Tag: christian faith

Resurrection of the Lord (John 20:1-18)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Mosaic of Mary Magdalene in the garden with Jesus, Resurrection Chapel, Washington National Cathedral, Washington D.C.

Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 

Then Peter and the other disciple set out and went toward the tomb. The two were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent down to look in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go in. 

Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the cloth that had been on Jesus’s head, not lying with the linen wrappings but rolled up in a place by itself. 

Then the other disciple, who reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed, for as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned to their homes.

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb, and she saw two angels in white sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 

When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 

Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not touch me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” 

Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and she told them that he had said these things to her. (New Revised Standard Version)

Do Not Hold On To Me, by He Qi

Although Peter and John have a role in this story about Christ’s resurrection, the main character is Mary Magdalene. This is significant and symbolic for several reasons:

  1. It was Mary who experienced one of the most profound and deep changes of life due to the ministry of Jesus. Mary had been an immoral woman and spiritually enslaved to the machinations of seven demons. Jesus thoroughly delivered her from her personal hell.
  2. Mary was forever thankful to Jesus for changing her life, and so, she followed Christ and supported him in any way she could. 
  3. Mary was at the foot of the cross when Jesus died. While other disciples were keeping their distance out of fear, Mary was bold in standing with the other women for all to see that they were completely devoted to Jesus. Mary never turned her back on Jesus. 
  4. It was Mary who was there on the Sunday morning of Christ’s resurrection. Whereas the other followers were nowhere to be found, Mary came to the grave, still with a heart given to Jesus and grieving over his death. 

Because Mary had been given a new chance at life, she was deeply thankful and everything she had belonged to Jesus. Mary Magdalene was forgiven much, and, so she loved much. Here she is, after her Lord’s crucifixion, death, and burial, at the grave of Jesus. 

Mary came to the tomb on Easter Sunday still living in a Good Friday world – grieving, sad, and discouraged.  She soon discovered, however, that Christ is risen!

In the midst of your days of disappointment, loss, or sadness, how have you been surprised by joy and the presence of the risen Christ?  How has your grief been turned to gratitude?  Have you seen the risen Lord?  

Let Mary Magdalene’s experience be of encouragement to you. Mary was given new life and was transformed by the Lord. Yet, on Easter Sunday she did not immediately get what the heck was going on. Jesus rising from death was not anywhere on her radar. 

The empty tomb and the angels did not immediately lead her to faith – not until she saw Jesus, and even then, she did not recognize him. Only when Jesus called her name did Mary recognize him and respond, believing it was her Lord. 

And Jesus is still calling out names. He is calling your name. Jesus had said to his disciples that the sheep listen to the shepherd’s voice; he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out (John 10:3-4). One little word can change our lives forever: our name.

Easter opens a whole new world for us, as it did for Mary – a future of announcing good news and proclaiming resurrection.

There is a simple reason why the grave clothes were left in the tomb just lying there – they were not needed anymore! We no longer need the grave clothes of discouragement, defeat, and despair. We no longer need to weep and wonder because Christ is risen! Jesus Christ has called us by name, and we hear his voice.

The twentieth century theologian, Karl Barth, said that what brings people to worship God – not just on Easter, but any day – is an unspoken question clinging to our minds and hearts: Is it true? Is it true that God lives? Is it true that Jesus is alive? Could it be true that I can live a new life in Christ? Is it true that I can rebuild my life?  Is it all true? 

Mary Magdalene approached the tomb and found that it was true: Christ Jesus is risen from death!

Today, all over the world, followers of Jesus are testifying that this day and it’s deep implications for life is real: Christ is risen, and there is new life in Jesus. Believers across the globe are worshiping the risen Lord because they declare along with us, “I have seen the Lord!”

God has always been in the business of changing lives. British author A. N. Wilson, used to be known for his scathing attacks on Christianity and proclaimed the death of God. Yet he celebrated Easter in 2009 at a church with a group of other church members, proclaiming that the story of Jesus is the only one that makes sense out of life and its challenges. Wilson said:

“My own return to faith has surprised none more than myself…. My belief has come about in large measure because of the lives and examples of people I have known—not the famous, not saints, but friends and relations who have lived, and faced death, in light of the resurrection story, and in the quiet acceptance that they have a future after they die.”

The moment Jesus calls a person’s name, the power of the resurrection is enabled—the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. 

Come now, see what you consider as immovable slabs of stone in your life—bitterness, insecurity, fear, self-doubt or cynicism. Those immense rocks can be rolled away. To know Jesus is to know the power of the resurrection. 

We don’t need to merely hear testimonies of changed lives like Mary Magdalene’s; we can experience new life ourselves.

There is one word, one name, which has forever changed the world: “Jesus.”  And Jesus wants to change the world by uttering one simple word, one name, your name, so that you can exclaim with great joy, “I have seen the Lord!”

Loving Lord Jesus, you are our freedom. When I was lost in a dark hole of guilt and shame, you liberated me. You lifted me from sin, death, and hell.

Almighty God, hear today our prayers for the salvation of the world. Grant mercy to everyone who has turned away from you. Open their hearts and minds with your gracious light. Gather your children from the east and the west, from the north and the south. 

O God, bring people everywhere out of the darkness of disease and death, and into your marvelous light. Hear our prayers and answer us. May the benevolent way of Jesus be the hope of the world; among all nations may your salvation come.

Gracious Lord, our neighbors, relatives, friends, and co-workers, along with the sick, the poor, the prisoner, the widow, and all creation are in your hands. Therefore, fill us all with your love and your mighty resurrection power! And, grant us peace through Jesus Christ, our risen Lord. Amen.

Dealing with Disrespect and Disbelief (John 12:34-50)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Christ and the Pharisees, by Anthony van Dyck (1599–1641)

The crowd spoke up, “We have heard from the Law that the Messiah will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”

Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.

Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet:

“Lord, who has believed our message
    and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:

“He has blinded their eyes
    and hardened their hearts,
so they can neither see with their eyes,
    nor understand with their hearts,
    nor turn—and I would heal them.”

Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him.

Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not openly acknowledge their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved human praise more than praise from God.

Then Jesus cried out, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me. I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.

“If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day. For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.” (New International Version)

It seems that nowadays, the more one rises in popularity and garners national attention, the more some folks want to disrespect them.

Out of the many examples of this phenomenon, consider the case of a young woman from my home state of Iowa. Sportswriter Mike DeCourcy recently mused on why the University of Iowa’s Caitlin Clark has discovered that not all the greats of women’s college basketball welcome her success.

Several women – who ought to know better – have cynically reacted to Clark’s legitimate college greatness with a sort of “Why her, why not us?” attitude. They’ve indulged in misinformation and cheap shots that clearly say more about them than Caitlin Clark.

This is especially curious, since Clark has elevated women’s basketball to a level of attention that her now detractors and others have envied for decades. DeCourcy writes, “None of this [delegitimizing Clark] is a good look for NCAA women’s basketball, and neither does it appear to be the most prudent way to continue growing the sport.”

The same type of thing could be said about Jesus and the movement he was sparking during his ministry on this earth. Many of the religious leaders refused to acknowledge his greatness, nor believe in the words he was saying. Instead, they sought to knock down Jesus and the good work he was doing.

It seems the religious leaders wanted the praise and attention Jesus was getting. Even many who believed in what was happening, kept their mouths shut and let the misinformation spread, because they, too, loved the praise of others instead of praise from God.

Playing with the game of darkness, nobody wins. People end up only being a mere shadow of the person they could be. Trying to disrespect others in order to shine the light on yourself is a convoluted and misguided way of handling anyone or any situation.

Carl Jung (1875-1961) described this hidden shadow self as an unconscious aspect of the human personality. In other words, the shadow results from the conscious self being unaware or unconscious concerning areas of its own personality. Without the light of conscious awareness, the shadow self runs amok within the psyche of a person and far too often calls the shots in speaking and behavior.

“Everyone carries a shadow,” Jung wrote, “and the less it is embodied in the individual’s conscious life, the blacker and denser it is.” (Psychology and Religion, 1938)

According to Jung, the shadow side of a person is prone to psychological projection, in which a perceived personal inferiority is recognized as a perceived moral deficiency in someone else. If those projections remain hidden, they eventually come out sideways by harming others because there is a dark illusion, even delusion, that others are stealing what is rightfully mine.

Hence, the sinless Jesus is denigrated, disrespected, and disbelieved. And it is what led to him being tortured and killed by those who thought they are doing a good thing.

It’s easy to be hard on the religious rulers in the New Testament, but this is the Christian season of Lent, and so, we must shine the light of Scripture upon ourselves. This is the time to deliberately gain awareness of our own shadow selves.

Perhaps the burning question for all believers at this time of year is: Do I seek the presence of God more than the presence of anything or anyone else?  

Maybe you live in fear at work and are more concerned about the presence of people around you than the presence of God, so you keep quiet when you ought to speak up or turn a blind eye to the shadows of an organization. Or worse, you talk bad about someone good, just because they’re getting the attention you feel you deserve.

In these remaining days of Lent, as we journey with Jesus to Jerusalem, let’s let the light of his gracious ministry dispel the dark shadows of our hearts and make us aware of who we are, and what we need to change.

If we can learn to appreciate the God-given and hard-earned talents of a young woman playing basketball, then perhaps we can then also learn to glory in One who is greater than any sports celebrity, and celebrate the great work done on this earth for us and for our salvation.

Good and gracious God, we are far too often influenced by what others think of us. We sometimes pretend to be either richer or smarter or nicer than we really are. So, prevent us from trying to divert attention from others to ourselves. Don’t let us gloat over praise received from others, nor be discouraged by criticism from another. Show us, instead, how to be humble of heart, like the Lord Jesus, in whose name we pray. Amen.

Spiritual Confidence (2 Corinthians 3:4-11)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment

Such confidence we have through Christ before God. Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant—not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, transitory though it was, will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? If the ministry that brought condemnation was glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness! For what was glorious has no glory now in comparison with the surpassing glory. And if what was transitory came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts! (New International Version)

The Christian religious tradition holds to the great Three-in-One of God – God is indivisibly One, and at the same time, a Trinity of Father, Son, and Spirit. Christians typically have no problem expressing their prayers and devotion to the Persons of the Father and the Son, as well as connecting their ministry efforts to them. 

However, when it comes to the Spirit, this Person of the Holy Trinity is often referred to as an “it” or a “force.” Yet, the Holy Spirit is as much God and a Person as the heavenly Father and the Savior, Jesus Christ. The Spirit is the One who provides the guidance and energy for Christian ministry – and not the Law.

We very much need the Holy Spirit of God. Without the Spirit’s help, Jesus is merely looked at as one person out of thousands of individuals crucified in history; and only an example of one who was martyred for his faith. But Jesus is infinitely more than that. 

Christ is the Son of God, the Savior of the world. Through Jesus Christ’s life, death, resurrection and ascension, people can be redeemed from empty lives, saved from destructive life-patterns, and given the kind of security and purpose in life that God intended from the beginning for people to possess. 

And the Spirit of God is the One that takes these redemptive events of Jesus and applies them to our lives. Apart from the Holy Spirit, we are lost, because we are unable to see the genuine spiritual truth about the cross of Jesus Christ unless God the Holy Spirit breaks into our lives and does an intervention – showing us our denial about how we are really doing and our delusions about who we really are (1 Corinthians 2:1-16).

This, then, is the basis for spiritual confidence. And this sort of confidence does not and cannot come from obedience to the Law.

Admitting that we absolutely need the Holy Spirit of God means that the power of Christianity does not reside with me or you; power for the Christian life rests upon Jesus Christ and him crucified, with the Spirit witnessing to us of this truth. 

In other words, we are largely powerless. 

Now, I realize this is not a popular message, especially in Western society. That sounds ridiculous to a particularly can-do kind of people, like most Americans. We believe we’ve done fairly well on our own, thank you very much. A couple of cars, a house, a job, and a family. I work hard. I’ve earned my stuff and my accomplishments. 

But the thing is, any worldly success may lead us to the delusion that we have the power to do what we want – as if I am the sole captain of my soul. I did it. And I did it my way.

“Oh, sure,” many a person may reason, “we have problems just like everybody else. After all, I can’t control everything!” Yet, we are not powerless just because we have difficult circumstances and a few problem people in our lives. “God will step in a take-over where I leave off, right?” Wrong. 

It’s all wrong, because it’s based in one’s effort to obey a personal creed, the rules of the game, or even the Law and the Ten Commandments. But if we could really do it on our own, there’s no need for any of this spiritual stuff.

In truth, apart from the Holy Spirit of God, we are unable to be Christians and live the Christian life. If we think we manage our lives just fine, with a bit of help from God, then we are likely in denial. We are probably placing ourselves at the center of the world; and believe we should be able to deal with whatever comes in life. 

Whenever the consistent response to adverse situations, or the realization that we are not handling something well, is to try and fix ourselves, then we are surely living in the delusion that we hold the power to change – independently without anyone or anything helping us.

If our first reaction to adversity or problems is:

  • Searching Google for more knowledge
  • Dealing privately with personal issues
  • Expecting that willpower should be enough

Then, we are feeding the delusion that we do not really need the Holy Spirit of God; we are actually believing that we need more effort, or information, in order to find the power to overcome whatever is in my life that needs overcoming.   

Unfortunately, it typically takes a tragedy or crisis to break our delusions of power. Let me ask: How bad must we hurt before we admit that we are not managing our lives well at all, and that the real power to change resides with the Holy Spirit?

Our spiritual power and confidence resides in the cross of Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit testifying to us of God’s great grace. 

The Apostle Paul believed this with all his heart. Although he was a very intelligent and learned person, he did not rely on his abilities, but on God’s. 

The cross of Jesus is not just an historical event, but an ongoing reality for us to experience victory over all the brokenness of this world, and all the mess we have made of things by putting ourselves at the center of the universe. 

We need the Holy Spirit of God to intervene and apply Christ’s finished work to us. 

None of this means that the Law, or that you, are bad. Both you and the Law are good. It’s just that we, by ourselves, and the Law by itself, are inadequate to save, deliver, and overcome. For that, we need God’s Spirit, and to tap into the spiritual reality that exists.

If the Ten Commandments were introduced with glory, and we ourselves were created with glory, then how much more glory and life is there through an intimate relation with the Spirit?

O God of peace, who has taught us that in returning and rest we shall be saved, in quietness and confidence shall be our strength: By the might of your Spirit lift us, we pray, to your presence, where we may be still and know that you are God; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Whoever Believes (John 3:14-21)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
Interview Between Jesus and Nicodemus, by James Tissot (1836-1902)

Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.”

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 

This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. (New International Version)

For many, the truth about God’s purposes in Christ is confusing, even troubling. It was for Nicodemus. And even though there many today who simplify the exchange between Jesus and Nicodemus with a single Bible verse of John 3:16, taking a good look at the Gospel of John puts most of us with Nicodemus.

Nicodemus, a learned Jewish scholar, a Pharisee, found Christ’s words both confusing and troubling because it required him to let go of everything he understood – to let go and become like a newborn baby, receiving and discovering the world on new and different terms. In other words, Nicodemus had to unlearn some things before he could learn truth.

There are some things that are hard to grasp, not because they are so intellectually challenging, but because those things ask a lot of us, demanding our very lives. And so, we don’t so much want to understand; it would require a radical change.

But why would anyone not want to understand the good news that God so loved the world that gave the Son so that we may believe and have eternal life? Because we would then have to contend with the ways Jesus describes himself.

Jesus likened himself to the serpent that Moses lifted up in the desert (John 3:14; Numbers 21:4-9). In that story of Moses in the Old Testament book of Numbers, God sent poisonous snakes into the Israelite camp as punishment for the people’s incessant complaining against God.

Then, when the people repented, God told Moses to make a bronze snake, put it on a pole, and lift it up, so that anyone bitten by one of the poisonous snakes could see it and live. Jesus likened himself to the story. In the same way the bronze snake was lifted on a pole, Jesus explained that so must the Son of Man be lifted up, or exalted high above the people.

Visit of Nicodemus to Christ, by John La Farge, 1880

In the typical language of the Apostle John, using double meanings to a single concept, he meant to communicate that Jesus would be physically lifted onto the cross, above the people; and also that Jesus would be lifted up by God as the exalted One above all creation. (John 8:28; 12:32)

Just as the ancient Israelites were facing death because of their sin, and deliverance because of God’s action through Moses, so people everywhere in every age face the consequences of their sinful complaining; yet through the action of God through Christ’s crucifixion, resurrection and ascension, they can look up to the exalted and glorified Lord and receive deliverance from sin, death, and hell.

There is more to looking up at the lifted One than a mere incline of the head and eyes. In modern terms, we would refer to the sheer action of looking as an intellectual assent to faith. The Apostle John, however, means to have us believe, not simply acknowledge.

Jesus did not tell Nicodemus to simply acknowledge him as Savior, to accept him into the heart, and so, be saved. No, this was an encounter that left an intelligent man and an accomplished scholar scratching his head in bewilderment as he went back out into the darkness.

Today’s Gospel lesson is a story about how any one of us might reject the light offered to us because of the way it exposes what is dark within us. Therefore, to believe requires ultimate trust in another. It isn’t to acknowledge that Jesus was real and had an actual ministry on earth; it’s more than believing something happened in history in the ancient world of the first century.

To believe is to let our own lives be transformed by the Jesus we encounter in this story. And here is what that means:

  1. Realizing and becoming aware of the ways we are complicit in and benefit from having our loyalties elsewhere, other than Jesus. To believe demands us answering the question: Whom shall you serve?
  2. Placing our ultimate trust, allegiance, and loyalty in Jesus Christ. To believe begs the question: To whom will you commit all that you have, and all that you are?
  3. Forsaking all other competing loyalties and “gods,” including both secular and religious deities. To believe means a single-minded devotion, which asks of us all: To whom and to what will you forsake in order to embrace Jesus?
  4. Confronting inconvenient truths of our own personal values which clash with Christ’s ideals of righteousness. To believe presses us to answer the question: To whom and for what are you truly living for?
  5. Willing to die to self and to anything that would hinder knowing Jesus and him crucified, risen, ascended, and coming again. To believe forces us to ask ourselves: Am I willing to die for Jesus?

While there is nothing in this world worth killing for, there are things worth dying for. The lifting up of Jesus lets us know that the true life God has promised us is not the life that we can secure for ourselves through self-interest, caution, and theological debate.

Most merciful God,
we confess that we have sinned against you
in thought, word, and deed,
by what we have done,
and by what we have left undone.
We have not loved you with our whole heart;
we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.
We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.
For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,
have mercy on us and forgive us;
that we may delight in your will,
and walk in your ways,
to the glory of your Name. Amen.