The four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) record four different writings of the life of Christ. They had four different authors who witnessed many of the same events through their own unique perception. I will not state the different recordings of the treatment of Jesus right before the crucifixion but I do encourage you to read all four. Matthew 27:27 – 31; Mark 15:16-20; Luke 22:63-65; John 19:1-3;
We find more details written from Matthew and Mark wherein Luke and John wrote very short explanations. I believe that the cruel and inhumane treatment of their dear Teacher and Friend was too much to expound on. The treatment was exposed for what it was in my commentary. We cannot enjoy the promises and eternal gifts from God without understanding the price that was paid. These are heavy words for our hearts but Christ is worthy of our complete understanding of His sacrifice.
They stripped Him – This was done in an effort to humiliate Him.
They scourged Him – Scourging was a form of Roman punishment wherein He would have been beaten with a whip or rod that had pieces of metal or bone cutting deep gashes in the flesh;
They clothed Him - The scarlet robe was their intention to mock Him for claiming He was the I AM-
They crowned Him – The crown of thorns was meant by them to mock the claim with suffering that He was King over the Jews.
They blindfolded Him – This was done so that they could strike Him in the face mocking Him to prophesy who had slapped Him.
But what man can do to each other God did, can and will turn it to His glory. Evil always tries to counterfeit God. Jesus being stripped for me symbolizes the fact that through His sacrifice my life has been stripped of eternal damnation. As heart breaking and difficult as it is for me to imagine what Jesus went through during scourging, I am eternally thankful that our flesh is temporary and God can spiritually heal what the physical can cause.
“‘They stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him.’ But that robe has a message for us. Since scarlet is associated with sin, I like to think that the robe pictures my sins being placed on Jesus so that God’s robe of righteousness might be placed on me. ‘They twisted a crown of thorns…’ We understand that He wore a crown of thorns that we might wear a crown of glory. Jesus bore it all patiently; He didn’t say a word.' Believer’s Bible Commentary, p. 1308
‘For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls’ (Heb. 12:3).
What His creation of man prepared through mockery God fulfilled as reality! He is the King of Glory!
Friday, July 30, 2010
Thursday, July 29, 2010
Following At A Distance
“Peter followed at a distance…Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him…And he went outside and wept bitterly.” Luke 22:54, 61-62
Now before we judge Peter too severely this story can easily represent the spiritual seasons of which we move in and out. The scene of Peter’s denial of knowing Christ was literally moments after Peter attacked the high priest with a sword who had arrived to arrest Jesus. Peter was rebuked by Jesus through the explanation that His time was near and God’s predetermined purposes must come to pass. Luke records a chilling statement made by Jesus to those who had come for him. ‘But this is your hour – when darkness reigns!’ Satan was unleashed and evil would prevail for now. This spiritual climate must have settled in on Peter with fear because just moments later we find Peter ‘following at a distance (Luke 22:54).
‘Following at a distance’ – sound familiar? The Holy Spirit gives us guidance and reveals the ‘word the Lord has spoken to us’. At times we have all taken these words and put them aside, placed them on the back burner or even denied we ever heard them. We become like Peter who sat at the fire of the enemy denying his part in it all. We warm our hands against indifference and detachment when we face fear or unpleasant situations. We forget the very words God gives us as soon as the heat comes. We must stay up close and personal in fellowship with Christ so we will not warm our hands in evil’s fire.
The grief that Peter felt as Jesus looked upon his denial is no doubt the same grief we feel upon conviction in our lives. I will never forget the spiritual heaviness I felt the morning after I had failed to say a public prayer at an event that I knew God had led me to prepare. My feet got cold and I made my way up to the fire of the enemy. I sat by that fire and allowed him to convince me that the people did not want to hear me pray and that I would be ridiculed. I got burned that night just like Peter. The next morning I arose and wept bitterly. The weight of my denial of God’s words to be shared with those the night before hit me like a train. I had missed out on providing others with an opportunity for them to experience God in that environment – at a Christmas gathering to make matters worse.
We cannot follow Him at a distance or we will develop cold feet spiritually. We will be lured to the fire of the enemy for false warmth and spiritual darkness. We must stick close to Christ so that His words will be our words and His heart will be our heart. The Holy Spirit enables full access to God if we stay connected to the Spirit.
But this is your hour - let righteousness reign!
Now before we judge Peter too severely this story can easily represent the spiritual seasons of which we move in and out. The scene of Peter’s denial of knowing Christ was literally moments after Peter attacked the high priest with a sword who had arrived to arrest Jesus. Peter was rebuked by Jesus through the explanation that His time was near and God’s predetermined purposes must come to pass. Luke records a chilling statement made by Jesus to those who had come for him. ‘But this is your hour – when darkness reigns!’ Satan was unleashed and evil would prevail for now. This spiritual climate must have settled in on Peter with fear because just moments later we find Peter ‘following at a distance (Luke 22:54).
‘Following at a distance’ – sound familiar? The Holy Spirit gives us guidance and reveals the ‘word the Lord has spoken to us’. At times we have all taken these words and put them aside, placed them on the back burner or even denied we ever heard them. We become like Peter who sat at the fire of the enemy denying his part in it all. We warm our hands against indifference and detachment when we face fear or unpleasant situations. We forget the very words God gives us as soon as the heat comes. We must stay up close and personal in fellowship with Christ so we will not warm our hands in evil’s fire.
The grief that Peter felt as Jesus looked upon his denial is no doubt the same grief we feel upon conviction in our lives. I will never forget the spiritual heaviness I felt the morning after I had failed to say a public prayer at an event that I knew God had led me to prepare. My feet got cold and I made my way up to the fire of the enemy. I sat by that fire and allowed him to convince me that the people did not want to hear me pray and that I would be ridiculed. I got burned that night just like Peter. The next morning I arose and wept bitterly. The weight of my denial of God’s words to be shared with those the night before hit me like a train. I had missed out on providing others with an opportunity for them to experience God in that environment – at a Christmas gathering to make matters worse.
We cannot follow Him at a distance or we will develop cold feet spiritually. We will be lured to the fire of the enemy for false warmth and spiritual darkness. We must stick close to Christ so that His words will be our words and His heart will be our heart. The Holy Spirit enables full access to God if we stay connected to the Spirit.
But this is your hour - let righteousness reign!
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Abba!
“’Abba, Father,’ he said, ‘everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me’” Mark 14:36.
There is nothing that used to tear me apart more than hearing one of my children crying out to me, ‘Mommy…don’t go!’ Their desperate cry due to our separation would resonate over and over in my head while I was gone. I knew we wouldn’t be separated for long but they didn’t. They could only comprehend from the standpoint of their knowledge and experience up to that stage in their life.
"In Aramaic, ‘abba is originally…a word derived from baby-language. When a child is weaned, it learns to say abba (daddy)…abba acquired the warm, familiar ring which we may feel in such an expression as ‘dear father.’ Nowhere in the entire wealth of devotional literature produced by ancient Judaism do we find ‘abba’ being used as a way of addressing God. The pious Jew knew too much of the great gap between God and man to be free to address God with the familiar word used in everyday family life." The Dictionary of New Testament Theology. But Jesus was different…He was the only child of God…His Daddy…never separated before as they shared One spirit…the Holy Spirit.
I cannot imagine the grief God felt when the cries of His only Son rose up to heaven pleading three times for the cup of separation to be removed if Father willed it to happen. Jesus was not asking to be spared from the cross for He knew that this was the purpose for which He was born. His cry was the despair knowing that the sinless One would have to take on the sins of mankind, thereby separating Himself from His Holy Father. He cried out with that child like longing for His parent but heaven was silent…the answer was obvious… Christ would have to take on mankind’s sins of past, present and future.
The Father knew they would be reunited in glory and honor and the Family would benefit from the temporary separation. Father God still had to hear the cries of His only Son knowing He had the power to stop His pain.
If you ever doubt the love of the Holy Father you will not have to look any further than the cross. He sacrificed His only Son for the benefit of His adopted sons. Allow that to really sink in on an earthly level. We should never doubt the love of the Trinity – our lives have been bought, saved and led by this Holy Community.
What love can be greater than this?
There is nothing that used to tear me apart more than hearing one of my children crying out to me, ‘Mommy…don’t go!’ Their desperate cry due to our separation would resonate over and over in my head while I was gone. I knew we wouldn’t be separated for long but they didn’t. They could only comprehend from the standpoint of their knowledge and experience up to that stage in their life.
"In Aramaic, ‘abba is originally…a word derived from baby-language. When a child is weaned, it learns to say abba (daddy)…abba acquired the warm, familiar ring which we may feel in such an expression as ‘dear father.’ Nowhere in the entire wealth of devotional literature produced by ancient Judaism do we find ‘abba’ being used as a way of addressing God. The pious Jew knew too much of the great gap between God and man to be free to address God with the familiar word used in everyday family life." The Dictionary of New Testament Theology. But Jesus was different…He was the only child of God…His Daddy…never separated before as they shared One spirit…the Holy Spirit.
I cannot imagine the grief God felt when the cries of His only Son rose up to heaven pleading three times for the cup of separation to be removed if Father willed it to happen. Jesus was not asking to be spared from the cross for He knew that this was the purpose for which He was born. His cry was the despair knowing that the sinless One would have to take on the sins of mankind, thereby separating Himself from His Holy Father. He cried out with that child like longing for His parent but heaven was silent…the answer was obvious… Christ would have to take on mankind’s sins of past, present and future.
The Father knew they would be reunited in glory and honor and the Family would benefit from the temporary separation. Father God still had to hear the cries of His only Son knowing He had the power to stop His pain.
If you ever doubt the love of the Holy Father you will not have to look any further than the cross. He sacrificed His only Son for the benefit of His adopted sons. Allow that to really sink in on an earthly level. We should never doubt the love of the Trinity – our lives have been bought, saved and led by this Holy Community.
What love can be greater than this?
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Just Imagine Jesus...
Many of the Psalms would traditionally be sung after the Passover meal. Centuries of families would have sung these Psalms acknowledging their belief that someday the Messiah would come and the prophesy would be fulfilled. Little did they know that this would be the year and the Lamb of sacrifice was among them. Jesus stood with His disciples and sang these Psalms the day before facing His cross knowing in His heart the words sung in tradition for so many years were describing His fate.
“How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation…I will fulfill my vows to the Lord…The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies.” Psalms 116: 12-14
“The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this…This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:22-24
How many times have we stood in church singing praises to our Lord only to experience pain from the truth in the words? I remember after Daddy died it seemed each song was written just for my circumstances. Many Sundays I could only lip the words as tears streamed down my face and my words were without sound due to the lump in my throat. The new awareness and truth in song was too much to contain within me. We have all had that experience I am sure.
Just imagine Jesus as He sang these Psalms after the meal. I cannot help but to wonder if the cheeks of Jesus were also wet from tears. Could His sweet voice be heard or did the lump in His throat and the fear in His heart prevent sound? Could he make eye contact with the disciples knowing that the Capstone of Christianity would soon hang lifeless so we could live? When Jesus sang the words, ‘This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it,’ was His heart fully rejoicing knowing He would soon face the cross? We have to consider the possibility of His human emotions taking over like every other person on earth. After all, He had traded in His heavenly palace for an earthly tent.
We all face pain and suffering, but the next time the tears flow in song and the lump in your throat prevents sound just know that perhaps Jesus had the same response as He faced His unbearable circumstances. At that private and sacred moment, you can be sure you are having fellowship with Christ through suffering.
Just imagine Jesus…
“How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation…I will fulfill my vows to the Lord…The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? The Lord is with me; he is my helper. I will look in triumph on my enemies.” Psalms 116: 12-14
“The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone; the Lord has done this…This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:22-24
How many times have we stood in church singing praises to our Lord only to experience pain from the truth in the words? I remember after Daddy died it seemed each song was written just for my circumstances. Many Sundays I could only lip the words as tears streamed down my face and my words were without sound due to the lump in my throat. The new awareness and truth in song was too much to contain within me. We have all had that experience I am sure.
Just imagine Jesus as He sang these Psalms after the meal. I cannot help but to wonder if the cheeks of Jesus were also wet from tears. Could His sweet voice be heard or did the lump in His throat and the fear in His heart prevent sound? Could he make eye contact with the disciples knowing that the Capstone of Christianity would soon hang lifeless so we could live? When Jesus sang the words, ‘This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it,’ was His heart fully rejoicing knowing He would soon face the cross? We have to consider the possibility of His human emotions taking over like every other person on earth. After all, He had traded in His heavenly palace for an earthly tent.
We all face pain and suffering, but the next time the tears flow in song and the lump in your throat prevents sound just know that perhaps Jesus had the same response as He faced His unbearable circumstances. At that private and sacred moment, you can be sure you are having fellowship with Christ through suffering.
Just imagine Jesus…
Monday, July 26, 2010
The Eternal Servant
“Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under His power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God; so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist. After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying him with the towel that was wrapped around him. When he finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place.” John 13:3-5, 12
We continue watching Christ in the upper room as an observer into one of the most powerful scenes in the Bible. The earthly ministry of Jesus is coming to a close and important teachings are still required for the disciples. Jesus felt the approaching fulfillment of His death and His return to God in Heaven. He needed to exemplify a few more necessary truths. Our powerful scene opens with Christ removing His outer clothing and preparing to serve His disciples in the lowest duty of a servant of that time – washing the feet of guests.
The Believer’s Bible Commentary states, ‘It was the consciousness of who He was, and of the mission and destiny, that enabled Him to stoop down and wash the disciples’ feet. Rising from supper, the Lord laid aside His long outer garments. Then He put a towel around Himself as an apron, taking the place of a slave. This symbolic act reminds us of how the Lord left the ivory palaces above, came down into this world as a Servant, and ministered to those He had created.’ p. 1542.
Fast forward a few thousand years…nothing has changed. Christ wears many garments of God but is never too busy or too exalted to serve us. He sets asides His magnificence of Master and tenderly and gently stoops down as we reach up. He continues to serve and cleanse as we continue to hurt and sin. Through His service to us we can more readily serve Him. We can pick up that garment of Christ and wrap it around our shoulders exemplifying the attitude of Christ. When our seasons of hurting and cleansing are temporarily over Christ returns to His role and position as Master of the Universe and serves man both collectively and individually through His faithfulness. He returns to His throne seat but His apron is always clean and pressed.
Whether we are being cleansed or comforted, our Savior becomes Servant washing our sins and pain away at the same time we serve our Savior.
We continue watching Christ in the upper room as an observer into one of the most powerful scenes in the Bible. The earthly ministry of Jesus is coming to a close and important teachings are still required for the disciples. Jesus felt the approaching fulfillment of His death and His return to God in Heaven. He needed to exemplify a few more necessary truths. Our powerful scene opens with Christ removing His outer clothing and preparing to serve His disciples in the lowest duty of a servant of that time – washing the feet of guests.
The Believer’s Bible Commentary states, ‘It was the consciousness of who He was, and of the mission and destiny, that enabled Him to stoop down and wash the disciples’ feet. Rising from supper, the Lord laid aside His long outer garments. Then He put a towel around Himself as an apron, taking the place of a slave. This symbolic act reminds us of how the Lord left the ivory palaces above, came down into this world as a Servant, and ministered to those He had created.’ p. 1542.
Fast forward a few thousand years…nothing has changed. Christ wears many garments of God but is never too busy or too exalted to serve us. He sets asides His magnificence of Master and tenderly and gently stoops down as we reach up. He continues to serve and cleanse as we continue to hurt and sin. Through His service to us we can more readily serve Him. We can pick up that garment of Christ and wrap it around our shoulders exemplifying the attitude of Christ. When our seasons of hurting and cleansing are temporarily over Christ returns to His role and position as Master of the Universe and serves man both collectively and individually through His faithfulness. He returns to His throne seat but His apron is always clean and pressed.
Whether we are being cleansed or comforted, our Savior becomes Servant washing our sins and pain away at the same time we serve our Savior.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
Leaning Against Jesus
“He took the bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’” Luke 22:19
These were the words Christ spoken to His disciples at The Last Supper. This would have followed the re-enactment of the Exodus which is what every Jewish family did to observe the Passover. The gathering would actually involve the youngest child asking certain questions prompting the others to act out the fleeing from Egypt. At The Last Supper, John would most likely have assumed the responsibility of questioning since he was believed to be the youngest among the disciples. This re-enactment had much more significance than any other Passover celebration ever experienced before. This actual Passover celebration provided reality instead of representation. The Passover Lamb now had a face with no blemishes and His name was Jesus.
The disciples had no idea of the significance in which they were called to participate. They were simply being obedient to an old tradition and communing with Jesus. The realization of what unfolded before their eyes didn’t become clear until after the sacrifice and the Lamb had been slain. We cannot know the spiritual impact of our obedience in service and response to God. The word commune is defined as ‘experiencing a deep emotional or spiritual relationship with something or someone.’ This was the emotional climate of the Upper Room that night. A powerful and traditional demonstration shared between a group of men who shared deep and emotional relationships with each other. At one point, Scripture tells us that John was leaning against Jesus. (John 13:25) What a beautiful image…his back against the chest of the Lamb who sacrificed all.
Notice that Jesus gave thanks in the brokenness of the bread He offered. When we face impending suffering we can know that Jesus can relate to our fears and dread. Our brokenness can connect with Christ as He offered His brokenness represented by the broken bread. We can lean against Jesus just as John did when communion is being shared and fellowship is being experienced.
In the referenced Scripture for today, I believe that Christ was not speaking of a one time sacrifice but a two way participation with Him. Just as He gave up His body for us we are to give up our lives for Him continuously.
Do this in remembrance of what He did for us.
These were the words Christ spoken to His disciples at The Last Supper. This would have followed the re-enactment of the Exodus which is what every Jewish family did to observe the Passover. The gathering would actually involve the youngest child asking certain questions prompting the others to act out the fleeing from Egypt. At The Last Supper, John would most likely have assumed the responsibility of questioning since he was believed to be the youngest among the disciples. This re-enactment had much more significance than any other Passover celebration ever experienced before. This actual Passover celebration provided reality instead of representation. The Passover Lamb now had a face with no blemishes and His name was Jesus.
The disciples had no idea of the significance in which they were called to participate. They were simply being obedient to an old tradition and communing with Jesus. The realization of what unfolded before their eyes didn’t become clear until after the sacrifice and the Lamb had been slain. We cannot know the spiritual impact of our obedience in service and response to God. The word commune is defined as ‘experiencing a deep emotional or spiritual relationship with something or someone.’ This was the emotional climate of the Upper Room that night. A powerful and traditional demonstration shared between a group of men who shared deep and emotional relationships with each other. At one point, Scripture tells us that John was leaning against Jesus. (John 13:25) What a beautiful image…his back against the chest of the Lamb who sacrificed all.
Notice that Jesus gave thanks in the brokenness of the bread He offered. When we face impending suffering we can know that Jesus can relate to our fears and dread. Our brokenness can connect with Christ as He offered His brokenness represented by the broken bread. We can lean against Jesus just as John did when communion is being shared and fellowship is being experienced.
In the referenced Scripture for today, I believe that Christ was not speaking of a one time sacrifice but a two way participation with Him. Just as He gave up His body for us we are to give up our lives for Him continuously.
Do this in remembrance of what He did for us.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Then Along Came a Spider...
“When the devil had finished all this temptation, he left him until an opportune time…Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve…He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present.” Luke 4:13; Luke 22:3, 6
There are many divine absolutes in the Bible that serve as God’s promises to help us through our journeys in life. Unfortunately, there are evil absolutes that work just as hard to derail our lives. The first verse above was the conclusion of the passage describing the temptation of Jesus while in the desert after he was baptized. Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit and stood strong against the devil. With each arrow of temptation the devil shot Christ retorted with the Word of God – an exact target every time. The devil knew that he was unsuccessful against the Son but didn’t give up, but he retreated for that moment. He had had plenty of victories in dealing with man and knew that through patience and opportunity all of mankind sins during certain points in their lives. He was so arrogant he thought he could even be successful against the Son of God. So he waited patiently…and along came Judas.
Welcome to the opportune time! Judas was in Jesus’ inner circle and was one of His chosen. The difference between Judas and the other disciples was the condition of his heart. He had spiritual chinks in his armor and allowed room for Satan to enter. Satan was crafty enough to know Judas’ heart of greed and used that information to control, enter and manipulate.
As children of God we too are chosen and invited to be in Christ's inner circle. We are welcomed into His spiritual world to observe, experience and sense His work and His presence. At any moment our armor can be compromised with our weaknesses just like Judas. We have within us unique weaknesses that Satan will use to frustrate the will of God for our lives. We must stay connected to the Word of God to combat these attacks. Satan is the counterfeit of God so don’t think he doesn’t know us extremely well. He has watched us since birth just as God has but God will always be greater than Satan. “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4.
We cannot give Satan one single opportunity to enter into God’s chosen. He cannot steal our salvation once we are a child of God but he can certainly steal our sanity!
'Then along came a spider and sat down beside her...'
There are many divine absolutes in the Bible that serve as God’s promises to help us through our journeys in life. Unfortunately, there are evil absolutes that work just as hard to derail our lives. The first verse above was the conclusion of the passage describing the temptation of Jesus while in the desert after he was baptized. Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit and stood strong against the devil. With each arrow of temptation the devil shot Christ retorted with the Word of God – an exact target every time. The devil knew that he was unsuccessful against the Son but didn’t give up, but he retreated for that moment. He had had plenty of victories in dealing with man and knew that through patience and opportunity all of mankind sins during certain points in their lives. He was so arrogant he thought he could even be successful against the Son of God. So he waited patiently…and along came Judas.
Welcome to the opportune time! Judas was in Jesus’ inner circle and was one of His chosen. The difference between Judas and the other disciples was the condition of his heart. He had spiritual chinks in his armor and allowed room for Satan to enter. Satan was crafty enough to know Judas’ heart of greed and used that information to control, enter and manipulate.
As children of God we too are chosen and invited to be in Christ's inner circle. We are welcomed into His spiritual world to observe, experience and sense His work and His presence. At any moment our armor can be compromised with our weaknesses just like Judas. We have within us unique weaknesses that Satan will use to frustrate the will of God for our lives. We must stay connected to the Word of God to combat these attacks. Satan is the counterfeit of God so don’t think he doesn’t know us extremely well. He has watched us since birth just as God has but God will always be greater than Satan. “You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4.
We cannot give Satan one single opportunity to enter into God’s chosen. He cannot steal our salvation once we are a child of God but he can certainly steal our sanity!
'Then along came a spider and sat down beside her...'
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