The Cross

'For people who are stumbling toward ruin, the message of the cross is nothing but a tall tale for fools by a fool. But for those of us who are already experiencing the reality of being rescued and made right, it is nothing short of God's power.' ~ 1 Corinthians 1:18, The Voice

If we believe that Heaven is merely a default destination for all, then are we not, in essence, making a mockery of Jesus’s death? Are we not, albeit unwittingly, with our ‘all dogs go to Heaven’ mentality, counting Jesus’s death as meaningless, and turning the Cross into nothing more than a Hollywood movie prop, an air-brushed car and truck decal or a common fashion accessory?

Today -- this solemn day we’ve come to know as Good Friday -- take some time to gaze upon the Cross of Christ, and when you do, consider these thoughts:

• How do you view the Cross? What does it mean to you personally?
• Are you thankful for the Cross, or offended by it?
• Are you awestruck by just how wide and long and high and deep the love of Christ is…for you?
• Are you humbled by the fact that the Son of God gave up the privileges of His Heavenly kingdom and set aside His rights of deity to come here to Earth to dwell among us, to love us, to serve us, and to give His life as a ransom for many?
• Are you deeply moved by the fact that Christ gave up His body to be brutally beaten, broken and pierced…for you? For me?
• Are you astounded by the fact that WHILE WE WERE STILL SINNERS, Jesus Christ died for us to demonstrate and to prove God’s incredible, amazing, unfailing love for us?

How do you view the Cross now? Do you still see it as a blinged-out trinket in your jewelry box; a piece of decor hanging on the wall in your home, office or an emblem stuck to your vehicle; a horrifying, offensive instrument of death to be avoided?

Or do you see it now, transformed by Christ, as a symbol of love, of life, of hope, of victory? Will you turn from it in fear and disgust? Or run towards it..and Him...with joy and abandon?

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Because Jesus didn’t remain in the grave, friends. It may be Friday, but Sunday’s coming. And with it, resurrection, salvation and new life!

"Men of Israel, listen to these words:This Jesus the Nazarene was a Man pointed out to you by God with miracles, wonders, and signs that God did among you through Him, just as you yourselves know. Though He was delivered up according to God's determined plan and foreknowledge, you used lawless people to nail Him to a cross and kill Him. God raised Him up, ending the pains of death, because it was not possible for Him to be held by it." ~ Acts 2:22-24, HCSB

The Day In-Between

The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate.  “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while He was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’  So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, His disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that He has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.”

“Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. ~ Matthew 27:62-66; 28:1

Today is an in-between day. A day firmly wedged in between two very different days:

Good Friday: a day of great sorrow, fear, discouragement and darkness

Resurrection or Easter Sunday: a day of joy, fearlessness, hope and light!

A day of silence, a day of hopelessness, a day of sorrow, a day of waiting (not so patiently) and wondering what the heck is going on, and where is God and what happened to those promises of His anyway? Perhaps this is what Jesus' disciples and His very own mother were experiencing and wondering after His body was laid in the tomb, as they rested and grieved on that Sabbath Day. 

Perhaps, they felt as if they were in a tomb of their own. 

And perhaps this is what you are experiencing in your own life today, too.  Entombed, grieving, you're laying somewhere in-between hurt and healing; hope and Hell. And the silence in there can be deafening sometimes.  I know, because over the years, I've been there way too many times myself. 

But hang on!  Don't give up! Despite whatever it is you're going through, however you're feeling right now, whatever lies the enemy of your soul is bombarding you with, KNOW THIS:

There is hope, and that hope is in our Lord and Savior, our Beloved Brother and Friend, Jesus Christ, Who gave up EVERYTHING, from the moment He arrived on this earth to the moment He breathed His last breath on that Good Friday so long ago, to give you and me EVERYTHING. 

Every hope. Every help. Every healing.

EVERY blessing.  


There is a song whose lyrics begin, 'Come thou fount of every blessing.'  Who is that fount? Jesus is. Everything we need pours forth from Him.

EVERY blessing. Perhaps not the kind we envision and consider to be blessings  -- not the material or tangible kind, like brand new cars, beautiful, immense homes, gorgeous jewelry, loads of cash in the bank (and in our hands), etc.  But the kinds of blessings the Lord knows we need and is delighted to give.

• Are you weak today? He will give you His strength
• Are things chaotic? He will give you His rest and bring things to order
• Are you anxious and worried? He will give you His peace
• Are you afraid? He will give you His courage and boldness
• Are you confused, lost? He will order your steps
• Are you overwhelmed by sorrow?  He will stand with you and give you His comfort
• Are you feeling unloved? He will give you His unfailing and unconditional love
• Are you broken and feeling shattered into a million pieces? He will take those pieces in His hands and send forth His healing upon you

Let Jesus, the Christ, roll away the stone from your tomb of death; step out with Him and into His light and life. The day of resurrection. No longer the day in-between. 

Remember, I am with you always. ~ Matthew 28:20 (HCSB)

It's Friday -- But Sunday's Coming!

But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed. ~ Isaiah 53:5

I'm sitting here, looking out my window from time to time as I write this post.  The sun is shining here where I live in New Jersey; the weather is slightly cool; not much of a wind to speak of, birds are singing, there's not a cloud in the sky.  Yet I find myself slightly disappointed.


Am I nuts? Possibly. Certifiably, I'm told by some.  Am I ungrateful?  No way. It's just that the weather seems like such a paradox in regards to the day.


Today is Good Friday, perhaps the most solemn day among Christians.  I can remember from the time I was a child, and well into my, shall we say, older adult years, it always seemed that the weather on Good Friday was anything but beautiful.  There were times when it started out that way, but as it got closer to noontime, the wind would suddenly kick up, clouds would roll in, and the sky would become gray and somber.  As if God was sending us all a much needed reminder of the solemnity of this day, some 2,000 plus years ago.


The day that His One and Only Son was beaten, bruised, mocked and tormented -- for us. 

The day that Jesus was forced to carry a heavy, splintery wooden cross through the streets (the same streets where, five days earlier, He rode triumphantly upon a donkey to the joyful praises of 'Hosanna!'), and up a hill. 

The day that our Savior took the nails for us -- US!! -- and with a crown of thorns firmly thrust and implanted upon His skull, hung upon that wooden cross, between two criminals, for hours in excruciating pain.


The day that Jesus took all the sin of the whole world upon Himself -- and died so that we -- selfish, prideful, ungrateful sinners that we were and are -- could live.  Forever with Him.

I would often wonder, as a child, why in the world this day of all days was referred to as "Good Friday."  Back then, nobody could seem to tell me why.  As far as I could see, there was nothing 'good' about it.  It was such a somber day. My mother would never permit music to be played on Good Friday.  TV was definitely NOT allowed on.  I wasn't even able to go out to play with my friends between the hours of noon and three o'clock (God rest her soul -- my mother was an extremely melodramatic person, so I don't know if this was the 'norm' among our family, friends and neighbors back then, or just something she came up with).  And, at three o'clock, I would find myself seated in our darkened church for Stations of the Cross.  Jesus, the Son of God -- gentle, loving, giving Jesus, Who loved all the little children of the world, was betrayed and murdered heinously.  What was so 'good' about that, I'd think as I fidgeted in my seat between my parents.


Absolutely NOTHING.


But as I heard and learned many years later, it could only be called 'Good Friday' because of Jesus's resurrection three days later.  Jesus overcame sin and death when He stepped out of the tomb that Sunday morning -- Resurrection Sunday!  Without that Sunday, there is nothing 'good' about Good Friday.  As our pastor always says: "it's Friday....but Sunday's coming!"  Hallelujah for that!


Today, may I encourage you to take some time away from the noise and busyness of life? Perhaps find a quiet place to sit and reflect on what our Savior, Jesus Christ did for you. Yes, Jesus died for all of us, it's true.  But consider the pain and suffering, anguish and rejection He endured for YOU.  Make it personal. 


If you've never, ever seen the movie, 'The Passion of the Christ,' I highly recommend watching it if you're able sometime this weekend.  Buy it, rent it, borrow it.  I watched it again this morning.  And indeed, it IS hard to watch.  But it really brings home exactly what Jesus went through for you.  For me.  For us.  


Below is a song that I heard for the first time today, from a CD I bought some years ago, but never played.  It is hauntingly beautiful, in my honest opinion.  Take some time to listen to it and meditate on its simple, yet powerful and truthful lyrics (which I've included). 


If you've never considered what Jesus Christ has done for you, I implore you to do so TODAY.  Seek Him while He may be found.  He desires that NO ONE should perish, but that all (and yes, this means YOU) should come to repentance.  He loves you unfailingly and unconditionally.  He died for you sacrificially.  


How can you refuse Him now?

How can you refuse Him now, how can you refuse Him now?
How can you turn away from His side?
With tears in His eyes, on the cross there He died,
How can you refuse Jesus now?


There's a story old, that has often been told,
Of how our Savior died, as they nailed His hands,
He cried, "they don't understand!"
As the blood flowed from His side.


As He hung there on the tree, He prayed for you, prayed for me,
There was no one His pain to ease,
Before He died, He faintly cried,
"Father, forgive them please!"


How can you refuse Him now, how can you refuse Him now?
How can you turn away from His side?
With tears in His eyes, on the cross there He died,
How can you refuse Jesus now?

Ashes to Ashes

This coming Wednesday, February 22, will mark the beginning of the season of Lent.   On this day, Ash Wednesday, many will attend a church service where ashes, which come from burnt palms from the previous year's Palm Sunday, will be distributed.  Making a sign of the cross with the ashes on each person's forehead, the priest, pastor, elder or whomever is permitted in the particular church to do so, will repeat these words:


"Remember that you are dust and to dust you shall return." 

The meaning behind the distribution of ashes and those words is to remind us of our own mortality and our own sinfulness, while calling us to repentance.  Many people will leave the ashes on their foreheads for the entire day as a symbol of humility.  

Lent is also a season that centers around fasting, generally from a particular food, drink or even an activity, for the forty days before Easter.  Growing up in my former faith denomination, when Lent came around, we were required to fast from something.  So for me at that time, this was merely a ritual I took part in because I HAD to, it was just what you did (or else).  But author Lynn Baab, author of 'Fasting,' speaks of fasting like this:


"We remove something habitual so we can experience something new.  We long for the fullness of God's presence, so we remove something from our life for a season in order to get a glimpse of God, through prayer, in a new way."


At that time, I had no true understanding or view of Lent as being a way for me to draw closer to the heart of God, or as a way of something new about Him being revealed to me. Again, it was simply a tradition to be followed. 

For instance, with regards to Lenten fasting, I’d give up chocolate candy (my personal childhood favorite, which continues to be a guilty pleasure of mine) for those forty days, whine about it the whole time and then on Easter Sunday, I’d gorge myself on chocolate bunnies and chocolate eggs until I made myself sick. The condition of my heart, however, remained unchanged: cold, hard, shallow, dark, sinful.  Jesus just wasn’t the priority in my life that He should have been -- and longed to be.  He became merely a blip on my Sunday morning church's or Wednesday afternoon catechism class's radar screen. The beautifully, sorrowful figure of a Man that actor Jeffrey Hunter portrayed in "King of Kings."

Meanwhile, in my warped view, God was that heavenly Father figure Who was always trying to catch me in some act of disobedience and of Whom I was completely terrified, while the Holy Spirit remained this mysterious, ghostly figure to me. Casper sanctified. 

So I did my Lenten duty like the good girl that I was and checked the box "Done" forty days later. My parents were pleased. The teachers from my catechism classes were pleased. But....was the Lord pleased? I’m thinking not so much.

Yes, over the years, Lenten fasting sadly turned out being a torturous duty and drudgery for me; certainly not something I looked forward to and delighted in doing.  Also, for me, there was an underlying theme of fear running through it, especially if one had the misfortune of forgetting oneself and accidentally popped a forbidden food or drink into one's mouth in the midst of the Lenten season.

True confession time here, dear readers.  Once, during Lent, when I was twelve years old, I went to lunch with my older cousin, Charlene.  She ordered a few slices of pizza for herself, while I, not in the mood for pizza,  decided to order an Italian hot dog (and for those of you not from NJ and unfamiliar with this delicacy, it is a hot dog on an Italian roll, smothered with peppers, onions and potatoes). 

It wasn't until after I'd inhaled every last tasty morsel and we were both standing in the parking lot, ready to leave, that the harsh and frightening realization set in:

I had just eaten meat on a Friday during Lent!  

And -- not just ANY  Friday.

But Good Friday!!!!!! 

Needless to say, I became hysterical.  I waited for the skies above to immediately cloud over, for thunder to roar loudly and for God Himself to appear to personally hurl down a hand picked lightening bolt straight at my sinful, preteen head.  Or for the ground to dramatically split open around me, swallow me up and send me hurtling down the fast lane on the Highway to Hell, where I was surely headed after this major Lenten gaffe. 

I tearfully begged my cousin NOT to tell my parents what I had done, how low I had fallen, as I imagined them possibly disowning me or my getting to be the first in my family to be excommunicated from our church.  I feared I'd done what a friend of mine's family (who was rumored to have Mafia ties) used to laughingly warn him not to do: 'Don't disgrace the family.'

I can laugh about this whole scenario now, but really, it's kind of pathetic, because truly, this is NOT how our Father, Who loves us so much, wants us to perceive Him and react towards Him (like some angry, Holy Cop wielding His Divine taser gun), and it's most certainly NOT the way He wants us to view the season of Lent and our place within it.

So, now that I'm older and (hopefully) wiser, what does the season of Lent mean for me? What do I need to take away from or to add to my life, allowing me to focus more intently and joyfully and seriously on my Jesus? How can I prepare myself to hear His voice more clearly, to better understand and to accept anew His messages to me of His unconditional, unfailing love, His amazing grace, His perfect peace, His new-every-day mercies, His complete forgiveness?

Tomorrow, I look forward to being able to share some thoughts and insights with you all about this.  I hope you'll stop by.