Recognizing
You know how you can be talking to someone and think everything is good; then they say something and inwardly something inside you kind of pings? It might feel like the reverberation of a gong that’s been struck, or sometimes it feels like your equilibrium suddenly shifted. Or maybe it’s more like a kind of quiet unrest that you’re tempted to set aside because nothing seems immediately wrong except you feel a vague unrest, and you don’t know why.
Waiting
As I write, Easter is one week away – five Days by the time you read this. Five days in which we will hear Jesus’ last words to his friends, witness Mary’s poignant movement toward his suffering, and walk with him to Jerusalem for a Passover the likes of which no one had seen before. We’ll see Judas leave the last supper and wonder why no one else caught that he was the betrayer. We’ll enter Gethsemane and feel the reality that we probably would have slept too.
Degrees of Love
As we hear and slowly comprehend the Gospel, something in us opens to God’s pursuing love and we begin to actually love (we can only love because he first loved us). While this may not be a complete love, it is still love though it is for our own benefit, not for God’s sake. Loving God allows us to escape hell, enjoy his promises, and potentially live a better life (think Prodigal son here).
Loves Declaration
Imagine you are one of Jesus’ disciples (well, actually, you are) that fateful night of his betrayal. We’ve just finished our Passover meal, sung a hymn, and are now walking out into the cool evening. Jesus has washed our feet, tied the implications of Passover to his sacrifice, we’ve enjoyed conversation, and now, walking out into the garden, Jesus tells us that we will desert him before the night is over.
The Heart of Christ
Should we be afraid to let God know exactly how we feel? Does his love depend upon us feeling and acting a certain way? Personally, I can’t get my head around models of sanctification that require certain standards to “please God.” It’s like the contradiction is lost on them. Salvation becomes transactional rather than relational when living by grace is removed from the mix.
God Who?
Every endeavor requires assessment. Want to run a marathon? The first order of business is to determine your ability to actually pull it off. Maybe a bit of training is needed. You might want to check with your doctor to make sure your knees can handle the pounding. My favorite example is looking for a map when entering a new mall. Usually, the only way to make any progress is to quickly assess where you are on the map in relation to where you wish to end up. Just a simple check has saved me from walking the wrong direction on many occasions.
