Holy Wednesday - March 31, 2021 - Loved

 

 

So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, 

the one whom Jesus LOVED... 

John 20:2a

In the 2nd verse of John 20, Mary runs to find Peter and the other disciples to tell them that the tomb is empty.  Theologians aren't sure who the "loved" disciple was that Mary ran to.  It could have been John, the son of Zebedee, or perhaps it was her brother, Lazarus.  The larger point here is that women had no legal standing as witnesses, so Mary had to go tell the men so that they could bear witness.  However, we also know that Mary was a very close friend and follower of Jesus, and that Jesus spent time at her house.  In fact, just before the events of his death and resurrection, he spent time in Bethany at Mary, Martha & Lazarus' house.

During this part of Holy Week that we attribute to Holy Wednesday, Jesus didn't venture back into Jerusalem.  Instead, he spent the day in Bethany.  There were many events happening that day -- Judas was betraying Jesus into the hands of the high priests.  That evening Jesus went outside and looked out onto the hills of Judea.  He surely recalled the memories of his childhood and youth and the memories of the past several years as he "went about his Father's business."  He knew what was about to happen to him and the road that he would have to walk.  His life had been filled with love, and now he was ready to give the world his ultimate gift of love -- his life.

 

 

 

 

Holy Tuesday, March 30, 2021 - Removed

 

 

 

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, 

Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw 

that the stone had been REMOVED from the entrance.

John 20:1 

On Holy Tuesday, Jesus returned to the Temple -- healing the blind and the lame.  The authorities continued to question Jesus' authority and the time came where Jesus told the disciples that "the Son of Man must be glorified" -- revealed.  Perhaps the disciples were starting to understand the risk and danger they were in by following Jesus.

But the disciples and Jesus' followers continued to live in unbelief.  They continued to believe that Jesus was their earthly Savior who was going to save them from the Roman tyranny.  And as we fast forward to that day when Mary Magdalene went to the tomb, still unbelieving, and grieving, we see that she discovered the stone had been REMOVED from the entrance to the tomb.  The first light of day was emerging and, for Mary, questions were starting to flood into her mind -- why is the stone removed from the entrance?  Her grief is now mixed with shock and horror that the stone has been removed and the reality that Jesus' body is no longer in the tomb.

Just as the disciples were starting to understand what Jesus had been telling them, Mary would soon be realizing that what Jesus had been telling them was true.  The sun was rising and doubt was being removed and hope was replacing that doubt.

 

 

Holy Monday, March 29, 2021 - Dark

 

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still DARK... 

John 20:1a 

During this final week of Lent, Holy Week, all of our words lead us to the Resurrection as heard in John 20: 1-18.  I think the reason it's important to be reading this portion of the Resurrection story is to link it to Holy Week and each day's events and also to understand that during these first few verses, the disciples and the women were still grieving Jesus' death.

Today our word is dark.  The word dark is often used in the Bible to reference spiritual darkness.  So "early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark" might imply that those who were a part of this story, especially Mary Magdalene as she went to the tomb, were still "in darkness" about Jesus' death.  They had not yet believed the message that Jesus had been telling them -- that on the third day he would rise from the dead.  

So how does this darkness relate to the events of Holy Monday.  Mark 11:15-19 tells us about Jesus in the Temple and how he overturned the tables of the money changers and chased them out of the Temple.  The mood was somber.  The chief priest and scribes were afraid of Jesus and what he was teaching, and they continued to plot ways that they could get rid of him.  The last verse of this passage says that, when evening came -- darkness, Jesus and his disciples left the city.

Kyrie eleison.  Lord, in your mercy....hear our prayer.

March 28, 2021 - Palm/Passion Sunday

 

Palm/Passion Sunday

 

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!”

Mark 11: 9-10

 

 

 

 

 

March 27, 2021 - Together

 

Who will contend with me?
    Let us stand up TOGETHER.
Who are my adversaries?
    Let them confront me.

It is the Lord God who helps me;
    who will declare me guilty?

Isaiah 50: 8-9a

 

 

God loves you unconditionally. He accepts you and justifies you through the blood of His own dear Son. You do not have to prove yourself to God to gain His acceptance. Come just as you are and He receives you as His own.

 

 

March 26, 2021 - Gave

 

I GAVE my back to those who struck me,
    and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard;
I did not hide my face from insult and spitting.

Isaiah 50:6 

 

In Luke 18:31-33, Jesus says to the disciples, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the prophets will be accomplished.  For he will be handed over to the Gentiles; and he will be mocked and insulted and spat upon.  After they have flogged him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise again.”  This passage from Luke is a direct reference to this prophesy from Isaiah -- the the Son of Man would be persecuted, humiliated, and beaten on his way to Golgotha.  Yet, He chose to face his accusers and those who hung him on the cross.

 

 

March 25, 2021 - Wakens

 

He WAKENS me morning by morning,
    wakens my ear to listen like one being instructed.

Isaiah 50:4c 

March 24, 2021 - Weary

 

The Lord God has given me
    the tongue of a teacher,
that I may know how to sustain
    the WEARY with a word.

Isaiah 50:4ab

 

 

March 23, 2021 - Sustain

 

The Lord God has given me
    the tongue of a teacher,
that I may know how to SUSTAIN
    the weary with a word.

Isaiah 50:4ab 

How will Jesus sustain you?

March 22, 2021 - Given

 

The Lord God has GIVEN me
    the tongue of a teacher...

Isaiah 50:4a

 

Next Sunday, Palm/Passion Sunday, is the beginning of Holy Week.  All of this week's words come from Isaiah 50, starting with verse 4, entitled "The Servant's Humiliation and Vindication."  Most Bible scholars agree that the servant referenced is the Messiah, Jesus Christ, which is why this passage is included in the Passion Narrative for Palm/Passion Sunday.  One of the definitions/synonyms for the Hebrew word for given (natan) is bestowed.  "The Lord God has BESTOWED me the tongue of a teacher."  We know that one of most important tasks that Jesus did during his ministry was teaching.  And God gave/bestowed that talent on Jesus.  He put Jesus on the earth during a time when people needed to hear His story.  He comforted the weary.  And he prepared them to be forGIVEN from their sins.

 

The root of “forgive” is the Latin word “perdonare,” meaning “to give completely, without reservation.” (That “perdonare” is also the source of our English “pardon.”)  As we enter into this last week of Lent before Palm Sunday and Holy Week, use this passage of Isaiah 50 to prepare yourself to hear the story of Jesus' last days on earth.  Give yourself completely and without reservation to hearing this message and understanding how you can use it during the final week of preparation.

 

 

 

 

 

March 21, 2021 - 5th Sunday in Lent - Celebrate

 ...for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

Jeremiah 31:34b

 

 

March 20, 2021 - Teach

 

No longer shall they TEACH one another, 

or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” 

for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; 

for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

Jeremiah 31:34

 

 

March 19, 2021 - Write

 

But this is the covenant that I will make 

with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: 

I will put my law within them, and I will WRITE it on their hearts; 

and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 

Jeremiah 31:33

 

 

March 18, 2021 - House

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, 

when I will make a new covenant 

with the HOUSE of Israel and the HOUSE of Judah.

Jeremiah 31:31

 

 

March 17, 2021 - New

The days are surely coming, says the Lord, 

when I will make a NEW covenant 

with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.

Jeremiah 31:31

 

 

March 16, 2021 - Coming

 

A New Covenant

The days are surely COMING, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.  It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord.  But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

Jeremiah 31:31-34

 

 

March 15, 2021 - Days

 

A New Covenant

The DAYS are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah.  It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord.  But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  No longer shall they teach one another, or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord; for I will forgive their iniquity, and remember their sin no more.

Jeremiah 31:31-34

 

This week's words are based on next Sunday's Old Testament Lectionary reading from Jeremiah.    On the first day of our Lenten journey, our word was COVENANT.  And today we're right back to it -- "The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new COVENANT with the house of Israel and the house of Judah."  This message was a ray of hope for the people of Israel & Judah -- a promise that God's covenant would be written on their hearts, not just on a stone tablet.  For us, Jesus Christ is the ray of hope.  We share the new covenant that Jeremiah speaks of every time we celebrate Holy Communion.    That new covenant has not been fully realized in our lives.  It's a hope that is still underway and won't be fully realized until we receive eternal life.

We have two more week until we begin Holy Week.  Here's my banner so far:

March 14, 2021 - 4th Sunday in Lent - Celebrate

And let them offer thanksgiving sacrifices,

and tell of his deeds with songs of joy.

Psalm 107:22

 

 

March 13, 2021 - Wonderful

Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love,
   for his WONDERFUL works to humankind.

Psalm 107:21

 

 

March 12, 2021 - Delivered

  "and delivered them from destruction."

Psalm 107:20b (NRSV)

 

In the New Revised Standard Version, this verse says, "delivered them from destruction."   The NIV says, "rescued them from the grave."  Whether we use the phrase delivered from destruction or rescued from the grave, the message is clear.  The Word of God is the foundation of our faith and our deliverance from sin through the redeeming blood of Jesus.

Is your soul sin-sick?  Do you need the balm of Gilead to heal you today?

 

 

 

March 11, 2021 - Healed

 

...he sent out his word and healed them...

Psalm 107:20a

 

 

March 10, 2021 - Gathered

 

...those he gathered from the lands,
    from east and west, from north and south.

 

Psalm 107:3

 

 

March 9, 2021 - Endures

 

...his love ENDURES forever.

Psalm 107:1b

 

 

March 8, 2021 - Thanks

 

This week's words are based on next Sunday's Psalter Reading:  Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22.  Today's word is THANKS.  "O give thanks..."

 

This Psalm is a call to observe all that God has done for us both in the past and present.  How will you give thanks to God today.

 

March 7, 2021 - 3rd Sunday in Lent - Celebrate

The heavens declare the glory of God;
    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Psalm 19:1

 

Today's lectionary readings are:

• Exodus 20:1-17
• Psalm 19
• 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
• John 2:13-22

This past week, all of our words came from Exodus 20:1-17.  When we read Exodus 20, we normally focus on the 10 Commandments contained in this passage.  However, this past week the words didn't necessarily focus on their context within the 10 Commandments.  Instead, hopefully you thought about how they relate to Lent.

Today we need to take a look at how all four of these readings relate to each other.  Exodus 20, as we've said, is the revelation of the 10 Commandments that God revealed to Moses.  In John 2, we hear the story of Jesus driving the money changers out of the Temple.  These money changers were not keeping the Sabbath holy and they were worshipping graven images -- money.  In Psalm 19, we hear once again about God's commandments -- the Law of the Lord is perfect, the decrees of the Lord are sure, the precepts of the Lord are right, and the commandment of the Lord is clear.  1 Corinthians 1 asks, "Where is the one who is wise?"  Jesus is the stumbling block to those who seek wisdom from the world.  "...the decrees of the Lord are sure, making WISE the simple."

Today, CELEBRATE God's wisdom.  Proclaim the glory of God and the works of His hands.