciples.<br /><o:p></o:p></span><p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">This is
the first time Jesus reveals that one of them will betray him. The Gospels had recorded that he knew one was
a betrayer, but he shocked them by making it public. They all wondered in their words, <i>“Is it I,
Lord?”.</i> Jesus had a common washing
dish for which they had all participated, and Jesus reminds Judas in words that
only Judas could have known were meant for him - <i>“woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is
betrayed! It would have been better for that man if he had not been born.”</i> Judas, I believe disingenuously, replied “<i>is
it I, Rabbi</i>”, and Jesus said, <i>“You have said so”.</i> It’s all so sobering to read. God has purposed and Jesus had carried out the
plan, yet Judas of his own free will had betrayed Jesus to the authorities, and
we are gripped by Jesus’ words of warning.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Now the
Passover meal – a Seder – continued. The
other Gospels are unclear, but John seems to say that Judas was still
there. John’s Gospel reminds us that
Jesus washed the feet of his disciples in the Upper Room and taught them about
what it meant to serve one another in love.
The text gives us the institution of the Eucharist – Holy Communion.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now as
they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it
to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” <br />
And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, “Drink
of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out
for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you I will not drink again of this
fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s
kingdom” (Matthew 26:26-29).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
Seder meal was rich in symbols. Food included
lamb, bitter herbs, wine, and unleavened bread.
The book of Exodus records God’s command to the people of Israel to
celebrate with a meal, songs of thanksgiving, and herbs to remind them that God
was redeeming them from the bitterness of slavery. Now, Jesus instituted a “new covenant” meal
which included the unleavened bread – which was bread without yeast, and yeast
was a symbol of sin. This bread is not
just bread, not just a symbol, but something that implies Jesus’ ongoing
presence in the Church of his body – <i>“Now as they were eating, Jesus took
bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take,
eat; this is my body” (Matthew 26:26). </i>It
was not without precedence. Jesus had
stirred the Jewish crowd when preaching in John 6 when he proclaimed himself <i>“the
bread of life”.</i> Then he said…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“I am
the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This
is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not
die. <br />
I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this
bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the
world is my flesh.” <br />
The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his
flesh to eat?” <br />
So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of
the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. <br />
Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will
raise him up on the last day. <br />
For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. <br />
Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. <br />
As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever
feeds on me, he also will live because of me. <br />
This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers
ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever” (John 6:48-58).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In the
Upper Room, Jesus gives to the disciples the words of the Eucharist. Jesus’ real presence will continue to be with
His people in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper. He adds that the cup – a chalice – will be
filled with wine – already an element in the Passover, (Seder), celebration.
Yet, now the chalice will contain the <i>“blood of the covenant”</i>. What was symbolically pictured in the lamb’s
sacrifice and blood being painted over the door of each Jewish home, is now
focused on Jesus Christ as God’s sacrifice who <i>“is poured out for many for the
forgiveness of sin.”</i> The sacrificial
death of Jesus that lay ahead was to be a sacrifice for the sins of many – for the
whole world. The words echo the prophet
Isaiah: <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Yet it
was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul
makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his
days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. <br />
Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his
knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted
righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. <br />
Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the
spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered
with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for
the transgressors” (Isaiah 53:10-12).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">This night
that instituted the Lord’s Supper is not just symbolic, it is filled with
sacramental and theological understanding of Christ’s death as the
Messiah. If we did not have this night’s
record, we would have to conclude that Jesus’ death was an unfortunate
tragedy. But, because of this record, we
understand Jesus purposed the Eucharistic words that we celebrate today. Jesus’ body is given to us so that we might
receive the fullness of His broken body for us.
Jesus’ blood is received so that we might know the fullness of Christ’s
expiating sacrifice for our Sin. The
Eucharist established in the Upper Room has continued for about 2100 years and
gives us a long line of celebrating what Christ’s sacrifice has done for us.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Before the
evening ends, Jesus will leave the Upper Room, taking his disciples to the
Garden of Gethsemani. Gethsemani means “olive
press”. Here Jesus begins to realize the
weight of the sins of the world. We remember
that Jesus had never sinned, so he did not experience the shame, guilt, and judgment
that Sin carried until now. This was the
“cup” that he had to drink.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“And
going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if
it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as
you will” (Matthew 26:39).</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">After
awakening his sleeping disciples, he tells them to look, <i>“See, the hour is
at hand, and the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners” (Matthew
26:45).</i> Judas is leading a band of
Roman soldiers and temple guards, all carrying their torches up the hill
towards Gethsemani. Judas led them into
the garden, and up to Jesus. <i>“And he
came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him. Jesus
said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands
on Jesus and seized him” (Matthew 26:49-50).</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The evening
of Thursday was giving way to the dark hours of Friday morning, and Jesus’
suffering was begun…all for us!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-36675263878381139872024-03-13T17:22:00.006-05:002024-03-24T13:22:44.681-05:00 Day 25, (Wednesday) – “A Silent Brewing Storm”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">We begin
the final two weeks of Lent and the journey that Jesus took to Jerusalem, where
he knew he was to be arrested and killed by the complicity of the religious
rulers and the Romans.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">As the
week progressed Jesus retreated from Jerusalem for a day, staying in Bethany
with his friends, Mary, Martha, and Lazarus.
The storm that was about to occur was quiet – silent. Yet what happened was clearly a picture of
the rest of the week.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“When Jesus had finished all these
sayings, he said to his disciples, ‘You know that after two days the Passover
is coming, and the Son of Man will be delivered up to be crucified.’ <br />
Then the chief priests and the elders of the people gathered in the
palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, and plotted together in
order to arrest Jesus by stealth and kill him. But they said, “Not during the
feast, lest there be an uproar among the people.” <br />
Now when Jesus was at Bethany in the house of Simon the leper, a woman
came up to him with an alabaster flask of very expensive ointment, and she
poured it on his head as he reclined at the table. <br />
And when the disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying, “Why this
waste? For this could have been sold for a large sum and given to the poor.”
But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she
has done a beautiful thing to me. For you always have the poor with you, but
you will not always have me. In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done
it to prepare me for burial. <br />
Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole
world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” <br />
Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief
priests <br />
and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they
paid him thirty pieces of silver. <br />
And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him” (Matthew
26:1-16).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It’s
Wednesday and these events happen in parallel ways. Jesus is in Bethany at the
home of Simon, who was a leper. At the
same time, he is fully aware of what is going on behind the scenes. The chief priests and elders have had enough
and they are plotting to arrest Jesus…looking for a way and an opportunity.
Their original idea is to do it after the feast is over. It would be easier, and a lot of the pilgrims
coming for the feast would have left to return to their homes.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It all
changes when Judas decides that he will betray Jesus to the leaders. It gives them the impetus to put together a
group of soldiers and ambush Jesus and his disciples at a time when they
weren’t with the crowds.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">But
first, we see Jesus anointed with oil from “a woman”. It might have been Mary the sister of Martha
and Lazarus, or one of the other women who were part of Jesus’ followers. What is amazing is that she anoints Jesus
“pre” his death. Did she know? Did she see it as an inevitable result of
Jesus’ life? We don’t know. What we know is that her action is in itself
prophetic. She is declaring what is about to happen and the disciples probably
didn’t see it until much later – Judas certainly didn’t.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">No one
probably understood what was going on and what was about to happen. It’s indicative of our Spiritual lives that
we can live day by day and often be oblivious to what God is doing “in” and
“around” us. Maybe that’s why Jesus kept
saying to his followers… <i>“Do you have eyes to see?” </i>The woman was moved
to do the anointing. It was an act of
worship and an act that would serve to be remembered by the disciples after it
was all over. Judas’ accusation is that
it was a waste, but Jesus’ rebuke shows that it is not true – it was
extravagant worship, and one that is forever remembered. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Judas is
the tragic figure…all that time walking with Jesus, watching Jesus, witnessing
Jesus’ words and works…and he never got it.
Why? Lots of reasons, but first
of all, he had a religious agenda that Jesus would not fulfill. He wanted Jesus
to overthrow the Romans and set up God’s Kingdom upon the earth. Jesus did declare <i>“The Kingdom of God is
at hand”…</i>but Judas wanted a revolution that sent the Romans back to Italy,
and that was not Jesus’ work the Father had for him to do. Perhaps when the woman poured the oil, as if
to prepare Jesus for his death, Judas turned from a follower to a traitor.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
contrast in the characters on this day could not be starker. The woman poured oil on Jesus’ head as an act
of worship, while the religious rulers plotted to kill Jesus. Judas stood in the middle, and watching his
expectations of Jesus dissolve, decided to take matters into his own
hands. The name of Judas Iscariot always
appears last in the list of the Apostles, and it makes us wonder – mysterious
wonder – about God’s plans and purposes in his betrayal. Did Judas make a choice? Yes!
Did Judas have a choice? Yes!
Still, in the plans and purposes of God, Jesus mentions more than once
that he knew he would be betrayed. The
providential, sovereign purposes of God are mysteriously fulfilled in Judas’
choice.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">This
Wednesday serves as a pivot point in Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem. There is a silent storm that is brewing and
no one, except Jesus sees it. Today is a
day of prophetic actions… and Jesus will rest until tomorrow’s events begin.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Calibri",sans-serif; font-size: 11.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-bidi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"> </span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-35637029217164710562024-03-13T17:21:00.003-05:002024-03-24T13:22:34.029-05:00 Day 24, (Tuesday), “From Bad to Worse and Back Again”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">On
Tuesday, Jesus had several encounters with religious leaders…Scribes,
Pharisees, members of the Sadducees…and none of them turned out well.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">It was a day that seemed to go from bad to
worse, until an encounter near the Temple, later in the day, that changed the
tone.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The day
began with Jesus publicly speaking a parable that directly spoke of what the
Jewish leaders were doing to the nation.
Then in a series of encounters, that Luke records, we see Jesus facing
His accusers and with wisdom as he deals with their attempts to embarrass him
in public. While it seems to go from bad
to worse, it is Jesus who is doing the work of exposing the nature of
“religion” without real faith.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“(Jesus) began to tell the people
this parable: “A man planted a vineyard and let it out to tenants and went into
another country for a long while. When the time came, he sent a servant
to the tenants, so that they would give him some of the fruit of the vineyard.
But the tenants beat him and sent him away empty-handed. <br />
And he sent another servant. But they also beat and treated him
shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed. And he sent yet a third. This one
also they wounded and cast out. <br />
Then the owner of the vineyard said, ‘What shall I do? I will send my
beloved son; perhaps they will respect him.’ But when the tenants saw him, they
said to themselves, ‘This is the heir. Let us kill him, so that the inheritance
may be ours.’ And they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him. What
then will the owner of the vineyard do to them? <br />
He will come and destroy those tenants and give the vineyard to others.” When
they heard this, they said, “Surely not!” But he looked directly at them
and said, “What then is this that is written: “‘The stone that the builders
rejected has become the cornerstone’? Everyone who falls on that stone will be
broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him” (Luke
20:9-18).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The plot
thickens as Jesus confronts the leaders of the Temple. The scribes, Pharisees,
religious elders, and Chief Priests controlled the machinery of the Temple and
the Jewish religion. Yet it was not a
Faith they were leading, but an institution where the bottom line of money and
power ruled. They cared about these
things and used their positions to control the rest of the nation – not for
God’s sake, but for their own. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus
was the cornerstone of a New Covenant, a relationship with God through Christ
Jesus, and yet they wanted to control their religion of which Christ Jesus is
the cornerstone. Rejecting Christ
results in stumbling on Christ as the only way.
They had religion, but they didn’t have God. The nature of religion without faith is that
the outside appearances do not match the interior faith. Religion is a substitute for relationships. It is human pride saying – as Adam and Eve
were tempted to say – “<i>If you do this, you’ll be like God.”</i> This pride will always fail. The leaders knew
Jesus was speaking about them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“The scribes and the chief priests
sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had
told this parable against them, but they feared the people. So they
watched him and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, that they might catch
him in something he said, so as to deliver him up to the authority and
jurisdiction of the governor. So they asked him, “Teacher, we know that you
speak and teach rightly, and show no partiality, but truly teach the way of
God. Is it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” But he perceived
their craftiness, and said to them, ‘Show me a denarius. Whose likeness and
inscription does it have?’ They said, ‘Caesar’s.’ He said to them, ‘Then
render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are
God’s’. And they were not able in the
presence of the people to catch him in what he said, but marveling at his
answer they became silent” (Luke 20:19-26).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
religious leaders and the elders approached him to trap him in choosing between
their religious authority and the Roman religion of Caesar as a god. Would Jesus oppose it – and perhaps be
arrested as a rebel? Or would he uphold it – and lose the support of the
people? Jesus asked his questioners for a coin, not because he did not possess
one, but to demonstrate that they also used Caesar's money. The silver <i>denarius,</i>
which bore Caesar's head on one side and the other the goddess of peace, was
inscribed: <i>'Tiberius Caesar Augustus, son of the divine Augustus, chief
priest.'</i> If the people used Caesar's coinage, they were under obligation to
pay back what was owed to him. But then Jesus went beyond the original
question. People also have a parallel debt to God for they belong to God as His
people. They had no answer.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">There
were a couple more encounters worth reading in this section. First, the
Sadducees try to trick him with a question about the Law and what should happen
upon the death of a husband. According
to the Law, a family was obligated to keep the family line going. Yet, the Sadducees – who didn’t believe in a
resurrection – made up a stupid story of seven husbands and who would be her
husband in the resurrection. Jesus’
answer is to remind them that in the end… <i>“Now he is not God of the dead,
but of the living, for all live to him” (Luke 20:38).</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
scribes responded – seemingly positively – by saying… <i>“Then some of the
scribes answered, ‘Teacher, you have spoken well’. For they no longer dared to ask him any
question” (Luke 20:39-40).</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Now that
Jesus has stopped their trap, he returns to the theme of the ruler's inability
to lead the nation in the faith of knowing God.
Jesus proposed a question to them, that cuts to the heart of the
differences between the scribes who do not believe in Jesus as the Messiah, the
Son of God, and who Jesus is showing himself to be. It’s not just that they don’t agree, it’s
that they are the force that will move the people and the Romans to later
crucify him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> “But
he said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is David’s son? For David
himself says in the Book of Psalms, “‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my
right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.”’ David thus calls him
Lord, so how is he his son?” <br />
And in the hearing of all the people he said to his disciples, “Beware of the
scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and love greetings in the
marketplaces and the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at
feasts, who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They
will receive the greater condemnation” (Luke 20:41-47).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
danger of the scribes is in their pretensions and pride that they believe makes
them better than the rest of the people.
It is at this moment that another event takes place to heighten the
awareness of the scribes and whom God approves of. Unfortunately, we have a chapter division,
but the events are connected. As we turn
to Luke 21, Jesus is still in the Temple, and this is what he sees and says:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Jesus
looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the offering box, and he
saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. And he said, “Truly, I tell
you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For they all contributed
out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live
on” (Luke 21:1-4).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">This is
the final point to be made. The widow
who gives up her last penny is of greater virtue and faith than the scribes and
Pharisees who gave out of their riches and had plenty left over for their
gratification. It is not the quantity of
the gift before God that matters, but the quality of the gift when it comes
from a sacrificial heart.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
Lenten season asks us to enter into an “examen”, or “examination” of our
hearts, our motives, our attitudes, and our works. We might want to consider a daily examen of
these things. Take some time today,
towards the end of the day, and walk through the day in your mind. Look at the interactions with others, the
times of turning or not turning towards God in prayer. Let God’s Spirit do the work of turning us
back from “hardened hearts” to the living God we can know.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">When the
day is over, He returns at night to Bethany.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-77762354752836945202024-03-11T10:45:00.005-05:002024-03-24T13:22:22.010-05:00 Day 23, (Monday) – “A Symbol of Judgment”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Looking at Jesus’ final journey to
Jerusalem is sobering.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">We know he is in
control of the events that will occur.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">We realize that he has come to give himself up as a “Paschal Sacrifice”.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The journey will have some unexpected twists
and this is one of them.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">It’s Monday,
the day after the triumphant entry of Sunday.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">On this day, Jesus returns to Jerusalem from his overnight stay in
Bethany, and in the Gospel of Matthew, everyone becomes aware of who he was by
the end of the day.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“In the morning, when he returned
to the city, he was hungry. Seeing a fig
tree by the side of the road, he went to it and found nothing at all on it but
leaves. Then he said to it, "May no fruit ever come from you again!"
And the fig tree withered at once. <br />
When the disciples saw it, they were amazed, saying, "How did the fig tree
wither at once?" <br />
Jesus answered them, "Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not
doubt, not only will you do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you
say to this mountain, 'Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,' it will be done.
Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive." <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> When he entered the temple,
the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him as he was teaching,
and said, "By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you
this authority?" <br />
Jesus said to them, "I will also ask you one question; if you tell
me the answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. <br />
Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human
origin?" And they argued with one another, "If we say, 'From heaven,'
he will say to us, 'Why then did you not believe him?' <br />
But if we say, 'Of human origin,' we are afraid of the crowd; for all
regard John as a prophet." <br />
So they answered Jesus, "We do not know." And he said to them,
"Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
Matthew 21:18-27 <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Piecing together the different
Gospels is not an easy task. Matthew
reminds us that it was the next morning that Jesus returned to Jerusalem. When he came into the city, a parable – so to
speak – unfolded for the disciples, and us to see.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">There was a fig tree by the
wayside…figs grow abundantly in the Mediterranean climate of Israel. It was a fig tree that Adam and Eve sought leaves
to sew together a covering after they had fallen into Sin because they realized
they were naked. God tells the
Israelites when they are going to the Promised Land of Israel that it is “<i>a
land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees…”</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The fig
tree seemed to represent God’s care, prosperity, and blessing…and as Jesus
approached Jerusalem he found emptiness instead of fruit. Jesus speaks words of judgment: “<i>And he said to it, ‘May no fruit ever come
from you again! And the fig tree withered at once”.</i><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The
disciples, perhaps shocked at what Jesus did, ask “<i>How did this happen so
suddenly?</i>” Jesus’ response is to remind them that faith makes all things
possible. Yet, the fig tree is not only a lesson on prayer, it’s also a lesson about
judgment. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">As the
fig tree died, so also Israel is dying.
In Jesus’ entry, the conflict with the religious rulers will heat
up. Jesus reminds the disciples that the
Temple will be destroyed. The New Covenant is about to be established in Jesus’
death, burial, resurrection, and ascension.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">God is
exercising through His son over the nation of Israel and its leaders. Jesus enters the Temple and there is a
confrontation with the elders and Chief Priests of the Temple. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">They
want to know by what authority he claims to speak. Their authority was granted to them by virtue
of their position, often bought and paid for through bribes, or family
patronage, and approved by the Roman leaders – all of it to keep the money
flowing into the Temple and to pay for the lavish lifestyles of all in power.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus
answers that the authority he has comes from God, just as John the Baptist
did…they know he’s dangerous. The fig tree is dead because it bears no
fruit. So also is the nation dying under
the weight of its politics of religion and leaders only interested in lining
their pockets. Near this same time,
Jesus cried out to Israel to see what they were doing.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“And when he drew near and saw the
city, he wept over it, saying, “Would that you, even you, had known on this day
the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the
days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you
and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the
ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone
upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation” (Luke
19:41-44).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Within
40 years the nation will lie in ruins – crushed by the Roman army that leveled
the Temple, but also crushed under the weight of its greed and void of any
meaningful relationship with God. They
rejected the Messiah and it took a generation for it all to collapse.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">One of
the most frequent pleas of the Psalms fits in this well. The Psalmists often make a simple plea to
their readers, and listeners, imploring most simply: <i>“Harden not your hearts”</i>. Let’s make sure in Lent that we pray for soft
hearts that are willing to hear God in His word.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-40856209441451293792024-03-10T11:01:00.002-05:002024-03-10T11:01:24.397-05:00 Sunday, the Fourth Week of Lent<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">On this Sunday we continue Jesus’
journey to Jerusalem, his entry into the city, and what followed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“When they were approaching
Jerusalem, at Bethphage and Bethany, near the Mount of Olives, he sent two of
his disciples and said to them, "Go into the village ahead of you,
and immediately as you enter it, you will find tied there a colt that has never
been ridden; untie it and bring it. If anyone says to you, 'Why are you
doing this?' just say this, 'The Lord needs it and will send it back here
immediately.'" <br />
They went away and found a colt tied near a door, outside in the street. As
they were untying it, some of the bystanders said to them, "What are
you doing, untying the colt?" <br />
They told them what Jesus had said; and they allowed them to take it. <br />
Then they brought the colt to Jesus and threw their cloaks on it; and he sat on
it. <br />
Many people spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches
that they had cut in the fields. Then those who went ahead and those who
followed were shouting, "Hosanna! Blessed is the one who comes in the name
of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our ancestor David! Hosanna in
the highest heaven!" <br />
Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple; and when he had looked
around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the
twelve” (Mark 11:1-11).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In a brief Lenten Sunday
devotional, let us see Christ Jesus, the King, who humbly enters into the place
in which he knows he will die. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">His
humility is demonstrated in the “colt”, not a General’s horse, for Jesus will
conquer sin and death, but not Rome. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">His
humility is demonstrated in the two unnamed disciples who follow Jesus’
instructions to do his will. We will not
know, in this lifetime, which two Jesus told us to go. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Humility is demonstrated in not receiving
acclaim for doing good works when the purpose is to glorify the Lord. </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Humility is Jesus entering to the shouts of
“Hosanna” knowing that in a few days, the same crowd will be shouting “Crucify
him”.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">This is Christ Jesus, our Savior
and Lord, who humbly serves his Father’s will.
May we humbly worship and serve him today and always.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-66464918482967722562024-03-09T12:39:00.007-06:002024-03-24T13:22:06.541-05:00 Day 22 (Saturday) – “A Salvation Story”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Yesterday I wrote about Jesus and
Salvation.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Today, I want to begin that
journey that Jesus spoke to his disciples of and look at how it began.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> “He entered Jericho and was
passing through. And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief
tax collector and was rich. And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on
account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. <br />
So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he
was about to pass that way. <br />
And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus,
hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” <br />
So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully. <br />
And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest
of a man who is a sinner.” <br />
And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my
goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore
it fourfold.” <br />
And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he
also is a son of Abraham. <br />
For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Luke 19:1-10 <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">As Jesus set out for Jerusalem he
had to go through Jericho – it was on the way.
I don’t believe that anything Jesus did was coincidental, and thus this
passage through Jerusalem was purposed by Jesus – all because of one person’s
need – a tax collector named Zacchaeus.
We taught our kids the song, “Zacchaeus was a wee little man…” It
probably explains why he climbed up into a sycamore tree to get a glimpse of
Jesus. Luke, writing from the memoirs of
the disciple described him – “<i>He was a chief tax collector and was
rich. And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd
he could not, because he was small in stature”. </i> What Luke does not write is that tax
collectors were hated by the rest of the Jews, who saw them as selling out to
the Romans for money. In Jericho,
Zacchaeus was despised by everyone.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It might be possible that
Zacchaeus climbed the tree to escape the notice of those in the street who
found out, like him, that Jesus was passing through, and perhaps he was
thinking that Jesus would want nothing to do with him. It must have surprised him, even shocked him
that Jesus not only noticed he was up in the tree, but he knew his name and
invited himself to join Zacchaeus in his home.
<i>“If a man loves me, he will keep my word and my Father will love him,
and we will come and make our home with him.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a></i>
The reaction from the crowd that saw both Jesus and Zacchaeus together was as
expected – shock and anger. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Why did Jesus do it? He saw someone who needed to know God’s
love. Zacchaeus was a sinner, to be
sure, but he repented of his ill-gotten riches immediately. In the presence of Jesus, sin cannot
stand. Zacchaeus was well aware that he
had broken God’s law, but he justified it when hated by those around him. Now Jesus comes to him to tell him he is more
than a sinner, he is a child of God, loved by God, even though he sins. The enemy told Zacchaeus he was justified in
stealing, for they hated him, but once Christ showed him love, the enemy lost
his hold on a person who has Jesus as His friend. Now, the sinful Jewish tax collector becomes
a “new creation” in Christ. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We opened the subject of salvation
in yesterday’s blog. Today, we witness
an example as Jesus journeys to Jerusalem.
Zacchaeus is repentant and confesses his sinfulness, and his willingness
to obey the Law. Jesus smiles, and
speaks of what just happened:<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Today salvation has come to this
house, since he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and
to save the lost” (Luke 19:9-10). <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">This is salvation…Jesus comes
seeking the lost and when he finds them, they are restored in repentance,
redeemed from their lost state, and reminded that they belong to the Son of Man
from God. We should recognize that many
of those who are despised, broken, and unwelcome are desperately in need of the
knowledge of God’s love for them.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peace</span><i><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br /></span>
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></i></span></p>
<div><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><br clear="all" />
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-family: "Source Sans Pro",sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-family: Tahoma; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> John 14:23<o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-29844663289783409402024-03-08T10:10:00.003-06:002024-03-08T10:10:57.654-06:00 Day 21, (Friday) – “The Beginning of the Beginning”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><span style="font-size: 14.6667px;">As we come closer to the final week of Jesus' ministry, before his arrest, I wanted us to look at the events surrounding his journey to Jerusalem.</span></span></p><p><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“And taking the twelve, he said to
them, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about
the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.</span></span></i></p><p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">
For he will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and
shamefully treated and spit upon. <br />
And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will
rise.” <br />
But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from
them, and they did not grasp what was said” (Luke 18:31-34).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We are over the midway period of
the Lenten season. There came a time in
the Gospels when Jesus turned to his disciples and told them where he was going
to lead them – Jerusalem – and what was going to happen when they got there –
His death. We are reminded, they didn’t
understand either the “what” or the “why”.
This Gospel reading represents “the beginning of the beginning”. Did you notice I didn’t write “the beginning
of the end”? <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">For Jesus, what lay ahead was a
road to travel, a valley to cross, a mission to accomplish, teaching to be
delivered, suffering and pain, and a doorway to a glorious future – it was the beginning
of the beginning.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Let me try to connect this with
some theology. To begin with, we must see
the connection of both Christology (the study of Christ) and Soteriology (the
study of Salvation) within the Gospels.
When the early Church began after Pentecost, there was a mystery and a
majesty of Christ Jesus’ ascension and the gift of the Holy Spirit to the
Church. The Spirit of God empowered the Church but also led the church into the
truth of the mystery of Christ Jesus. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What we must understand is that
Christology is never separated from Soteriology. Jesus Christ came through the Virgin’s birth –
the incarnation of God with us as God and Man.
The reason why Jesus Christ can bring salvation to his people is because
he was both human and divine. The Church
needed to affirm and explain this, and so for four centuries the Church Fathers
wrestled with how best to describe both the person of Christ Jesus (Christology)
and the purpose of Christ Jesus – salvation (Soteriology). <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">If He was not truly God, then he
could not <i>save </i>us. If he was not
truly Human, he could not <i>save</i> us.
The divine and human are not separated, nor alone, but totally united in
the single person of Jesus Christ. In
summary, Christianity defined by the Church through the ages, confesses that
Jesus is the Christ, the Promised Savior of God who died to save us and was
resurrected to prove God is behind it all.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus announced to his disciples –
“<i>we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son
of Man by the prophets will be accomplished”.</i> When he told them of his suffering, death, and
resurrection, they could not understand it…what? Why? What they did not understand was that all of
this was the beginning of the beginning.
It would be decades later, in their Apostolic writings that it would be
unveiled. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The Apostle Paul may have grasped
it the most as he wrote for one of the last times to Timothy while imprisoned
in Rome, awaiting his execution.<br />
<br />
<i>“I thank him who has given me strength, Christ Jesus our Lord, because he
judged me faithful, appointing me to his service, though formerly I was a
blasphemer, persecutor, and insolent opponent. But I received mercy because I
had acted ignorantly in unbelief, and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me
with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. <br />
The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I
received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might
display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him
for eternal life. To the King of the ages, immortal, invisible, the only God,
be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen” (1 Timothy 1:12-17).<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It is simple – Christ Jesus saves
sinners. To have salvation in Christ goes
beyond any simple rules or phrases. The
word “salvation” came from the Latin word <i>“salus”</i> which meant <i>“health”</i>. It is in our brokenness of sin from the creation
fall that God embarked on a plan that sent His son into the world – the incarnation,
that made redemption, conversion, justification, and sanctification
possible. To be saved is to be fully and
permanently united with God and with one another – the Church – in God through
Jesus Christ.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What Christ Jesus began was by traveling
a road towards suffering, and it was just the beginning of the beginning, and it
has not come to an end.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br />
Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-50906306503736653572024-03-07T10:10:00.000-06:002024-03-07T10:10:07.681-06:00 Day 20 (Thursday) – “Musings On Prayer”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">During my lifetime of reading in the
Church’s history, I’ve never met a Saint who did not have a devotion to
prayer.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Prayer is the lifeblood of our
relationship with Christ in God.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Prayer
unites our heart to God’s heart, our will to God’s will, our desires to God’s
desires.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Jesus taught us to pray through
his disciples when he was asked by them “</span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Master, teach us to pray”.</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Pray then like this: “Our Father
in heaven, hallowed be your name. <br />
Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. <br />
Give us this day our daily bread, <br />
and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. <br />
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matthew 6:9-13).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Prayer is the language of
heaven. Jesus’ prayer encapsulates the
entire Gospel. We are not just talking
to God, we are listening to God also. Prayer
is raising our minds and hearts to God in humility because humility is the
foundation of prayer. When we pray, we
come as the Apostle Paul said, “<i>We do not know how to pray as we ought…the
Spirit intercedes for us” (Romans 8:26).<o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The Catechism of the Church
reminds us: <i>“You would have asked him, and he would have given you living
water.<a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftn1" name="_ftnref1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Paradoxically our prayer of petition is a response to the plea of the living
God: ‘They have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn out
cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.’<a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftn2" name="_ftnref2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a>
Prayer is the response of faith to the free promise of salvation and also a
response of love to the thirst of the only Son of God.”<a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftn3" name="_ftnref3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><b><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></b></span><!--[endif]--></span></a><o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Why do we pray? Because we need to…for our sake, the sake of
others, but in the end, for the glory of God.
I’ll let the 2<sup>nd</sup>-century great defender of the faith – Saint Tertullian. Tertullian lived during a time of great persecution
of the Christian Church by the Roman Empire.
His people suffered greatly for
being Christians. Tertullian wrote many
letters in defense of the Christian faith, as well as theological treatises in
defense of orthodoxy as heresies arose. Yet, at the heart of his life was his
pastoral role as a Priest to his people in Carthage, North Africa. He wrote this to his people so that they might
be encouraged to pray, even in the face of persecution.<br />
<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]--><br />
<!--[endif]--><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">From the treatise On Prayer by Tertullian, <br />
“The spiritual offering of prayer”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Prayer is the offering in spirit
that has done away with the sacrifices of old. What good do I receive from
the multiplicity of your sacrifices? asks God. I have had enough of
burnt offerings of rams, and I do not want the fat of lambs and the blood of
bulls and goats. Who has asked for these from your hands?<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What God has asked for we learn
from the Gospel. The hour will come, he says, when true
worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. God is a spirit, and
so he looks for worshipers who are like himself.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We are true worshipers and true
priests. We pray in spirit, and so offer in spirit the sacrifice of prayer.
Prayer is an offering that belongs to God and is acceptable to him: it is the
offering he has asked for, the offering he planned as his own.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We must dedicate this offering
with our whole heart, we must fatten it on faith, tend it by truth, keep it
unblemished through innocence and clean through chastity, and crown it with
love. We must escort it to the altar of God in a procession of good works to
the sound of psalms and hymns. Then it will gain for us all that we ask of God.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Since God asks for prayer offered
in spirit and in truth, how can he deny anything to this kind of prayer? How
great is the evidence of its power, as we read and hear and believe.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Prayer cleanses from sin, drives
away temptations, stamps out persecutions, comforts the fainthearted, gives new
strength to the courageous, brings travelers safely home, calms the waves,
confounds robbers, feeds the poor, overrules the rich, lifts up the fallen,
supports those who are falling, sustains those who stand firm.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What more need be said on the duty
of prayer? Even the Lord himself prayed. To him be honor and power for ever and
ever. Amen.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><br />
</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">Peace<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<div><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><br clear="all" />
</span><hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
<!--[endif]-->
<div id="ftn1">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftnref1" name="_ftn1" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">[1]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> John 4:10<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn2">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftnref2" name="_ftn2" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">[2]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> Jeremiah 2:13<o:p></o:p></span></p>
</div>
<div id="ftn3">
<p class="MsoFootnoteText"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><a href="file:///C:/Users/ellio/Desktop/Lenten%20Reflections.docx#_ftnref3" name="_ftn3" title=""><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><!--[if !supportFootnotes]--><span class="MsoFootnoteReference"><span style="font-size: 10pt; line-height: 107%;">[3]</span></span><!--[endif]--></span></a> 2561, of Part 4 on Prayer
from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2<sup>nd</sup> edition</span><o:p></o:p></p>
</div>
</div>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-73009870060309900702024-03-06T12:55:00.005-06:002024-03-06T12:55:49.942-06:00Day 19 (Wednesday) – “Faith in Various Ways”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Lent opens up the wisdom of God’s
word to us and challenges us to live by His wisdom.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Such is the nature of “faith”.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Nothing seems more basic than to say “we
believe” which is a statement of faith.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Of course, having faith in anything is based on what is often
unprovable.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">I have faith in God, faith
in Jesus Christ, and faith in the Holy Spirit, but I have not seen God, Jesus, or
the Holy Spirit.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">I can say I’ve seen the
work of God in people’s lives, in miracles, in events that transcend
understanding.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Yet, faith is a mystery.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The writer of the Book of Hebrews gives us a definition
of faith, and many examples of people’s faith in God:</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Now faith is the assurance of
things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our
ancestors received approval. By faith, we understand that the worlds were
prepared by the word of God so that what is seen was made from things that are
not visible” (Hebrews 11:1-3).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">For many people, especially people
who claim no belief, faith is a stumbling block. I’ve had people tell me “I don’t believe”,
which always strikes me as an untruth.
They may not believe in God, which means they have no faith in God, but
they do believe and have faith in something or someone, even if it is themselves! <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Faith appears in various forms in
the scripture. For example…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“By faith Noah, warned by God
about events as yet unseen, respected the warning and built an ark to save his
household; by this, he condemned the world and became an heir to the
righteousness that is in accordance with faith. <br />
By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he
was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was
going. By faith, he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a
foreign land, living in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him
of the same promise” (Hebrews 11:7-9).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Faith surrounds many biblical stories,
as we see in the faith of Noah who listened to God’s warning and built an ark,
while the rest of the world drowned in a flood.
We also see Abraham listening to God’s word to leave his home and go to
a land that God promised to give to his ancestors, and by faith Abraham traveled
to where God showed him. These two stories are two among dozens of stories in the
scripture of people who exercised the faith of believing in God. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Yet, there’s another story of what
I call – doubting faith. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“(Jesus) came to the disciples,
they saw a great crowd around them, and some scribes arguing with them. When
the whole crowd saw him, they were immediately overcome with awe, and they ran
forward to greet him. He asked them, "What are you arguing about with
them?" Someone from the crowd answered him, "Teacher, I brought
you my son; he has a spirit that makes him unable to speak; <br />
and whenever it seizes him, it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds
his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, but
they could not do so" (Mark 9:14-18).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">This is not the “doubting faith”
that I just mentioned. Nevertheless,
Jesus looked at his disciples and said, <i>"You faithless generation, how
much longer must I be among you? How much longer must I put up with you? Bring
him to me"</i> <i>(Mark 9:19).</i> The disciples certainly had exercised faith
in Jesus just by choosing to answer the call to “<i>follow me</i>”, but being
faithless meant they hadn’t learned how to exercise Jesus’ authority to bring
healing to the boy. In truth, healing
always involves God’s power, and not on the extent of our faith. The father had enough faith to seek Jesus out
for his son’s healing, yet even he had doubts…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“…they brought the boy to him.
When the (evil) spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell
on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. Jesus asked the father, "How
long has this been happening to him?" And he said, "From childhood. It
has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but <u>if
you are able to do anything</u>, have pity on us and help us" (Mark
9:20-22).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What I mean by doubting faith is
exemplified by the father’s words – <i>“God if you are able to do anything” </i>–
these are not the words of the faith that says “<i>I believe</i>”, but the
human words of “<i>I would love to believe, but I’m not sure I can”</i>.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus’ response and the Father’s
response to Jesus are instructive…<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“Jesus said to him, <u>‘If you are
able?—All things can be done for the one who believes</u>.’ <br />
Immediately the father of the child cried out, "<u>I believe; help
my unbelief</u>!" (Mark 9:23-24).</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">If you are like me, you have
compassion for the father because you know he had been praying for a miracle
for his son’s healing for years. We all
have moments of doubt; thus, we are like the father in the story. When Jesus asks the father, "<i>How long
has he been like this?</i>", the father's answer is "<i>since
childhood</i>". When we face pain, suffering, and disease, they become
times of disorientation that can last for long periods...days turn to weeks,
weeks to months, months to years...and it can lead us to places of sincere
doubt. We ask, <i>“Does God know? Why
will he not act to change things? What have I done to deserve this? Where is
the faith that leads to healing?”</i> etc...The questions go on and on turning
over in our minds, sometimes minute by minute, and there seemingly are no
answers<i>. <o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">"Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of
which is not seen,"</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"> says the
writer of Hebrews. There is hope, and there is the “<i>I can’t see God</i>”
aspect of faith, even though I believe in Him. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">So, then what do we do with doubt?
In the story, the father says to Jesus, <i>"...If
you can do anything, take pity on us and help us."</i> It is not just
about the boy, it is about "us" too. These kinds of needs for healing
affect everyone around the person who needs healing. When Jesus addresses the doubt he challenges
it – “<i>If you can?</i>" said Jesus.
"<i>Everything is possible for him who
believes</i>." <br />
We say it…everything is possible with God.
Yes, but then we wonder, “<i>Why then?</i>”. Even the disciples struggled and they said, “<i>Why
could we not…?</i>” That is our dilemma…<i>why
could I not</i>?<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I don't think Jesus was stern in
his rebuke, but rather, I see a calm, measured confidence that was meant to dislodge
the negative thoughts that had flooded his mind over time, to bring him out of
his desperation, and lead him back to believing faith. There are times when it
is ok to embrace doubt. It can be an act of humility that simply says <i>"I
don't know what to do, and I don't know how to pray this, Lord have mercy".</i>
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">None of us knows all that God has
in mind for us, or anyone else we know. We are seekers of "truth",
not seekers of being right all of the time. So I say, “Embrace the doubt, pray
with Faith, and hang on too!<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-76543342893052039882024-03-05T09:22:00.004-06:002024-03-05T09:22:44.341-06:00 Day 18 (Tuesday) – “No Greater Love”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">In Lent, we are reminded of Jesus’
intentionality in going to the cross.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">The Gospel of Matthew records that Jesus took his disciples to Caesarea
Philippi – a Roman/Gentile area – and chose that as the spot to ask them the question,
“</span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”</i><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> (Matthew 16:13).</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">It was Peter, the one who stood out as the
leader among the twelve disciples, who confessed Jesus as the Messiah, but also
added another title to Jesus – “</span><i style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">He said to them, “But who do you say that I
am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God</i><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">” (Matthew
16:15-16).</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">To confess that Jesus was the
Christ was to confess that he was the promised Messiah of God.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">To confess that Jesus is the “son of the
living God” was to confess Jesus’ divinity.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Immediately after this, Matthew records
one of the three times that Jesus pulled his disciples aside (that is from the
crowds that often followed him) and he told them very specifically what they would
soon witness – his suffering and death.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“From that time Jesus began to
show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the
elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be
raised”</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"> (Matthew 16:21). <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We must ponder what and why Jesus
did this. He did not want his disciples
to think that what was about to happen in his upcoming suffering at the hands
of the religious leaders and the Romans was because they were in control. No, he was intentionally going to Jerusalem
to suffer, die, and be resurrected on the third day. Jesus was in control of his life, and his
death.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">I think it’s important to
understand that Jesus’ intentionality in suffering was a divine act of mercy –
a sacrifice that is based on God’s divine love for his people suffering under
the slavery of their captivity by Sin.
The Apostle Peter reminds us as he decades later recalls what Jesus did.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">“Blessed be the God and Father of
our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be
born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the
dead… knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from
your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with
the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot” </span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">(1 Peter 1:3, 18-19).<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus turned towards Jerusalem on
purpose. He went to be the lamb who
would shed his precious blood as a sacrifice for our Sin. The Apostle John saw it too: <i>“We know love
by this, that he laid down his life for us—and we ought to lay down our lives
for one another” (1 John 3:16). </i>John,
Peter, the others heard it from Jesus in the Upper Room on Jesus’ last night
with them. Jesus told them: <i>“No one
has greater love than this than to lay down one's life for one's friends” (John
15:13).</i> <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem was
intentional, purposeful, and without hesitation. To love is to be willing to die for another. To live Christ-like is to live intentionally,
and not just for one’s self.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Raymond Kolbe was born in 1894
into a poor Polish farm family. He was a normal boy who got into trouble and didn’t
always do what he was supposed to do. His
mother grew exasperated with him and one day yelled at him, <i>“Raymond, what
will become of you?”</i> Raymond, even as
a young boy, heard his Mother’s words and they haunted him. One time at Church, he prayed, “<i>What will
become of me?”</i> He had a vision of the
Virgin Mary holding in her hands two crowns, one white, one red. She looked at him with love and told him the
white stood for purity and the red for his life as a sacrifice. She then asked him, <i>“Do you want them?”</i> Raymond Kolbe said “<i>Yes</i>”. Shortly after, Raymond Kolbe decided to
become a Priest. He was ordained to the Franciscans
in 1918 and took the name of Maximilian.
He wore the crown of purity not just in terms of chastity, but also in purity
of intentions – purposes for living and ministering that he intentionally lived.
<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The red crown first came to him in
1938, when he was arrested by the Gestapo for his anti-Nazi rhetoric. Released, he and his brothers organized a
shelter for Jews fleeing the Nazi persecution.
He was re-arrested in 1941 and eventually sent to Auschwitz prison camp.
In Auschwitz, the Nazi extermination
camp, this Franciscan priest, Fr. Maximilian Kolbe, volunteered to take the
place of a Polish soldier, Francis Gajowniczek, who had been chosen to be a
victim of a retaliatory execution for the escape of a prisoner. Fr. Kolbe told
the Nazi commandant: <i>“I am a Catholic priest from Poland; I would like to
take his place because he has a wife and children.”</i> The commandant obliged,
returning Gajowniczek to the camp (in which he survived) and confined Kolbe and
nine other chosen prisoners to a starvation bunker. After being deprived of
food and water for fourteen days, the Nazi’s impatience with Kolbe and the three
others who were still alive decided to finish them off with lethal injections.
Father Kolbe put on his Red Crown as a martyr who died, living Jesus’ words – <i>“no
greater love, than to lay down one’s life for a friend”</i> – even a friend he
did not know.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">In Lent, we live to die to self,
and to live unto God, serving the people God puts around us.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-23976179004367739622024-03-04T09:33:00.006-06:002024-03-04T09:33:33.074-06:00 Day 17 (Monday) – “A Simple Prayer”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">At the beginning of a new week,
let’s pause to consider what we are attempting to do in Lent.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Lent reminds us to “slow”, and even reverse
life if we have to.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">We rush headlong
into a new week, and there are many things to do.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">I have my head full of calendar times, to-do
lists, people to talk to, plans to make.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">We are “to do” people more than we are “have done” people.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Still, in the midst of this, how can we learn
to “slow”…take time to think, ponder, and be intentional so that God is not a
weekend thought, but a daily if not hourly someone on our mind.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">When we do this we discover, anew,
that we are neither alone in our earthly sojourn, nor are we on our own on how
to live. Then, we learn to pray…but
what? Certainly, Jesus’ prayer is
foundational. When we pray the “Our
Father”, we come back to God on the most foundational level of our basic
needs. As we go through the day, we
experience all sorts of emotions. We may
feel loved and treated kindly, or we may feel other’s anger and our shame. The Psalms are rich in prayers that range
from good to evil, and we should learn to pray them. For example<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“Make haste, O God, to deliver me!
O LORD, make haste to help me! <br />
Let them be put to shame and confusion who seek my life! Let them be
turned back and brought to dishonor who delight in my hurt! <br />
Let them turn back because of their shame who say, “Aha, Aha!” <br />
May all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you! May those who love your
salvation say evermore, “God is great!” But I am poor and needy; hasten
to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay! (Psalm
70:1-5).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The psalm of David begins with
that simple prayer. "Please God, deliver me! Come quickly, Lord, and help
me." In our flesh, we resist the urge to say the words. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Perhaps it’s simply that we don’t
want to be dependent upon anyone. But,
we were designed by God to be dependent, not alone, not making it on our
own. This dependence is not a source of
weakness, but rather of strength. Think
of all of the things that others have supplied to you – from Parents,
Relatives, Neighbors, Teachers, Pastors, and Friends. All of us have a rich “well of relationships”
that we can lower our buckets into. But
the Psalmist reminds us of where our dependence first comes from.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">First, our dependence is upon the
Lord himself – “<i>Make haste, O God, to deliver me”.</i> It’s the cry of a child to a loving parent,
“Dad, help me”. When Jesus was asked
what the greatest commandment was, he said, <i>"To</i> <i>love the Lord
your God with all of your heart...."</i> - to love him is to be dependent
upon him for life day by day. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Sixteen hundred years ago, a
European Christian named John Cassian (5<sup>th</sup> century) published an
account of his conversations with monks living in a Middle Eastern desert. One
older monk, Isaac, had shared this prayer from Psalm 70 with the younger John
on his visit to their monastery. John's
book - and Isaac's prayer - had such an influence that even today many
Christians around the globe begin times of prayer with the Scripture verse
Isaac commended to John Cassian. <o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">It is a simple prayer and one
worth repeating throughout the day. It's not hard to say, even to memorize, but
if we meant it from the depth of our hearts, it would be a way of casting
ourselves in dependence upon God every moment of the day... <i>"Lord, please rescue me. Come quickly
Lord and help me." <o:p></o:p></i></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7172061565166753717.post-50574723864387968872024-03-03T09:23:00.002-06:002024-03-03T09:23:36.488-06:00 Sunday, The Third Sunday of Lent – “Drinking the Living Water”<p><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">It’s a Sunday in our Lenten
season, and this day is set aside as a day of celebrating the resurrection of Christ Jesus.</span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: trebuchet; font-size: 11pt;">Today, let’s meditate on Jesus as our “living
water”.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“A Samaritan woman came to draw
water, and Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink." <br />
The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew,
ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?" <br />
Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that
is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would
have given you living water." <br />
The woman said to him, "Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is
deep. Where do you get that living water? Jesus said to her,
"Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, <br />
but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be
thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water
gushing up to eternal life" (John 4:7-14).<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">“On the last day of the festival,
the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, "Let anyone
who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As
the scripture has said, 'Out of the believer's heart shall flow rivers of
living water.'" Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers
in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not
yet glorified” (John 7:37-39). <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">A meditation on this living water,
by the 5<sup>th</sup> century great St. Augustine.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;">A Samaritan woman came to draw water</span></i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">A woman came. She is a symbol
of the Church not yet made righteous but about to be made righteous.
Righteousness follows from the conversation. She came in ignorance, she found
Christ, and he enters into conversation with her. Let us see what it is about,
let us see why a Samaritan woman came to draw water. The Samaritans
did not form part of the Jewish people: they were foreigners. The fact that she
came from a foreign people is part of the symbolic meaning, for she is a symbol
of the Church. The Church was to come from the Gentiles, of a different race
from the Jews.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">We must then recognize ourselves
in her words and in her person, and with her give our own thanks to God. She
was a symbol, not the reality; she foreshadowed the reality, and the reality
came to be. She found faith in Christ, who was using her as a symbol to teach
us what was to come. She came then to draw water. She had
simply come to draw water, in the normal way of man or woman.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Jesus says to her: Give me water
to drink. For his disciples had gone to the city to buy food. The Samaritan
woman therefore says to him: How is it that you, though a Jew, ask me for water
to drink, though I am a Samaritan woman? For Jews have nothing to do with
Samaritans.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">The Samaritans were foreigners;
Jews never used their utensils. The woman was carrying a pail for drawing
water. She was astonished that a Jew should ask her for a drink of water, a
thing that Jews would not do. But the one who was asking for a drink of water
was thirsting for her faith.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Listen now and learn who it is
that asks for a drink. Jesus answered her and said: If you knew the gift
of God, and who it is that is saying to you, “Give me a drink,” perhaps you
might have asked him and he would have given you living water.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">He asks for a drink, and he
promises a drink. He is in need, as one hoping to receive, yet he is rich, as
one about to satisfy the thirst of others. He says: If you knew the gift
of God. The gift of God is the Holy Spirit. But he is still using veiled
language as he speaks to the woman and gradually enters into her heart. Or is
he already teaching her? What could be more gentle and kind than the
encouragement he gives? If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is
saying to you, “Give me a drink,” perhaps you might ask and he would give you
living water.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">What is this water that he will
give if not the water spoken of in Scripture: With you is the fountain of
life? How can those feel thirst who will drink deeply from the
abundance in your house?<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">He was promising the Holy Spirit
in satisfying abundance. She did not yet understand. In her failure to grasp
his meaning, what was her reply? The woman says to him, Master, give me
this drink, so that I may feel no thirst or come here to draw water. Her
need forced her to this labor, her weakness shrank from it. If only she could
hear those words: Come to me, all who labor and are burdened, and I will
refresh you. Jesus was saying this to her, so that her labors might be at
an end; but she was not yet able to understand.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;"> </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Today we worship…drink in Christ
as the living water…take and drink for His is the blood of the New Covenant,
given for the remission of our sins…receive him anew, and celebrate His life within you.<o:p></o:p></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 11pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet;">Peace</span><span style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></p>elliott pollaschhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02010941800436930771noreply@blogger.com0