RESURRECTION DAY! ...AND PETER

RESURRECTION DAY!

Mark 16:7 “…and Peter…”

SCRIPTURE READING: MARK 16:1-10
1 And when the sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James, and Salome, had bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him.
 2 And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came unto the sepulchre at the rising of the sun.
 3 And they said among themselves, Who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulchre?
 4 And when they looked, they saw that the stone was rolled away: for it was very great.
 5 And entering into the sepulchre, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a long white garment; and they were affrighted.
 6 And he saith unto them, Be not affrighted: Ye seek Jesus of Nazareth, which was crucified: he is risen; he is not here: behold the place where they laid him.
 7 But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he goeth before you into Galilee: there shall ye see him, as he said unto you.
 8 And they went out quickly, and fled from the sepulchre; for they trembled and were amazed: neither said they any thing to any man; for they were afraid.
 9 Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.
 10 And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.

REFLECTION:  
This is our 47th and final LENTEN DAILY DEVOTIONAL.  Thank you for reading. We pray that all who have followed along with us have been encouraged to a deeper walk with Christ.

All of the Gospels recount the resurrection of Jesus.  Mark tells that the angel who announced Christ’s resurrection to the women who were first to the tomb, instructed them specifically, “Go your way, tell his disciples and Peter, that He is going into Galilee…”

I love those two words, “and Peter.”  Obviously Jesus loved Peter too.  He loved him in spite of the fact that he had run away with the rest of the disciples when the Jews came after Christ.  He loved him  even though he had denied the Lord three times. He loved Peter, and He loves us “unto the end.”  

1700 years later the Lord called for a slave trader named John Newton to meet Him.  Through a number of “coincidences,” the last being a great storm that nearly took his life, Newton accepted the Lord’s invitation.  We conclude with his touching testimony:

In evil long I took delight,
Unawed by shame or fear,
Till a new object struck my sight,ui
And stopp’d my wild career:

I saw One hanging on a Tree
In agonies and blood,
Who fix’d His languid eyes on me.
As near His Cross I stood.

Sure never till my latest breath,
Can I forget that look:
It seem’d to charge me with His death,
Though not a word He spoke:

My conscience felt and own’d the guilt,
And plunged me in despair:
I saw my sins His Blood had spilt,
And help’d to nail Him there.

Alas! I knew not what I did!
But now my tears are vain:
Where shall my trembling soul be hid?
For I the Lord have slain!

—A second look He gave, which said,
“I freely all forgive;
This blood is for thy ransom paid;
I die that thou may’st live.”

Thus, while His death my sin displays
In all its blackest hue,
Such is the mystery of grace,
It seals my pardon too.

With pleasing grief, and mournful joy, 
My spirit now is fill’d 
That I should such a life destroy, 
Yet live by Him I kill’d! – 
                 John Newton, 1725-1807

PRAYER: Our Father, We praise Thee for the Son of thy Love, For Jesus who died, and is now gone above! Hallelujah Thine the Glory, Hallelujah Amen!  What a joy it is to know that we “Serve a Risen Savior, He’s in the World today!”  We pray that as we rejoice in the risen Savior we would never forget the price of our redemption, the power of the resurrection, and promise of everlasting life.  May we always reflect the glory of thy presence in a world that needs to see Christ in us.  We anticipate with great joy that day when we, like Thomas, will touch the hand of our Savior and discover the print of a nail.  Oh what a day that will be! Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength.  In the name of Jesus, Amen.  “Our Father, &c.”

SEE NICODEMUS

1 Day to Resurrection Sunday

SATURDAY, APRIL 19, 2014

John 19:39  “And there came also Nicodemus…”

 

SCRIPTURE READING: JOHN 19:31-42

³¹The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was an high day,) besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away.

 ³²Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the first, and of the other which was crucified with him.

 ³³But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs:

 ³⁴But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water.

 ³⁵And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe.

 ³⁶For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.

 ³⁷And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.

 ³⁸And after this Joseph of Arimathaea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, besought Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus: and Pilate gave him leave. He came therefore, and took the body of Jesus.

 ³⁹And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight.

 ⁴⁰Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.

 ⁴¹Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden; and in the garden a new sepulchre, wherein was never man yet laid.

 ⁴²There laid they Jesus therefore because of the Jews' preparation day; for the sepulchre was nigh at hand.

 

REFLECTION: 

A few years earlier he came to Jesus “by night.”  “Master we know that thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles except God be with Him,” Nicodemus confessed. 

 

Jesus didn’t reprove his secret inquirer, He taught him, “Verily verily I say unto thee, ye must be born again!”

 

On the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles, that great day of the Feast when Jesus proclaimed, “If any man thirst, let him come to me and drink,” opinions in Jerusalem were sharply divided.  Some believed Jesus was the long anticipated Messiah.  The Jewish Sanhedrin was sure He was an imposter. 

 

Nicodemus emerged from the shadows, not yet ready to openly proclaim Christ as His Lord, but anxious to hear more, “Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he does?”  His authority and influence were sufficient to pause the Sanhedrin’s rush to judgment.

 

John tells us that Joseph of Arimethaea begged Pilate for the body of Jesus. But there was another who helped him take our Lord from the cross to the tomb. 

 

See Nicodemus. 

 

Together they did what they could to prepare Christ’s body for burial.  They wrapped Him in linen clothes.  Then they gently laid him in Joseph’s new made tomb. Though Nicodemus knew that his faith in Christ would earn him the scorn of the Jerusalem elite, his admiration for Christ could not longer be secret, his confidence in Christ would not longer be ambiguous. 

 

He remembered and now believed what Christ had said to him on that first night they talked. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16).

 

As the cold, lifeless body of Jesus lay in state on that final Sabbath before the resurrection, there were no crowds of mourners, nor were there mounds of floral offerings. The disciples were in hiding.  

Shrouded in linen, entombed in stone, guarded by Rome’s best soldiers, our Lord’s next move would not come until the break of dawn the next day, the first day of the week. On that day, The Lord of the Sabbath would rise to inaugurate the first LORD'S DAY. 

 

PRAYER: Our Father in Heaven, We bow before you, grateful that you so loved the world, that you so loved us.  We marvel at your patience with Nicodemus, and then we are even more amazed at your patience with us. As we look at the cross we are struck not only by your love, but by the horror of the sin that separates us from you, and distance you traveled to save us.  Hallelujah.  Thine be the Kingdom, and the Power, and the Glory forever!  In Jesus’ strong name, Amen. “Our Father,& c.”

 

GOOD FRIDAY

3 Days to Resurrection Sunday

 

John 19:22 “What I have written I have written…King of the Jews.”

SCRIPTURE READING: JOHN 19:19-22

¹⁹And Pilate wrote a title, and put it on the cross. And the writing was JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS.

 ²⁰This title then read many of the Jews: for the place where Jesus was crucified was nigh to the city: and it was written in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin.

 ²¹Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews.

 ²²Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.

REFLECTION: 

Ignoring his own considered opinion, “I find no fault in Him,” disregarding the advice of his wife, “Have nothing to do with this just man,” and discounting the lack of criminal evidence, “for envy the Jews had delivered Him,” Pontius Pilate yielded to the Chief Priest and ordered our Lord’s execution.

 

Customarily the convicted would be preceded to his execution by man carrying a sign inscribed with the condemned man’s indictment.  When crucified, the sign would be nailed above his head. Pilate ordered Christ’s indictment to be written in Latin, Hebrew, and Greek.

When the Chief Priest saw Christ’s indictment, “The King of the Jews,” they protested to Pilate. They urged him to write, “He Said I Am King of the Jews.”  This time the Roman prefect refused to oblige the self-righteous. Pilate declared, “What I have written, I have written.”

 

Pilate’s assertion meant more to the Jews than meets the eye.  They knew that he not only meant that “what is done is done,” but “what is done shall continue.”  Christ Jesus was, is, and always will be “The King of Jews!”  And what is more, He was, is, and always will be my King.

 

We call today, the day our Lord was crucified, “Good Friday.” It was not “good” because there was no suffering, it was “good” because provision was made to avert an eternity of suffering.  It was not “good” because sin was invisible, it was “good” because Christ proved invincible.  It was not “good” because hate was not on display, it was “good” because the love of God was demonstrated.

 

PRAYER: (Today’s Prayer is adapted from John Wesley’s Daily Prayer Book.)

Almighty and Everlasting God, We praise your Holy Name for so loving this sin cursed world that you gave your only Begotten Son. 

 

+O Jesus, poor and abject, unknown and despised, have mercy upon me and let me not be ashamed to follow Thee.

+O Jesus, hated, calumniated, and persecuted, have mercy upon me and let me not be afraid to come after Thee.

+O Jesus, betrayed and sold at a vile price, have mercy upon me and make me content to be as my Master.

+O Jesus, blasphemed, accused and wrongfully condemned, have mercy upon me, and teach me to endure the contradiction of sinners.

+O Jesus, clothed with a habit of reproach and shame, have mercy upon me, and let me not seek my own glory.

+O Jesus, insulted, mocked, and spit upon, have mercy upon me, and let me run with patience the race that is set before me.

+O Jesus, dragged to the pillar, scourged, and bathed in blood, have mercy upon me and let me not faint in the fiery trial.

+O Jesus, crowned with thorns and hailed in derision;

+O Jesus, burdened with our sins, and the cures of the people,

+O Jesus, affronted, ouraged, buffeted, overwhelmed with injuries, griefs, and humiliations;

+O Jesus, hanging upon the accursed tree, bowing the head, giving up the ghost,

Have mercy upon me, and conform my whole soul to thy Holy, humble, suffering Spirit. 

 

O Thou who for the love of me hath undergone such an infinity of sufferings and humiliations, let me too be wholly emptied of myself, that I may rejoice to take up my cross daily and follow Thee.  Enable me too to endure the pain and despise the shame, and if it be thy Will to resist even unto blood.  In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ we pray, Amen. “Our Father, &c.”

 

 

 

IN REMEMBRANCE OF ME

4 Days to Resurrection Sunday

1 Corinthians 11:24 "Do this in remembrance of meﾅ"

SCRIPTURE READING: 1 CORINTHIANS 11:23-32
23For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, that the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
 24And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
 25After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, this cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.
 26For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come.
 27Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
 28But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
 29For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
 30For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.
 31For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
 32But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

REFLECTION:  
Jesus said, "EatﾅDrinkﾅin remembrance of me."  We gather at the table of the Lord and eat "his body," and drink "his blood," 

With profound respect we ask, "Why?" 

We tend to forget.  In the daily living of our lives we forget those who have sacrificed in our behalf.  Returning soldiers are grateful for the welcome-home parades but it is not long before their sacrifice seems forgotten and their bravery unappreciated by the nation they have so valiantly defended.  

How must the Christ see us?  We forget that we have been redeemed with His precious blood.  Spurgeon laments, "The incessant round of world, world, world; the constant din of earth, earth, earth, takes away the soul from Christ...We can recollect anything but Christ, and forget nothing so easy as Him whom we ought to remember."

Christ knew that when we remember His sacrifice, we think, we live, and we are different. 

We need form.  We need form in our faith to form our faith.  

Modern man, actually self-centered, carnal men throughout all ages, rebel against this and every divine mandate. Godly men know they need form-not to earn God's favor or men's applause, but to inform, to inspire, and to instill a deeper faith.

Christ says "Do this."  The descendants of Cain say "That's not required." Whether it is "Take eatﾅand drink," or "baptizing them," or "forsake not the assembling of yourselves together," or "on the first day of the week bring your offerings," or  "inasmuch as you have done it unto the least of these, you have done it unto me," they do only what they want, when they want, to the degree that they want, and then declare themselves super spiritual.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer warned against "Religion-less Christianity." Emergent "Christians" boast of their "religion-less Christianity."  Bonhoeffer was a martyr who died for the faith. Emergents mock the faith, question and reject its form, and die for nothing.  We need form.

We show forth our Lord's death. Christianity is

not only about us. It is first about the Christ who died, who rose, and who is coming again. But it is also about a lost world that needs to see, to receive, and to know our Christ.

In the pagan world of the ancients, the "Love Feast," drew sharp attacks.  Critics charged the Christians with "cannibalism"-they were eating flesh and drinking blood.  The enemies of Christ were vexed by their exclusion from the table of the Lord.  Yet the Church persisted to "show forth our Lord's death," until the day came that the very Lord they rued came to rule over them. 

The devil knows that if he can expunge the cross from history he can determine our destiny.  Christ says, "do this." And He meant keep on doing this.  In so doing we testify to the one and only Savior who by His blood, 
justifies (Romans 5:9), 
redeems (Ephesians 1:7), 
forgives (Ephesians 1:7), 
reconciles (Colossians 1:20), 
sanctifies (Hebrews 13:12), and
cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:9).

PRAYER: Our Father in Heaven, Our gratitude is so weak, our praise is so inadequate, our talents are so few, but with all our heart, and with all our soul, and with all our mind, and with all our strength, we want you to know how thankful we are for the Sacrifice of Christ in our behalf.  Grant that we would remember, and never forget, that Christ died for us.  We present ourselves to you, a living sacrifice-holy and wholly.  "Jesus keep me near the cross," today and every day.  In the name above every other name we pray, In Jesus' name, Amen. "Our Father, &c."

INTO THY HANDS I COMMEND MY SPIRIT

5 Days to Resurrection Sunday

Luke 23:46  “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit…”

SCRIPTURE READING: LUKE 19:45-49

⁴⁵And the sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was rent in the midst.

 ⁴⁶And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

 ⁴⁷Now when the centurion saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, Certainly this was a righteous man.

 ⁴⁸And all the people that came together to that sight, beholding the things which were done, smote their breasts, and returned.

 ⁴⁹And all his acquaintance, and the women that followed him from Galilee, stood afar off, beholding these things.

 

MATTHEW 27

⁵⁰Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost.

 ⁵¹And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;

 ⁵²And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,

 ⁵³And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.

 ⁵⁴Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God.

 ⁵⁵And many women were there beholding afar off, which followed Jesus from Galilee, ministering unto him:

 ⁵⁶Among which was Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedees children.

REFLECTION: 

As I child we learned to pray before falling asleep, “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep…”  Jewish mothers taught their children to pray Psalm 31:5, “Into thy hand I commend my spirit,” before they fell asleep in their father’s arms.  Dr. Barkley observed, “Jesus died with a prayer on His lips, perhaps the very prayer He prayed as a child falling asleep.”  The Evangelist tells us that Christ added “Father,” to His final prayer.

Men cannot and should not determine the moment of their last breath, but Christ was more than a man—He was the God-man. No man took His life.  He freely laid it down. 

What comfort it must have afforded the Savior as he cast Himself into the loving hands of His Heavenly Father. For eighteen long and excruciating hours Jesus had been in the hands of cruel men.  M. L. Maughmer, Jr. preached:

When Jesus was in the hands of men—they arrested Him illegally.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they stripped Him naked.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they whipped Him until the flesh fell from his bones.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they beat Him unmercifully.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they plucked out His beard.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they slapped Him in face.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they punched Him until He was hardly recognizable.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they jammed a crown of thorns on His head.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they placed robe of mockery upon Him.
When Jesus was in the hands of men—they nailed Him to a cross.

But when Jesus was in the hands of His Father—He knew that He was in the hands of a loving Father.

Christ’s committal elicited a confession from the Roman centurion who stood nearby, “Surely this was the Son of God.”  Sons of God leave this world with a clear witness.  Even in our Lord’s death He was seeking the lost—He was seeking for me.

As the soul of our Savior took flight, the veil of the Temple (an ornate curtain that separated the Holy of Holies from the Holy Place) was rent from top to bottom.  I can imagine that Christ Himself headed to the Temple where He grasped the veil in his nail scarred hands and tore it in two. If He did not do it physically, He certainly did spiritually.  He opened to us free access to the Throne of God and His great grace. We now have an invitation “to come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.” 

A committal, a confession, a demonstration, and then the earth shook.  The rocks were divided. Nature responded to the supernatural. The graves of departed saints were opened. The grave of the Savior was about to be closed—but only for a while.

Weary-worn from the battle? Commit your Spirit to the Father of all Spirits.  Wounded and dying at the close of the conflict? Commit your Spirit to the God of all Comfort.  Feeling forsaken and all alone? Commit your Spirit to Him who has said, “I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.” 

Rest assured, all who sincerely call Him Father and commit themselves wholly to Him, will finally hear Him say, “Enter into the joys of thy Lord.” 

PRAYER: Our Father, We are thrilled to know that the veil that separated us from God has been torn away.  We come now, boldly to the Throne of grace that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in our time of need.   Help us to rest in the knowledge of our Heavenly Father’s love.  Grant that we would press toward the mark confident that one day soon the faith shall be sight.  And through every trial may we never lose hope.  This we pray in the name of our Lord and Savior. In Jesus’ name, Amen. “Our Father, &c.”