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Were You There?

22 Apr

This is one of my personal favorite hymns for Good Friday/Easter; beautifully performed by Selah.

See you at the empty cross on Resurrection Sunday.

From Jeerer to Cheerer

18 Apr


“Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!
Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”
~ Zechariah 9:9 (ESV)

For years I thought about the people who stood by the road when Jesus came riding to Jerusalem on a colt. I was always surprised that some of the cheerers became jeerers 5 days later. Or was it out of frustration that they turned they backs on Jesus?

“And many spread their cloaks on the road, and others spread leafy branches that they had cut from the fields. And those who went before and those who followed were shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest!” ~ Mark 11:8-10 (ESV)

You see, Jerusalem was not in the hands of the Jewish people; but occupied by Rome. As Mark recorded in his Gospel, the crowd was cheering for the coming kingdom of David. Why would their deliverer come on a donkey and not with an army?

Zechariah had prophesied the coming of a king; he even mentioned that the king would come humble. Unfortunately the Jewish people missed that Jesus was not a King of an earthly kingdom; but a kingdom that is everlasting.

Fortunately for us, Jesus’ ride to Jerusalem was not only for the Jewish people, but for all man-kind. Most of the people at Jesus’ time rejected the cornerstone that came from God. They were blind to the work of God; sending His one and only Son to take the sin of the world to the cross.

Many people today turned into jeerers of Jesus and the cross. They mock the power of the cross and its redemptive work. People think that if they do enough good works, they will enter heaven with their own power. Make no mistake; without Jesus there is no way into heaven.

For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
~ 1 Corinthians 1:18-19 (ESV)

Instead of mocking the cross, cheer; the victory is already won by the humble King who rode into Jerusalem on the back of a colt, the foal of a donkey.

Lord of Heaven and Earth. Thank You for taking our sins to the cross. Lord, thank You for the Your ride to Jerusalem and Your redemptive work on the cross. Help us to share the power of the cross this Easter season. In the precious name of Jesus ~ Amen.

Photo & Content Copyright © Iris Nelson

LIGHT

31 Mar

I AM the Light of the World-

Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” -John 8:12
Have you ever walked in darkness? Stumbled around in the pitch black? It is hard to walk in darkness. When the power goes out and there is no light, you find yourself groping around in what was once familiar places, sometimes to stub your toe on chair you have sat in a million times. What is even worse is when you find yourself in an UNFAMILIAR place in the dark. It can be very scary. It is easy to lose your footing, easy to lose your way. Have you ever been driving when it has gotten so dark that even your headlights aren’t enough light to navigate with confidence through unfamiliar territory?Jesus says that we don’t have to stumble, we don’t have to fall. We don’t have to fear the darkness. We don’t have to lose our footing or our confidence. He is the LIGHT. He will shine in our darkness. He is like a lighthouse pointing the way, the direction for us to go.

Have you ever been in such a terrible situation, going through such difficult circumstances that it feels like darkness is surrounding you, engulfing you? Do you feel hopeless in your darkness? Jesus wants to shine through that darkness. Psalm 139 says, “even the darkness will not be dark to you (God); the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”

No darkness can hold God in- even the darkness becomes like day. God’s light shines in the darkness. God will make the darkest night, the most hopeless of circumstances shine like day.

Jesus, thank you for being our Light. I praise you. I worship you. I follow you.

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