Holy Week Screensaver: Aztec Tennebrae

Clash of cultures: Aztecs and Christians - death and dying - sacrifice and saving

Burden Bearer

Christian at the foot of the Cross where his over-bearing burden fo sin falls from off his back.




Stianed Glass design for John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress.

Pride

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Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. (NIV)

My mom often used to say to me, “Watch out! Pride comes before a fall, John!” Usually, she said it when I was being a typical teenager and wouldn’t heed her advice. I’d be going to do something stupid and, in my ornery, essert, and stubborn way, I wouldn’t accept her maternal wisdom.

For example, I used to sit on the porch in my front garden and ridicule the kids who walked by in the street. We’d call each other names and I guess it was a twisted form of territorialism. My mom was never impressed with this, and scolded me on several occasions, which usually ended with me walking away as she voiced those awful words, “Pride comes before a fall.”

Inevitably, my mom was right, because one day a kid from the neighboring subdivision walked past my front gate. I did my usual jeering, expecting him to do the same. He didn’t. He walked through the garden gate and dealt me a swift uppercut to my jaw. His name was Eddie Connelly and he was training to be a boxer. I ran into my house in pain, whilst Eddie continued his journey. My mom had seen the whole incident and she was very unsympathetic to my plight. I didn’t know what humiliated me the most – Eddie’s first class punch or my mom’s words ringing in my ear. I had learned a lesson on both accounts. I had been taught what I didn’t want to hear.

Pride leads us into blind alleys and causes us to reject help. Pride paralyzes addicts from seeking a cure. Pride stops us from asking for forgiveness and keeps us from healing broken relationships. Pride is amongst the deadliest of sins to our souls, and it always comes before a fall.

Jesus discarded pride when He humbled Himself and became, as Paul states, ‘obedient to death.’ He didn’t have to sacrifice Himself for our sins. He didn’t have to go to Jerusalem to be falsely accused and corruptly judged by the authorities. He didn’t have to walk the way of suffering to the Cross at Calvary, so that our world may be saved. Pride could have kept Him from doing all of these things. Love, mercy, and grace empowered Him to overcome pride and bring salvation to sinners everywhere.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, sometimes our pride imprisons our spirits and damages our relationships. Sometimes our pride ruins our dreams and diminishes our faith. Forgive our vanity; pardon our stubborn ways. Grant us the strength and courage to overcome pride. Be with us and lead us by Your love. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

Contractual Agreement

Audio Version here

Psalm 25:10 All the ways of the LORD are loving and faithful for those who keep the demands of his covenant. (NIV)

I had to sign a contract this morning for our Scottish folk band, Glenfinnan. We’re due to make three appearances at an all-day Celtic music festival which is being held on Saturday September 22 in Dandridge, Tennessee. The contract states that we will play two sets in the afternoon at the hospitality tent and headline the evening concert next to the dam. The contract also stipulates that no matter what the weather is like, the performances will still take place. I guess it is standard procedure for organizers to have these contracts signed, but it is the first time our band has had to sign one.

Covenants in the Bible are a bit like contracts, except that God is usually the one to initiate and complete them. Part of my seminary education at Glasgow University was to read about the covenants in the Old Testament. Time and time again, God makes a covenant with His chosen people. Time after time, the Hebrew people break the covenant, so God has to get them to re-commit themselves to Him. Finally, God chooses to initiate one last covenant, one last witness to His faithfulness, which we call the New Testament. Jesus Christ seals this new covenant with His blood on the Cross at Calvary. There are no more options, no more testaments, no more covenants after His death – after all, how could God top the sacrifice of His Only Son?

The way in which we can keep this new covenant is to believe that Jesus died for our sins and that through Him alone we are reconciled and restored to God. All other covenants are futile. All other ways fail.

Prayer: Lord God, we thank You for the everlasting covenant that You made with humankind through Jesus Christ, Your Holy Son. In Him, we have forgiveness. Through Him, we are given salvation. To Him, we covenant our lives. In Christ’s Name, we pray. Amen.

Injustice

John 18:23 "If I said something wrong," Jesus replied, "testify as to what is wrong. But if I spoke the truth, why did you strike me?"

It’s a terrible moment of injustice in Christ’s life. He is standing before His own people, His own religious leaders and they unfairly strike Him for insubordination. They want to show Him who is in control. They want to display their power and authority. They want to humiliate Him for upsetting the status quo and for leading the people astray. In the one holy place where Christ should have received justice, He was abused. Amongst the chosen leaders who could have been given Him mercy, He was shown wrath.

Sometimes we forget that Jesus went through all this in order to save us from our sins. Things happen to us in our own lives that cause setbacks to our plans, our hopes, and our dreams. We think of these things as being unfair, unmerited, and unnecessary. We even wonder why God allows such painful things to happen to us or our loved ones.

We should remember that the real definition of unfairness is injustice. Christ suffered because we are sinful. He was struck because we are shameless. He was battered and bruised, tortured and tormented, crucified and killed because of us. The things He went through were unnecessary, and yet at the same time, absolutely necessary because there was no other way, no other path, no other road than that which led to Calvary to ensure salvation for the world.

I hate to read about Christ suffering, but knowing me, if I had been there in the Sanhedrin, I probably would have struck Him, too. That’s why I need a Savior like Jesus. That’s why I need someone else to take away my sin. Without Him, I am nothing and without His pain, I am powerless to receive God’s grace.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, Only You can redeem us; only You can restore us. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.