Category: Christianity

Lent 2009 – 23 Steps to the Cross

PeterStepsSimon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ. (Matthew 16:16-20)

“Blessed are you Simon…” for the understanding of the true nature of Christ was revealed by the Father to Him. Unlike the world oriented guesses that ‘the people’ had proffered, Peter was given the spiritual knowledge necessary to understand Jesus as Savior. Peter, whether he knew it or not, was not just the impetuous, gruff fisherman who was following Jesus for all these years. He was a blessed vessel through which God was working by speaking to life a truth that all men would one day understand.

Reading this passage, you must interpret the truth of Jesus’ words about the ‘rock’ on which His Church would be built. Is it Peter as many believe or is it the Savior’s teaching, or the confession that Peter had just uttered? The answer is important theologically to the Universal Church but debating it detracts from a focus on the blessedness that comes from a union with the Father such that spiritual truth is revealed to us. Have you submitted to this relationship?

Would Jesus name you Blessed in your answer?

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Lent 2009 – 24 Steps to the Cross

PeterSteps

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”

“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” (Matthew 16:13-16)

Of many moments between Jesus and Peter, this confession of belief and faith is one remembered by the majority of Christians. When Jesus asks of the disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”, He must already know the answer. The responses—John the Baptist, Elijah, even Jeremiah—reveal the spiritual sense of the time. People were looking for a savior but perhaps, not for their souls. Their vision of the anointed one would be like David, a king who would lead them back to national prominence as befitted the people of Yahweh. Jesus asks those closest to Him the same question; do they hold the same nationalistic views? It is here that Peter steps forward as the spokesman to proclaim how the disciples view Him, He is the Christ, the anointed Son of the Living God, someone far beyond the human leader that many others craved.

Jesus asks us the same question. Who is Jesus to you? An insurance policy? A gift giver? Someone to be used as a theological hammer against those who understand Him in a different way? Has this question popped up in your prayer life?

Who is Jesus to you?

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Lent 2009 – 25 Steps to the Cross

PeterSteps “Indeed, all the prophets from Samuel on, as many as have spoken, have foretold these days. And you are heirs of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers. He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all peoples on earth will be blessed.’ When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your wicked ways.” (Acts 3:24 – 26)

Ultimately in this chapter, Peter distills the essence of the ministry that the Church down to a single statement, through you ‘all the peoples on earth will be blessed. As we get closer and closer to the cross and the celebration of the risen Christ we can simplify our reflection to the blessing that comes from Christ. We are saved by our faith in Him, not solely for ourselves but in order to bless the rest of the world. With each step this Lenten season, we can further distance ourselves from our salvation in personal terms only and closer to our call to be the same blessing to others.

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Lent 2009 – 26 Steps to the Cross

PeterSteps “Now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. But this is how God fulfilled what he had foretold through all the prophets, saying that his Christ would suffer. Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you –even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets. For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you. Anyone who does not listen to him will be completely cut off from among his people.’ (Acts 3:17-23)

As Peter previously demonstrated, an evangelistic call matches the good news of Christ with the bad news of the sin that separates us from God. The sign of the healed beggar alone should have driven people to their knees right? Would it do so today? The challenge that we face is that people did not and still do not see themselves as in need of salvation. Our modern culture lives by the thought that ‘I’m okay, you’re okay.’ If that were true in the perspective of God’s economy there would never have been a Jesus. But we’re not okay, are we? We are sin driven, sin guided, and we live in a sinful culture. Will pastors preach that this week?

We must be willing to suffer the slings and arrows of pointing out the sad truth to people, even if the consequences of doing so are dire. When Peter voiced these words the people of Israel were in no mood to be confronted with the truth. If the realization of what they had done set in, the meaningless nature of their tiny sacrifices would have fell them like a tree. The cultural facts however, should never prevent us from speaking the truth. Sacrifice is to be a key component of our nature. How’re you doing?

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Lent 2009 – 27 Steps to the Cross

PeterSteps While the beggar held on to Peter and John, all the people were astonished and came running to them in the place called Solomon’s Colonnade. When Peter saw this, he said to them: “Men of Israel, why does this surprise you? Why do you stare at us as if by our own power or godliness we had made this man walk? The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate, though he had decided to let him go. You disowned the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you. You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this. By faith in the name of Jesus, this man whom you see and know was made strong. It is Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through him that has given this complete healing to him, as you can all see. (Acts 3:11-16)

Though it might have been momentarily tempting to claim the glory for healing the beggar, the Spirit in Peter guided him otherwise. He deflected to the accolades and pointed to the true source of power, Jesus Christ. In writing and in speech, we have heard reference to ‘mighty men of God’ and how powerfully the Lord has used men and women to accomplish various miraculous feats. It is easy for our culturally trained minds to hear Reverend So and So or Evangelist so and so were used by God to do this or that and associate the accomplishment with those men or women. We must take a more humble view and reread or relisten to what is said: they were used by God in His power to accomplish His will. They were merely vehicles. Peter is careful here to remind Israel that he too was just the vehicle, that is was the matchless name of Jesus that healed the beggar. It was the God who quickened Jesus and restored Him to life despite the sin of those who had put Him in the tomb and it was this same God who had healed the beggar. Israel, in her sin needed to meditate deeply on this act of Grace.

Is grace clear in your mind today?

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Lent 2009 – 28 Steps to the Cross

PeterSteps One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. Now a man crippled from birth was being carried to the temple gate call Beautiful, where he was put every day to be from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.

Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. (Acts 3:1-10)

When was the last time we reached out to brokenness and, in the holy name of the Savior, fixed it? I dare say not often. We tend to toward prayer and hope these days rather than healing. In some corners of the Church, there is suspicion extended toward the healing ministry. Peter believed in the power of the Spirit, in the power of the Name, to heal and transform so our reflection must be centered on answering the question, why don’t we? Our ministry to others was never intended to be narrowed by what the culture allows. It was meant to be holistic and touch all areas of life and yet, many of us shy away.

We are walking with Peter during this season for a purpose. He was much as we are and yet the power of the Spirit transforms him in so many ways. Is there any reason the Spirit won’t do the same thing for us if we are willing to allow Him?

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Lent 2009 – 29 Steps to the Cross

PeterSteps

Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us. (1 Peter 2:11-12)

In the final part of his exhortation regarding the uniqueness and the demands of being the Church that Christ calls us to be, Peter emphasizes in this last pair of verses the necessity to separate from the world. He knew through his own transformation and the time he spent with the Lord that we were no longer at home in this world. Peter calls us to live as ‘aliens and strangers’ in the world but not of the world. Our holiness is to be apparent to all of those who peer into our lives. This holy nature is to be such that as others study us from a distance, they see consistency between our talk and our walk.

Our reflection today is a simple question: does your walk match your talk?

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Lent 2009 – 30 Steps to the Cross

PeterStepsBut you are a chose people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praise of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. (1 Peter 2:9-10)

Following yesterday’s steps toward the cross, Peter emphasized that the grace of God was intended to build us into a church of the despised. Our comfort zone was not be the measure of the world but the measure of how our sacrifice aligns with that of Christ. He continues today reminding us of our role as a royal priesthood.

We don’t hear that preached much, perhaps because we have allowed that assignment to be abrogated by the vocational clergy. The Pastor is representative of the priesthood for us and we are simply sheep in his flock. What would Peter say about this specialization? Nonsense! As people of mercy we are called to be in the perpetual worshipful service of the one who granted that mercy. Reclaim the mantle and take the demands of the priesthood seriously.

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Psalm 30 – Rejoicing Comes in the Morning

30 Thirty Sunburst The middle verses of Psalm 30 remind us of why we return to these scriptures for strength and comfort time and time again.

Sing the Lord you saints of his; praise his holy name.

For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may remain for a night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. (vv 4-5)

All of the saints of the Lord are called to raise our voices in praise even though their may be fleeting moments in which we believe that our travails overwhelm our ability to worship. David reminds us that life with the Lord will have these peaks and valleys but that the grace of God remains consistent. We need only turn our hearts toward him to rejoice again in His goodness.

The core thought in this psalm is the distinction between death and silence, and life and praise. Despite current circumstances, the question that it drives us to ask is, are we still drawing breath? If so, we can praise God beginning with this simple fact. Once the praise begins, the Spirit will remind us of all of the other things for which we can praise God as well.

To you, O Lord, I called; to the Lord I cried for mercy.

What gain is there in my destruction, in my going down into the pit?

Will the dust praise you? Will it proclaim your faithfulness?

Hear, O Lord, and be merciful to me, O Lord, be my help. (vv 8-10)

… for if I live I praise you…

You turned my wailing into dancing; you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy, that my heart may sing to you and not be silent.

O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever.(vv 11-12)

It is easy to see only darkness when we feel as though the valley has become too deep to ever climb out of but God has a purpose in it. Small graces will visit us, perhaps even those that we might be unaware of but they are cause for praise. We lift our voices despite the darkness for morning will come, just as God promises.

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