Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus)

Even as a child, I was an inquisitive “people watcher.”  In elementary school, I watched and wondered why the leader of a group of kids would suddenly decide for the rest of the class which kid to hate, exclude from the group, and to mock cruelly. The ring leader even developed an invisible spray invented to disinfect the cooties from us if we were touched by them, came near to them, or their things touched ours. Hate is ugly.  Hate tortures, maims, and kills the spirit of its victims.

As we grow to be adults, we mature, putting away such childish ways, right? 

John 15, The Message

Hated by the World

^18-19 “If you find the godless world is hating you, remember it got its start hating me. If you lived on the world’s terms, the world would love you as one of its own. But since I picked you to live on God’s terms and no longer on the world’s terms, the world is going to hate you.

²⁰ “When that happens, remember this: Servants don’t get better treatment than their masters. If they beat on me, they will certainly beat on you. If they did what I told them, they will do what you tell them.

^21-25 “They are going to do all these things to you because of the way they treated me, because they don’t know the One who sent me. If I hadn’t come and told them all this in plain language, it wouldn’t be so bad. As it is, they have no excuse. Hate me, hate my Father—it’s all the same. If I hadn’t done what I have done among them, works no one has ever done, they wouldn’t be to blame. But they saw the God-signs and hated anyway, both me and my Father. Interesting—they have verified the truth of their own Scriptures where it is written, ‘They hated me for no good reason.’

^26-27 “When the Friend I plan to send you from the Father comes—the Spirit of Truth issuing from the Father—he will confirm everything about me. You, too, from your side must give your confirming evidence, since you are in this with me from the start.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Hate develops within us to cover up our ignorance.  The religious leaders became Jesus’ worst enemies!  They did not know Him.  They did not want to know Him.  Most of them had lost touch with God so they did not recognize God-in-the-Flesh when He came to save them and teach them.  Most were happy with status quo, going about their days of being known as “in charge” of all things of God—without knowing God!  This led to a godless life who chose to hate the One sent from God.

When we decide to know God, believing His Son, Jesus died for our sins and rose again to instill hope of eternal life within us; hate rises up from the dark world whose leader is the enemy of God.  Called the “chief of all Liars,” “the prince of darkness,” this enemy orders his army of demons to attack as soon as our decision to “live on God’s terms” is solid.  Jesus said, “If you find the godless world is hating you, remember it got its start hating me.”  Remember the enemy of God is the fallen angel who was kicked out of heaven for trying to BE God, demanding to take God’s place, rising up against God to do all things not of God. 

Although we think otherwise, our real enemy is not each other, not flesh and blood.  (See Ephesians 6:12).  Our real enemy seeks to distract, deceive, deconstruct our relationships with God and others, with the final goal of eternal death.  THIS is our enemy who invented hate as a weapon against God!

“They hated me for no good reason.”  Jesus gave the religious leaders every reason to believe but they refused.  They could not and would not lose what they thought they had and controlled in exchange for their souls—”because they don’t know the One who sent me.”  To know God is to know Love!  (1 John 4:7-8) 

Hate is the opposite of Love.  Hate is the sin of self who demands our own way, seeks power and glory, and sits on a “throne of lies.” (Yes, this is an Elf reference.) Hate tempts all people (unbelievers and believers) to gossip about people they do not know, assume the worst, and presume they might take their place of importance if they don’t first bring them down. Truth and Love are pushed aside so that our sin-selves can be in control.  In the church, we try to dress it up with “bless their hearts” as prayer requests are said in ways that tear down the reputation of others in judgement and assumptions. (Sigh)

Proven medically, hate affects our physical health!  Hate makes us bitter that affects all our internal organs.  The prescription for this diagnosis is the Love of God.  Love makes us better. 

Do you know what the originator of Hate hates most? 

Our enemy hates it when believers of Truth fall to their knees before God, repent of the hate in them, choose life on God’s terms, while calling out for power in Jesus Name.  Ooh, he really hates all of that! So, let’s do exactly what the enemy hates instead of falling for the enemy’s childish and selfish ways of tearing each other apart!

The benefits of God’s Love far outweigh the dark deeds of hate.  Love or hate.  It’s a decision of life or death.  See 1 Corinthians 13 for more benefits! 

The gospel of John along with his later letters to the church, as well as the Revelation of things to come, is all about the love of God as demonstrated by His Son, Jesus.  John’s writings are known as the “love chapters.”  John was also known as Jesus “beloved.”  It was John to whom Jesus entrusted the care of His earthly mother Mary as He hung on the cross for the sins of the world.  (John 19:25-29)

This is Love—the opposite of hate.   

Lord,

You warned us “in this world you will have troubles” along with “the godless will hate” us because of You in us.  It’s hard but doable because of your power in us to love our enemies who hate us for knowing you.  You have already overcome this enemy.  You, dear Jesus, will continue to be with us, helping us to overcome the skirmishes in a battle already won. 

When hate is at its worst, Your Holy Spirit reminds us that “greater are YOU in us than he that is in the world.”  You enter in, piercing the darkness with the glorious Light of Your pure Love.  Thank you, thank you, thank you!  I am forever grateful.  And I’m praying for my enemies to know you so they will know love and not perish in hate.

In Jesus Name, Amen 

As a young child, whose mom and dad both worked, I was often cared for by my grandparents who lived on a farm just outside the city.  Grandpa and Grandma’s farm was heaven to me.  I adored them both.  I watched Grandma make biscuits daily, skim cream off the fresh milk to make butter later, along with other normal to her things of life on a farm.  But it was Grandpa who I followed so closely it was as if we were joined at the hip. 

Everything Grandpa did fascinated me.  I loved and admire the way he would call the cows to eat—in French, the language he had as a boy.  I remember his singing while he did his work.  I also remember hugging and loving on him as often as possible which made him smile.  I remember asking incessant questions about everything as he did his farm chores before going to do his carpentry work for clients.  While he was gone, I waited on the front porch when it was close to the time of his return.  I longed to be with him.  I had questions!

So many questions…so much love—real love.

My grandparents’ love and devotion to God, believing that Jesus died and rose again to redeem them from their sins, was unwavering and evident as they lived meager but victorious lives that attracted others to Jesus.  I am grateful for the fruit bearing behaviors of this couple who pointed me to Jesus as the only way to live life in an intimately loving relationship with God—our Father in Heaven. 

Jesus explains again the Love God has for all who believe.  While possibly walking through a vineyard, fingering the vines and branches, seeing the grapes producing, Jesus tells of the Help He gives us so luscious, spiritual fruit will appear in our lives.  Jesus then teaches about the consistent nourishment we receive as we live joined and attached to Him, “The Vine,” who gives Life!  Without Him—nothing.

John 15, The Message

The Vine and the Branches

^1-3 “I am the Real Vine and my Father is the Farmer. He cuts off every branch of me that doesn’t bear grapes. And every branch that is grape-bearing he prunes back so it will bear even more. You are already pruned back by the message I have spoken.

⁴ “Live in me. Make your home in me just as I do in you. In the same way that a branch can’t bear grapes by itself but only by being joined to the vine, you can’t bear fruit unless you are joined with me.

^5-8 “I am the Vine, you are the branches. When you’re joined with me and I with you, the relation intimate and organic, the harvest is sure to be abundant. Separated, you can’t produce a thing. Anyone who separates from me is deadwood, gathered up and thrown on the bonfire. But if you make yourselves at home with me and my words are at home in you, you can be sure that whatever you ask will be listened to and acted upon. This is how my Father shows who he is—when you produce grapes, when you mature as my disciples.

^9-10 “I’ve loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love. If you keep my commands, you’ll remain intimately at home in my love. That’s what I’ve done—kept my Father’s commands and made myself at home in his love.

^11-15 “I’ve told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your joy wholly mature. This is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when you do the things I command you. I’m no longer calling you servants because servants don’t understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I’ve named you friends because I’ve let you in on everything I’ve heard from the Father.

¹⁶ “You didn’t choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear fruit, fruit that won’t spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in relation to me, he gives you.

¹⁷ “But remember the root command: Love one another.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

FIRST:  Love God with all our hearts, minds, and souls.

SECOND, which is attached to the FIRST:  Love one another the way I loved you.

The fruits we bear as we love God first then love others the way Jesus taught us to love are these: “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.” Galatians 5:22-23

“Those who belong (joined and attached) to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” Galatians 5:24-25.

Allow God to prune our branches of all that is not pleasing to Him and cause spiritual diseases and decay in our relationship with Him and others such as “…sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.”  Galatians 5:19-21 

Be still (Let go of all you think you know) and know that He is God.

Be still (Let go of all you are clinging to tight-fistedly that is not of God) and know God.

Be still. (Let go of hate and be filled with His Love)

Be. (Seek His love as the root of all you think, say, and do.)

Above all, Stay joined to the Vine, attached to His love so tightly that His love becomes our way of life and bears the fruits of His holy character growing abundantly in us.  So much love…real love…that produces a joy in all circumstances and that is eternal.

Since my grandparents have long ago passed, that desire to be with Grandpa is very similar to my longing to always be with Jesus; listening, watching, asking questions, waiting expectantly.  I think that’s how His love in us works.

Lord,

Thank you for consistently cutting away, pruning all that is not of you in me.  Cleanse my heart, renew my mind, refresh my soul, restore the joy of your work within me.  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  I know you love me.  I want to love others like you love me.  Guide me in your love.

In Jesus Name, For Your Glory, Amen

Today in our world it is the day called Valentines Day.  Many will show their love with candy, flowers, a fine meal, and other demonstrations of affection, placing attention on the one loved while hoping for the same ways of love to be returned.  There will also be discontentment because of the great expectations of some with the words, “If you really loved me, you would give me, ____.  You can fill in the blank. The day will end with smiles or frowns depending on how love was expressed according to our human judgement of what love is.  Is this really love at all?

The world’s advertised way to love is not perfect and is very unreliable.  This kind of love keeps score, makes lists of wrongs and holds it against others forever.  This love produces grudges, hot tempers when we don’t get our own way, and can become loud and arrogantly obnoxious.  This love expects the best while giving back the least.  This kind of love expects reward and payback and is conditional on the response of others.  When this kind of love fails us, and it will, it shakes us to the core, rattles our sense of being, and rolls us into dead-end thinking and living. 

“Is this all there is…”; “I wanna know what love is…” are passages of love songs by those who long to be loved.

Our attempts to love are most often the opposite of God’s love for us who 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.” John 3:16-17  Only Jesus saves us but we are commanded to love like He loves us.

In this passage, Jesus will fulfill the mission God sent Him to complete in a few hours.  Because of His great love for his disciples, He goes over what love really is a few more times.  His words are meant to soothe and comfort even though He is about to go through the most excruciating pain no human should bear.  His words; “Don’t let this rattle you.”  “Trust Me.”  “I am the Way, Truth, and Life.”  “I’m coming back.” “In the meantime, the Spirit of Truth will be with you always” are meant to teach and challenge his beloved to love like He loves them.  It is written by John “so that we might believe”, too.

John 14, The Message

The Road

^1-4 “Don’t let this rattle you. You trust God, don’t you? Trust me. There is plenty of room for you in my Father’s home. If that weren’t so, would I have told you that I’m on my way to get a room ready for you? And if I’m on my way to get your room ready, I’ll come back and get you so you can live where I live. And you already know the road I’m taking.”

⁵ Thomas said, “Master, we have no idea where you’re going. How do you expect us to know the road?”

^6-7 Jesus said, “I am the Road, also the Truth, also the Life. No one gets to the Father apart from me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him. You’ve even seen him!”

⁸ Philip said, “Master, show us the Father; then we’ll be content.”

^9-10 “You’ve been with me all this time, Philip, and you still don’t understand? To see me is to see the Father. So how can you ask, ‘Where is the Father?’ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you aren’t mere words. I don’t just make them up on my own. The Father who resides in me crafts each word into a divine act.

^11-14 “Believe me: I am in my Father and my Father is in me. If you can’t believe that, believe what you see—these works. The person who trusts me will not only do what I’m doing but even greater things, because I, on my way to the Father, am giving you the same work to do that I’ve been doing. You can count on it. From now on, whatever you request along the lines of who I am and what I am doing, I’ll do it. That’s how the Father will be seen for who he is in the Son. I mean it. Whatever you request in this way, I’ll do.

The Spirit of Truth

^15-17 “If you love me, show it by doing what I’ve told you. I will talk to the Father, and he’ll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can’t take him in because it doesn’t have eyes to see him, doesn’t know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you!

^18-20 “I will not leave you orphaned. I’m coming back. In just a little while the world will no longer see me, but you’re going to see me because I am alive and you’re about to come alive. At that moment you will know absolutely that I’m in my Father, and you’re in me, and I’m in you.

²¹ “The person who knows my commandments and keeps them, that’s who loves me. And the person who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and make myself plain to him.”

²² Judas (not Iscariot) said, “Master, why is it that you are about to make yourself plain to us but not to the world?”

^23-24 “Because a loveless world,” said Jesus, “is a sightless world. If anyone loves me, he will carefully keep my word and my Father will love him—we’ll move right into the neighborhood! Not loving me means not keeping my words. The message you are hearing isn’t mine. It’s the message of the Father who sent me.

^25-27 “I’m telling you these things while I’m still living with you. The Friend, the Holy Spirit whom the Father will send at my request, will make everything plain to you. He will remind you of all the things I have told you. I’m leaving you well and whole. That’s my parting gift to you. Peace. I don’t leave you the way you’re used to being left—feeling abandoned, bereft. So don’t be upset. Don’t be distraught.

²⁸ “You’ve heard me tell you, ‘I’m going away, and I’m coming back.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I’m on my way to the Father because the Father is the goal and purpose of my life.

^29-31 “I’ve told you this ahead of time, before it happens, so that when it does happen, the confirmation will deepen your belief in me. I’ll not be talking with you much more like this because the chief of this godless world is about to attack. But don’t worry—he has nothing on me, no claim on me. But so the world might know how thoroughly I love the Father, I am carrying out my Father’s instructions right down to the last detail.

“Get up. Let’s go. It’s time to leave here.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

What kind of love is this?  It is the relentless, unconditional, unfailing, overwhelming love of God who loved us so much He sent a part of Himself to earth to die for our sins so that we would not perish but instead have eternal life with Him forever. So, this is what love is.  God wants us to love Him back.  That’s what His Word, chapter by chapter, story by story, one glorious miracle after another has been trying to convey…God loves us and wants to be in relationship with us. We love Him because HE FIRST loved us.  (1 John 4:19)  We cannot earn His love because we can be easily boastful and full of pride.  For this reason, also, we do not perform great acts of goodness so that He will love us better than someone else.  (Ephesians 2:9)

God loves “the world.”  He created all, knows all, and longs for us to love like He loves us.  Whoever believes will not perish.  Whoever loves Him back desires to do what He says knowing that His love is perfect and that God provides what is best for us.  We don’t choose who to love, God clarifies: Love others like I love you.

Jesus prepares hearts for what happens before it happens by His Spirit living in us.  That’s the kind of love and help He provides for believers.  So, don’t be rattled.  Don’t be upset or distraught when challenging events test our faith.  Don’t be worried—even by the attacks of evil against us!  Trust Jesus.

“…the chief of this godless world is about to attack. But don’t worry—he has nothing on me, no claim on me.”  Wow! 

What blessed assurance for all who believe and follow Jesus!  Once we believe in Jesus, the evil one has no claim on us either!  My heart is lifted just reading and taking this “no claim” inclusion in my contract of commitment to my Savior and Lord of my life!

Paul explains to all believers who were struggling with how to love like Jesus with these words;

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

God demonstrated His perfect love by sending His Son die for our sins so that we would not perish but have life forever with Him.  And He’s got a place, prepared and ready for each one of us who believe in Jesus and love Him back!  He is coming back, you know…

Lord,

Thank you for loving us like you do while showing the best way to love you back and to love each other.  I love you with all that is in me.  I am eternally grateful for your love!

In Jesus Name, Amen

Jesus had walked the countryside, going from town to town, teaching in Jewish meeting places with every opportunity given to Him.  Jesus even crossed the lake to walk and talk, heal and reveal God to the Gentiles (anyone not a Jew) living there.  Jesus would bring unbelievers to believe in Him by showing them the love of God as the glory of God was in Him.  Now, on this last night of freedom, Jesus looked forward to spending this last Passover with his disciples who had left all behind to follow him for three years.  Jesus washed his disciples’ feet, giving all of us a significant lesson in servanthood, “showing the full extent of His love” to them. Of all the times we see the bowing knees of Jesus, none is so precious as when he kneels before his disciples and washes their feet.  This is one of many demonstrations of the love Jesus has for the people God has created. 

Then Jesus, knowing what He must do to eternally save them and the world of the sins that plague humanity; delivers this final command, not a suggestion, or it would be great if you would, but a command which carried as much weight and intention as the original Ten Commandments: “Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another.”

Obedience to this new command to love like Jesus will draw others to this Love that has no bounds, is relentless and unlimited, without conditions, and forever.  In fact, Jesus adds that this how the world will recognize His love in us—by the way we love each other.  The most crucial evidence of our love for Jesus is the demonstration of the “full extent” of our love for each other.  To love like Jesus love us?  Yes, this is new to the world.  To love like Jesus will indeed grasp the attention of others who desperately want to be loved.

John 13, The Message

A New Command

^31-32 When he (Judas) had left, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is seen for who he is, and God seen for who he is in him. The moment God is seen in him, God’s glory will be on display. In glorifying him, he himself is glorified—glory all around!

³³ “Children, I am with you for only a short time longer. You are going to look high and low for me. But just as I told the Jews, I’m telling you: ‘Where I go, you are not able to come.’

^34-35 “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.”

³⁶ Simon Peter asked, “Master, just where are you going?”

Jesus answered, “You can’t now follow me where I’m going. You will follow later.”

³⁷ “Master,” said Peter, “why can’t I follow now? I’ll lay down my life for you!”

³⁸ “Really? You’ll lay down your life for me? The truth is that before the rooster crows, you’ll deny me three times.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

“Obedience is better than sacrifice,” says God through Samuel to the current king. (Read to get the full flavor of this truth in 1 Samuel 15:22-23).

Peter loves Jesus, no doubt.  Peter vows to lay down his own life in sacrifice for Jesus at a time when Jesus is telling him a new way to love with a new way to follow.  Later that evening, Peter will indeed deny Jesus but then immediately remember all that Jesus said.  Peter’s heart was broken by of his disobedience.  Why didn’t I do what He said, might have been Peter’s first thought after the third denial and sound of the rooster. 

Guilt from disobedience comes after the alarm has gone off to wake us to reality of our sins.  We can humbly repent and receive the loving forgiveness of Jesus who makes us right with God or we can go on about our lives trying to avoid obedience by doing good things of “sacrifice.”  But our real love for God is expressed in our obedience to Him.

Love one another like I love you, says Jesus.  What does truly mean? 

Max Lucado expresses what Jesus was trying to get us to understand about Jesus’ love for us:

“Hours before his own death, Jesus’ concern is singular. He wants his disciples to know how much he loves them. More than removing dirt, Jesus is removing doubt.

Jesus knows what will happen to his hands and feet at the crucifixion. Within 24 hours they will be pierced and lifeless. Of all the times we’d expect him to ask for the disciples’ attention, this would be one. But he doesn’t.

You can be sure Jesus knows the future of these feet he is washing. These 24 feet will not spend the next day following their Master, defending his cause. These feet will dash for cover at the flash of a Roman sword. Only one pair of feet won’t abandon him in the garden. One disciple won’t desert him at Gethsemane—Judas won’t even make it that far! He will abandon Jesus that very night at the table.

I looked for a Bible translation that reads, “Jesus washed all the disciples’ feet except the feet of Judas,” but I couldn’t find one. What a passionate moment when Jesus silently lifts the feet of his betrayer and washes them in the basin! Within hours the feet of Judas, cleansed by the kindness of the one he will betray, will stand in Caiaphas’s court.

Behold the gift Jesus gives his followers! He knows what these men are about to do. He knows they are about to perform the vilest act of their lives. By morning they will bury their heads in shame and look down at their feet in disgust. And when they do, he wants them to remember how his knees knelt before them and he washed their feet. He wants them to realize those feet are still clean. “You do not realize now what I am doing, but later you will understand” (verse 7).

Remarkable. He forgave their sin before they even committed it. He offered mercy before they even sought it.

This is the love of Christ and we are ordered to love like Jesus loves us.  Pause, pray, repent if you have to like I did this morning.  Then rise up, committed to love like our Savior loves us—without conditions or holding back to evaluate worthiness—just Love.

John will follow up his eye-witness gospel lessons on Love with letters written later to reiterate the truth of Love.  He knows we will need help along the way to fully understand the love of God in Jesus who lived Love. 

Read John’s letter prayerfully, slowly and carefully, taking a paragraph at a time.

“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.

We love because he first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” 1 John 4:7-21

Hate and Love cannot occupy the same space in our hearts, minds, and souls.  God and our sins cannot occupy the same space, either.  We must choose then live obedient, fully committed to the choice we make.  Choose wisely.  Believe then love.

Love God.  Love One Another.

Lord,

Thank you for bringing me farther, deeper and wider in understand the full extent of your love for us with how to be obedient in the command to love.  I’m listening and still learning.  I am grateful for what I do know, you loved me before I loved you.  You died for my sins before I sinned against you.  You help us grow in your love so that others will know your love, too.  What amazing love?  How can I turn away from a love like this?  I cannot.  I love you with all my heart, mind, and soul.  Show me ways even today to love others like you love me.

In Jesus Name, Amen

So, I did a bit of research to find out why love hurts.  Most of us see the connection between social and physical pain as a figurative one. We agree that “love hurts,” but we don’t think it hurts the way that, say, being kicked in the shin hurts. At the same time, life often presents a compelling argument that the two types of pain share a common source. Older, devotedly loving couples frequently make the news because they can’t physically survive without one another. In one example from early 2012, Marjorie and James Landis of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, who had been married for 65 years, died just 88 minutes apart.

Truth is you don’t have to be a sentimentalist to believe in broken hearts — being a subscriber to the New England Journal of Medicine will do. A few years ago, a group of doctors at Johns Hopkins University reported a rare but lethal heart condition caused by acute emotional distress. The problem is technically known as “stress cardiomyopathy,” but the press likes to call it “broken heart syndrome,” and medical professionals don’t object to the nickname.  In the past few years, psychology researchers have found a good deal of literal truth embedded in the metaphorical phrases comparing love to pain.

Love may actually hurt, like “hurt” hurt, after all.  So, my wondering is this;

If God’s love is greater, deeper, wider, than humans can wrap their heads around and produce; how much hurt do we cause the heart of Jesus when we betray Him and resort to following evil’s desire to destroy us?  Jesus was Son of God.  He came to earth and lived as Son of Man who felt the sting of hurts of all kinds, inside and out. 

How do we know?  This passage right here…”Jesus became visibly upset” because one of his chosen disciples “will stab him in the back”, betraying him—and the God who sent Him.

John 13, The Message

The One Who Ate Bread at My Table

^18-20 “I’m not including all of you in this. I know precisely whom I’ve selected, so as not to interfere with the fulfillment of this Scripture:

The one who ate bread at my table

Will stab me in the back.

“I’m telling you all this ahead of time so that when it happens you will believe that I am who I say I am. Make sure you get this right: Receiving someone I send is the same as receiving me, just as receiving me is the same as receiving the One who sent me.”

²¹ After he said these things, Jesus became visibly upset, and then he told them why. “One of you is going to betray me.”

^22-25 The disciples looked around at one another, wondering who on earth he was talking about. One of the disciples, the one Jesus loved dearly, was reclining against him, his head on his shoulder. Peter motioned to him to ask who Jesus might be talking about. So, being the closest, he said, “Master, who?”

^26-27 Jesus said, “The one to whom I give this crust of bread after I’ve dipped it.” Then he dipped the crust and gave it to Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot. As soon as the bread was in his hand, Satan entered him.

“What you must do,” said Jesus, “do. Do it and get it over with.”

^28-29 No one around the supper table knew why he said this to him. Some thought that since Judas was their treasurer, Jesus was telling him to buy what they needed for the Feast, or that he should give something to the poor.

³⁰ Judas, with the piece of bread, left. It was night.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Does love hurt?  Yes.  Do we break the heart of God when we sin?  Yes, we do.  But not for the human reasons we might expect.  God’s heart is broken because of our refusal to accept His best for us.  God knows what could be!  God does not enjoy seeing us hurt from the effects of our sins.  God’s heart, full of unfailing, relentless love for us breaks when we turn away from all we were created to be.  God knows our sins carry burdens we do not need to bear.  God loved us so much, He sent His One and Only Son, Jesus, to rectify and redeem our sin condition.  But when we say no, Love hurts—for us! God longs to pour out his blessings over us, but when we refuse, oh how it must hurt.  How incredible that our God patiently waits for us to say yes to His best.

It seems the closer we get Jesus, realizing the depth of His love for us, we begin to love more and more like He loves us.  The more we love the more we want to know Jesus who saved us and set us free from our sins “as far as the east is from the west.”  Paul writes of his own desire to know Christ but with an added feature many believers miss (or avoid); “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead! (Philippians 3:10-11) 

Suffer? Paul words are more like a prayer; asking Jesus to break his heart of those things that break the heart of Jesus.  Only then can we be more like Jesus with right motivations to love unconditionally like Jesus!  We, too will suffer betrayal in life.  We will suffer heartache and troubles.  We, at times, will be the betrayers who need forgiveness.  How will we respond?  Our response depends on Who we know, believe, and love with all our hearts, minds, and souls.

We are not perfect.  No surprise, right?! But we are perfectly forgiven by Jesus who even prayed for those who nailed Him to a cross to suffer physical, excruciating pain.  Love hurts.  Inside and out, love hurts.  “Father, forgive them for they know not what they are doing.”  Could be Jesus meant, they don’t know the love we have to give, Father.  They don’t know the gift of Life being offered because of our love for them. They don’t know the treasure of possessing our Love that goes beyond all other human forms of conditional love.  They just don’t know love because they don’t know You.

“While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8) How haunting are these words right now as we go deeper to understand the love God has for us!

Paul continues, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” Philippians 3:12-14

God calls each of us who believe to Love God and Love Others.  Yes, the deeper we go in His love, our hearts will ache when love is not returned or worse yet, betrayed. But does that stop us from loving like Jesus?  Remember, Jesus washed the feet of Judas that night as well as all the other feet in the room!  So, absolutely not.  God’s love is forever. So, we press on in His love…

“Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? (As the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below—indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans  8:35-39 NLT

Love hurts—but in a wonderous way, revealed in Jesus, our Savior and Lord, who experienced all forms of hurt on earth, but loved us enough to die for our sins. 

Lord,

Thank you for teaching us yet another reason to love you back, follow in your ways, with attitudes of gratefulness—all because of your love in us that is greater than we can imagine or dream!  Help us to press on in knowing you, believing what you say, and growing in your love!  I am yours and you are mine.  I am loved by the King of kings and Lord of lords—oh, what a blessed thought!  I will meditate on this all day long.

In Jesus Name, Amen

Washing the feet of our children who have gone barefoot as they played outside all day takes some scrubbing to get all the dirt from between their little toes and off the bottoms of their feet, but as moms we do it so they will be clean before going to bed.  We watch the bath water turn brown as our kids become squeaky clean!  Laughter nearly always accompanied bath time, once you got them into the tub.  Getting them out was another story, because they knew bedtime, an activity they didn’t like, was soon to follow.

Imagine washing the feet of someone who has just walked dusty, mucky roads in sandals where animals as well as people traveled–not a pleasant task!  Think about it, it wasn’t just dust and dirt on those roads and pathways where people and their animals traveled each day.  That’s why it was customary in “Bible times” to provide a basin and pitcher of water at the door of most homes so you could wash the dust off your feet before entering the home.  If you were wealthy and generous in hospitality, you had a servant ready to wash the feet of all who entered your home as guests. 

This servant would stand watch, nearby the door, pitcher with water and a basin to delight the feet with a cleansing.  The servant wore an apron/towel for drying the wet feet after the washing. After a guest entered, the servant would bend down to you’re your tired, dirty feet as an act of hospitable service to you. 

Jesus used this customary, ordinary act of service as yet another teachable moment for his beloved disciples who gathered one last time with Him to celebrate Passover Meal. Jesus, their Master Teacher and Lord, lays his robe aside, puts on a apron and takes on the role of a servant. He then bends down to wash the feet of his beloved—even the feet of the one Jesus knew betrayed Him!  Let that settle into our thoughts.  Is this what Jesus meant when He taught, “Love, not only your friends, but your enemies, too”?

John 13, The Message

Washing His Disciples’ Feet

13 ^1-2 Just before the Passover Feast, Jesus knew that the time had come to leave this world to go to the Father. Having loved his dear companions, he continued to love them right to the end. It was suppertime. The Devil by now had Judas, son of Simon the Iscariot, firmly in his grip, all set for the betrayal.

^3-6 Jesus knew that the Father had put him in complete charge of everything, that he came from God and was on his way back to God. So he got up from the supper table, set aside his robe, and put on an apron. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of the disciples, drying them with his apron. When he got to Simon Peter, Peter said, “Master, you wash my feet?”

⁷ Jesus answered, “You don’t understand now what I’m doing, but it will be clear enough to you later.”

⁸ Peter persisted, “You’re not going to wash my feet—ever!”

Jesus said, “If I don’t wash you, you can’t be part of what I’m doing.”

⁹ “Master!” said Peter. “Not only my feet, then. Wash my hands! Wash my head!”

^10-12 Jesus said, “If you’ve had a bath in the morning, you only need your feet washed now and you’re clean from head to toe. My concern, you understand, is holiness, not hygiene. So now you’re clean. But not every one of you.” (He knew who was betraying him. That’s why he said, “Not every one of you.”) After he had finished washing their feet, he took his robe, put it back on, and went back to his place at the table.

^12-17 Then he said, “Do you understand what I have done to you? You address me as ‘Teacher’ and ‘Master,’ and rightly so. That is what I am. So if I, the Master and Teacher, washed your feet, you must now wash each other’s feet. I’ve laid down a pattern for you. What I’ve done, you do. I’m only pointing out the obvious. A servant is not ranked above his master; an employee doesn’t give orders to the employer. If you understand what I’m telling you, act like it—and live a blessed life.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

I grew up in a church that washed feet as part of the celebration The Lord’s Supper.  Here’s why we did.  Jesus and his disciples, as Jews, celebrated the Passover Meal to remember the Exodus from Egypt’s bondage to freedom to the Promised Land—all provided by God.  Every step of the meal was steeped in significance to remember this monumental freedom.  But that night, Jesus did a new thing…he washed their feet!  ALL of them! 

Every Maundy Thursday we would gather as a church Body to do what Jesus did in remembrance of what He did for us.  In other translations, there are phrases of this passage that I remember well such as;

“Jesus demonstrated the full extent of His love… “ “Do this in remembrance to Me.” 

“This bread is my Body; This wine is my blood.”  “Take this, all of you and eat it.”

We wanted to do all that Jesus did that night to show “the full extent of His love” by showing our love for Jesus as well as each other.  I thought washing feet was not only normal; but very meaningful as the generations gathered to testify, sing as the spirit moved us in worship, as we served each other with the love of Jesus! 

As I matured spiritually, doing this holy act of service with my sisters in Christ in one room while men gathered in another room to do the same; I learned that serving each other in this way wasn’t about dirty feet.  It was more an act of leveling the playing field.  No one is more important than another in God’ Kingdom.  No one is greater than another.  And no one can boast that they have served more than Jesus served us. 

In truth, the point Jesus was trying to make to his guys who argued more than once about who was the greatest in the Kingdom, was this: “I came not to be served, but to serve.”  To be like Jesus, we follow what He did.  To reflect His love; we must be ready and willing serve in ways that show the full extent of our love for God and others He has created! 

His disciples must have watched Jesus in awe and wonder as took off His robe and left His position at the head of the Table to pick up the apron of a servant, carry a basin and pitcher of water to each pair of dusty feet.  Wait, what?!  Then they watched their Teacher bend down low to wash their feet!  And, Jesus knew about Judas and his betrayal plot.  Jesus washed his feet and served the bread and wine to him as well.  Yes, let that sink in.

Imagine it.  Thoughts of performance, competition, greed, and arrogant greatness must have slowly dissipated like fog when the sun shines bright.  As they watched Jesus serve in this way; a new attitude of humility must have permeated the room as each pair of feet were washed.  The sweet odor of the fragrant of Christ showing the “full extent of His love” replaces the smell of dirty feet.

Yes, He is God, the God who washes feet! 

That evening, Jesus’ supreme act of servanthood ushered in even greater demonstrations of His love for us.  Here’s some of the evidence:

• Jesus, the Word-made-flesh, who “came to seek and to save the lost,” willingly and obediently allowed the officers to arrest Him after the betrayal kiss of Judas.  (Luke 19:10)
• Jesus’ will ultimately show the full extent of His love as He, “who knew no sin becomes sin for us” taking our place for the punishment we deserve to pay. (2 Corinthians 5:21)
• Because of the love of God, Jesus will defeat death rising in resurrection power—the same power available to us to battle the enemy’s attack on our faith.  The greatest need we have is Jesus!  Jesus told us we will overcome because “Greater is HE in us than he (satan) who is in the world.”  We can live in confidence because of His greatness living in us. (1 John 4:4)
• Upon believing, God knew we would need a Helper after His Son returned to His position as King of kings and Lord of lords.  (Philippians 2) That Helper and Counselor is His Holy Spirit who is with us 24/7. John 14:26  God’s Holy Spirit helps us to have the same attitude Jesus had!
• “I am with you always—even until the end of the age.”—Jesus, Matthew 28:20

We learn that washing feet is not about dirty feet. It’s about showing the love of God in us by our willingness to help each other.  It’s changing our attitude as we seek to be more like Christ.   It’s developing a compassionate heart like the One we worship and say we believe.  In other words, washing feet may be listening to an anxious mom, serving a meal to a family in crisis, helping someone find directions by taking them there, reassuring and affirming the faith of a believer who is questioning, offering a hug and a smile as needed….the list goes on and on…there’s a lot of feet to be washed!

Jesus loves unconditionally.  Jesus served mankind as a way to show the love of God.  Jesus taught us to do the same.  The more we love Jesus, the more we love each other.  The more we become like Jesus, the sweeter and stronger our relationships become with God and others. 

All the commandments of God hang on these two:  1.  Love God, 2.  Love Others.   

Lord,

Help us to fix our attention on you, focusing on your will instead of our own.

In Jesus Name, Amen

As we age, going to see the eye doctor makes us leery of what he might say in his examination.  As you wait in the exam room, do you try to memorize as many of letters on the chart before he comes in so you’ll get a “good grade” on the test? Maybe that’s just me; I don’t like to fail.  My last few yearly eye tests, the doctor has alluded to the fact that a condition called cataract, a medical condition in which the lens of the eye becomes progressively opaque, resulting in blurred vision, is looming on my horizon.  Well, that sounds fun.  To see less than I already do with glasses is not something to look forward to at all!  My first question to the doctor is what can I do to slow the progress or avoid it altogether?  His reply came with a slight smile, “At your age, not much.”   Don’t you just love explanations that begin, “at your age,” from the medical community?  Yeah, I don’t either. 

For people younger, not “at my age,” I will explain.  Most cataracts happen because of normal changes in your eyes as you get older. When you’re young, the lens in your eye is clear. Around age 40, the proteins in the lens of your eye start to break down and clump together. This clump makes a cloudy area on your lens — known as a cataract. So, I asked, “How do you stop cataracts from getting worse?”  In general, prevention is difficult; but the most helpful practice is to avoid ultraviolet light from the sun with sunglasses. Avoid using steroid eye drops unless absolutely necessary. Avoid the rare medications that may be associated with cataract progression.  In other words, not much, you can’t stop it.  However, there is surgery…Ugh.

Jesus reminds us of a far worse condition than cataract!  Spiritual blindness!

Spiritual blindness can lead to death unless we reverse our thinking to lean not on our own understanding and will; but fully trust the One who saves us and sets us free from this blindness.

John 12, The Message

Their Eyes Are Blinded

^36-40 Jesus said all this, and then went into hiding. All these God-signs he had given them and they still didn’t get it, still wouldn’t trust him. This proved that the prophet Isaiah was right:

God, who believed what we preached?
Who recognized God’s arm, outstretched and ready to act?

First they wouldn’t believe, then they couldn’t—again, just as Isaiah said:

Their eyes are blinded,
    their hearts are hardened,
So that they wouldn’t see with their eyes
    and perceive with their hearts,
And turn to me, God,
    so I could heal them.

⁴¹ Isaiah said these things after he got a glimpse of God’s overflowing glory that would pour through the Messiah.

^42-43 On the other hand, a considerable number from the ranks of the leaders did believe. But because of the Pharisees, they didn’t come out in the open with it. They were afraid of getting kicked out of the meeting place. When push came to shove they cared more for human approval than for God’s glory.

^44-46 Jesus summed it all up when he cried out, “Whoever believes in me, believes not just in me but in the One who sent me. Whoever looks at me is looking, in fact, at the One who sent me. I am Light that has come into the world so that all who believe in me won’t have to stay any longer in the dark.

^47-50 “If anyone hears what I am saying and doesn’t take it seriously, I don’t reject him. I didn’t come to reject the world; I came to save the world. But you need to know that whoever puts me off, refusing to take in what I’m saying, is willfully choosing rejection. The Word, the Word-made-flesh that I have spoken and that I am, that Word and no other is the last word. I’m not making any of this up on my own. The Father who sent me gave me orders, told me what to say and how to say it. And I know exactly what his command produces: real and eternal life. That’s all I have to say. What the Father told me, I tell you.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The Word-made-flesh speaks for God, the Father.  God is love and truth.  Jesus speaks God’s love and truth.  “What the Father told me, I tell you.”—Jesus

You might be thinking…Isn’t this exactly what the prophets did…say the words God gave them?  Yes, but Jesus was more than a prophet and good teacher.  “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.” John 3:16-17, NIV’ 

Only Jesus, Son of God, who knew no sin, was qualified as the perfect sacrifice for our sins removal and in the process redeem us from the punishment we deserve.

Jesus knew the condition of the blinded hearts, minds, and souls who refused to understand because they could not and then did not trust Jesus as God’s Son, the promised Messiah from God. 

The growing “cataract of evil” blinded their eyes and blurred their minds as the glory of God stood right in front of them!

The more Jesus explained Kingdom of God thinking, the more they rejected Him.  Why?  Most (not all) religious leaders didn’t want to hear God’s real-life intentions of The Law that they studied, manipulated, added to and debated each day as sport.  Most, (including Judas) wanted a messiah who would end all their troubles and trials of  Roman oppression.  They wanted to be the greatest and best—no longer a defeated nation but un undefeated world power!   They wanted Jesus to enlarge their self-produced power so they could lord it over those who lorded over them.  Sounds, like they wanted a king “in their pockets” to do their will, doesn’t it?  In other words, they wanted the opposite of what Jesus proclaimed—be reconciled to God through repentance of sins!  Become a servant. Don’t seek to be the greatest but the least.  Don’t just love your neighbor but your enemies, too!  Whoa, Jesus, that’s too much!

Only Jesus can provide redemption.  Believe and be saved for eternity!  Matthew’s gospel account meticulously explains Kingdom of God thinking and behaving as directly spoken by Jesus in his recorded of the entire “Sermon on the Mount”. (Matthew 5-7)

Many of Jesus’ explanations began with; “You have heard it said, but I say to you…”  There were many “ah-ha” moments in Jesus ministry.  (Still are, even at our age!)

Many believed.  Others developed spiritual blindness that was irreversible as time progressed and their condition of unbelief worsened.

“When push come to shove,” what will we do?  It’s fair question to consider before we are faced by others’ opinions.  Will we allow our spiritual blindness to progress so that others continue to approve us? 

Or do we lean on the power of Jesus, trusting Him to heal us from this blindness so our hearts remain fully committed to Him with eyes wide open to His glory at work within us and all around us?  The Word is the last Word.  The Word is Jesus.

May our souls be filled to overflow with His Holy Spirit!  (That’s my prayer for all of us!)

I was blind—but now I see!

Lord,

Thank you for removing the scales from my spiritual eyes of understanding.  Thank your for your Light that helps me to see you as you really are—full of glory!  Thank you for cleansing my heart, removing all that offends you, as you treat my blindness with glorious sightedness!  Thank you for refreshing my soul with your new mercies for today. Thank you for changing my mind with your power to transform my behaviors.  I can’t do life without you working in me.  Thank you restoring my joy and health daily as your salvation does its work in me.

In Jesus Name, Amen

… Above all powers, above all kings
Above all nature and all created things
Above all wisdom and all the ways of man
You were here before the world began

… Above all kingdoms, above all thrones
Above all wonders the world has ever known
Above all wealth and treasures of the earth
There’s no way to measure what You’re worth

… Crucified, laid behind a stone
You lived to die, rejected and alone
Like a rose, trampled on the ground
You took the fall and thought of me
Above all

(Above All, lyrics by Michael W Smith)

John 12, The Message

A Grain of Wheat Must Die

^20-21 There were some Greeks in town who had come up to worship at the Feast. They approached Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee: “Sir, we want to see Jesus. Can you help us?”

^22-23 Philip went and told Andrew. Andrew and Philip together told Jesus. Jesus answered, “Time’s up. The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.

^24-25 “Listen carefully: Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, dead to the world, it is never any more than a grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over. In the same way, anyone who holds on to life just as it is destroys that life. But if you let it go, reckless in your love, you’ll have it forever, real and eternal.

²⁶ “If any of you wants to serve me, then follow me. Then you’ll be where I am, ready to serve at a moment’s notice. The Father will honor and reward anyone who serves me.

^27-28 “Right now I am shaken. And what am I going to say? ‘Father, get me out of this’? No, this is why I came in the first place. I’ll say, ‘Father, put your glory on display.’”

A voice came out of the sky: “I have glorified it, and I’ll glorify it again.”

²⁹ The listening crowd said, “Thunder!”

Others said, “An angel spoke to him!”

^30-33 Jesus said, “The voice didn’t come for me but for you. At this moment the world is in crisis. Now Satan, the ruler of this world, will be thrown out. And I, as I am lifted up from the earth, will attract everyone to me and gather them around me.” He put it this way to show how he was going to be put to death.

³⁴ Voices from the crowd answered, “We heard from God’s Law that the Messiah lasts forever. How can it be necessary, as you put it, that the Son of Man ‘be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?”

^35-36 Jesus said, “For a brief time still, the light is among you. Walk by the light you have so darkness doesn’t destroy you. If you walk in darkness, you don’t know where you’re going. As you have the light, believe in the light. Then the light will be within you, and shining through your lives. You’ll be children of light.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Jesus declares who’s in charge and whose glory He seeks as Son of Man.  God, the Father, commands from the heavens, “I have glorified it, and I’ll glorify it again.” Father and Son are working in tandem to complete the Plan to save us for eternity. 

There is no other way.  A sacrifice must be made to pay for the sins of the world now and forever.  Jesus knows why He came and what He must do to save the world.  The Son of Man’s human blood will be shed as the Lamb of God to be glorified in this act of redemption for all who will believe. 

God Glory was/is/ always will be this Light that the darkness cannot overcome. All who believe in the Son of God, with a desire to follow Him, immediately become God’s Light, reflecting His love, so others can find their way out of the darkness. 

Jesus work on the cross, defeating death and rising again, was the “seed of grain” buried into the rich soil of redemption for all for the purpose of reproduces itself many times over.  The work of salvation does not end with Jesus’ time on earth but is reproduced exponentially through generations of believers who follow Him and point others to Him.  “Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others.”  2 Corinthians 5:11, NLT 

“And all of this is a gift from God, who brought us back to himself through Christ. And God has given us this task of reconciling people to him. For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. So we are Christ’s ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!” For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:18-21, NLT

Jesus, Light of the world, comes to dwell and shine in believers of Him.  His Light in us cannot be contained or hidden. The Light shines brightly so the world will see we are different—children of Light—God’s own.

The Light came down from heaven as Son of Man and moved into the neighborhood of humanity to show us the glory of God.  (Talk about the world being lit!) The Light of the World pierced the darkness in ways no one saw coming. Most just wanted to see what He could do for them, bent on outside performance without consideration for the inside cleansing of their souls. But once the Light cleansed the soul, there was little desire to turn back to the darkness.  

“Time’s up.”  What chilling words from Jesus to his followers to deliver to the Greeks seeking to see Him.  They probably were seeking to verify what they had heard about Jesus.  Too late, says Jesus in a sense.  It’s time to do what I came to do.  That’s doesn’t’ mean that salvation could not be had, just that it was time for God’s Plan of redemption to take place in every detail, according to God through His Word.  It’s not like God didn’t tell His people before it was about to happen through His prophets!

AFTER dying, rising, and appearing then ascending; Jesus told believers He would return.  (Read John’s Revelation—it’s the last book of testimony in God’s Word!) There will be a time (and no one knows when); Jesus will return in all His glory to earth.  ALL will bow before Jesus.  (Philippians 2) 

There will be a time when it will be too late to believe and follow Him.  When He returns for His own; Jesus will either say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” or “Times up. Depart from Me, I don’t know you.” 

Choose now whom you will believe, love, and serve with all your heart, mind, and soul.

Believers: “You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.”  Matthew 5:14-16, NLT

Believe.  If we really believe who Jesus is as Savior, really believing all that He did to reconcile us to God, to be really real—then we are the Light of Jesus—and we just can’t hide it!

Be like Jesus who seeks God’ Glory.  The central theme of this message is the glory of God. We would have expected Jesus to say, “The time has come for the Son of Man to be crucified.” But Jesus saw beyond the cross to the glory that would follow.

Lord,

I am so grateful that I saw the Light and was drawn to you early in life. But you had to teach me many lessons through trials, temptations because of my imperfections along the journey.  I learned that Your Light in me fades the farther I walk away from you to follow my own pursuits of what I think I want.  I am so glad that you run after me with your relentless love for me and bring me back into the Light of your glory!  I am grateful for the way your Light pierces the darkness to reveal Truth—You—in all circumstances.  I’m yours.  I’m listening.  Ready to serve at a moment’s notice.

In Jesus Name, Amen

Once we have experienced the truly impossible happen right before our eyes, we cannot contain it, hold back, or casually put it aside.  No, we must tell as many people as will listen.  “I know a guy who just did the impossible!”  “Listen, he came into town, spoke briefly to the family, then went to where the family member was placed in a tomb.”  “And, get this—He ordered the dead for four days man to come out!”  AND he did!

The greatest witness is a fresh from the scene eye-witness—someone who saw it happen when it happened!  Imagine being that eye-witness.  Maybe you knew Lazarus personally.  You knew your friend died from a terrible sickness.  You were there with the mourners when Lazareth was wrapped up in burial cloths and placed in a tomb by family members.  And speaking of family, you were filled with empathy for his sisters, Mary and Martha—good people of the community who helped others.  You helped other strong men roll the stone over the entrance.  Maybe you kept vigil with the family over this great loss, as was the custom.  Yes, you felt the pain of losing someone dear to you in death.

Then, after four days, this guy comes to the village who knows the family well.  You have heard about Him from the previous stories of Mary, Martha, and Lazareth.  Martha sees this guy first then runs to get Mary.  Something is happening.  The mood changes.  You watch them go with this guy called Jesus to walk over to where Lazareth is buried.  You assume Jesus is there to mourn with the rest.  But no, He is there to do the impossible!  This guy, Jesus, told us to remove the stone from the entrance!  Imagine the smell of death after four days!  But that’s not all—this guy told his dead friend to “Come out!” –and Lazareth walk out of that grave!  I was there to unwrap him!

This story from eye-witnesses spread quickly through the countryside.  Crowds of people who heard the stories now want to see the One who raises people from the dead!

“I know that guy…”  Oh, look, here He comes!

John 12, The Message

See How Your King Comes

^12-15 The next day the huge crowd that had arrived for the Feast heard that Jesus was entering Jerusalem. They broke off palm branches and went out to meet him. And they cheered:

Hosanna!

Blessed is he who comes in God’s name!

Yes! The King of Israel!

Jesus got a young donkey and rode it, just as the Scripture has it:

No fear, Daughter Zion:
    See how your king comes,
    riding a donkey’s colt.

¹⁶ The disciples didn’t notice the fulfillment of many Scriptures at the time, but after Jesus was glorified, they remembered that what was written about him matched what was done to him.

^17-19 The crowd that had been with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb, raising him from the dead, was there giving eyewitness accounts. It was because they had spread the word of this latest God-sign that the crowd swelled to a welcoming parade. The Pharisees took one look and threw up their hands: “It’s out of control. The world’s in a stampede after him.”

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

The procession between Bethany and Jerusalem was a part of His obedience to the Father’s will. The prophet Zechariah (Zechariah 9:9) prophesied that the Messiah would enter Jerusalem in that manner, and Jesus fulfilled the prophecy.

Jesus was openly announcing to the people that He indeed is the King of Israel the promised Messiah, (as Nathaniel had proclaimed to Jesus, one-on-one, John 1:49). No doubt many of God’s chosen people, the Jews, hoped that now He would defeat the Romans and set the nation of Israel free.  But God had His Plan that was greater still and God’s Plan will be fulfilled in Jesus.

The crowds welcomed Jesus, spread their garments before Him, and waved palm branches as symbols of peace and victory because of what He had done with what they wanted Him to do for them. They quoted from Psalm 118:26, which is a messianic psalm. They proclaimed Him the “King of Israel.” But while they were doing this, Jesus was weeping (See also Luke 19:37–44)! Jesus wasn’t weeping because He was overcome by their adulation; He was weeping because of the unbelief that lay behind the welcome.

Jesus knows the hearts of all men and women.  He knows.  He loved us while we were yet sinners. He loved with the love of God and carried out God’s Plan to save all of us. The crowd’s unbelief would not stop Him from completing the mission to willingly lay down His life for us, taking on all the sins of the world that imprisons and oppresses all of us to redeem us and set us free forever—once and for all.  “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.”  John 3:16

Jesus came to fulfill the Word of God through His prophets.  As the Pharisees watched the great crowd gather and honor Jesus, they were quite sure that Jesus had won the day. They were anticipating some kind of general revolt during the Passover season. Perhaps Jesus would perform a great miracle and in that way capture the minds and hearts of the restless people. Fear set in for all kinds of reasons. Losing power and position was probably the greatest of all reasons.

How little they really understood the mind and heart of the Master! What they did not realize was that Jesus was forcing their hand so that the Sanhedrin would act during the feast. The Lamb of God had to give His life when the Passover lambs were being slain.  Jesus, the sacrifice for our sins.

I know a guy—His Name is Jesus.  He saved me and set me free from all that had  wrapped me up tightly in sin.  Jesus called me out of that life to living a miraculously, expectant, new life!  I ran out of that grave-life to meet Him!  I no longer have the stench of death but the fragrance of Christ rising from me!

Now I’m different.  Still not perfect but perfectly forgiven.  I’m not who I was.  I’m not completely where God wants me to be, but I’m closer today than yesterday.  Jesus is my Savior; yes, but now He is Lord of all the details of my life. 

Believing in Jesus immediately reconnected (reconciled) me to God who holds me close and won’t let me go as His child.  We have an intimate, love relationship that is forever—all because of this guy I know—and believe!

“How? you ask. In Christ. God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God.” 2 Corinthians 5:21, MSG

“Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
    and gave him the name above all other names,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
    in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord,
    to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2;9-11

Lord,

Thank you for saving my soul, setting me free to love like you love, as you change my thinking and transform my behaviors daily.  I’m Yours.  I believe.  And I’m listening expectantly.

In Jesus Name, For Your Glory, Amen

What is damage control in our world today and when did this be the end all to all problems?  Damage control are measures taken to offset or minimize damage to reputation, credibility, or public image caused by a controversial act, remark, or revelation.  In other words, we must do something to offset the damage done when truth revealed our true motivations publicly.  The term damage control was first coined in 1943 but the act has been around since the fall of Adam and Eve!  Making our sin look more acceptable to God and others by putting dressy clothes on it, lying about it, then blaming others for it didn’t work then and it doesn’t work with God now.  Why do we keep trying until we fix our sin problem by hiding or ignoring it?

Damage control in a relationship refers to the proactive measures taken to address and repair any issues or conflicts that may arise between partners. It involves open and honest communication, active listening, empathy, and a willingness to understand and resolve problems together.  But until the truth of our actions is brought out in the open, understood, and/or behaviors corrected; Love cannot be trusted.

What is the use of damage control?  Large companies employ entire departments assigned to do damage control. They are responsible for taking action to “put out fires” caused by the boss or other employees’ unseemly, disreputable deeds with highly public actions of good to offset the bad image.  Damage control makes every effort, as by a company, to curtail losses, counteract unfavorable publicity, etc. by taking our attention off what is bad and unresolved.  When a company goes into damage control mode, it is not as much about fixing the problem as it is about trying to save face and avoid getting a bad name.  Damage control is about fixing the IMAGE of the company, rather than the actual issues itself.

Here’s a thought: If a ship is filling up with water, and you bail out the water, that’s damage control. If you fix the leak, that’s fixing the problem.  Mm.

The company of high priests’ answer to damage control: 

Kill Lazarus who Jesus rose from death to life. 

Kill the actions of God to bring us salvation.

Kill Jesus. 

Damage control does not fix our sin problem—Only Jesus can save us from our sins.

John 12, The Message

Anointing His Feet

^1-3 Six days before Passover, Jesus entered Bethany where Lazarus, so recently raised from the dead, was living. Lazarus and his sisters invited Jesus to dinner at their home. Martha served. Lazarus was one of those sitting at the table with them. Mary came in with a jar of very expensive aromatic oils, anointed and massaged Jesus’ feet, and then wiped them with her hair. The fragrance of the oils filled the house.

^4-6 Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, even then getting ready to betray him, said, “Why wasn’t this oil sold and the money given to the poor? It would have easily brought three hundred silver pieces.” He said this not because he cared two cents about the poor but because he was a thief. He was in charge of their common funds, but also embezzled them.

^7-8 Jesus said, “Let her alone. She’s anticipating and honoring the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you. You don’t always have me.”

^9-11 Word got outamong the Jews that he was back in town. The people came to take a look, not only at Jesus but also at Lazarus, who had been raised from the dead. So the high priests plotted to kill Lazarus because so many of the Jews were going over and believing in Jesus on account of him.

WHAT DO WE LEARN—HOW DO WE RESPOND?

Again, damage control does not fix our sin problem—Only Jesus can save us from our sin problem.  We must refrain from covering it up, dressing it up, blaming others for it or lying that it exists as our response to it.  It is sin.  Sin stands between God and us until we repent of our sin to Jesus—the One who knew no sin but became sin for us. 

Sin must be removed so that nothing stands in the way of our intimate, growing, loving relationship with God—and with others!  Jesus is the Way, Truth and Life who removes our repented sins as far as the east is from the west!

Love God.  Love Others.  Jesus says all other commandments hang on these two directives to love God back then love each other with all that is in us!  God’s love in us makes loving others pure and holy!

Mary understood Jesus as Son of God, Messiah come, the one to be honored, respected, and loved with all her heart, mind, and soul.  Jesus who knew the hearts of men and women not only recognize her but commended her for it!  How full of gratitude Mary was to Jesus for bringing her beloved brother back to life!  She had to express her love in her way for His honor and glory!

Judas was driven by greed.  He plotting against Jesus while embezzling the funds of the disciples.  His response was damage control to protect his sins.

The religious company of high priests were driven by self-image.  Their response was to kill everyone who threatened their self-appointed power over an already oppressed people.  Kill Jesus.  Kill everyone and every thought about the One, the Messiah, who came to save them.

Mary’s actions driven by love and gratitude, were of “anticipating and honoring” Jesus.  Did she know what was going to happen next?  No, but that didn’t stop her from being of the mind to anticipate and honor Jesus for who He was and promised to be to all who believe.

What is our response? 

I choose Mary’s response.  I choose Jesus.  There are more than a thousand reasons to love, trust, honor, and walk in Truth who is Jesus the One who died for my sins and set me free to love like He loves me.  I am so grateful for all God has done, is doing, and will do in my life all because of what Jesus did to save me.

Lord,

Thank you for loving us so much you laid down your life in payment for our sin problem, reconciling us once and for all to God.  It is finished.  It’s complete. Thank you for daily cleansing my heart, renewing my mind, refreshing my soul with your new mercies, and restoring the joy and peace of your consistent salvation at work within me.  I live in anticipation of what you will do next in and for us.  I live in anticipation of your return to take us home forever with you. Thank you, thank you, thank you! To you be all the glory, honor, and praise!

In Jesus Name, Amen