Devotion.al

Tag: wait

  • HE IS RISEN!

    Psalm 118:1–24; John 20:1–23; Colossians 3:1–12 (read online ⧉)

    What a day!

    Most of us have lost a loved one. It is hard. Sometimes we have been present when they died, sometimes we weren’t. How deep the ache depends on the . Even with people we barely knew or lost touch with, there is still a feeling of when they die.

    All of them were still in shock. The women had a (culturally assigned) task to do, and that was perfume Jesus’ body so that his body wouldn’t smell as bad as it decomposed (yes, it is that basic and gruesome). They had a task which, as hard as it was, provided something to do and help process their loss. The male disciples didn’t have that. They got to and stare at each other, with each one probably more at a loss than the .

    And then their whole world got turned upside down…again!

    HE IS NOT HERE!

    HE IS RISEN!

    Shock. Joy. Shock. Disbelief.

    And then…now what? What does this mean?

    We often skip verses 19–23 on . However, note the timing of the commissioning of the disciples. It’s still the Day of . Still. The day is not yet over. Doing something is not in the future. It is now.

    Peace, sent, receive, forgive. Not quite the normal order that we think of when it comes to the disciples being commissioned, and perhaps the order isn’t quite as important as when they were commissioned. Everything thing has just been turned upside down…go and do likewise!

    This immediacy even translates later when Paul writes to the Colossians. He calls on them to forego their ways of old, because they are saved (and with Christ) now. It’s not that we wait to be saved, or wait to go tell others, when we have it down, when we’re perfect. There is no step beyond our at which point we are free or commissioned to about Jesus. At the point of our salvation, no later, are we to start talking about Jesus.

    No matter how you feel about yourself, whether you are of Christ (you aren’t), or whether he loves you fully (he does), go and talk about Jesus.

    1) Why do you think Jesus commissioned the disciples so soon after his resurrection? In today’s world we often provide “space” to “process”. Jesus didn’t do that. What does that tell us?

    2) Paul tells the Colossians that they are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of God they already have. Why is that an important concept and awareness for us?

    3) Jesus was killed by Jew and Gentile. Jesus came to both Jew and Gentile. If there really is a both/and, why did the church divide then, and why does it divide now?

  • Holy Saturday

    Lamentations 3:1-9; Matthew 27:62-66; 1 Peter 4:1-8; Lamentations 3:19-24 (read online ⧉)

    Imagine the heartache Mary and the remaining disciples. Imagine the heartache and disappointment that wasn’t really the Messiah (he died after all). Imagine the relief of the leaders, as the troublemaker was taken care of.

    Before the previous sunset (), per Jewish custom, a dead body needed to be taken care of, as the sunset was the beginning of the Sabbath when no work could be done. Quickly done. The desire and drive to properly care for Jesus’ body would have to be postponed.

    Mourning for the , and for not properly preparing Jesus’ body. What an emotional state to remain in.

    The disciples were a shepherdless flock, and one of their number betrayed everyone and was now dead. Shock and dismay.

    . This is the day of loss. As it was the Sabbath, there was truly nothing they could do, but in their loss.

    Did they go to the or synagogue? Did they manage to praise God? Did they eat, or did they ?

    We want to skip to the good part…. We really should sit with the disciples and Mary.

    Let’s hurry up…and wait.

    1. Waiting for God takes on new significance on . Are you willing to wait for God?

  • Expecting or Distracted?

    Psalm 51:1-12; Habakkuk 3:2–13; John 12:1–11

    It is so easy to be distracted from the important things in life. Some blame electronics. Others blame the media. Others blame no in school. Others blame a culture that has walked away from its somewhat Christian-ish roots. There is nothing new under the sun when it comes to human behavior.

    O Lord, I have heard of your renown,
    and I stand in awe, O Lord, of your work.
    In our own time revive it;
    in our own time make it known;
    in wrath may you .

    The opening stanza of Habakkuk’s song tells us that our disengagement from God is nothing new. Habakkuk calls us to be in awe of God. If you’ve ever had the Blue Angels or Thunderbirds fly over you in , you’ve had that sense of thunder through the entirety of your body. The jet wash passes over you. The sound overwhelms you. Plus the smell (which you may not like) of burnt jet fuel. There is an almost instinctual resonance to such an experience. Multnomah or Snoqualmie Falls with the spring runoff can do the same with the overwhelming volume of water, both noise and sheer amount.

    All of that pales in comparison to the awe that we ought to feel when we contemplate God. As we wait for Christ’s return we, like Habakkuk, want God to make his undeniably known, and that his overwhelming wrath to and evil, with a lot of mercy. While we may not be overwhelmed by God, there still appears to be that wiring inside of us that is looking for it with hopeful .

    Hopeful expectation.

    The Jews, under Roman occupation, were waiting for something. Some didn’t know what they were waiting for. Some were waiting for a revolution. Some were waiting for a Messiah. Those waiting for a Messiah—a savior—had a hopeful expectation.

        “You came forth to save your people, to save your anointed.” [Habakkuk 3:13]

    1. Are you being truthful to yourself when say, “I’m waiting expectantly for to come back”?
      • If not, what is keeping you from seizing the truth that Jesus is coming back?
      • If so, what can you do to build up the expectation in others?
    2. The power of (the day Jesus was crucified), is followed by the blessing of the Resurrection. Yet the Resurrection is not the end. It is only the beginning. How is the Resurrection the beginning for you?

  • Hope and Fulfillment

    Psalm 33:16–22, Luke 21:25–28, Titus 2:13–3:7 (read online ⧉)

    Waiting is hard. The psalmist is waiting for God. The psalmist grasps the truth that an army—no matter how big and powerful—will not save a soul. Such an army might save the wellbeing, but physical wellbeing is not the ultimate goal of God’s . Often God will on our physical circumstances. That doesn’t reduce the importance of the in salvation. It actually emphasizes it. The other—perhaps more important—piece is that the physical saving is a moment in time, while salvation is eternal and timeless. That salvation is both a moment in time (i.e., when we “were saved”) and is ongoing (i.e., we are still being and will continue being saved) is at the of understanding God’s own nature.

    When “arrived”, the people were waiting for the Messiah. Some were waiting in optimism (i.e., “wouldn’t it be nice if the Messiah showed up?”). Others were waiting in hope (i.e, “God has saved us before. God will save us again.”). While Jesus was walking on the Earth, he conveyed that (such as we just read) that his time then was, even as Messiah, a foreshadowing of his final , which would unite all of Creation with God. So, even while fulfilling the hopes of the Messiah, there was still more to come! There was still more to for!

    Paul understands this as he refers to his “present ” with the acknowledgement that Jesus would return. Paul had missed Jesus on Earth. Yes, he had had a life-changing encounter with Jesus, but it wasn’t the same as the other Apostles had had. For Paul, Jesus’ return was hope and fulfillment. As Jesus would be returning, Paul wanted everyone to be encouraged to continue on. He didn’t want them to lose heart or hope. For Paul, and any , Jesus’ return is always just around the corner.

    1) What do you hope for? Is it hope, or is it optimistic wishing?

    2) How does the timelessness of salvation affect hope?

    3) Why do you think so many people concern themselves with the exact date of Jesus’ return?

  • Anticipatory Expectation

    Romans 8:18–25, Revelation 5:1–10 (read online ⧉)

    What are we expecting? What are we anticipating? and anticipation are not always positive, as we often “wait” for the other shoe to drop. It is in this mindset that anxiety can step in and take over us.

    Creation is personified in ‘s text. This anthropomorphic thinking of Creation puts a different spin on things. We could then get in line with those that say things link, “Mother Nature is angry at humanity.” Almost. Environmental degradation was not a strong concern in Paul’s era. However, people did experience hurricanes, cyclones, severe storms, ice, hail, volcanoes, earthquakes, etcetera. When we think of these severe events, we can sympathize with Paul’s thinking.

    What is more interesting is the implication of Paul’s words. You see, it is not just about us. We finite creations are not all that are affected by sin. All of creation was affected. The Fall of humanity was not just about humanity, but the consequence that was then delivered to all of creation. In the carol, Joy to the World, we sing:
       No more let sins and sorrows grow,
         Nor thorns infest the ground;
    He comes to make his blessings flow
    Far as the is found.

    The infestation of thorns (and weeds), plus the sweat now required of humanity to farm, and even the fact that creatures eat one another, are all signs of fallen creation. All of Creation waits to be restored, too.

    That is at the core of John’s of Heaven. The Seven-Sealed Scroll was the fulfillment of all from Heaven to Earth. We can understand that in John’s vision, the scroll not being opened meant that God’s plan wouldn’t/couldn’t be for just the brief moment. That brief moment is all that it takes to get that “drop in the stomach” feeling of . If all were truly based on a scroll, then hope would be pointless. True hope relies not on the scroll, but on Jesus. Heaven and Earth rejoice, indeed.

    1) Are you constantly waiting for the “other shoe to drop”? If no, how do you plan for and thrive beyond things to go bad? If yes, how do you under all that emotional weight?

    2) Do you think it is important that Creation is waiting, too? Why or why not?

  • Witnessing Falsely

    Jeremiah 5:1–3, Mark 11:12–14, Mark 13:28

    Bearing false is a known problem. Isn’t it? Maybe not.

    In Jeremiah, those that bore false witness refused discipline (no matter how loving and -filled). In fact, the implication is that they took their behavior and made it a way of , rather than an incident in life.

    What does that have to do with a fig tree?

    The fig tree was bearing false witness. The implication is that the fig tree had developed leaves indicating that there would be early summer figs. Yet, that couldn’t be, for the season was too early.

    All too often, people try to show off their improvements before they should be. A person learning a sport shouldn’t be showing off their skills for they haven’t gotten the depth of understanding, yet. It is also the same in math and so many other realms of learning.

    In spiritual matters, this is, even more, the case. pride, human behavior, plus the will do their collective best to tear down the gradual improvements of a maturing (no matter where/when they are on the journey). Instead of trying to put out leaves and fruit before we are ready, we need to , be , and the will cause the leaves and fruit to come. We just to maintain our connection to the source of life…Jesus.

    1) Have you ever tried to rush things? What? What was the result?

    2) When you watch try to rush things, what is your response? Why?

  • Godly Peopling

    1 Corinthians 7:32–38

    When we read this passage, we have to understand that really was expecting the world to . The Messiah had come, why ? Over the years, there has been an interesting development. The Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches have elevated male singleness for their priests. On the other hand, Protestant churches have elevated married pastors above unmarried (including never-marrieds).

    Then, all have elevated marriage as the be-all and end-all. This is just a reality, not fully a critique.

    The phrase in focus today is found in 1 Corinthians 7:35, “…promote what is proper and so that you may be devoted to the Lord without distraction.”

    is filled with things/people/activities that distract us from God. People are good: spouses, children, grandchildren. They are a (or should be) from God. Yet, they can also pull us away from God.

    Having a house and food is good. But they can distract us, too, from God.

    The easy answer is media and technology. However, they just prove how distractable we really are.

    Paul’s point was—and was even the intent of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox Fathers—that dedication to God was very important. It is possible that the Fathers believed that if the priests were not distracted, the of the people would not be in nearly as much danger. Who knows?

    1) What is Godly focus?

    2) How can an obsession with focusing on God actually lead us away from God?

    3) Too often when we pray, for example, a stray thought pops in. We might feel embarrassed or ashamed. “It’s okay, my child. I’m just glad you’ve decided to spend some time with Me.”

  • Law and Grace

    Exodus 20:1-21, Psalm 51, 2 Samuel 11:1-12:13

    The law (whether Jewish, US, or ) would seem to be pretty black and white. Yet, if you spend any time driving, you can quickly realize that while the speed limit is 60, only one lane of traffic goes that slowly, and even the state patrol passes others.

    In the movie, The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of The Black Pearl, there is a scene after a “negotiation”:

    Elizabeth: ! You have to take me to shore. According to the Code of the Order of the Brethren

    Barbossa: First, your to shore was not part of our negotiations nor our agreement so I must do nothing. And secondly, you must be a pirate for the pirate’s code to apply and you’re not. And thirdly, the code is more what you’d “guidelines” than actual rules.

    We often look at the “rules” (especially as we “look back” upon the Jewish rules in the time of Jesus) as rigid and unforgiving, however, there is more to the rules, than rigidity. One of the biggest objections to the rules in the time of Jesus was that they lead to the of heart and soul. That hadn’t been the point. They were to be rules of .

    In the story of David and Bathsheba, David violated the following commandments: do not murder, do not commit adultery, Do not covet…your neighbor’s wife…

    Then the prophet Nathan judges David as having violated the commandment against stealing.

    So, David was guilty of violating 3–4 commandments. 2 of these violations were supposed to have earned the death penalty. Instead of death, Nathan said, “…the LORD has taken away your ; you will not die.”

    Commentators and theologians seem to agree on why; David was contrite and repented. Death was still a consequence, just not David’s death. The first of David and Bathsheba was the blood for the violations of the law. An innocent life paid the price.

    1) Have you ever held someone to a particular standard (law), and then given yourself or an excuse regarding the same or similar violation?

    2) Have you ever given grace or excuse to another, while holding yourself to a higher or just more rigid standard?

    3) How do you think Jesus shows us how to walk between the two?