Meditation on Psalm 14

A Meditation on Psalm 14:

“The fool has said in his heart, there is no God.”

I would imagine that much of what the world thinks these days is shocking to those who hear it—heck, it shocks me regularly.  Things that wouldn’t be whispered in public 50 years ago, are now screamed out from every media venue, and things once only done under the cover of darkness, are now common in the midday sun.  The world is changing, and our cultural perspectives or values are changing right along with it.

            But then again, the world is always changing… in the same old ways it always has.  One generation will tolerate one kind of evil, and another generation will tolerate something else.  50 years ago, living together before marriage was a horrible taboo, but pumping poisonous chemicals into the local river was barely blinked at.  Today, sex any time and any place between almost any persons is generally accepted, while endangering a peculiar toad will stop a major highway building program.  The world is always bouncing around in its opinions regarding what is right and what is wrong, what is good and what is evil.  That’s because the world is running on human wisdom, which in the long run, is pretty dumb.  The new atheistic movements of our day are quick to condemn anyone who believes in God, or in the Word He has given to us in the Bible, particularly if we desire to have a public voice or opinion—but they are also very concerned that their own rights to free speech and protection are guarded as holy virtues.

            My dear friends, do not be surprised, when the fools around us say in their hearts, that there is no God… or when they discard His Word, and look for something else to entertain themselves with.  God said it would be so, because He knows what is in mankind—He knows the depth of our sin, the blindness of our eyes, and the hardness of our hearts.  He’s been dealing with us ever since the beginning when He created us, watched us fall into sin and death, and then worked out our salvation through Christ Jesus His only Son.  God knows what is in man, and since He loves us so greatly, He did not abandon us to the foolishness we create around us, every day.

            For you and I were once dead in our trespasses and sins, but now we live by grace through faith in the Son of God.  Rather than marveling at the blindness and foolishness of the world, we should have compassion on them, and pray for them.  Remember, that if it were not for the Word of God working on our hearts to create faith, we would be just as blind and just as foolish, casting away God and His Word, and trading it for the foul bowl of soup our human hearts concoct on their own.  Living by grace through faith, that same Word which enlivened us, can enliven the whole world.  And what a beautiful blessing it is, that God has ordained to have His Word brought out into the darkness of the world, through the saints He has called into His marvelous light!

            You are a city on a hill, a light on a lampstand—you are those through whom the Living Lord of Glory shines, that all might be drawn to salvation in Jesus Christ.  His Word has washed you, enlivened you, called you to daily faith and daily repentance, Justified you, Sanctified you, and will guard you for eternity.  This is the Light which shines in the darkness, which no darkness can overcome.  May the Light of Christ so shine through you, that the world may see Jesus in you—that they may hear His Word of redemption, so that they may repent, believe, and live.  To God be the glory, in this age, and unto ages of ages.  Amen.

Nicodemus in the Dark: Meditations on John 3

The engagement of Nicodemus with Jesus in John 3, seems full of mystery and enigma.  He is a teacher of Israel, in so far as he is entrusted with the responsibility to teach the people God’s Word.  And yet, together with the other teachers of Israel in the Sanhedrin, both Pharisees and Sadducees, he cannot come to terms with who Jesus is and what He is saying to the people.  The teacher of Israel is caught in a dilemma, which drives him toward a choice.

Nicodemus, struggling within himself and between his fellow rabbis, chooses to come under the cover of darkness, so that he might talk with Jesus.  This must have been very hard for him to do, since the divisions and distrust burbling up amidst the teachers of Israel could culminate in expulsion from the life of the people… or even from living at all.  Nicodemus avoids the eyes of his brother Pharisees, and comes to Jesus with his questions and troubles.  This is by no means a brave act, fearing for his own social standing more than his desiring of the truth.  But interestingly enough, even this pragmatic, perhaps even cowardly approach, Jesus does not turn back.

Nicodemus reveals the core of his confusion, by declaring that he, together with others, knows Jesus has come from God, for no one could do what Jesus was doing, had God not been with Him.  This simple knowledge appears to torture Nicodemus, since such knowledge can only result in one of two conclusions:  either to believe and follow Jesus, or to reject God in unbelief.  He knew there was no third path.  Once he understood that Jesus came from God, to reject Jesus meant to reject God Himself.  And yet, what Jesus brought from God so stymied the teachers of Israel, that they would eventually seek His death.  It is a painful and miserable place to be, caught between the horns of the divine dilemma:  to believe, or to reject, what is already known in the heart and mind.

In Nicodemus’ tortured state, Jesus speaks to him both Law and Gospel.  There is no view of heaven granted to any man, who is not born from above by water and Spirit.  No one, the teachers of Israel included, would taste of Heaven, unless they were born again by the power of God’s Holy Spirit.  Nicodemus was utterly incapable of giving himself new birth, and he knew it… which sends him back into the bleak contemplation of returning once again to his mother’s womb.  Jesus lifts Nicodemus despairing eyes once again to higher things, and teaches him that what the Spirit does is unfathomable to the human heart, but it is His work, none the less… and those born from above by Him, would reflect His image, ways, and means.

The Gospel that Jesus gives to Nicodemus, is the same He offers to all mankind, regardless of wealth or social status:  whoever believes on the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, shall be saved.  Even this belief is brought to the believer, so that they might approach Jesus to receive His grace.  Nicodemus has believed that Jesus came from God, almost as if against his will—but Jesus tells Nicodemus that such knowledge and belief is a gift of God’s Holy Spirit, and all who live by such faith, shall live forever.

To the converse, Jesus tells Nicodemus, that those who reject Him, are condemned already.  Having never been born from above by water and Spirit, rejecting even what they have been made to know is true about the Son of God, they remain dead in their trespasses and sins.  They will remain in their unbelief and rejection of God, which will be manifested in their running away from the light, seeking out rather the cover of darkness, for they know their deeds and hearts are evil.  For those who reject God in the person and work of Jesus Christ, crucified for the sins of the world, there is no hope at all, for they have rejected the only means given under heaven by which any man may be saved.

And so, this short portrait of Nicodemus is left to our contemplation.  Like him, we often seek the darkness of night to hide our evil hearts, full of unbelief and wickedness.  Like him, we often despair, knowing what we should believe and trust, yet torn with the desire to reject the truth in search of our own lusts and idols.  Like him, we are drawn to the light of Christ, but we fear what that holy and divine Light may reveal of us to the world.

But like Nicodemus, the promise of Christ still rings out to us.  For He knows already the darkness that lies within us, and the evil curse of sin that ravages our bodies and souls.  He knows all too well the wages of sin, and the death we have brought upon ourselves.  He knows, and in His divine knowledge, He has done all that is necessary to save us from the fate we have earned.  With His body broken and His blood poured out for the sins of the world, He has done all things you need for the salvation of your crippled body and soul.  He has sent to you His Holy Spirit, that you might believe and live in Him, so that death and sin may no longer reign in your bodies or your hearts.  The Gospel of Salvation comes to us, so that we who sit in darkness, may see His great Light:  for God so loved the world, that He have His only Begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him might not perish, but have everlasting life.

As blessed David concludes his 29^th Psalm, so also we may sing:

¹⁰ The Lord sat enthroned at the Flood,
And the Lord sits as King forever.
^{11 Lord will give strength to His people;}The
The Lord will bless His people with peace.

Amen.

Commiting our work to God-- Meditations at the beginning of Pentecost

Among the various transitions we find ourselves in during this time of the year, is the one between Easter and Pentecost.  As we read through the Acts of the Apostles, we find that after Jesus’ Ascension, the Disciples are waiting on the Lord’s promise of the Holy Spirit… a power they wouldn’t come to understand until it fell upon them.  As they waited, they lived together in the unity born of Christ’s Word and Sacraments, in love for each other and with a common hope in the Risen Christ.

Not long after, Jesus’ promise fulfilled, a great power descends upon them.  This power from the Holy Spirit gives them gifts of healing, speaking in foreign tongues, and even raising the dead—but most importantly, it gives them power to be witnesses to Christ’s saving work in a dark and dangerous world.  The power given to them is manifested in many ways, but the goal of that power was to speak truth in the darkness of their time, so that many might hear the Gospel, believe, and live in Jesus forever.  The greatest miracle that the Holy Spirit did through the Apostles was nothing other than raising dead sinners unto eternal life, by grace through faith in the Son of God.

This power of the Almighty Holy Spirit, continues to move through the Church today, wherever we find the Word of God preached in its purity, and the Holy Sacraments administered according to Christ’s command.  Where the Holy Spirit moves through the means of grace, people are raised from the deadness of their sin and unbelief, and given new life by faith in Jesus’ vicarious atonement for them.  It is a power awesome to behold, and a mystery before which we tremble—that God should give such gifts and power to be administered by poor, wretched sinners, such as ourselves.  But such is the wisdom of God, that He makes His strength perfect in weakness.

But there is another side to this awesome power, given to the Church, and we must grapple with it as we enter into this season of Pentecost.  Not all who hear, will believe—not all who come face to face with Jesus through His means of grace, will repent and believe the Gospel.  God allows His greatness to be mocked and scorned by the sinful world, and His grace to be trampled under the feet of wicked men.  In God’s great love for the whole world, there is not a single soul for which He has not suffered and died, and yet we know that some people will respond to His love with spite and hatred.  God’s love at work in the world is a sacrificial love which suffers itself to be scorned and wounded, so that by all means, some might be saved.  Such is the immensity of our God’s mercy and love for us.

And for we who are grafted into our Risen Christ, our suffering and rejection will reflect that which is given to our Lord.  Sometimes, even the best of our efforts to love our neighbor, will be rebuffed and spat upon, leaving us wounded and bruised, perhaps even martyred.  Part of carrying our cross in the world, is to bear witness to Christ and His love for mankind, even when mankind refuses to listen—even when they harden their own hearts, plug their own ears, and refuse to be healed by our God who seeks them out.  How are we to respond, when we are spitefully used, abused, and mistreated?

Our answer is found in the Cross of Christ.  When He was ridiculed and scorned, He prayed for those who were in the very act of murdering Him.  Upon His resurrection, He brings peace and blessing to those who abandoned Him in His darkest hour.  To a world which condemned Him, He brought the everlasting Gospel of Salvation.  And to we who are grafted into Him by grace through faith, He gives the power of His Holy Spirit, to endure all things for the love of each soul that the Blood of Christ has been poured out to redeem.

In Christ, we commend to our Lord, all the works of our hands, hearts, and minds.  It is He who has done all, suffered all, and won all for us—and not only for us, but for the whole world.  In Him we work, not by compulsion of the Law, but by the impelling of the Holy Spirit and the divine Love which has been poured into us.  Our works are not our own, and neither is our suffering, nor our joy.  All that we have and are and shall be, is hidden in Christ Jesus our Lord, who is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end of all things.  To Him we commend our labors of love, and to Him we send up our groaning and tears, just as we also send up to Him our thanksgiving and rejoicing.

As we enter into the heat of Summer, and the work of the Kingdom of God weighs heavily upon us in the noontime heat, may we always remember the Living Lord who has suffered all for us, and keeps us together with Him for eternity.  When viewed from heaven’s eternal perspective, this short time of our labors comes and goes like the streak of a meteor across the sky—suddenly here, and then in only a few short decades, it is over.  Nevertheless, we are His, and He is ours; our salvation and our hope and our blessedness are guarded in Jesus forever.  Let the world do its worst, and the devil make his schemes.  We belong to Christ, and our work is committed unto Him.  Blessed be the Triune God, now and forevermore.  Amen.

Authority: Meditations on John 10

Authority is often heard as a dirty word in our day.  Those in authority are the ones who take from the poor and give to themselves; or the ones who manipulate systems for their own advantage; or the ones who write laws for those who funded their seats in government; and the list goes on.  When we see authority abused, we are often inspired to rebel against such evil-- even our nation has its origin in such struggle.

But corruption of what is good, does not abolish the goodness of the original, any more than a bad marriage condemns all marriages.  Authority is originally conceived as good, by God who gives it for the good of those under it, and we see reflections of that good, even in our broken world.

Here we see the police officer, who surrenders his own body to save a child.  Here we see a fire fighter give his body to the flames in order to save a trapped family.  Here we see soldiers place themselves between our nation and the evil intentions of others, trading their lives that we may retain our own.

And there are many others.  Fathers and mothers who sacrifice for their children through daily labor and patient teaching; siblings who suffer and sacrifice for each other; public servants who despite scorn do their duties well; even pastors and servants in the church, who lay aside earthly acclaim for the good of their people, while their peers pursue money and numbers and novelty.

Knowing that our sinful eyes in a sinful world, would be conflicted by the corruption we would see, Christ our Savior comes, and shows us what Authority really is.  While we, when we have been given authority, rarely use it well, Christ shows us how God envisions the use of divine authority.

In Jesus, we see God, imbued with all authority in heaven and on earth, choosing to take the form and role of a servant.  In Jesus, the eternal Son of God made flesh, we see authority exercised in love and compassion, driving out tormenting demons and withering disease.  In Jesus, we see the Author of Life submitting Himself to the pains of death, that He might both lay down His life, and take it up again.  In Jesus, we see the Victor over sin, death, and the devil, giving freely of what He has won, to we who so desperately need His gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation.

Here, my brothers and sisters, is real Authority, exercised in true faith, hope, and love.  Jesus never gives up on us, nor the plan of salvation He and the Father and the Spirit set in motion from the early days of creation.  Jesus does not use His authority for His own benefit, but rather that He might give His name among men, so that all who believe in Him might live with Him forever.  Jesus indeed reigns over all, and through His exercise of authority, life and love and grace are multiplied to the children of men.

May our eyes ever see beyond the pale reflections and corruptions of authority that plague our world, to the wondrous authority of Jesus our Savior, who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, One God, now and forever.  Amen.

A Good Confession: Meditations on Acts 4

When I survey the world in which we live, I often appreciate why there is so much fear out there. People are afraid of the food they eat, the cars they drive, the neighborhoods they live in, the governments they elect, the companies they work for, the people they work with, the dog down the street, the cell phone attached to their head, or the germs crawling on their desks. Folks are afraid of almost everything and anything, attempting to structure their lives in such a way as to minimize their risks and exposure to those things they fear. Our society and economics seem almost to be based on fear. Advertisements promise drugs and therapies to save you from the illness you fear; politicians promise to save you from policies you fear; stores and merchants promise to save you from the technology you fear; the endless 24 hour news cycle promises to scare you into insanity, then provide a commentator who will soothe you for a few minutes, before the titillation of fear comes on again. Fear drives commerce and investments, Wall Street and the world bond markets. Fear is a powerful force, and one that the world is well acquainted with.

And it’s worth noting, that not only the world, but the Church, is often driven by fear. There are those pastors, theologians, and arm-chair prophets, who are motivated by fear to “grow” or “change” the Church. They would tell us that the Church must “change or die,” and that the Church needs to be constantly conforming itself to the images and patterns of culture, so that is does not disappear. They chase the right worship teams, the right bands, the right music, the right atmosphere, the right message, the right 12-step plan, to attract more people into Church membership. When the Church is driven by fear, it does all kinds of crazy things… almost everything other than what Christ told them to do.

Examined, though, fear is a paper tiger, and points to something else. All the fears one can list eventually boil down to a single fear—a fear of death. We want to be popular, prosperous, intelligent, educated, medicated, and so forth, really in an effort to stave off death. Losing their grip on life is really what most people are afraid of, because down deep, they know their life is fleeting. As many have observed, life is a terminal condition—no one gets out of this world alive. The wages of sin in our fallen world is death, and the sinful flesh we live in, will eventually bear the weight of that curse, as our body is laid in the earth. But fear of anything, especially of death, is fear of something already conquered.

While the world might be ignorant of the victory Christ has made over the grave, the Church should never forget what her Chief Shepherd has won for His people. We are liberated from sin, death, and the devil. We are liberated from the grave, such that we know what lies beyond it for those who live in the love of God. Death for the Christian is merely a laying down of this sinful flesh, an escort into the presence of Jesus, and a waiting for the resurrection of all flesh unto a new life in a new creation, undefiled by the sin and death of this world. We who live in Christ, have our lives hidden in Christ, such that they can never be taken away by the wicked powers of this world. Our lives are as surely protected and kept in Jesus, as Jesus’ life is kept by His immortal and omnipotent power. No one takes His life from Him—He lays it down, and He takes it up again, according to His good and gracious will. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end—and if He is for us, who cares what stands against us?

In this faith which overcomes fear, we see St. Peter and St. John, make their bold confession before the Sanhedrin. Sure, the council had power, and the ability to inflict torment on those they desired to harm. But the Apostles knew that their very lives were kept with the Risen Christ, and no power of man or demon could change that. They stood and made a good confession of Christ, not only before the religious and political powers of their day, but before the people who sat in their own fear and lack of understanding. In the face of that which the people feared, the Apostles stood fearless. It was a marvelous thing to behold—men whose faith cast out fear, raised a lame man to walk, and turned Jerusalem upside down, in the Name of Jesus Christ. The Apostles had no fear for their own lives, because they knew Jesus kept their lives forever with Him.

And the result of their good witness to the Chief Shepherd, was that upon that one moment of conflict, 5000 souls were added to Christ. 5000 men were born from above by Water and Spirit, plus their wives and children, harkening back to the momentous conversions at Pentecost. Two men stood before the power of their age, bore witness by faith without fear for their own lives, and through their witness, the Holy Spirit worked faith in the hearts of the people. More than 5000 people, previously sitting in darkness and fear, found faith which cast out fear, liberated by the blood of Christ.

Here lies the Church’s power in every age. We have a Good Shepherd who has laid down His life for the sheep, and taken it back up again, because death could not hold the Author of Life. Our Good Shepherd has sent us out, as He sent the blessed Apostles, to bear witness to the world without fear, knowing that He has our lives firmly in His nail-pierced hands. All the fury of the devil and the world and sinful man could not keep Jesus in the grave, and we who live in Him, have that same promise. Let the nations rage, and the rulers of this world imagine vain things; let the evil ones murmur their threats and loathing; let the devil howl as he will, and his faithless minions cower and flail. We belong to Christ. We are born from above, living by His grace, through faith in His Name, in the power of His Spirit. We have nothing to fear, in this world or the next, because Christ is Risen, and has defeated every power, placing all things under His feet. We are the Church of Christ, sent to bear witness to the Lord of Life, who grants these gifts of forgiveness and life to all who will repent and believe.

We are His, and there is nothing to fear. He is risen, and we too, shall rise. Let the kingdom of darkness tremble at the witness of the Saints—Christ is Risen, Alleluia!

Why do we marvel? Meditations on Acts 3

That sense of marveling is common when we encounter things we don’t expect, and sometimes when we see things we can’t believe. Like the last painting you saw with ridiculously beautiful colors, or the gymnast you saw do things with her body that you didn’t think possible. I recall sitting with family recently, as we watched some of the best ice skaters in the world do their routines—and I marveled that someone could launch themselves in the air with such grace, and land with the fluidity of an artist’s brush stroke. Remarkable things often make us marvel, because we can hardly believe what we have seen or heard. While we may not want to believe it at the moment, whether it’s the portrait of a great artist, or the grace of a dancer, or the speed and strength of an athlete, our marveling is often a reflection of ourselves.

When I see a power lifter throw ridiculous amounts of weight over his head, I am incredulous, because I know I can’t do that… and because I can’t do that, I assume others can’t do it, either. When an artist paints a lovely landscape, I marvel, because I know I can’t do that, either… and it seems incredible that someone else can. I marvel, because my eyes are normally on myself, worshipping myself, and esteeming myself as an idol. And when my eyes get torn away from myself, the ridiculousness of my idolatry is obvious—why in the world would I ever think that I, in my sinful weakness, should be a measure of anything? Why would I be surprised to find things in God’s creation far more sublime than I? Only because I have forgotten the magnificence and glory of God, who truly is the measure of all things.

In the reading from Acts, Peter and John encounter a beggar, lame from birth. His lot in life was to be placed at the entrance of the Temple, and beg for money so that he might eat that day. Lots of people knew him—they passed him often on their way to the Temple. Peter paused as he went through that gate, and looked at him. Noticing that the beggar was not paying much attention, he called to him, and insisted that the beggar pause and look at him. In that moment, Peter used the power given Him by Christ through the Holy Spirit, to heal him. It was an astonishing moment, and the people who had passed by this beggar all the years of his miserable life, now saw him leaping and dancing and praising God for his restoration. I bet you and I would marvel, too, and for the same reason—with our eyes firmly on ourselves, we know we don’t have power to do such things, and our delusions of self idolatry are stripped bare. Something greater than ourselves is at work before our eyes.

And that’s what Peter and John have to explain to the marveling people. First they ask why they are marveling in the first place—a rhetorical question, designed to shake them out of themselves, and to get them to pay attention to the real actor at work in their midst. Next, they correct the crowd’s mistaken assumption, that somehow either of them has this power within themselves—Peter and John do not present themselves as new idols to the people, as if to take the place of their self idolatry. Rather, Peter guides them to Jesus, who is the One at work in the Apostles—Peter never points to himself, or glorifies himself, but only and always sets forth Christ. Instead of giving the people another worthless idol, he directs their eyes to the Crucified and Risen Christ, who is God Almighty—the One for Whom nothing is difficult, nothing out of reach.

While the healing of the lame man was certainly a great work of God in the presence of the people, such healing of the flesh is small potatoes in the sight of God. The sinful flesh we all dwell in is destined for the grave, and whether He heals us of today’s infirmity or not, we’re still doing to die. The real work He wants to show us, is how He conquered death and the grave, and cures that evil poison which courses through our veins. He wants to show us His own Beloved Son, who took on our flesh, and in our place suffered the curse of sin for all people, of all time, and all places. Through His death and resurrection, He has turned the tables on the evil one, cast down Satan our accurser out of heaven, and reconciled us to our Holy God. Jesus has done the real work that God wants us to see and believe, because He knows that as we look at ourselves, we can only despair in the face of death. On our own, of our own power, we cannot escape the grave, nor the hell which lies beyond it. But through Jesus and His magnificent sacrifice, we have peace with God, and the Kingdom of Heaven awaits us beyond that same grave. By faith in the Son of God, the grave is no longer a portal to hell, but simply a passage from death to life, together with Jesus forever. Death and the grave have lost their sting—they are no longer to be feared. Jesus has defeated them, just as He defeated the evil one.

Does Jesus work wonders among the people, even today? Indeed! In every age of the Church, we have seen miraculous works of God. Through the power of prayer, the sick have been healed, and those on death’s door restored to life. Through the annals of Church History, the stories of the saints (which are only the tip of the iceberg,) and the experiences of Christians everywhere, we know that our God is alive, and works wonders of all sorts and kinds. But the great wonder that He is always guiding us toward, is His work of forgiveness, eternal life, and salvation, accomplished through Jesus Christ. That resurrection of dead sinners by grace through faith in the Son of God, is the greatest work we could be witness to—our God, triumphant over death and hell, saving us forever.

And why should we marvel? We know our Lord Jesus Christ to be alive, and at work amongst His people. He is alive, and thus we live, forevermore in Him. Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed—Alleluia!

Meditations on Holy Week, 2012

There’s a lot going on in the churches these days. Besides the ruckus going on with various church bodies over matters of doctrine and practice, or over litigation and schism, or over power and plunder, or even over the issues that cause friction between the churches and the states in which they operate, there’s a lot going on inside the various congregations that has little to do with these more public spectacles. The churches are busy this time of year, with the labors of Holy Week.

For those of us who remember the ancient forms of the church’s pattern of worship, handed down for nearly 2000 years, Holy Week begins on the Sunday before Easter, marking Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem amidst the accolades and waving palms of the crowds. From the moment of Jesus’ incarnation at Christmas, He has been moving toward this monumental week, and He is neither distracted nor deflected from His path by these cries of “Hosanna!” He knows what is in the heart of man—a sinful disease that has no human cure, which only His spilled blood can wash away. He knows that these fickle hearts who clamor to make Him king this day, will call out for Him to be crucified only a few days later.

Then the season turns to the days of teaching and prophecy that Jesus gave His disciples in those last days before His Passion. Holy Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday bear witness to Jesus’ not having lost sight of His mission to the cross… of His mission to save the world from sin, death, and the devil. He continues to call people to walk with Him, because He is the light of the world, and without His light, people only stumble and fall in the blackness of despair. As He has kept His disciples through His three years of ministry, He keeps them to the end.

On Maundy Thursday, our Lord celebrates the Passover feast with His disciples—something He says He has very much wanted to do. He knows, as He is celebrating this ancient feast which pointed to the deliverance of Israel from Egypt, that its true purpose would be revealed in Him. There is a deliverance greater than the release from oppression of an earthly tyrant, and Jesus is about to work that miracle of our redemption from an unholy adversary. His very Body and Blood which will be given up and shed for the sins of the world, He now gives to His disciples as the perpetual Remembrance of Him. Christians in every century have heard our Lord’s words here, and taken them to heart. Jesus has given us the means to remember Him and what He has done for us, and we keep His word together with the bread and the wine.

On that very night, which passes into Good Friday, our Lord enters His Passion. Betrayed by a disciple, and abandoned by the others. Handed over by his own countrymen, to be tortured and crucified by foreign oppressors. Stripped bare of his clothing, and His flesh laid open by the scourge. Taunted and spat upon, even as He carried His own cross to the place of His execution. Nailed through hands and feet to the coarse wood of the cross, crowned with thorns, and the accusation of his mocked kingship placed over His wounded head. Lifted up for all to see, having the sins of the whole world laid upon Him, suffering the worst that the devil could muster against Him. Even in His agony, He ministers to the penitent thief dying next to Him, assuring Him that he would be with Him in paradise. And when all was complete, when every prophecy was fulfilled and every ounce of the Father’s wrath against sin and evil was poured out, He cried out with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit. The Son of God, the Messiah promised to Eve in the Garden, heralded by the prophets of Israel for centuries as the hope of the nation and the hope of the whole world, hung dead on a Roman cross.

With Jesus in the tomb, the church waits silently through Holy Saturday, in communion with the disciples who huddled together, pondering what it meant for the Light of the World to have died at the hands of sinful men. Waiting, the church meditates on the price paid for the sins of every man, woman, and child who ever walked the earth since the beginning, and who will ever walk the earth until its end. Waiting, the church remembers that our Savior has suffered all, endured all, for the salvation of His people. The church waits with Jesus in the tomb, but not without hope.

For death cannot hold the Lord of Life, and Easter Sunday explodes forth in shouts of triumph from the people of God. Christ is risen, with healing in His wings. Christ is alive, and death is overthrown. Christ is living, and we who live in Him, shall live forever more. Christ reigns, and the devil shall never show His face in heaven again. Christ is our High Priest and Intercessor with the Father, and the accuser of the brethren is cast down. Sin, death, and the devil are defeated foes, because Christ lives!

Here is the heart of Holy Week—it is the eternally beating heart of our Crucified and Risen Lord, Jesus Christ. Here is the treasure the church has been given, that Christ has paid all, and that through His blood, we have reconciliation with God, forgiveness, and life forever more. Here is the miracle of this blessed season, that we who sat in darkness, have seen a Great Light—a Light no darkness can overcome. Christ is risen, and we who have been baptized into His death, are alive with Him forever. Christ is risen—let the kingdom of darkness quake and cower. Christ is risen—let the earth hear His voice, preached loud and clear in His eternal Gospel of salvation for all who will believe. Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed—Alleluia!