Apocalypse 2012

Getting ready to ring in the new year...watching old videos from my oldest son's first french toast breakfast which was also his first surfing trip. Then I checked out a video from the 'Our Family is your Family' thanksgiving over at our first church, then as I reflected on Sebastian's baptism this year, I was taken back to the day he was born, his little lip shivering and the fear and excitement and beauty and messiness. Awesome. Bringing forth new life is always a messy ordeal though...ask any mother...and as this year gives birth to the next, I can't help but be filled with hope for what the Lord will do and how my household and my community gets to be a part of it all with Him.

In order to look forward, it’s often wise to first look back and see from where you've come. In 2011, there have been a lot of challenges. Many victories and many failures, and life has emerged victorious from the midst of all of it. I've prayed and cried,yelled and sobbed. I've had dreams and nightmares, visions and darkness, I've heard the Lord's voice and battled with the devil. I've been set on fire and filled to overflowing. I've rejoiced and I've lamented. I've struggled with men and with God, fallen and risen, died and come again to life. I do my best to give God glory through it all because I love my Father and I love my King, Jesus.

I’m still learning how to be a husband, a father and all the other things I’m to be…and to do it all while dying to myself, so that Messiah can live his life through me…I have struggled with what that means, what it looks like and how it manifests on earth as in heaven. Following Jesus, has not been easy for me. It wasn’t easy for him, so i don't expect it to be. I don’t believe he lived the life he did so we don’t have to, but so that we would have the hope, courage and power to follow Him in exactly that life. This means courage and humility, boldness and wisdom, strength and compassion, suffering and conquering and so much more…but in the end…faith, hope and love.

A few things I’ve learned more intimately over the past year for what it’s worth…

God is faithful.

My life has been somewhat formless and void over the last year, it lacked direction, function and order in many areas. I battled with confusion, doubt and demons I knew nothing about…but they were as real as me sitting here typing. One thing is a fact though, evil must be allowed to come out, do their worst and then be dealt with head on. There’s no use dilly-dallying around. You have to get past the surface rubbish… ‘peace, peace’ when there is no peace, stare the horsemen in the face and endure…that’s the Way.

The world is coming to an end…and it starts with us

The way we have done things in the past will not be the way they are done in the future. We are called to be good stewards of God’s good creation, to be image bearers and God has ordained it that he will work through his children to bring his glad, wise order into the world…filling it with Himself. Creation groans for this and we who have the first fruits find ourselves groaning within for the redemption of our bodies. In this hope we were saved. May this be a year where the sons of God are revealed. May we not only walk in the Spirit, but be driven by the Spirit. This past year, as I mentioned, I found there were many things that needed to be brought into order, and there is still more. He is faithful to do it if we are willing to stand in the light, as ugly as that might be at times, he can cleanse and renew centuries and even millennia of wounds by the blood of the Lamb and the power of the Holy Ghost. This is for our good, so that we will not lead lives that are to no effect, that we will not run in vain. This is what he wants for us. It pleases the Father to give us the Kingdom.

Jesus is the Way, the Truth and the Life

In all creation, there was only one who was worthy to open the truth to us, God’s plan for the redemption of the world. It’s ugly, it’s messy and it’s absolutely beautiful. Messiah Jesus, was the firstborn from the dead so that he might be first in all things. He leads the way. Everything is through him and for him. It is in him that God has summed up the whole cosmos. So if you want to know what God is doing and how he’s doing it, look to the Son. If you want to know what God is like, look to the Son. If you want to know what God wants to do through you, look at what he did through the firstborn of the brethren. Then realize that the same power that created the cosmos, that raised Jesus from the dead, that holds all all things together and sustains all things is at work in you to do it. This is what we were saved for. It will be ugly, it will be messy...nobody wants to hear Revelation 6-20 much less go through it, but 21 and 22 are worth it. There is Life after death.

Pray, listen and walk.

From: Christ-mas To: Easter : Luke 24v36-53

As they were saying this, Jesus himself stood in the midst of them, and said,'Peace be with you.' They were terrified and alarmed, and thought the were seeing a ghost.

'Why are you disturbed?' he said. 'Why do these questionings come up in your hearts? Look at my hands and feet; it really is me, myself. Touch me and see! Ghosts don't have flesh and bones like you see that I have.'

With these words, he showed them his hands and feet.

While they were still in disbelief and amazement from sheer joy, he said to them, 'Have you got something here to eat? They gave him a piece of baked fish, which he took and ate in front of them.

Then he said to them,'This is what I was talking to you about when I was still with you. Everything written about me in the law of Moses, and in the prophets and the psalms, had to be fulfilled.' Then he opened their minds to understand the Bible.

'This is what is written,' he said: 'the Messiah must suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and in his name repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, must be announced to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are the witnesses for all this. Now, look: I'm sending upon you what my Father has promised. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.'

Then he took them out as far as Bethany, and lifted up his hands and blessed them. As he was blessing them, he was separated from them and carried into heaven.

They worshiped him, and went back to Jerusalem in great joy. They spent all their time in the Temple, praising God.

As we look to the final scene in the Gospel according to Luke, we have the realization of the hope of Israel and from Israel to all people and indeed, the whole cosmos. In Messiah Jesus, a new heaven and new earth, where justice is at home. God, we see, has taken Jesus' body and made something altogether new out of it. Able to step back and forth through the curtain that separates God's realm, heaven, and our realm, earth (Psalm 115v16). Jesus is perfectly comfortable on either side, in him, you see, the two have become one. This is very difficult for many to understand, Paul invests a good bit of time throwing light upon the subject in 1 Corinthians 15. He makes it very clear that the final state of resurrection is not just spiritual, but has a new physicality about it....flesh, bone, eating, drinking...this is not to deny an intermediate state, that of angels and spirits, where we are 'at rest' and 'with Messiah' (Philippians 1v23-24)...

At these words, an argument broke out between the Pharisees and Saducees, and they were split among themselves. (The Saducees deny that there is a resurrection, or any intermediate state of 'angel' or 'spirit', but the Pharisees affirm both.) Acts 23v7-8

It is a terrifying thing to have the curtain drawn back. Especially the first time. In the Apocalypse (which means unveiling/revelation), John falls down 'as a dead man' before the Lord. But our Lord, seems to always extend words and a touch of grace,'peace be with you' says the Lord...never the less it is an awe inspiring situation, one you wouldn't trade for anything!

And here is the revelation...the biblical Christian hope is for what we see fully and finally in Messiah Jesus right here in the scripture, a fully integrated heaven and earth, this is the 'home' that the born again believer belongs to. God has summed up the cosmos in Messiah Jesus, and this is why we feel so uncomfortable in the world as it is, where His will is not being fully done on earth as in heaven, and why when we have sin in our lives as believers, when we are not walking in the good works he has prepared for us to walk in, it grates on us until we identify it, call it what it is and repent, receiving the gracious forgiveness that is ever available to us through Jesus Christ, our great high priest, the Lamb of God. Then we are not walking in the 'world' or in the 'flesh', but in Messiah.

There is more to it though, Jesus wants us not to just wait round expecting it to all work itself out, but rather to wait, in worshipful prayer and praise, until we are empowered by the promise of the Father, the Holy Spirit...power from on high, and then to go out as redeemed redeemers, New Creation's who are sent into the old creation as agents and vessels through whom New Creation pours into the world until, the earth is full of the knowledge of YHWH as the waters cover the sea, or as Paul says...the time when 'God is all and in all.' This is where King Jesus is leading us. He is the way, the truth and the life, no one comes to the Father, but by him.

For all this, Paul can boldly encourage us, 'my dear family, be firmly fixed, unshakable, always full to overflowing with the Lord's work. In the Lord, as you know, the work you are doing will not be worthless!' 1 Corinthians 15v58

Merry Christmas! May the earth truly receive her King!

Let’s Turn This Thing Around - Luke 24v28-35

They drew near to the village where they were heading. Jesus gave the impression that he was going further, but they urged him not to.

‘Stay with us’ they said ‘it’s nearly evening; the day is almost gone.’ And he went in to stay with them. As he was sitting at table with them he took the bread and gave thanks. He broke it and gave it to them. Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.

Then they said to each other, ‘Do you remember how our hearts were burning inside us as he talked to us on the road, as he opened up the Bible for us?

And they got up then and there and went back to Jerusalem. There they found the eleven, and the people with them, gathered together.

They were saying, ‘The Lord really was raised! He has shown himself to Simon!’ Then they told what had happened on the road. And he was known to them in the breaking of bread.

Often times when things don’t go as we think they should we, in our disappointment, confusion and feeling of defeat we start to change direction, break away and go back to doing our own thing. We have a tendency to withdraw from whatever it was the Lord had us engaged in and enter into some sort of pity party or other unhealthy, destructive way of dealing with the situation…could be depression, substance abuse, or any other form of dealing with the core issue. It's going to come out somehow.

Jesus is still walking with you. He may give the impression that he’s ready to move on and leave you like that in order to get you to call out to him ‘Stay with us’. And it is in that moment, the moment when you open the door and he comes in and you sup together, breaking bread and giving thanks, when you share in that meal with Jesus that your eyes will be opened and you will receive the gift of repentance. You will remember the words that he has spoken to you only they will be ‘opened’ to you. And what else is there to do but get back to Jerusalem, and give your personal testimony and remind the people of what the Lord has given us to do as a single body.

I have been studying quite a bit on spiritual warfare recently and the Lord has given us some mighty tools to combat darkness. He continues to work and to reveal and 'open' to us new ways of advancing the Kingdom through new ‘spiritual technology'. He said greater things we would do. And in a world where the ‘golden calf’ has been allowed to grow up into a ‘bull’ placed right in the middle of the city, where mammon and belial, and any number of other wicked spirits seem to be entrenched in daily life, we need faith, courage, weapons and the discipleship to know what we’re doing. It seems to me though that in order to do more than bind these disgusting things, but to get them out of our lives and churches and then to start taking ground from them in the world, we need some repentance. No more rusty swords!

We need to ask ourselves why we have allowed the enemy to divide us on the battering ram of the Eucharist (Holy Communion), the good gift, that mighty weapon that declares to the world Jesus is King! Proclaiming his death until he comes!

‘The warfare we’re engaged in, you see, isn’t against flesh and blood. It’s against the leaders, against the authorities, against the powers that rule the world in this dark age, against the wicked spiritual elements in the heavenly places.’ – Ephesians 6v12

Lets look at it again, together, with fresh eyes and see just how powerful and essential it is for everyone who declares with their lips ‘Jesus is Lord’ and believes in their heart that God raised him from the dead, come together worthily for this meal. Secondly, baptism, another essential drained of its power because of divisions based on logistics and semantics…a powerful weapon that sits on the shelf. Why?

Now, let’s get on with it, back into the city, not asking ourselves, ‘Do I really ‘have’ to do that to be saved?’ It’s not just about that, it’s not just about you! That comes from the evil one!

But so that all covenant faithfulness (righteousness) would be fulfilled. That’s what Jesus did and why, and if you have him, you will do the things he did, you will walk as he walked to the degree of faithfulness you’ve been given. That’s what love looks like. That’s your personal relationship with Jesus that leads unto the Father.

‘Fight the noble fight of the faith; get a firm grasp on the life of the coming age, the life you were called to when you made the noble public profession before many witnesses.’ – 1 Timothy 6v12

Who Was That Masked Man? Luke 24v13-27

That very day, two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, which lay about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were discussing with each other all the various things that had taken place. As they were discussing, and arguing with each other, Jesus himself approached and walked with them. Their eyes, though, were prevented from recognizing him.

'You're obviously having a very important discussion on your walk,' he said; 'What's it all about?'

They stood still, a picture of gloom. Then one of them, Cleopas by name, answered him.

'You must be the only person around Jerusalem,' he said,'who doesn't know what's been going on there the last few days.'

'What things?' he asked.

'To do with Jesus of Nazareth,' he said to him. 'He was a prophet. He acted with power and he spoke with power, before God and all the people. Our chief priests and rulers handed him over to be condemned to death, and they crucified him. But we were hoping that he was going to redeem Israel!

And now, what with all this, it's the third day since it happened. But some women from our group have astonished us. They went to his tomb very early this morning, and didn't find his body. They came back saying they'd seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. Some of the folk with us went off to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but they didn't see him.'

'You are so senseless!' he said to them. 'So slow in your hearts to believe all the things the prophets said to you! Don't you see? This is what had to happen: the Messiah had to suffer, and come into his glory!'

So he began with Moses, and with all the prophets, and explained to them the things about himself throughout the whole Bible.

Life can have it's disappointments.

We don't get into the college we had been trying so hard to get into. We can't seem to land that job will provide that sense of meaningfulness we long for. Our favorite football team can't get out of this losing streak. Our country is ruled by people obsessed with money, power and this global economic empire...people gas our children and publicly humiliate and kill our freedom fighters, all the while our religious leaders are pressing for this elusive thing called holiness and revival, with the more powerful lobbying to implement it by legislating it, enforcing it through violence rather than doing the hard work of making disciples of Messiah, developing character and raising children up in the way they should go. Which equates to not lifting a finger to help the situation, but rather makes it worse.

And yet in the midst of that, we go on walking...having the conversation, arguing and mourning the way things have turned out...it's not supposed to be like this! Why don't they just do what it says in the Bible! The answer, Jesus says, is that they are doing what it says in the Bible...the question is what role are you walking in today? What role is your church playing as a body? The city your planted in? Your nation your planted in? One of faith or one of doubt? One of truth or one of lies? One of destruction or one of healing? One of violence or one of peace? One of darkness or one of light? One of death or one of Life?

Today that's what is set before us, death or Life? I urge you to confront the darkness in you and around you by choosing Life. Chose Life now...and chose it again tomorrow and the next day and for ever more.

Are you in Messiah? The one who prayerfully suffers for the sake of the world and thereby overcomes it? Who refuses to try to overcome evil with evil, but rather to overcome evil with good? Are you one with the only hope of the nations? Or are you walking in the role of the world?

Perhaps you're the young radical who's decided that physical violence or destructive rebellion is the only way to bring healing? Perhaps you're the Sadducee who is just trying to keep the peace, as long as your bank account is filled up and checkbook balanced? Perhaps you've been the Pharisee who knows the bible like the back of your hand, but can't stand the thought of having a beer with the landscape guys, the painter and the unemployed plumber down at the pub? Or maybe you've become like Pilate who just wants to keep all these backward thinking desert people in line and stop them from bringing their violence to your doorstep or worse to upset your boss and then you can forget about re-election?

Or maybe, just maybe...you've come to the foot of the cross...or perhaps you've experienced the cross, that place of death...and on the other side of it you're finding new life springing forth in ways you never could have imagined...perhaps you have found yourself to be a fulfillment of our Lord's prayer...you've been caught up in the love of the one true God and are becoming like the man from Galilee...now you are in the world, but, strangely, you know you are not from the world, your being kept from the evil one, here to boldly announce the King and bring forth the Kingdom, the sovereign reign of God, his glad, wise order. You are a part of a royal priesthood in Messiah, the one they called a prophet, mighty in word and deed...who turned out to be the Son of God.

Maybe...hopefully...you have turned your whole self to our Father, in Jesus' name, and that is exactly where you are at. Want to work out your own salvation with fear and trembling?

This is how it works out. Everything exists for the sake of God and because of him; and it was appropriate that, in bringing many children to glory, he should make perfect, through suffering, the one who leads the way to salvation. For the one who makes others holy, and the ones who are made holy, all belong to a single family.

This is why he isn't ashamed to call them his brothers and sisters, when he says,

I will announce your name to my brothers and sisters;
I will sing your praise in the middle of the assembly,

and again,

I will place my trust in him,

and again,

Look, here I am, with the children God has given me.- Hebrews 2v10-13

Resurrection Now: Luke 24v1-12

The women went to the tomb in the very early morning of the first day of the week, carrying the spices they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, and when they went in they didn't find the body of the Lord Jesus.

As they were at a loss what to make of it all, suddenly two men in shining clothes stood beside them. The women were terrified, and bowed their faces towards the ground.

But the men said to them, 'Why look for the living with the dead? He isn't here - he's been raised! Don't you remember? While you were still in Galilee he told you that the son of man must be crucified, and rise again on the third day.'

And they remembered his words.

They went back, away from the tomb, and told all this to the eleven and all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the wife of James, and the others with them. They said this to the apostles; and this message seemed to them just stupid, useless talk, and they didn't believe them.

Peter, though, got up and ran to the tomb. He stooped down and saw only the grave-clothes. He went back home perplexed at what happened.

Have you ever been taken by complete surprise, only to reflect back on it later and realize, oh yeah, of course it had to be that way! Or perhaps you were in eager expectation over something you had well planned and thought out, only to realize, oops, I haven't gotten it all figured out and so your immediate astonishment turns into a hunger to seek more diligently what has actually just happened? It can be an emotional roller coaster learning to trust beyond all our preconceived notions. We often think that we trust more than we really do, it's not until control is removed that we really find out what our faith is made of. That is where the disciples are right now...

Jesus, however, had given up all control and simply said to Father,'not my will, but yours be done.' And in that absolute obedience he became the Lamb worthy to open the scroll of God's perfect will. God honored him by raising him from the dead with Power on, as Luke puts it, 'the first day of the week'. Drawing us ever so subtly back the the future, back to the Genesis creation poem, letting us know that New Creation, the New Heavens and New Earth where true covenant faithfulness dwells has been completed, fully and finally in Jesus the Messiah, our King. And what is true of the King will be true of his Kingdom(Matthew 28v18-20)so it is being worked out with fear and trembling. Right now, they are just wrestling and struggling with the fact that they expected the Messiah to come at the end of history to set all things to rights, rather than in the midst of it. What is going on? This isn't what it was supposed to look like...or was this exactly how it was supposed to be?

One thing I know, and this is a non-negotiable. Jesus must be received into heaven until the ultimate renewal of all things. Our King is seated at the right hand of the Father. The result of which is that the promised Holy Spirit is being poured out upon creation. Jesus is the Savior of all mankind, especially those who believe. As it's written...

'The Lord said to my Lord,
Sit at my right hand,
Until I place your enemies
underneath your feet.'

So let everyone 'know' this fact: Death has no mastery over Messiah Jesus, God raised him from the dead and made him to be Lord and Messiah, Jesus...the crucified one, who loves you and died a gruesome death in obedience to our Father. God is Agape and He will never give up on His beloved. He has promised and he will do it, 'the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.''For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.'

Father, may we profess the gospel boldly even as our own faith grows, keeping our minds set on heavenly things and not the circumstances of the day. Be glorified in our bodies, a prepared sanctuary for you to dwell by the Spirit. May we love as you love, with a vibrant humility and a strong compassion, that you may be honored and your will be done on earth as in heaven, even as we are sent out to bring about the obedience of faith by the power of your Spirit,in Jesus' name. AMEN

Pills and Bullets: Luke 23v44-56

By the time of the sixth hour, darkness came over all the land. The sunlight vanished until the ninth hour. The veil of the temple was ripped down the middle. Then Jesus shouted out at the top of his voice, 'Here's my Spirit, Father! You can take care of it now!' And with that he died.

The centurion saw what happened, and praised God.

'This fellow', he said,'really was in the right.'

All the crowds who had come together for the spectacle saw what happened, and they went away beating their breasts. Those who knew Jesus, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, remained at a distance and watched the scene.

Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the council. He was a good and righteous man, and had not given his consent to the court's verdict or actions. He was from Arimathaea, a town in Judaea, and he was longing for God's kingdom. He approached Pilate and asked for Jesus' body. He took it down and wrapped it in a shroud, and put it in a tomb hollowed out of the rock, where no one had ever been laid. It was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning.

The women who had followed Jesus, the ones who had come with him from Galilee, saw the tomb and how the body was laid. Then they went back to prepare spices and ointments. On the sabbath they rested, as the commandment specified.

This weekend I gave a book to my father-in-law called Agape Road. One of the things the book helped me to identify and begin to ask God to deal with was the need to be 'right'. The book identifies this as a type of giant in the land of your person that stands in opposition to God's people entering the land and thus in opposition to God. Now, to be 'right' generally means holding to a fact that one believes to be concrete. That doesn't seem like a bad thing at first and for a lot of people they believe that is in some way the same as faith.

Biblical truth is not so much like one of David's smooth small stones, nor is it so much like a hewn stone that one builds a temple with, as important as those are to the Revelation of God. Rather, biblical truth is like a pearl of great value. It shimmers as the light reflects upon it and all the different colors dance and rejoice. Or perhaps its like a diamond whose light reflects differently but always beautifully depending on how it's held in the Light.

Goliath thought he and his Philistine's were 'right'. They after all had the might, the size...every perceivable worldly advantage...so the battle must be theirs. They were, however, 'wrong'. They were ignorant of the will of the one true God, to reveal Himself and to redeem His good creation. Somewhere along the way, like everyone, they had become disconnected from God, as we all have due to sin. And so, the giant needs to be dealt with either through repentance, coming into line with the Gospel, or it must be cast out.



Here we see that Jesus had stood up against that same giant only to be crucified like so many other failed messiah's. Only Jesus, unlike anyone before him was 'in the right' making this ironically, not only a triumph, but the triumph that eternity would center on, Beginning and End. Luke want's this to be firmly established. He has given us a multitude of witnesses, from what would have been considered highly unreliable witnesses at the time (women), to a Roman centurion, to a wealthy Arimathaean, and then some. But there are principalities and powers at work that would have you disregard these witnesses...to enslave you again to unbelief, distract you with all sorts of evil to keep you from growing up into the Child of God that you are.

Luke wants us to be clear not only that there was a real Jesus who was really crucified, but that he was 'in the right' that is to say that He was in perfect communion with the Father, in relationship to His will and walking it out, Heaven and Earth were one. So there's the difference between being 'right' and being 'in the right'. To be 'in the right' is declared by God the moment you profess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead. Then begins the journey of being 'in the right'...walking in the Spirit, in all the good works God has prepared before hand that you should walk in them. So to be 'right' as in 'holding to a fact that one believes to be concrete' and unwilling to understand something from a greater depth, breadth, height or width for fear of deviation or failure is not God's way. God's Truth is relational and dynamic, always effective regardless of our personal failures to either understand or to walk out. This is grace at work, rather than law.

Try, for instance, to 'know' your spouse that by holding to them as a fact that you believe to be concrete. It just doesn't make sense. My wife and I have lived our lives in routine for a while, but peace is lacking and you eventually wake up feeling devoid of love and fruitfulness...sunken into a lifeless routine, going through the motions, no longer abiding.

That is not the kind of relationship God made us for, Christ and the Church are not made to function that way, faith doesn't work that way, and the Spirit that, like the wind, goes were it pleases, dances and rejoices, laments and wails as it flows within and according to the counsel of God's purposes certainly doesn't work that way. This is why the law never had the ability to save anyone, rather it works more like a babysitter until the Messiah comes, making the outward observance of law obsolete, because the purpose of the law is fulfilled in and through the believer by the power of the Spirit, Messiah Jesus in you.

What you do with this revelation once you wake up, is a matter of free will. Will you get lulled back into the way you were doing things before or will you refuse to be bewitched and put again under slavery to the law? That would not be faith. Faith is the end of the Law, it's fulfillment, it's purpose...enter true freedom, God's rest.

The veil has been ripped right down the middle and Heaven is being poured upon all the Earth, that's Good News...what will you do with Him? Now, I would urge you to be reconciled to God, give Jesus that hollowed out place in your heart...the seed is in. Now, hold on tight, believe God's promise...he has confirmed it by an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, you may have confidence...something miraculous is about to happen so you will 'know' that Jesus is God's Messiah and that God stands by His Word...

May we ever trust Jesus for our tomorrow, because He is already there.

Springtime Green in the Fall: Luke 23v27-43

A great crowd of the people followed Jesus, including women who were mourning and wailing for him. Jesus turned and spoke to them.

'Daughters of Jerusalem,' he said, 'don't cry for me. Cry for yourselves instead! Cry for your children! Listen: the time is coming when you will say,"A blessing on the barren! A blessing on the wombs that never bore children, and the breasts that never nursed them!" At that time people will start to say to the mountains,"Fall on us," and to the hills, "Cover us"! Yes: if this is what they do with the green tree, what will happen to the dry one?'

Two other criminals were taken away with him to be executed. When they came to the place called The Skull, they crucified him there, with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left.

'Father,' said Jesus,'forgive them! They don't know what they are doing!'

They divided his clothes, casting lots for them.

The people stood around watching. The rulers hurled abuse at him.

'He rescued others,' they said, 'let him try and rescue himself, if he really is the Messiah, God's chosen one!'

The soldiers added their taunts, coming up and offering him cheap wine.

'If you're the king of the Jews,' they said, 'rescue your self - and us too!'

But the other one told him off. 'Don't you fear God?' he said. 'Your sharing the same fate as he is! In our case it's fair enough; we're getting exactly what we asked for. But this fellow hasn't done anything out of order.'

'Jesus,' he went on,'remember me when you finally become king.'

'I'm telling you the truth,' replied Jesus,'you will be with me in paradise, this very day.'

Have you ever felt as though you had no idea what was going on? It is not a comfortable place to be. Especially for people like me. People who grew up as latch key kids. Back and forth between parents your whole life, who were trying to do the best they knew how. From the pain and joy that comes with having very little, to the pain and joy that comes from having too much. Without Christ there to teach you contentment and peace, holiness and virtue...love, faith and hope...you get wounded, you become hardened, corrupted, bitter and manipulative...sinful. This is not how things are supposed to be. You know that down to the deepest recesses of your soul, we all do. But that's just how it is. That train keeps on rolling, you're weeping and mourning on the inside, but you've become hardened. That's what we are programmed to do. Suck it up, move on, push through, get to the other side of it as best we can, up? down? left? right?...who knows?. Just don't let anyone get too close to you, they might hurt you.

Have we lost the power of mourning in our generation? Do we just bottle it up? Then we lose the true power, the power to forgive and accept forgiveness. We become dehumanized, desensitized and worst of all moved further from God, moving further from the image of the Father, who looks over the creation He once called 'very good' and sees the violence within it. The scriptures tell us this grieves Him to his very heart and it should grieve us too. We see this in Jesus, who, from the Mount of Olives, looked upon Jerusalem, weeping.

But look and see, He is the Living one, Christ Jesus, the great physician, there to not only save your soul, but to heal your land and redeem the time.

Jesus tells those following after him, not that everything will be ok, but that if this is what the world does to the one in whom the Fullness was pleased to dwell(a green tree)...what will happen to the rest of this generation who rejected God's Son, their last and only chance? There is the urgency of the Gospel. What will happen to the children of the parents who rejected the Gospel of peace? Violent rebellion, revolts, wars and rumors of wars...young rebellious kids with religious/political/nationalistic ideals and with the older generation egging them on, pouring gasoline on the dry wood. When the world comes down on them, it will be horrific.

Right then, right there...on that cross, Jesus, was becoming king. The sign above his head was meant to mock him, but it declared the truth for everyone to see...The Gospel, Jesus is Lord.

That very day the transgressor who put his faith in Christ would enter into paradise, that glorious place of rest and renewal, with the King.

We see that when it comes down to the wire, it's about faith...trust...the fear of God... Love made perfect in us.

Paul, however, would remind us that it is neither the man on the left nor the man on the right in whose image we are being conformed to, but that of the Son of God, the Messiah, the image bearer who hung on the cross between the two criminals. Him whose blood cried out and still does, 'Father, forgive them! They don't know what they are doing!'

Father, thank you, that you loved us so much that you sent your Son, Jesus, to die for our sins according to your promises, that he was buried and that he was declared the Son of God with Power by the resurrection from the dead. Thank you for all the trials and tribulations that lead us to a place of death, the cross, so that we can know you the only God and Jesus Christ, the one you sent, that we are no longer bound by seasons, but can have abundant life simply by turning to you in faith. Thank you for your faithfulness and the faithfulness of all those whom you work powerfully through. In, Jesus' name, AMEN.

Barabbas and Simon the Cyrene: Luke 23v13-26

So Pilate called the chief priests, the rulers and the people.

'You brought this man before me,' he said to them,'on the grounds that he was leading them astray. Look here, then: I examined him in your presence and I found no evidence in him of the charges you're bringing against him. Nor did Herod; he sent him back to me. Look: there is no sign that he's done anything to deserve death. So I'm going to flog him and let him go.'

'Take him away!' they shouted out all together. 'Release Barabbas for us!' (Barabbas had been thrown into prison because of an uprising that had taken place in the city, and for murder.) Pilate spoke to them again, with the intention of letting Jesus go, but they shouted back,'Crucify him! Crucify him!'

'Why?' he said for a third time. 'What's he done wrong? I can't find anything he's done that deserves death, so I'm going to beat him and let him go.'

But they went on shouting out at the tops of their voices, demanding that he be crucified; and eventually their shouts won the day. Pilate gave his verdict that their requests should be granted. He released the man who'd been thrown into prison because of rebellion and murder, and gave Jesus over to their demands.

As they led him away, they grabbed a man from Cyrene called Simon, who was coming in to the city from the outside, and they forced him to carry the cross beam behind Jesus.

The charges have been framed yet Herod didn't kill him, now he's back to Pilate and Pilate finds no fault in Jesus, yet the chief priests and rulers are determined to have Jesus crucified. Then the Gospel brings us to focus on another conflict, Jesus - God's Messiah delivering the message of peace by self-giving Love, the Kingdom of the true and living God... and Barabbas - the leader of another messianic movement with it's message of kingdom by way of violence.

Here we see, as we so often do, the crowds and religio-political leaders prefer to go the way of violence over against the way of Jesus. This, they believe, is the best way to go about things. The irony is that it is this very choice, played out over the next forty years until 70a.d. when Jesus is vindicated as his prophecies of the Temple's destruction come to fruition and those who have kept faith in Jesus the Messiah are vindicated with him. The confirmation of the New Covenant's superiority to the old become firmly fixed, Jesus is in fact God's anointed one, having had all authority in heaven and on earth given him, ascended to and seated at the right hand of the Father, ruling and reigning until all enemies are put under his feet.

And it is those at his feet...those who go to the foot of the cross to receive cleansing and healing...to be saved, who then go on to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Then we have this Simon, who is grabbed and forced to bear the cross beam for Jesus as he went on the way to fulfill his vocation.

How can we work in and through the Spirit to lead the Barabbas's of the world to Jesus? How has this part of the narrative played out in your life? Knowing Jesus, how does this effect your response to being called to bear someone else's burdens?

The Sword - Luke 23v1-12

The whole crowd of them got up and took Jesus to Pilate.

They began to accuse him. 'We found this fellow,' they said, 'deceiving our nation!

He was forbidding people to give tribute to Caesar, and saying that he is the Messiah - a king!'

So Pilate asked Jesus, 'You are the king of the Jews?'

'You said it,' replied Jesus.

'I find no fault in this man,' said Pilate to the chief priests and the crowds. But they became insistent.

'He's stirring up people,' they said, 'teaching them throughout the whole of Judea. He began in Galilee, and now he's coming here.'

When Pilate heard that, he asked if the man was indeed a Galilean. When he learned that he was from Herod's jurisdiction he sent him to Herod, who happened also to be in Jerusalem at that time.

When Herod saw Jesus he was delighted. He had been wanting to see him for quite some time now, since he'd heard about him, and hoped to see him perform some sign or other.

He questioned him this way and that but Jesus gave no answer at all. The chief priests and the scribes stood by accusing him vehemently. Herod and his soldiers treated us with contempt; they ridiculed him by dressing him up in a splendid robe, and sent him back to Pilate. And so it happened, that very day, that Herod and Pilate became friends with each other. Up until then, they had been enemies.

We have all seen the reconciliation that can happen when Jesus enters into the lives of believers. Here though we see Jesus, God's Messiah, and Pilate (the representative of Rome and Caesar). Also the climax of a long story that has been under the surface the whole time. The conflict between Jesus and Herod. The rightful King and pseudo-king of the Jews.

Jesus was not what Herod had expected though, he would not put on a show or perform a miracle. He did not call in a legion of angels. He gave no answer at all while he was mistreated. So failing to meet the expectations of Herod, he was sent again to Pilate. So it was that day that Herod and Caesar were united.

Everywhere Jesus goes people seem to become reconciled. Some for good, some for evil. But we know that once Jesus is received, we come to see that on the other side of His death it is all for life in the Resurrection. He works all things together, He is faithful. When Jesus take upon himself the sin of the world, he takes it all upon himself and carries it to the cross where it is nailed so that whosoever believes upon the name of Jesus shall be saved and they shall have eternal life. You see, it is the will of God that none should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

As for me, I have experienced discipline in Christ because I'm a sinner who is loved by God, and beyond that as Christian I count it a privilege to suffer that others might find reconciliation. Wish I could say that my motives were always pure, but they're not. The idea is to seek holiness and thereby be prepared to experience the cross. Wish I had done a better job of that. The place of death for the sake of new life. Of course the enemy will bring your fears back on you, of course long forgiven sins will be poured out on you...this is a spiritual battle for God's glory though. As I've experienced it some has been for my conviction, some for the up building of others. To look at the broad scope of things you see all the different pieces a parts coming together. Even if it means becoming the one everyone hates...it's worth it. As it's written, we are like lambs to the slaughter, all day long we are killed...why? Love. how? To experience Christ's suffering and the Power of the Resurrection. The know God and Jesus Christ whom he has sent, this is eternal life.

I'm thankful to God for the people, who have shown this to me. They are Christ-like. Pray God, may I become a better Christian husband, dad, son, brother, minister and friend through it.

Sin Manifest or Why Halloween Sucks: Luke 22v54-71

So they arrested Jesus, took him off, and brought him into the high priest's house. Peter followed at a distance. They lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat around it, and Peter sat in among them.

A servant girl saw him sitting by the fire. She stared hard at him. 'This fellow was with him!' she said.

Peter denied it. 'I don't know him, woman,' he said.

After a little while another man saw him and said,'You're one of them!'

'No, my friend, I'm not,' replied Peter.

After the space of about an hour, another man insisted,'It's true! This man was with him; he's a Galilean!'

'My good fellow,' said Peter, 'I don't know what you're talking about.' And at once, while he was still speaking, the cock crowed. The Master turned and looked at Peter, and Peter called to mind the words the Master had spoken to him: 'Before the cock crows, this very day, you will deny me three times. And he went outside and wept bitterly.

The men who were holding Jesus began to make fun of him and knock him about. They blindfolded him.

'Prophesy!' they told him. 'Who is it that is hitting you?'
And they said many other scandalous things to him.

When the day broke, the official assembly of the people, the chief priests and the scribes came together, and they took him off to their council.

'If you are the Messiah,' they said, 'tell us!'

'If I tell you,' he said to them,'you won't believe me. And if I ask you a question you won't answer me. But from now on the son of man will be seated at the right hand of God's power.'

'So you are the son of God, are you?' they said.

'You say that I am,' he said to them.

'Why do we need any more witnesses?' they said. 'We've heard it ourselves, from his own mouth!'

The disciples fell asleep when they were supposed to be praying, they took up swords for violence, the Temple guard came out with swords and clubs against a man who never did any violence towards anyone except to tell the truth, this mob is led by Judas (one of Jesus' own disciples) Jesus is carried off to the chief priests house so they can question him in order to twist something he says into a charge against him the next day, the guards are pushing him around and mocking him and now Jesus' prophesy is coming true in Peter...denying even knowing the very man he received as the LORD's Messiah.

As Luke leads us in the Spirit toward the cross we ought to start to become keenly aware that sin is not just a theological idea. It is not a theory that put Jesus on the cross...it is real sin rooted deeply in us that produces real death. There's another thing Luke wants us to start to come to terms with...if you stand back and look at the sweep of things...everyone is guilty, all of them, all of us...all except the perfect Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, JESUS, in whose faithfulness we trust.

Ever pray dangerous prayers? Ever ask God to judge you as you judge others? To give you only what you need, no more, no less? To show you your sin and deal with it, mercifully, but effectively? I prayed some pretty dangerous prayers this last week. The Lord is faithful. I saw the Lord do some amazing things in the lives of some people who are very dear to me. All reason to give glory to God our Father and Jesus, His Messiah.

In this scripture sin is just swarming at Jesus from every angle. Ever felt like that? Ever been involved in something like that? Let a friend down at a key moment? Bullied someone? Judged someone wrongly in your heart? Mocked someone only to find out you were in the wrong? I have.

As we move into the most demonic time of the year, our church held 7 days of praise as a means to wage war against the darkness. We are called to do that sort of thing as citizens of Heaven, ambassadors of the Kingdom. I despise halloween for several reasons... a few years back one of the closest friends I've ever had disappeared for two weeks leading up to halloween and we found her passed on...this year God brought her daughter to me via facebook for some good conversation and to share some of her struggles with me (I was blessed and encouraged her to give my wife a call for some girl talk), also as a young man a group of my friends got jumped by some people and beat up pretty bad and of course the fact remains that halloween is an anti-holy day and the majority of what goes on and its basis is not appreciated by our King, JESUS. That's what I think of when I think of halloween.

I came under some pressure and took some heat this week...and I asked for it. The Lord has used it for good. The time at CCBB 7 Days of Praise was so refreshing in the midst of it and I praise God for all the awesome people God works though. So much junk in my heart got revealed to me this week and let me just say our sin is horrifying, God does not play around and He doesn't think its funny. Haven't been giving my family the attention they deserve, marriage issues, had some roots of bitterness in me to deal with (onions actually - onions have layers), had some unforgiveness issues so I made some calls to reconcile, felt some responsibility for my brother since I didn't abstain from alcohol around him which was stupid and insensitive (here's my 'defense'....he worked in a bar :-P)...anyway, I was up just praying, meditating, wrestling through the night a couple times this week...pretty intense. And of course I go on defense mode...shifting blame, trying to look good, be right, be in control, protect my agenda (which of course I think is always in line with God's agenda...lol), all those giants we face in the land as we battle the sin that dwells in us and do business with our loving Father, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

It is an awesome thing to enter into judgment before our God, what else can you do but stand through it or fall on your face and cry out for grace? It is truth that have come to Mount Zion the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel.

Glory be to the Father, to the Son and to the Holy Ghost.

Into the Battle: Luke 22v39-53

So off they went. Jesus headed, as usual, for the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him.

When he came to the place, he said to them,'Pray that you won't come to trial.'

He then withdrew from them about a stone's throw, and knelt down to pray.

'Father,' he said,'if you wish it - please take this cup away from me! But it must be your will, not mine.' An angel appeared to him from heaven, strengthening him. By now he was in agony, and he prayed fervently. And his sweat became like clots of blood, falling on the ground. Then he got up from praying, and came to the disciples and found them asleep because of sorrow.

'Why are you sleeping? he said to them. 'Get up and pray, so that you won't come into the trial.'

While he was speaking, a crowd appeared. The man named Judas, one of the Twelve, was leading them. He came towards Jesus to kiss him, but Jesus said to him, 'Judas! Are you going to betray the son of man with a kiss?'

Jesus' followers saw what was about to happen.

'Master!' they said. 'Shall we go in with the swords?' And one of them struck the high priest's servant, and cut off his right ear.

'Enough of that!' said Jesus, and healed the ear with a touch.

Then Jesus spoke to the chief priests, the Temple guardsmen, and the elders who had come after him.

'Anyone would think I was a brigand', he said,'for you to come out with swords and clubs! Every day I've been in the Temple with you and you never laid hands on me. But your moment has come at last, and so has the power of darkness.'

A true leader never wants those in his care to undergo any sort of serious 'trial','test' or 'great tribulation'. However, this is precisely what typically happens when the hour comes for that leader to come under attack. Jesus knew that, it happened all the time with Messianic movements and other rebel groups. This was different however. Jesus, in one sense knows that he must be tried, falsely convicted and executed in Jerusalem. (Luke 13v31-33) He is prepared for that. Many people are prepared to die for their faith. As a matter of fact, I've read Jewish writers trying to refute Jesus' sacrifice by pointing to other Jewish figures who died much more horrendous deaths for their faith.

So what happened between the upper room and this point in the Gospel where Jesus, who is normally so purposed and steadfast, in control... appears to be looking for a way out? Shrinking back from his vocation? Well, he was becoming sin for us. He was heading directly into the heart of darkness...him who knew no sin, no separation from God, was marching into God-forsakenness,to take the full weight of it on himself for the sake of those whom he loves and through them for the whole world. God-forsakenness...the full mental, spiritual and physical agony of being without God. The doubts came flooding in...maybe he had heard something wrong, misunderstood a sign, maybe like Abraham and Isaac...an angel would appear at this, the last moment, and stay the sacrifice...provide another way. This is a state of absolute suffering. The mention of his sweating blood is a documented condition very rarely found, but when it happens it is due to the person being amidst the highest levels of stress and mental anguish. The angel appears and does not provide an escape from this great tribulation, but rather the strength to stand through it. There is no other way.

He gets up and finds his disciples asleep for sorrow. Their flesh got the best of them. It does that sometimes, but He is merciful. He has taught them the whole time to pray...'lead us not into the perilous trial, but deliver us from evil'...he has prayed in the high priestly prayer that they not be taken out of the world, but they be kept safe from the evil one. The darkness.

His disciples taking up swords...well that was as ridiculous as the mob showing up with swords and clubs. Apparently, there is still little to no understanding of His Kingdom message, the message of peace...as though evil means could ever bring about righteous ends...He is neither a rebel zealot nor a militant messiah...but the answer has been given from Heaven and it has to be this way, the time for explaining is over. Now is the time for battle.

What about us?

We are told by the Apostle Peter (1 Peter 4v12-13) 'Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; but to the degree that you share the sufferings of Christ, keep on rejoicing, so that also at the revelation of His glory you may rejoice with exultation.'

We are told by the Apostle James (James 1v12) 'Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.

We are told by the author of Hebrews 'It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?' shortly after he reminds us that we 'have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin'

We are told by Paul to 'take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE; in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.'

And pray God we never lose sight of the fact that 'we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.'

May God's grace fill us and cover us. Blessed Father, by your Word, have mercy on us for our failings...for they are many. May Your spirit fall afresh upon us as You lead us forward in triumphant procession. May we, as one body in Messiah, remain alert and in fervent prayer, careful to never let our love grow cold, knowing Your faithfulness through Jesus Christ our King. May we be found in Him, not having a covenant faithfulness of our own derived from the Law or any other means, but that which is through faith in Messiah,the covenant faithfulness which comes from God on the basis of faith, that we may know Him and the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death; in order that we may attain to the resurrection from the dead. I pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.

All i Do is WIN! WIN! WIN! : Luke 22v24-38

A quarrel began among them: which of them was to be seen as the most important?

'Pagan kings lord it over their subjects,' said Jesus to them,'and people in power get themselves called "Benefactors".

That's not how it's to be with you. The most important among you ought to be like the youngest. The leader should be like the servant. After all, who is the more important, the one who sits at the table or the one who waits on him? The one at table, obviously! But I am with you here like a servant.

'You are the ones who have stuck it out with me through the trials I've had to endure. This is my bequest to you: the kingdom my Father bequeathed to me! What does this mean? You will eat and drink at my table, in my kingdom, and you will sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

'Simon, Simon, listen to this. The satan demanded to have you. He wanted to shake you into bits like wheat. But I prayed for you; I prayed that you wouldn't run out of faith. And, when you turn back again, you must give strength to your brothers.'

'Master,' replied Simon, 'I'm ready to go with you to prison - or to death!'

'Let me tell you, Peter,' replied Jesus, 'the cock won't crow today before you have three times denied that you know me.'

'When I sent you out,' Jesus said to them,'without purse or bag or sandals, were you short of anything?'

'Nothing,' they replied.

'But now,' he said, 'anyone who has a purse should take it, and the same with a bag. And anyone who doesn't have a sword should sell his cloak and buy one. Let me tell you this: when the Bible says, "He was reckoned with the lawless," it must be fulfilled in me. Yes; everything about me must reach its goal.'

'Look, Master,' they said,'we've got a couple swords here.'

'That's enough!' he said to them.

Being a Christian leader is difficult. It turns the worlds understanding of leadership on its head. Christian leadership, means the greatest glory you can have looks like this...

Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.

Christian leadership is difficult. That is an understatement. We need to be praying for our leaders...always.

There is something about the vocation, something about how the kingdom comes and will continue to come that requires the called to be prepared for a certain level of loneliness. Pick any major biblical leader, from Moses to the Prophets to Jesus and beyond. There are those who will always say, well I have God so I'm never lonely, and they may quote some scripture like, 'there is someone who sticks closer than a brother'...and that is true, but we were meant for more...God wants a family of image bearers, a grand one to carry forth his purpose and that's why he promised Abraham just that, because He so loves the world and wants to fill it with Himself as the waters cover the sea. God wants us to have accountability, honest communication, a love that spans lengths and breadths and heights and depths. Looking at Jesus here, we see his utter frustration though. He has been trying to prepare those in his care for what is about to happen for round three years now. They have constantly, almost determinedly, misunderstood him, he has had to battle doubt, people standing in direct opposition to him, fake friends, friends who fake, being lied to and being lied about. Most Christians, even many Christian leaders are just not prepared for the reality and the gravity and the depth of this kind of testing and trial. Jesus has been trying to prepare them for the battle of a lifetime...He has told them that this requires bearing a cross...a cross is a weight the world lays on you, it is the weight the evil one lays on you to show that you are not faithful, to win his case... a case that ever so subtly is the evil ones accusation against our God...'How is it that you, a 'good' God are so faithful to such a corrupt creation'...May God rebuke him! and may we be God's answer to the accuser's underhanded charges against God our Father. May we be like Job and ultimately Jesus (who was greater than Job, who suffered faithfully even through death. God restored EVERYTHING and then some to Job, and how much more will he COMPLETELY restore and reward those who stand faithfully in His own Son? And what types of people ought we to be in holiness in order to stand through the Day of the Lord? Knowing this, that the creation as it is...is passing away and will flee His holy presence, giving birth to a New Heaven and a New Earth...where Righteousness dwells. Amen Maranatha! 'Behold, I make all things new' says the Lord. Our personal salvation is but a seed in that garden, so let us not become ignorant of God's good intention and His faithfulness to His own purpose. It is for His namesake, and for His glory which He graciously crowns us with through His faithfulness and His great love shown forth for the whole world (1 John 2v2) in Jesus Christ our Lord, that none of us can boast!

Peter, presumably the leader to be, still doesn't get it...he boldly proclaims how far he's willing to go...Jesus just shakes his head and says, brother...I've prayed for you...for what? That your faithfulness would not fail...your gonna fail, but I've prayed that your faith will not fail...Jesus prayed that he will not lose sight of God's faithfulness to forgive and to restore, to tear down the works of the devil and to thus glorify God...the disciples, well, they still don't get his picture language in the last section, they still think he wants them to get their money together and take up actual swords and turn to the worlds ways of violence to win the battle they are headed into. The battle where the covering is taken off and their metal is tested. Those weapons won't do them or us any good in the war He's waging...the disciples misunderstanding and taking up swords, however, is still under the sovereignty of God...Jesus himself has said that it must be fulfilled that "He was reckoned with the lawless"...that will be part of what crucifies our Savior. The sin of the disciples.

'THAT'S ENOUGH!' roars the Lion of Judah and he still does...

The Last Supper: Luke 22v1-23

The time came for the festival of unleavened bread, known as Passover. The chief priests and the scribes looked for a way to assassinate Jesus, a difficult task because of the crowds.

The satan entered into Judas, whose surname was Iscariot, who was one of the company of the Twelve. He went and held a meeting with the chief priests and officers, to discuss how he might hand Jesus over. They were delighted, and promised to pay him. He agreed, and started to look for an opportunity to hand him over to them when the crowds weren't around.

The day of unleavened bread arrived, the day when people had to kill the Passover lamb. Jesus dispatched Peter and John.

'Off you go,' he said,'and get the Passover ready for us to eat.'

'Where d'you want us to prepare it?' they asked him.

'Listen carefully,' said Jesus. 'As you go into the city a man will meet you carrying a jar of water. Follow him, and when he goes into a house, go after him. Then say to the householder there,"The teacher says,'Where is the living-room where I can eat the Passover with my disciples?'" And he will show you a large upstairs room, laid out and ready. Make the preparations there.'

So they went and found it as he had said to them, and they prepared the Passover.

When the time came, Jesus sat down at table, and the apostles with him.

'I have been so much looking forward to eating this Passover with you before I have to suffer,' he said to them.

'For - let me tell you - I won't eat it again until it's fulfilled in the kingdom of God.'

Then he took a cup, and gave thanks, and said,'Take this and share it among yourselves. Let me tell you, from now on I won't drink from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.'

Then he took some bread. He gave thanks, broke it and gave it to them.

'This is my body,' he said, 'which is given for you. Do this in memory of me.'

So too, after supper, with the cup:'This cup', he said,'is the new covenant, in my blood which is shed for you.

But look here! The hand of the one who will betray me is with me at this table. The son of man is indeed going, as it is marked out for him; but woe betide that man by whom he is betrayed!'

They began to ask each other which of them was going to do this.

Luke has told us that Jesus is headed to Jerusalem to accomplish his Exodus. Jesus longs for his disciples to understand what he is doing and at the center of that longing has been his desire to share this meal with them. When Jesus wanted them to understand the atonement he did not offer a theological treatise, but something to do...share a simple meal...a meal rich with meaning,importance and truth. This is a Passover meal, the powers of evil...like Pharaoh's regime... are gathering round and doing everything they can to prevent it, Jesus has been preaching judgment on Israel and Jerusalem, and that judgment was going to come to fruition, but Jesus was going to lay down his life as the Passover lamb to allow his people to escape it. How? By taking the full weight of all the world's evil upon himself. The 'satan's' job is to accuse and that accusation would begin here with Judas...Jesus has been and would be falsely accused of being a false messiah, a deceiver, a false prophet, and worse by some...essentially a liar who is putting Israel in danger...in fact Jesus was innocent, it was Israel who was guilty, but he would take the punishment, because with all the powers of evil doing their worst, even to crucify the one who brings salvation, it is by his faithfulness in that event that God would defeat all of those powers. Those powers will still rage and will still seek to pull God's people back into slavery, but the rescue is secure.

Father, grant us mercy that we might be clothed in a heart of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience; bearing with one another, and forgiving each other as you've forgiven us that we may come to Your table in a worthy manner and do so in remembrance of the holy one, the crucified one, the resurrected one, the ascended one, Jesus Christ our Lord, your beloved Son. Amen

Sebastian's Favorite Prayer

I had the opportunity to join my friends from Kairos (translates 'God's special time') Prison Ministry for eight weeks of preparation and four days spent in Martin County Correctional Institution where I had the opportunity to spend time with some amazing guys, who've had a real hard road and ,honestly, have done some pretty terrible stuff...but haven't we all. The truth is most of us just never got busted. The guys on the inside (we call them 'candidates')were just amazed by the love of God in His people, both those of us who where there and all those who where praying and sacrificing of themselves to make the weekend happen. I was at the table of Paul and we earned that name. The guys at my table ribbed me a bit since I was the 'youngest dude' on the Kairos team. That's ok by me though, most of the guys on my team are like these spiritual powerhouses (don't tell them I said that though!), Pastor Steve talks to you about the power of forgiveness and the Spirit just lifts the weight off of you, Pastor Shamus just says to you 'peace' as he's shaking your hand and you feel peace wash over you. My friend Al has this joy in service that is almost disgustingly infectious. Denny, who leads the worship, has got this gentleness and commitment to the team that is just flat out humbling. I could go on through the whole team, but let me just say that, for me, these are the guys who take Matthew 5v16 and put flesh and blood on it. It's such a blessing to be in such and amazing Family.

Anyway, part of the ministry is that everybody gets these little green books. They aren't fancy, but they mean a lot to the guys who are just having their first experience of Christ. I keep mine in my car and Sebastian has been picking something out every morning to read for worship time (Our special time with God) with Ayden and I as we drive to school. It's a great time to remember all our Kairos friends too. Tonight at dinner we were talking with my wife about it and Sebastian said his favorite is page 11. We spent a good amount of time talking over the 'big words' and what we are actually coming to God with in this prayer. Anyway...I said all that to share this with you:

Jesus, come join us
in our journey
as we seek your will
for this community
in this environment.

Teach us to love each other
as you love us,
to give ourselves
as you give yourself
that the kingdom of God
might be made present to all. Amen

Waiting…watching…Luke21v34-38

‘So pray for yourselves,’ said Jesus, ‘that your hearts may not grow heavy with dissipation and drunkenness and the cares of this life, so that that day comes upon you suddenly, like a trap.

It will come, you see, on everyone who lives on the face of the earth. Keep awake at all times, praying that you may escape all these things that will happen, and to stand before the son of man.’

Jesus was teaching in the Temple by day, but at night he went out and stayed in the place called the Mount of Olives.

And from early morning all the people flocked to him in the temple, to hear him.

Waiting has got to be one of the most difficult things about being a Christian, but it is waiting that develops patience. It is waiting that allows the development of long-suffering and that is a fruit of the Spirit. It is time and our use of it that develop our character. It is to be a fruitful waiting, abiding. Time was a part of God’s original creation, it is a gift. But just like any of God’s good gifts, how we use it matters. Do we take what we are given and abuse it? Do we take what we’ve been given and do something with it to make a name for ourselves? Do we get so wrapped up in what we want from God, or what we want God to do, that we miss what God is doing and neglect to join Him in it, thus we again become like an arrow that has left its proper course?

We have this tendency, Jesus knows this, hence the warning. If we are honest with ourselves and our Family, we know this too. It’s not a big revelation that people are impatient and desire immediate gratification and that impatience is the cause of all sorts of trouble. Lack of patience is in effect a lack of trust in God. Waiting is a form of suffering that we get to share in. A cause for rejoicing.

So what should we do while we are waiting? Hasten the day says the Apostle Peter! Has Jesus not given us things to do? Has he not invested us with gifts? Hasn’t he commanded us to invest these things in Kingdom works that the Father has prepared for us in advance? Ought we not to get on with it? If you are looking for Jesus, you won’t find him in the excesses of this life, rather in the midst of the furnace (Daniel 3)! In the eyes and hearts of the suffering and the oppressed, yes, that is where he is to be found (Matthew 25v40).

‘I advise you to buy from Me, gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.’ says the Spirit to the assemblies.

Now, Jesus is still talking about things that ‘must soon take place’, so let’s look at what waiting looked like for this generation in Jerusalem…

It’s 58ad, Jesus’ disciples have been doing the Jesus thing for quite a while, they’re older, still praying, still hoping, still waiting. The world hasn’t stopped its pursuits of power and politics, its lusts of the ‘flesh’, they’ve seen a lot. Pilate is no longer calling the shots so everyone was hoping for something better, then along comes the huge crisis where Emperor Gaius sets out to place a giant statue of himself in midst of the Temple. A threat that was staved off and he died shortly after. Then Herod Agrippa came to power in 41ad, finally someone who is ‘one of us’ thought the Jews, but he died…struck down by God claimed some…apparently having learned from his Roman counterparts and took to thinking himself divine, similar to what some of his pagan masters had done. Then there was a whole string of Roman governors sent in, you can imagine the unrest and turmoil boiling under the surface. Then in 54ad Nero came to power and many heralded it to be the mark of a new age of peace, a fresh chance at the much publicized ‘peace and security’ that Rome offered. This disgusting man would come to be known by his own historians and certainly on the streets as ‘the beast’ and for good reason…

Of course in Jerusalem, revolutionary movements would rise up, and quickly…brutally get put down. Some thought the priests were secretly feeding into the revolts, some just wanted to get along with Rome, some hoped for the Messiah. Everything went on as it usually did…buying and selling, temple sacrifices, as a matter of fact the Temple rebuilding program started by Herod the Great 70 years earlier was just about complete.

In the middle of all this we have this small group of people in Jerusalem who still named Jesus as Lord, they met from house to house, breaking bread and worshiping God in Jesus' name. Paul had been through not too long ago, there was a riot, word on the street is that there’s a riot everywhere that guy goes. Anyway, he was off at Rome now for a trial, they were all a bit iffy on Paul as it was, Peter was traveling and hadn’t been seen round for a while and James was getting old…his prayers for the redemption of his people, not seeming to get answered. The price of bread was rising, when you got together to tell the stories of Jesus and his faithfulness, there was always the looming and very real fact that it had been 30 years…that’s a long time…make no mistake though, this world is reserved for fire and our Lord would soon be vindicated…so hold fast!

The Impending Turmoil of Jerusalem: Luke 21v20-33

It looks as if this is my 110th post, which reminds me of a favorite psalm of mine and the single most quoted psalm of the New Testament. We are also heading into the Jewish High Holy Days, a time of celebration and solemn reflection culminating with Yom Kippur...the Day of Atonement. It is a very exciting time for any Christian who is interested in understanding, with ever increasing clarity, the ongoing faithfulness of our Father and His Word. To look over the grand narrative and stand before God in awe and reverence, not out of fear of hell nor the hope of heaven, but simply and purely for who He is and what He has done in and through His Messiah, Jesus, as well as what He continues to do in our midst by the power of His Word.

I'm going to go at this area a little different, slowly, line by line, a lot of bad theology has been attached to this section over the years...people tend to do that when what they expect God to do because He said He would, doesn't look like they think it ought to when He does it...this obviously has all sorts of negative results...'You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life.'

‘But,’ continued Jesus, ‘when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then you will know that her time of desolation has arrived. Then the people in Judea should run off to the hills, people in Jerusalem itself should get out as fast as they can, and people in the countryside shouldn’t go back into the city.

This piece is a continuation of the previous apocalyptic prophecy aimed at turning Jerusalem to repentance and accepting the Way Jesus is offering as the only Way. It's understood that if an oracle comes true it has worked, but if what a biblical prophet speaks comes to fruition, it has failed as it is intended to bring about repentance. This is explored in detail by Chief Rabbi Jonathan Sacks in a recent article on testing prophecy click here

Those will be the days of severe judgment, which will fulfill all the biblical warnings. Woe betide pregnant women, and nursing mothers, in those days! There is going to be a huge distress on the earth, and divine anger against this people. The hungry sword will eat them up; they will be taken off as prisoners to every nation; and Jerusalem will be trampled by the pagans, until the times of the pagans are done.

It is a biblical fact that when God brings judgment on His people for failing in their calling and walking in the good works He has prepared them to walk in, for which they were saved, He does so through other peoples...typically 'those people'. This demonstrates both God's justice, mercy and faithfulness, working all things together according to the council of HIS PURPOSE and it is also a swift and unmistakable reminder of His sovereignty not just over one people, but over all peoples. Christian's would do well to come to terms with this...individually, yes, but certainly corporately...this is a season for inner reflection and repentance...

‘There will be signs in the sun, the moon and the stars. On earth the nations will be in distress and confusion because of the roaring and swelling of the sea and its waves. People will faint from fear, and from imagining all that’s going to happen to the world. The powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see “the son of man coming on a cloud” with power and great majesty. When all these things start to happen, stand up and lift your heads up, because the time has come for you to be redeemed.’

In the ancient world, astrology was viewed with great importance, a shooting star, an eclipse...these things meant something...most often a shift in political leadership, coming wars, a new king (Matthew 2v1-2), etc. So there may have been many things coming in the sky, but certainly there was great turmoil on its way. The 'roaring and swelling of the sea' is prophetic language directly tied to the fear and weakness of faith in the masses of people and their imaginations, 'the sea' is a mythological term for chaos (this finds its root in the creation poems of Gen. 1 and 2)for more on 'meaning and myth' in the scriptures click here. Now, the suicide of Emperor Nero sent these very 'waves' through out the whole world, exacerbated by the quick rise and fall of four new emperors, each leading armies. This kind of shaking in the high places of authority in the world are certainly tied directly to a shaking in the 'heavens' that stand behind them, we literally see this from 66-73, the temple falling in 70ad. This would not be a time for panic amongst Christian's though, it is a time for them to be encouraged and strengthened, steadfast in love and faith, it implies that the vindication of their faith is on it's way. Make no mistake, there would be great need for the endurance of the Saints, the one who endures to the end will be saved though. Jesus here quotes directly from Daniel 7, indicating that the judgment that falls on those who have persecuted and terrorized God's elect is the same judgment that will settle once and for all who the worlds true Lord is and times of refreshing will come, God's anointed is enthroned...do not confuse this with the parousia, the coming of Christ, Daniel 7 (read it) is about the ascension of the Son to the right hand of the Father, psalm 110. That is what Jesus has in mind here and that's what we should have in mind as we read it.

He told them this parable. ‘Look at the fig tree and all the trees. When they are well into leaf, you can see for yourselves and know that summer is upon you. I’m telling you the truth; this generation won’t be gone before all of this happens. Heaven and earth may disappear, but these words of mine won’t disappear.’

Finally, Jesus clarifies that they are not to be mistaken, their hope and faith is not misplaced regardless of what is about to happen to him up at jerusalem, this generation will see His vindication (which is also theirs), and prophecy isn't so much about about seeing the future, it is often simply looking through the present with honest eyes and an a humble heart and allowing God to show you the thing behind the thing, and the wisdom to deal with it. It is as true today as it was then that ideologies, spirits and the embodiments of them may come and go, but the Word of the Lord always remains. There is great comfort in that for those who love God and are called according to His purpose in Messiah.

Grace and peace

The End of the Temple and Its Systems: Luke 21v5-19

Some people were talking about the Temple, saying how wonderfully it was decorated, with its beautiful stones and dedicated gifts.

‘Yes,’ said Jesus; ‘But the days will come when everything you see will be torn down. Not one stone will be left standing on another.’

‘Teacher,’ they asked him, ‘When will these things happen? What will be the sign that it’s all about to take place?’

‘Watch out that nobody deceives you,’ said Jesus. ‘Yes: lots of people will come using my name, saying “I’m the one!” and “The time has come!” Don’t go following them. When you hear about wars and rebellions, don’t be alarmed. These things have to happen first, but the end won’t come at once.

‘One nation will rise against another,’ he went on, ‘and one kingdom against another. There will be huge earthquakes, famines and plagues, terrifying omens, and great signs from heaven.

Before all this happens they will lay hands on you and persecute you. They will hand you over to the synagogues and prisons. They will drag you before kings and governors because of my name. That will become an opportunity for you to tell your story. So settle it in your hearts not to work out beforehand what tale to tell; I’ll give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict.

‘You will be betrayed by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will kill some of you. You will be hated by everyone because of my name. But no hair of your head will be lost. The way to keep your lives is to be patient.’

Josephus, a Jewish historian contemporary to Jesus’ time, once confronted a rebel zealot during the war that eventually led to the destruction of the Temple in 70ad. He was trying to convince this guy to stop his ridiculous attempts to attack the Roman Empire and seek another way to gain the results he so passionately longed for. Josephus had seen the pure carnage that the Roman empire was capable of, and they didn’t even have a Death Star or drone planes! He says to this young man ‘metanoesein kai pistos emoi genesesthai’ which translates “Repent and believe in me”. It is obvious that Josephus was trying to save this lad from self-destruction as well as bringing this destruction down on those around him. When Jesus uses the same phrase he certainly means the same thing, certainly more, but at least that. Come and see, there are four levels of ‘understanding’ (Ephesians 3v7-19):

P'shat - literal, simple - BREADTH
Remez - parable, allegory - LENGTH
Derasha - anagogical - DEPTH
Sod - inner, mystical - HEIGHT

‘And the one on whom seed was sown on the good soil, this is the man who hears the word and understands it; who indeed bears fruit and brings forth, some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.’

and again...

'Who then is the faithful and wise manager, whom his master will set over his household, to give them their portion of food at the proper time? Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes.'

Now then, let's look...here some fourty years earlier than Josephus spoke those words, Jesus has been calling and sending out his messengers… gathering people into ‘another way’, the way of peace, the only Way to the Father. Most rejected Him though, Jerusalem herself would reject him. The Temple that was once the place ‘where God was’ with his people had itself become and idol. The very symbol of God’s faithfulness had become corrupted, the people were willing to kill and die over a symbol, to sacrifice the true temple where God intended to dwell by the Spirit for the sake of the shadow. The time had come though, as Jesus said to the Samaritan woman ‘an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth.’ A time was now here when God would be with His people and would comfort them, heal them and transform them. The destruction of their idols and those holding on to them would come swiftly, like a thief in the night, the darkness would be overtaken by the Light, but it won’t happen all at once. So do not be deceived by these people who think they are something when they are nothing. It is precisely these who will be the catalyst for their own destruction and the destruction of anyone not wise enough to see it. Young men fighting old men’s wars, when God is doing a new thing…it’s a recipe for disaster or new birth. Isn’t it true that no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost and the skins as well; but one puts new wine into fresh wineskins. Only when we repent and turn to the Father in the Name (character, nature and Spirit of Jesus), only when we are still enough, humble enough, contrite enough to hear that still small voice so that we can proceed boldly with the only wisdom that is wisdom, that which comes down from above, that hold all things together, sustains all things, makes all things new, that which is our peace…the Word.

In the beginning was the Word, The Word was close beside God, and the Word was god. In the beginning, he was close beside God. All things came into existence through him; nothing that exists came into existence without him. Life was in him, and this life was the Light of the human race. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness didn’t overcome it…the true Light, which gives Light to every human being…and the Word became flesh and tabernacled in our midst…

Repent and believe! The Kingdom of God is here, the New Heavens and New Earth has been inaugurated… this is true in Him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true Light is already shining! Jesus is Lord and that is Good News! Please people…keep yourselves from idols.