Holy Week Wednesday: Silence.
Devotions this week will touch on an event which took place on this day of Holy Week. (Reprinted from Holy Week 2021)
Everyone likes peace and quiet…unless…
You know that eerie realization as a parent when you were conversing with adults and the group of kids that was a dull roar in the background all of a sudden goes quiet. Unfortunately, often an inspection of what caused the silence isn’t good. This kind of silence often ends with punishment or consequences because the kids got into something they shouldn’t have.
This is the silence of Wednesday of Holy Week.
It’s kind of an eerie silence.
Palm Sunday was a joyous procession with a crowd and shouts of “Hosanna!”
Monday righteous anger drives out the money changers from the temple drawing the ire of the religious leaders.
Tuesday was a busy day of teaching on the destruction of Jerusalem and Jesus’ second coming.
Wednesday…Silence.
But the hushed nature of the day was not because there was peace in Jerusalem. There was a plot brewing.
Tuesday ended with this:
Matthew 26:3 Then the chief priests and the elders of the people assembled in the palace of the high priest, whose name was Caiaphas, 4 and they plotted to arrest Jesus in some sly way and kill him. 5 “But not during the Feast,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”
What would change their minds?
The “sly way” to arrest Jesus came to them. How could they say, “No”? Judas was the willing accomplice. If the price was right…he was in. The concern for a riot among the people diminished when they had a plan to have Jesus delivered into their hands.
Matthew 26:14 Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—went to the chief priests 15 and asked, “What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?” So they counted out for him thirty silver coins. 16 From then on Judas watched for an opportunity to hand him over.
Judas’ actions were brewing for a while. At the root was not a hate of Jesus, it was a stronger love of money. So when did the love of money become stronger than love of Jesus? We don’t know for sure, but perhaps what tipped him over the edge was the anointing of Jesus with very expensive perfume.
John 12:4 But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5 “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” 6 He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.
Worship of Jesus got in the way of lining the pockets of Judas…so Judas decided to get rid of Jesus to line his pockets with 30 silver coins.
We can be like Judas running along and following Jesus. We can listen to Jesus’ teaching, participate in his ministry, and understand his purpose and impact. Until we don’t. When our heart goes silent on Jesus, greed or other desires move in.
Watch out for the silence. Sometimes it’s a cover for sin.
Apply: What sin is lurking in the silence of your heart? Let the example of Judas warn us to turn from it and back to Jesus. Jesus died for Judas, but Judas never turned back for forgiveness. Jesus is faithful. As we confess to him he will forgive you. He died for you.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for exposing the sin that lurks in the silence of my heart. Lead me to return to you in repentance to receive your forgiveness and strength to overcome. AMEN.
Holy Week Tuesday: Are you ready?
Devotions this week will touch on an event which took place on this day of Holy Week. (Reprinted from Holy Week 2021)
Are you prepared?
John Wooden, a legend coach of the UCLA Bruins, would tell his team, “What opportunity strikes, it’s too late to prepare.” This statement motivated his team to put in the work, hone their skills, and understand the strategy of the game. Why? Because when the opportunity or need for a certain play, a clutch basket, or a defensive stand came to win a game or a championship, it was too late to stop and practice. Preparation had to happen before the reality came.
In Matthew 24 and 25, Jesus spends a good part of Tuesday of Holy Week instructing his disciples on how to be ready for his return. While there will be signs that the end is near (ones we see regularly even today), the specific day and hour is unknown. Here’s what Jesus said to watch for:
Matthew 25:4 Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 7 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of birth pains.
9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
We like to procrastinate. It may feel good in the moment to put off something, especially if you don’t want to do it. However, I am learning that you never know what is going to happen, even if you know a deadline, so better to get the project done as soon as possible…and don’t procrastinate.
Jesus teaches on the end of times to remind us to always be ready. He doesn’t want his return to catch us unprepared.
Matthew 25:42 “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. 43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. 44 So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
So how do we prepare? We stay close and regularly connected to Jesus. Take to heart the words of Jesus. And put into practice the work of Jesus.
Like a student who regularly does his homework and reads the material assigned, there is no anxiety when the teacher decides to give a surprise quiz, so the believer who trusts in Jesus as Savior, regularly reads the words God has given to us, and puts into practice the love of Jesus…he/she has nothing to fear when Jesus returns. In fact that day will be one we anticipate and look forward to rather than dread and worry about.
Luke 21:25 “There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea. 26 Men will faint from terror, apprehensive of what is coming on the world, for the heavenly bodies will be shaken. 27 At that time they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. 28 When these things begin to take place, stand up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”
Apply: Take time to read Matthew 24 & 25. What do you see happening today? Is it possible Jesus could return today? Are you ready? What commitments can you make to yourself and Jesus to be better prepared for the day of his return?
Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you for encouraging us and teaching us about what it means to be prepared for your return. Help us to stay close to you, regularly take in your Word, and be about your work while we wait. AMEN.
Holy Week: Monday – Who’s in your house?
Devotions this week will touch on an event which took place on this day of Holy Week. (Reprinted from Holy Week 2021)
Imagine if you came home from a vacation and found a number of people you didn’t know had moved in and were selling drugs out of your home. You’d be furious. Perhaps today you would call the police, but no one would blame you for being angry and upset and forcibly making the squatters leave. Your house was not a drug house. Period.
Monday of Holy Week, we find Jesus returning to the temple area where he had briefly looked around after his triumphal entry the day before. What he saw in the temple disturbed him greatly. Crooks had moved into his house.
Mark 11:15 On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple area and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, 16 and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. 17 And as he taught them, he said, “Is it not written:
“ ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations’?
But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’”
Selling and buying doves or other animals for sacrifice wasn’t necessarily the issue. This practice of greeting temple visitors with an opportunity to exchange their money into the local currency or to purchase what they needed for the temple sacrifice was not abnormal. The issue was it was being done IN the temple and a symptom of the reality people had lost perspective on the purpose of the temple.
For those Jesus directly addressed they had turned the temple into a business not a place of prayer. For those that were coming the money changers and sellers of sacrificial animals made it easy for individuals to “check the box” of their temple obligation.
The temple wasn’t established simply to go through the motions of ritual, it was a place where God desired to connect with his people. The purpose of the rituals of the temple were to develop a relationship with the Lord. The Lord didn’t want the motions, he wanted the heart.
Hosea 6:6 For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.
The fact that the temple area had been turned simply into a place of commerce indicated that people’s heart connection with the Lord had been replaced by either empty ritual or greedy gain.
Jesus clearing of the temple is a strong reminder of how much Jesus is and always has been interested in a relationship with people not just ritual from people. He desires the places where we come to worship to be about worship of the Lord, not serving of self.
Jesus came to Jerusalem to carry out his work to win the hearts of the people and fill them with faith, hope and forgiveness. The overturning of the money changers tables got the attention of the people so he might capture the hearts of people.
Apply: What “tables” does Jesus need to turn over in our heart that are creating a barrier to our relationship with the Lord? What rituals are getting in the way of your relationship with the Lord that if changed or removed would free up your heart to connect with the Lord?
Prayer: Lord, always remind us that our heart matters more than our ritual. Let all our rituals of worship be tools to connect our hearts with you. AMEN.
Fear God Today.
This week’s devotions are based on Week 6 of Cross Examined: Don’t you fear God? (LISTEN HERE)
I didn’t realize in writing yesterday’s devotion that one of our own Crosspoint family would receive Jesus’ promise, “Today, you will be with me in paradise.” Kerran Williams received her crown of glory, the same blessing the thief on the cross received.
Why?
Because like the thief she feared God.
What does that mean?
When we fear God, we revere his person. We understand that God is triune, the Father who is the creator of all things, the Son who is the Savior of all people and the Spirit who brings us to and keeps us in faith. We have confidence that he is not one among many gods, but he is the ONLY true God. He is the one who receives the full dedication of our hearts and lives:
Deuteronomy 6:4-5, 13-17 Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 5 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
When we fear God, we recognize his perfection.
God is holy and we are not. Enough said.
Leviticus 19:1-2 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the entire assembly of Israel and say to them: ‘Be holy because I, the Lord your God, am holy.
When we fear God, we respect his power.
God controls all creation. He has the power to divide the seas, calm the storm, heal the sick and make the lame walk…and this just scratches the surface. In the recognition of his power, we must realize our weakness.
Joshua 4:23 For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. 24 He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God.”
We may think that all of this leads to being afraid of God. Not so. Fear of God is a healthy respect and reverence for his person, perfection and power. It is a gift of his Spirit that leads us to this understanding. When we have that proper fear of God, here are the blessings.
When we fear God, we get to enjoy his presence. Jesus promised the thief, Kerran and all of us that forgiveness is ours and as a result we can stand in his presence, not flee from it.
Psalm 140:13 Surely the righteous will praise your name, and the upright will live in your presence.
When we fear God, we get to enjoy his perfection. What we could never accomplish on our own, Jesus accomplished for us and gifted to us.
Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.
And best of all, when we fear God we get to enjoy his promises. All that he promises is ours as a gift of grace…including the gift of heaven. The thief didn’t earn or deserve it. Kerran didn’t either. We didn’t either. It is simply the gift from Jesus who gives us this truth:
Luke 23:43 Jesus answered him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Apply: We never know when our “today” will be. Pray for proper fear, love and trust in God to be your powerful, perfect Savior.
Prayer: Lord God, thank you for who you are and all you have done for the thief, Kerran and all of us. May our hearts always love you with all our being. May your promise of heaven be real to us every day. Make and keep us ready for our “today” whenever you determine that is. AMEN.
The power of a promise!
This week’s devotions are based on Week 6 of Cross Examined: Don’t you fear God? (LISTEN HERE)
Luke 23:42 Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
43 Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Amidst the gasping for breath and the pain of nails in one’s hands and feet, one criminal found enough energy to rebuke the other and then turn to Jesus with a simple request, “Remember me when you come into your kingdom.”
There have been many individuals who have died for crimes they have committed. Some have notorious rap sheets, many are buried and forgotten.
This one might have been too.
But Jesus never forgets a heart of faith.
The temporal fate of these criminals was set. Their lives would end on a Roman cross.
For one, what was next would make the cross feel like a resort, for the other, the cross would simply be the transition to the glories of heaven.
“Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.”
Did the second criminal understand what this meant?
We don’t know, but from what we know, these words were the end to the conversation and comfort to the criminal on the cross.
Hours would follow of labored breathing, excruciating pain, and the wincing of bones breaking. But the pain of the cross would be followed by the joys of paradise.
Jesus changed everything.
With his simple promise, the eternal fate of the second criminal was changed. His earthly consequence would not be forgiven, but his eternity was secured because he placed his trust in Jesus, the one who forgave him.
I wonder what went through the mind of the second thief.
Did the pain hurt less? Did his tension lower? Did his heartbeat lessen?
Perhaps. We don’t know.
But here’s what we do know. When our biggest problem in life, our sin, is solved, and our eternity is secured, it gives peace, promise and perspective to anything we are going through in life.
The event may not go away. Earthly consequences may still exist. But there is nothing sweeter than for Jesus to say, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”
What would the criminal say when he saw Jesus again, not on the cross but with a crown of glory? What would the criminal say when his pain was gone and joy overwhelmed him?
What would you say? What would you do?
Our entry to heaven may not be today, but Jesus promise is real for us every day…including today.
What he did on the cross secured the promise he gave to Nicodemus and the world:
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son that whoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)
Let that sink in today.
Apply: What challenge are you facing today? Listen to Jesus’ promise to the thief on the cross. How does it give perspective and peace amidst the challenge?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for taking care of my biggest problem by paying for my sin through your death on the cross. Give my heart peace, no matter what my circumstances, to know that heaven is mine because of your sacrifice. AMEN.