See my pain?

Something that happened at work yesterday helped me realize something. I've been somber and more melancholy than usual, in part due to anxiety and in part due to internal struggles I think. Anyway, at work I had to step back from what I was doing because I didn't know exactly how to do it, and Darren at work was stepping in to finish it. I was probably a bit annoyed when I walked away but my dad saw me and took me outside and went on about how I disrespected Darren in the way I walked off and acted. Perhaps that's true, and if so then I'm sorry. But i wanted to scream at him and say "LOOK AT ME! Look at me and see that somethings wrong! I'm not good, I'm not OK, I'm depressed all the time!" I noticed that people don't see much beyond that they want to see a lot. People don't come up and ask whats wrong, perhaps because I've grown adept at hiding it. I'm not totally surprised with my dad, since I don't think he's very into his faith right now, and that means that you're not mature and in tune with the spirit if you're not walking with Him, but it served as a lesson to me, since I fail at this as well: we need to look deep into each other and when there's a problem dig it up and deal with it. We need to care for each other and bare each other's burdens. You can see pain in people's eyes, and you can see it in their actions. True, I am very select in who I will open up too...not many people and even then it's hard, but it's the carelessness that hurts the most, when people see you and don't do anything, even worse when they won't see it in you. I pray we grow more sensitive.

The Missionary Heart

John Piper just had a blog on Karen Watson's epitaph which reflect the missionary's heart. It was very moving, and I pray we all grow close to having this type of devotion and passion.

Ephesians: To Live By

You will not go wrong if you plunge into Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. Master it. Be mastered by it. Work Ephesians into your thinking, your living, your prayers, and your conversation. The Bible is vast and deep, and human life is diverse and perplexing. But in a pinch you could do all counseling from Ephesians. It’s all there: the big picture that organizes a myriad of details.

David Powlison from the book Seeing with New Eyes: Counseling and the Human Condition Through the Lens of Scripture. Taken from the blog about Powlison warning against the dangers of extreme introspection. A good read.

New creation?

What does it mean to follow Jesus? I don't want cookie cutter answers, but really...why did he say to count the cost. We're called to "pick up our cross daily", and to be willing to forsake everything, family, friends, belongings, and even our own lives. But is this type of faith practical? Does God have a place in our every day lives? To what extent are we new creations? We live as though Christ is the icing on the cake, he makes everything good but he isn't relevant to much of our lives. Faith is not something we go to when things get hard, and Christ isn't a person who only makes us good people. Faith is something that should be as visibly necessary to us as oxygen, and Christ should be someone who radically transform our thought and every aspect of our life. The way we approach relationships, business, politics, our entire worldview and everything that motivates us should be permeated with Christ! If you can make any decision without considering Christ then he is not you're life yet. There should be nothing that Christ does not influence about us, but yet Christ has a small corner of our life. He may be useful in morals and ethics, but not much more in our practical lives...how is this picking up our cross, how is this forsaking all, how is this a new creation?

Maybe I'll have more developed thoughts later.

Schaeffer on True Spirituality

1. The true Christian life, true spirituality, does not just mean that we have been born again. It must begin here, but it means much more than that. It does not mean only that we are going to in heaven. It does mean that, but it means much more than that. The true Christian life, true spirituality in the present life, means more than being justified and knowing that I am going to heaven.

2. It is not just a desire to get rid of taboos in order to live an easier and looser life. Our desire must be for a deeper life. And when I begin to think of this, the Bible presents to me the whole of the Ten Commandments and the Law of Love.

3. True spirituality, the true Christian life, is not just outward, but it is inward -- it is not to covet against God and men.

4. But it is even more than this: it is positive -- positive in inward reality, and then positive in outward results. The inward thing is to be positive and not just negative, and then sweeping out of the inward positive reality, there is to be a positive manifestation externally. It is not just that we are dead to certain things, but we are to love God, we are to be alive to him, we are to be in communion with him, in this present moment of history. And we are to love men, to be alive to men as men, and to be in communication on a true personal level with men, in this present moment of history.

When I speak of the Christian life, or freedom from the bonds of sin, or of true spirituality, the four points listed above are what the Bible says we should mean, and anything less than this is trifling with God -- trifling with him who created the world, and trifling also with him who died on the cross. This is what we are to have in mind when we begin such a study; otherwise, there is no use even to talk about experiential freedom from the bonds of sin or about an experiential reality of the Christian life, or true spirituality. If this is not in our minds, at least in some poor comprehension and at least in some poor aspiration, we might as well stop. Anything else is trifling with God, and because it is trifling with God, it is sin.

Schaeffer is incredible! Such a mind, such a heart...

Giving needs to increase...

I was thinking about how many churches around are almost weekly bringing up and having someone discuss giving and how the church needs support. Week after week hearing the same thing, it begins to become a broken record that skips over the same part over and over again. I was thinking that this cannot be a healthy sign. This got brought to the forefront of my mind tonight because I recall my friends' church in Ontario, and out of all the times I have had the pleasure to attend, I don't ever remember hearing anything regarding money. There was a small notifier in the bulletin as to how much the last weeks offering was, but it didn't even have a budget given. I cant recall if the bulletin is consistently like that, because I only noticed it on my last visit, but something else struck me. They don't even to my knowledge pass around an offering plate. It's very weird, and refreshing in many ways, to see a church that doesn't have to constantly be reminding its congregation to give. The fact that they have no offering, and there is no expected giving listed in addition to the fact that it is not mentioned, and yet the church survives and the funds are met as they are needed is so amazing to me. Examples like this give me a glimpse of what a healthy church looks like. When you are leading the flock as you ought, the flock will grow and become mature believers, and as they mature they grow closer to God and giving and taking care of one another become natural to them. Isn't this the way we ought to be? You cant make giving and charity natural when you keep begging for money. It is something that is the product of a healthy, mature, biblically based church. Thank God they exist, and God willing may there be more and more of such churches. Christians who believe their Lord when he says that He will provide, and who obey when He urges them towards giving and charity. Praise God!

Justified in Christ!

Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. - 1 Cor 6.9-11

This is amazing, and humanity is found guilty of the condemning list given. Praise God that the list ends with hope! We, as children of God, though we deserve hell for we have sinned, we are washed and justified in the name of Jesus Christ by the blood he spilt on the cross! Let us bend our knee and praise our King!

I hope to have something substantial posted tomorrow, be blessed!

Schaeffer and joy

I found this to be a sobering truth as I read the first chapter of Francis Schaeffer's book Pollution & The Death Of Man.

Near the end of his life, Darwin acknowledged several times in his writings that two things had become dull to him as he got older. The first was his joy in the arts; and the second, his joy in nature. This is very intriguing. Darwin offered his proposition that nature, including man, is based only on the impersonal plus time plus chance, and he had to acknowledge at the end of his life that it had had these adverse effects on him. I believe that what we are seeing today is the same loss of joy in our culture as Darwin personally experienced: first of all in the area of arts, then in the area of nature. The distressing this about this is that orthodox Christians often have had no better sense about these things than unbelievers. The death of "joy" in nature is leading to the death of nature itself.

I think it is true that Christians have a much more careless attitude about nature. People can enjoy nature as they pass, but they can just as easily turn a blind eye as we ravage earth and destroy nature. To make a difference will require world-wide reform, but all reforms have to start with the individual before they can get bigger, let us start to enjoy God's creation. Conservation and protection are how we bring glory to God through nature, not pollution and disruption. Enjoy nature, nature itself points the believer to God.

Christianity under internal attack...again

I read a few articles on Al Mohler's blog that were fairly sobering. The doctrines surrounding the Penal Substitution of Christ (wrath absorbing on our behalf) were attacked by Rev. Jeffrey John of the Church of England. You can read Mohler's article here (offers additional links for further reading on the matter), but I was horrified to see someone say that Christ's wrath absorbing, propitiatory death as "repulsive" and "insane". I wish I could say that this was a heresy that didn't influence the church much, but I can't say that seeing as how other church leaders have affirmed his position. This teaching of "God is love" is a perversion and a tragedy to any biblical theology, since it undermines the whole of scripture and ignores almost every place Paul addresses the cross, and any place where God demands justice and punishment for sin. Let us think long and hard about the true meaning of the cross, and let us rise up to defend against such horrible perversions. For reading on defending the doctrines of the Penal Substitution in regards to the death of Christ you can read Mark Dever's article he wrote in a past issue of Christianity Today here.

Scripture reference

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died--more than that, who was raised--who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. - Rom 8.28-39

This is an amazing text, read it over and over and be blessed. So dense, and perhaps sometime I'll attempt to write about it. I haven't been reading much or writing much at all recently, but I should have something concrete tomorrow. This is a great post-Easter (everyday if we're honest) thought we need to immerse our brains in: "Christ Jesus is the one who died--more than that, who was raised--who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us." Oh, how sweet are those words! The Son of God, who died for us and was risen for us, is at the right hand of God interceding for us! Oh, without the divine love we would be stomped upon like the worms we are, but because of this love we will be ushered into the gates of heaven and worship God for eternity! How blessed is the lamb that was slain?

And then there was...

...another Christian Hedonism oriented ministry. Check out Enjoying God Ministries by Dr. Sam Storms. Here is John Piper's endorsement for it:

It is a distinct pleasure to point out Sam Storms' good theology and bad advice. For the good theology read his essay "What if Christ is Not Risen?" There are few people on the planet who embody in life and in teaching the radically biblical and Edwardsian message of Christian Hedonism better than Sam Storms. He has a new website that I want you to know about.

But be careful. You may find sentences like this one:

If you haven’t read Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist (Multnomah Publishers, 2003 edition), repent, close down this website, and go purchase that volume.

No, Sam. Bad advice. Don't repent. Don't close down the Enjoying God Ministries website. And you don't need to purchase Desiring God. For one reason, Sam's books tell the same story just as well. So go to Enjoying God Ministries and revel in "the power of truth and the truth about power."

Good Friday

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"
"Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."
"Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
"Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!"
"It is finished"

These are some of the words of our Lord Jesus Christ as He hung on the cross. There were no harsh words, or hateful slurs, only words of anguish, love, and sacrifice. The perfect lamb of God, the one who knew no sin, stripped naked upon a blistering cross, having the punishment for our sins poured out upon Him. Suffering and scourged on my behalf, and he did it willingly without complaint, even when He felt, for the first time, a separation between Himself and the Father, as He began to suffer. As the wrath of God began to be poured upon Him, He uttered words of forgiveness to all of those who were guilty of maligning and mocking and murdering Him! His words are an example to us all and speak life to the command to love your enemies and bless those who persecute you. What kind of man was this upon the cross? Why would we want to kill such a loving man? The answer is humbling, and amazing at the same time! We would kill such a loving man because that's how corrupt we are, where we have no desire to love, and no desire for God, and it is precisely this reason that He gave up His life willingly, that wretches like these may inherit the kingdom of God! Oh, what a love is His! Even a thief called out to Him, but this time it was in defence of His majesty and a cry for mercy. This must have been a sweet sight to the Father, someone got it! Surrounded by all of that corruption and all of that hatred, see a humbled sinner, softened by tender mercies of God and ripe for repentance! Even as he was hung on the cross for sins he deserved, he recognized that, and recognized the innocence of the One by his side, and recognizing Him as The Savior he cried out to Him hoping for some undeserved love and Christ, being so rich in mercy, was even willing to forgive a sinner who was dying a just punishment for his sin! Christ lived a live of complete obedience and submission to the will of the Father, and even when this meant being a propitiatory sacrifice, he submitted to His Father, his spirit given to His Father, and his will broken under the weight of the sin of mankind! And at the darkest moment the world has ever seen, Christ uttered some of the most beautiful and reassuring words He had ever spoken, "it is finished"! The atonement for our sins was carried out on the only One who deserved Heaven, and because of His complete sacrifice, sinners may now approach the throne of God by grace alone through faith alone, because all of the work for our salvation's have been completed! Oh, such a beautiful reflection. It should have been me upon that tree, and Christ the Son of God died for me! Let us reflect and be humbled on this, the darkest day mankind has ever seen, but have hope oh dispirited children, for He will rise again, three days later as He promised!

Maundy Thursday Part 4

And they went to a place called Gethsemane. And he said to his disciples, "Sit here while I pray." And he took with him Peter and James and John, and began to be greatly distressed and troubled. And he said to them, "My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch." And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. And he said, "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will." And he came and found them sleeping, and he said to Peter, "Simon, are you asleep? Could you not watch one hour? Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words. And again he came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy, and they did not know what to answer him. And he came the third time and said to them, "Are you still sleeping and taking your rest? It is enough; the hour has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. - Mark 14.32-41

And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. And when he came to the place, he said to them, "Pray that you may not enter into temptation." And he withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, "Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done." And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, and he said to them, "Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation." While he was still speaking, there came a crowd, and the man called Judas, one of the twelve, was leading them. He drew near to Jesus to kiss him... - Luke 22.39-47

This is the last moment Christ had with His Father before His appointed sacrificial death. His three closest friends went with Him to be with Him in His greatest time of need. Christ's request was simple, sit here and keep watch and pray. That is all He requested his best friends do while he wrestled with his impending sacrifice. This was the most stressful time in His ministry to this point. He wasn't just facing beatings, he wasn't just facing death, he was facing a broken communion with the other two parts of the Trinity, the Father and Spirit, which He had never had to bear for all of eternity to this point. The agony of the impending separation was so great that his sweat was mixed with blood and he sweat blood! He cried out in his agony as a child cries to their father "Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me". These words must have been said with unthinkable agony. And even though the bloodied sweat dripped off of His body, even though he had no desire to undergo the broken fellowship with God and had no desire to bear the weight of His bride's sin upon Him and be punished in place of His bride, in spite of all of this he said "Yet not what I will, but what you will"! This total submission to the Father, in spite of His own desires, this was what was required of Him, this is His act of obedience to the father, and He willfully chose to do it, because He loved us. Unfathomable! In this time of need, Peter John and James all proved to be of little support to Him. Imagine what it would be like in your time of greatest need when your best friends couldn't even be there to support you, instead they grew weary and slept. This is the total solitude Christ found himself at. Impending wrath from God on our behalf, broken (eternal!) fellowship with the other two parts of the Trinity, and He found Himself alone. In His solitude, the Father saw Him and knew He needed support and knew the weakness of His disciples, and because He was such a loving Father, He sent an angel from heaven to be With Christ and strengthen Him! What an amazing truth of God, that even when we are alone and are in complete agony because of the task appointed for us, when our Heavenly Father sees us in such need, He supplies us support from heaven, as He supplied it to Christ in His darkest hour! Oh what a loving Father we have! We have a Savior who would take a break in His time praying to His Father to come check on us, and we have a Father who will send us heavenly aid when we enter our darkest, most solitary hours! We must never lose sight of Christ's example here! Even if we do not want to go through the trials and persecutions set before us, even if we would ask with all of our being that they be removed from us, nevertheless that we submit to them because they were appointed by our Father, who knows what is best, and works all things for good for his children, those who love Him and are called according to His purpose! This is the example set by Christ, and we will never know a tiny amount of what Christ endured on our behalf, and so it is gratitude for his suffering for us, that we follow His example, even if it means physical death. They may kill the body, but our Father is stronger than all, and they can never kill the spirit, which the Father protects with the blood of His Son! This is our Christ, and this is how much He suffered on our behalf! Let us obey and submit as He did.

Maundy Thursday Part 3

I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch of mine that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in me he is thrown away like a branch and withers; and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another. - John 15.1-17

There is so much to cover in Christ's monologue to his disciples at the Last Supper. This is one piece that always sticks out to me, but we should read the entire discourse (John 14-17) and meditate on it. In this passage Christ shows the necessity of good works in the believers life, and explains how these things come about. Christ is very clear that we must abide in Him to bear fruit. That's an incredibly humbling thing. We're so often guilty of individualistic, self-reliant thinking that to understand that unless with dwell in Christ, we can do nothing pleasing to God, that realization can be so offensive to us at times. Above that, when Christ says that in order to bear more fruit, we must be pruned, that also can raise the hairs on the back of our necks. To prune something means to cut away dead pieces so that it may thrive more, which in our understanding means disciplining us and removing things from us that hinder our growth. And beyond that, we can't even help ourselves grow, it is the work of God! This can easily offend us until we reflect on the perfection and wisdom of our Father and then reflect on how the Scriptures say than He who began a good work in me will continue it until the day of completion! We are a fickle people and our desires change constantly. It is so relieving to know that the One who is perfect, and absolutely wise, and can never change, it is He who takes care of us and causes us to grow and bear more fruit! The pruning work of the father, and the abiding in the son for their power to do good works is a complete gift! But we don't see that unless we're humbled. The only other alternative offered is being cut off completely and thrown into hell, and that is much less attractive than being pruned and being able to do an ever increasing amount of good works, and these good works in turn glorify the Father. So we see that abiding in Christ is a complete gift and is ultimately a blessing and not drudgery. This brings us to the matter of affections. Christ elaborates and relates the duty of good works with the affections of loving Him. Love is related to duty because to love Christ is to obey his commandments. Obedience is the fruit of love, not just duty, and that is the key to good works. Anything that man can label "obedience" to the law of God, that is not rooted in love for God, is not in fact obedience. Christ did not say that love was a product of obedience, no. He said that obedience was a product of love! The love comes first, and where there is no love, there can be no obedience. Jesus obeyed His Father, even to give up his life for us on the cross, and because of His love for His Father, He remained abiding perfectly in His Father's love. Likewise, we are called to live a life of love that brings forth obedience, possibly even obedience to death, so that we may remain in Christ's love. He shows us the depth of His love for us, that even though we are his servants, he calls us friends, because we are now adopted children and have nothing hidden by the Son in regard to what the Father shared with Him. Christ kept no secrets from us, but shared with us all the secrets of the kingdom that were revealed to Him, because we are now friends, children, of God. This is indeed an amazing blessing. One of the final things Christ emphasizes again is the fact that our bearing the fruit of good works is not of our own doing since "you did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you." Christ chose us so that our fruit would abide! There is nothing fickle and changing about Christ, who is one with His father, and because we are chosen by Him (not by ourselves), our fruit is of an imperishable seed that will endure till the end, and we will prosper! Another blessing of being chosen by the unchangeable Christ is that whatever we ask in His name we shall receive! The key is growth since the more we grow the more in line our thought process is with God, and the more heavenly things we will ask for. This is why it is so necessary that we are chosen by God, because His choices are effectual and permanent. What he chooses can never be changed, and it will come about in it's fullness, so we will continue to grow and will never be forsaken! Oh, what a beautiful truth! Let us grow up embrace and love it, and let us be humbled by it and glory in Christ alone! Let us love God and love one another, this is the obedience we are commanded to!

Maundy Thursday Part 2

And you are clean, but not every one of you." For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, "Not all of you are clean." ... I am not speaking of all of you; I know whom I have chosen. But the Scripture will be fulfilled, 'He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.' I am telling you this now, before it takes place, that when it does take place you may believe that I am he. Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me." After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, "Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me." The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke. One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table close to Jesus, so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, "Lord, who is it?" Jesus answered, "It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it." So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, "What you are going to do, do quickly." Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, "Buy what we need for the feast," or that he should give something to the poor. So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night. - John 13.10b-11, 18-30

Then he came to the disciples and said to them, "Sleep and take your rest later on. See, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us be going; see, my betrayer is at hand." While he was still speaking, Judas came, one of the twelve, and with him a great crowd with swords and clubs, from the chief priests and the elders of the people. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "The one I will kiss is the man; seize him." And he came up to Jesus at once and said, "Greetings, Rabbi!" And he kissed him. Jesus said to him, "Friend, do what you came to do." Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. - Matt 26.45-50

This is the most heinous betrayal to be exercised on earth. No betrayal could have been more devious and evil than to betray the Son of God and sell him for a price. Judas' betrayal was as unthinkable as it was devious. It was so unthinkable, that as the disciples heard Christ in clear terms say that the betrayer was the one "whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it" and then they saw Him hand the bread he had dipped to Judas, they still only thought "Jesus was telling him, 'Buy what we need for the feast,' or that he should give something to the poor". This is how unthinkable an act betraying the Son of God was, so unthinkable that Judas' own companions, with the verbal account of Jesus, were still blind to the fact that Jesus would be betrayed. To show the corruption in his being, Judas' pointed out Christ with a kiss! Many of us I'm sure have heard the word picture of a man hugging someone while stabbing them in the back, this is just the example to fit such a phrase. To greet someone with a kiss, as the sign that they're the one you're betraying. Judas was content with betraying the Son of God for the price of 30 pieces of silver, and Christ knew this all along. This is one of the many times Jesus led by example when he spoke of loving our enemies. His words to Judas weren't hateful even though all Judas' words in scripture were drenched with venom, Jesus spoke to him gently, as if pitying him. Jesus described him saying that it would be better had he never been born. To know that a person was going to betray you, and then to still show them the love and service of washing their feet and break bread with them showing them nothing but kindness, this is our example. Knowing the one who betrayed Him with a kiss for 30 pieces of silver, and then to refer to him as "friend", this is our Christ. Loving his enemies even when they betrayed him. Now there's the matter of the betrayal. Judas loved his 30 pieces of silver more than he loved Jesus (if he had even the smallest affection for Jesus at all). His love for money was clear in scripture, since we know that he was a thief and stole from the treasury, which he was appointed treasurer by Christ (another message in itself). This love for money was big enough to sell out the Son of God to death, and even though this act cannot be duplicated, it brings up a practical question. Do we have anything we love more than Christ? This is something that requires personal reflection, but what do we love more than Christ, and are we willing to forsake Christ for it? If the answer is yes, then you need to come before God asking Him to change your heart before you sell out Christ for any other pleasure on this earth. We know from Judas' case that the money wasn't enough to satisfy since he saw death in suicide (ironically hung on a tree, the same as he sold Christ to be) as the only was to end his misery. That's the bitter truth of pleasures apart from Christ, they don't satisfy and they lead to death. Let us strive to find our pleasure in Christ, and let us, as Christ did, to love our enemies, even as they betray us.

Maundy Thursday Part 1

Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples' feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, "Lord, do you wash my feet?" Jesus answered him, "What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand." Peter said to him, "You shall never wash my feet." Jesus answered him, "If I do not wash you, you have no share with me." Simon Peter said to him, "Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!" Jesus said to him, "The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you." For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, "Not all of you are clean." When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, "Do you understand what I have done to you? You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them. - John 13.1-17

Jesus Christ, the Holy God-man, came down to earth in a humble means, rode into Jerusalem in humble means, and now takes the place as a common servant washing the disciples feet. In Jesus' rich words we are given a comfort, and a service. We are comforted with the fact that we know that as children of God, we are bathed by Christ completely and sufficiently to stand before God, cleansed by His precious blood, and all of our filth has been washed away. For Christ to say "if I do not wash you, you have no share with me" is totally humbling. There is no cleaning up our mess for Christ. Anytime we have a meeting with someone we respect, our inclination is to clean up and have a proper appearance. This is not the case with God. It is God who will condemn our filthiness, and it is God who will clean our filthiness. This is a beautiful truth. And then as we read on that "The one who has bathed does not need to wash...but is completely clean." Oh thank you Jesus for your absolute forgiveness, we are completely cleaned and no spot or blemish remains! You have done the work, and we have such an undeserved gift! Now there's the point of the washing of the feet. Even though our sins are forgiven and we have the righteousness of Christ to stand before God with confidence and enter to His presence, Christ said that everything is clean "except for his feet" and He continued to wash the disciples feet. Then He went on to say that "you also ought to wash one another's feet." While the historical, literal context might have been that their feet were constantly dirty, and they had to ceremonially be cleaned before they ate, the text begs something more. We understand the illusion of Christ cleaning us to be justification and the imputation of righteousness, so we should understand Christ's actions and words on the nature of washing feet to be symbolic of something more, namely the act of sanctification and the disciplines of growing in grace and aligning our actions more closely to those of Christ. This is why we must wash our feet, and this is, as Christ washed ours, what we ought to help our brothers and sisters in Christ to do! Just as no servant is greater than his master, Christ hes been victorious in removing the sting from our sin, forgiving us, and so we must in turn help each other to walk in holiness and wash away the dirt from our feet (fight against remaining sinful urges). As Christ served us, so we ought to serve each other, which in turn is an act of service to Him as our Lord. This is a profound truth.

Prayer Request

My friend Mike Niehouse from Ventura has been diagnosed with Lukemia. He's currently in ICU and has started kemotherapy. Please keep him in your prayers. Thank you.

More thoughts on Palm Sunday...

This is very good (as little as I've read thus far at least) thoughts on Palm Sunday from the pen of one far more mature and wise than myself. John Piper's article entitled "Palm Sunday Tears of Sovereign Mercy". Enjoy and have a blessed day!

Hosanna to the Son of David!

Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, 'The Lord needs them,' and he will send them at once." This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, "Say to the daughter of Zion, 'Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.'" The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and he sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before him and that followed him were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!" And when he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, "Who is this?" And the crowds said, "This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee." And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, "It is written, 'My house shall be called a house of prayer,' but you make it a den of robbers." And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying out in the temple, "Hosanna to the Son of David!" they were indignant, and they said to him, "Do you hear what these are saying?" And Jesus said to them, "Yes; have you never read, "'Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise'?" - Matt 21.1-16

Lest there be any reason we can concoct to show we have reason to glory in ourselves, let us to to our King. He came into the world born in a manger, and even when He comes into Jerusalem and is flooded with praises and admiration and glory from all the people or Israel, He enters on the back of a donkey and a colt with it. He enters, gloriously praised and adored, on the shoulders of a common "beat of burden", and what a great burden He himself bore. The son of God lowered Himself to such humble means when He could have rightly entered riding on the wings of angels, how much more should we, unworthy sinners with no cause of boasting in our selves, humble ourselves before men? Let us look to our King and His humility and humble ourselves in our proper place lest we build for ourselves a throne of glory and are humbled by God! One of the first things He does upon entering Jerusalem was to purge the temple from all sorts of greed and profanity that had replaced the honor and worship of His Father. The son of God who was due the glory and praise and honor of all the world, humbled Himself and brought the focus back to His Father condemning all profiteering and greed that had permeated the temple. After purging his holy temple, He showed compassion on the sick and needy and the little children continued to honor Him as the "Son of David" and recognized Him as their King and the Lord sent from Heaven. This was a great cause of offense for the Jewish leaders, not only had He disrupted their business, but He was now being honored as the Messiah! When questioned about it, our King showed them the hardness of their hearts in that even infants and babes honored Him but they would not bow their knee to their King; what children had seen, the priests and scribes (who were vastly aware of the scriptures) were blind to! Oh this is such a glorious picture of our King, robed in humility and glorified by children of pure, unadulterated faith. We serve the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Son of the Living God, and He alone is worthy of all our praise and admiration! Let us not be so adorned in our own religious accomplishments and our own self righteousness that we expect something greater than we view ourselves to come and save us. The humble will be exalted, and the first shall be last. Let us look to Christ, who could have adorned Himself in fine silks and gold and jewels and commanded our worship, and let us see how He came to serve us and save us in the ultimate act of service and sacrifice, laying down His life. Let us glorify Him, and direct all glory given to ourselves to Him and Him alone, who is worthy of all praise and honor and glory. This Palm Sunday, let us sing praises to Him and glorify Him and keep ourselves humbled before Him.