Tag: jesus

Mark 9:2-8 – Shining the Light on Our Fears

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

20160719_161140

“Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and John with him. They went up on a high mountain, where they could be alone. There in front of the disciples, Jesus was completely changed.  And his clothes became much whiter than any bleach on earth could make them.  Then Moses and Elijah were there talking with Jesus.

Peter said to Jesus, ‘Teacher, it is good for us to be here! Let us make three shelters, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’  But Peter and the others were terribly frightened, and he did not know what he was talking about.

The shadow of a cloud passed over and covered them. From the cloud a voice said, ‘This is my Son, and I love him. Listen to what he says!’  At once the disciples looked around, but they saw only Jesus.” (Contemporary English Version)

The transfiguration of Christ was a glorious experience on the mountain.  But we are told that Peter, James, and John, the inner circle of Christ’s disciples, were terribly frightened.  Peter, always the extrovert of the group, nervously babbled-on without making any sense because he was so nervous and afraid.

Have you ever wondered why Jesus would take three of his disciples with him to experience such an incredible vision?  Why did Jesus show these men something so otherworldly that they nearly soiled themselves?  I will tell you why I think Jesus put his close disciples in such a position as this:

Because the way to see Jesus as our only hope, we must face our fears, insecurities, and anxieties squarely without hiding.

Jesus did not relieve their anxiety.  He let them feel the full impact of their fear.  His glory shone show brightly that they couldn’t hide from what was happening to them and what was in their minds and hearts.  Only through shining the light on the shadowy place of our fears and insecurities will we accept that we need a savior.  That savior is Jesus, the light of the world, the Lord over fear, anxiety, and discouragement.

The invitation which Jesus extends to us is to move further into our fears so that we can see how desperately we need him.  Nobody seeks a savior when they don’t believe they need deliverance from anything.  But the one who sees what is truly inside of them – the fear of connection; the scary prospect of confrontation; the anxiety of what will happen; or, the discouragement of failure – is the one who is then able to hear the voice of God and listen to Jesus give the answer to our most pressing life issues.

Jesus Christ wants to change us from the inside-out.  He helps us by showing us not to avoid the fears which cause us to be beside ourselves, but through confronting those anxieties with him.  You and I are never alone; we always have the glorious presence of Christ with us as we walk through dark valleys and ascend high mountains.  It is the wonderful existence and omnipresence of God in Christ through the Spirit which makes all the difference.  We were created for connection with the divine, not for separation and loneliness in our fears.

Glorious Christ, you love me with a grace and mercy which always has my best interests in mind.  Help me through my most pressing fears and failures so that I might see your glory, hear your voice, and know your constant presence.  Amen.

Mark 1:9-15 – Thrown into the Desert

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

 

About that time, Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and John baptized him in the Jordan River.  While he was coming up out of the water, Jesus saw heaven splitting open and the Spirit, like a dove, coming down on him.  And there was a voice from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I dearly love; in you I find happiness.”
At once the Spirit forced Jesus out into the wilderness.  He was in the wilderness for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among the wild animals, and the angels took care of him. (CEB)
 
            We stand at the beginning of the Lenten season, the six-week 40-day period leading to Easter and the celebration of Christ’s resurrection.  But now is a time of preparation.  Just as Jesus identified with his people Israel in their desert sojourn for 40 years, so Jesus wandered the desert for 40 days.  Our Lord’s entire earthly life was devoted to identifying with lost humanity and leading them to the Promised Land of forgiveness, peace, and joy.
            Lent is our 40-day journey in the desert, identifying with Jesus.  Perhaps you think such a season is optional, even unnecessary.  It’s likely that God will put you in the desert whether you recognize the season or not.
            In a wondrous event, Jesus is baptized and comes out of the water with some of the most gracious words you’ll find in Scripture: “You are my Son, whom I dearly love; in you I find happiness.”  In this story of identification with God it’s not a stretch, but intended, that we see our own identification with Christ.  Jesus so closely links himself with God’s people that when God expresses his love to the Son, he is saying words of grace to us, as well.
            If the story ended there, it would stand as a glorious account.  But a hard transition follows, and the language indicates a swift turn of circumstance.  Immediately after the baptism and the loving words, Jesus is “forced” into the wilderness by the Spirit.  The word quite literally means “to hurl.”  We are given the picture that as soon as Jesus is up out of the water, the Spirit picks him up and hurls him into the desert.
            The desert is a place of solitude where the greatest temptations occur: coming face to face with oneself.  If Jesus needed the desert experience, how much more do we?  How much more do we need to observe and practice Lent and submit to the 40-day experience of the desert?
            God desires to meet with us in the secluded backside of the desert.  He has some things to teach us.  He has a work of preparation to do in our lives.  The way in which we respond to the desert we are aggressively thrown into by the Spirit will set the course of our lives.
O Lord, you have demonstrated and shown love to your Son and to your people.  You have taught us that without love whatever we do is worth nothing.  Send your Holy Spirit to hurl us into the desert time of teaching so that love might be poured into our hearts.  Grant this humble request for the sake of the Son whom you love, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.  Amen.

 

Job 19:23-27 – Christ’s Journey is My Journey

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
“I know that my Redeemer lives,
and that at the last he will stand upon the earth.” (New Revised Standard Version)
“I know that my redeemer is alive
and afterward he’ll rise upon the dust.” (Common English Bible)
 
            I’m going to let you in on the reasons why I observe the Church Calendar each year with it’s observance of the major Christian seasons.  First, it is a way for me to know Jesus better.  The Year is thoroughly centered around the person and work of Christ.  Much like the seasons of Spring and Fall, I look forward to entering a new season and discovering the beauty of my Lord in a fresh way.
            Second, observing the Christian Year reorients my use of time.  Rather than think of time in secular terms or as my time, I submit to time that is dictated by attention to Jesus.  Finally, moving through the Year is a journey with Jesus – his journey is my journey.
            All of Christ’s life was an act of redemption for us.  His redemptive events of incarnation, holy life and teaching, death, resurrection, ascension, and glorification demonstrate that he is my Redeemer.  What’s more, I enjoy a union with Jesus, an intimate connection which is so close that his journey is my journey.  Christ identified with me in his life on this earth.  He took on the death which should have been mine.  He rose from death, ascended to heaven, and was glorified as King of all.
            I know that my Redeemer lives because I have walked with him.  I, too, just like my Savior, will someday rise from death, ascend with him, and reign with him forever.  He has made it all possible, and that is why I enter the Christian Year time and time again with expectancy, faith, and hope.
            When the sign of the cross is made on the forehead with ash on Ash Wednesday (the beginning of Lent) this is more than a reminder of my mortality.  It is full of meaning and imbibed with hope.  Yes, I am dust and I will return to dust.  But that dust will rise again and live with Jesus forever.

 

Merciful Lord and Savior, you lived the life on this earth which I could not in my weakness and shortcoming.  Through the gift of faith, I have an inheritance and a hope that someday I will be with you forever.  Thank you for your abundant grace and the constant reminders throughout the Year that you are with me – your journey is my journey.  Amen.

Luke 19:41-44 – The Lament of Jesus

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year BLeave a comment
“As Jesus came to the city and observed it, he wept over it.  He said, ‘If only you knew on this of all days the things that lead to peace. But now they are hidden from your eyes.  The time will come when your enemies will build fortifications around you, encircle you, and attack you from all sides.  They will crush you completely, you and the people within you. They won’t leave one stone on top of another within you, because you didn’t recognize the time of your gracious visit from God.’” (CEB)
 
            There are Christians who believe in as much withdrawal from the world with its earthly political and cultural realm as is humanly possible this side of heaven.  There are yet others who believe in as much accommodation as possible to the world in it’s structures and society.  And, there are others who believe that the two, the world and the church, are simply two distinct realms which Christians simply move back and forth within, like taking one hat off and doffing another.
            Let’s leave that all aside for a moment and just observe the pathos of Jesus.  He came to the city of Jerusalem, a city which was both very religious and very worldly.  Jesus stood and looked affectionately and longingly at the city… and he wept.  This was not a quiet shedding of a tear.  No, the word “wept” means that Jesus openly cried aloud over the city.  Think of the kind of crying which takes place when a person is in the throes of grief.  These were great heaves of loud weeping.
            The reason Jesus was lamenting with so much feeling was that the city did not recognize they had a gracious visit from God.  The Lord looked at the city and saw all the future disaster which was coming.  He knew that it could be different, and he was emotionally undone by the city’s inability to see God right in front of their own face.
            Now let’s return to our view of the world and our involvement in it.  Taking some cues from our Lord Jesus, the first and foremost posture we are to take toward the worldly city is not separation, accommodation, or dual citizenship – it is, rather, to grieve and lament.
            The longing Jesus had in his heart was to see the city of Jerusalem annexed and incorporated into the kingdom of God.  The way of peace, of shalom on this earth, is to bring all things and all the world under the benevolent reign of God.  It is as if there are Twin Cities, like Minneapolis and St. Paul, who exist side-by-side but have different municipal structures.  The kingdom of this world and the kingdom of God exist next to each other.  Jesus wanted to bring the earthly kingdom into the peaceful and gracious realm of God’s kingdom.  But the people would have nothing to do with it.  Both the religious and the secular persons of the city wanted their own municipal conceptions of how things should go – and they both rejected the Christ who could bring them all true harmony.
            We are about to enter the season of Lent.  It is a time set aside in the Christian Year for repentance and preparation to receive King Jesus as our rightful benevolent ruler.  Let us lament the world full of both religious and secular people who do not recognize the time of God’s visitation.  Let it be a time to journey with Jesus and follow him in his Passion for this world and all its inhabitants.

 

Blessed Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the holy Trinity whom I serve – the world and even sometimes the church is estranged from grace – they have not recognized your gracious coming and presence.  I lament such a state of things, and ask that you, blessed Spirit may draw all people to the Savior, Jesus Christ, in whose name I pray.  Amen.