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Holy Week
Sister Carol Dessus:
Monday of Holy Week
March 29, 2010:
Isaiah 42:1-9
and
John 12:1-11
Who can we believe and what can we
believe? Where can we look for hope? Our most recent
Presidential campaign was predicated upon hope and change.
With the subsequent win of Barack Obama as president, the
Republicans made promises to reach across ‘the aisle’ to
partner with Democrats. That did not happen and President
Obama is now struggling to get votes from both Democrats and
Republicans for the Health Care reform Bill that promises to
cover over thirty million uninsured Americans.
In Isaiah 42:6 God declared,
“I
am the Lord, I have called you in
righteousness, I have taken you by the hand and kept you; I
have given you as a covenant to the people,
* a
light to the nations…”
The you in this text refers to Jesus, the
Messiah who is the Light of the world and the hope of the
nations. He is one we must believe in.
What can we believe? It is easy in these
times to get emotionally caught up in the latest trends.
Sure there are genuine modern day heroes, whether
politicians, athletes, or entertainers, but even the most
sincere of them fall short in what they promise to provide.
Only Christ Jesus keeps the promises and gave His life as
guarantee.
The season of Lent celebrates the
foundational Christian belief, the resurrection of the Jesus
Christ from the dead. He is alive and lives in the heart of
the believer to daily, even moment by moment, to renew our
hope.
This season is the perfect time to remember,
“For God so loved the world that He
gave His only begotten son that whosoever believes in Him
will not perish but have everlasting life.”
Rev. Stacey: Tuesday of Holy Week
March 30, 2010: Psalm 71:1-14 and John 12:20-36
Psalm 71: The Psalmist reminds us that we can turn to God in
trusting prayer, even as we reach our “senior” years. God
does not abandon us as we grow mature. God, who is our rock
in youth, is also our refuge and our hope, unto death.
God meets our needs; helping us to escape the snares of the
enemies of fear and doubt, providing for our total
well-being. Even through the hardest of times and bitter
moments, God brings a sweet relief by being our constant
companion. In God’s presence and love, praise comes easily,
testimonies are effortless and we are inspired to share the
goodness of God with others.
On this the third day of the last day of Jesus’ life, I
believe that His mind and soul must have been challenged by
the knowledge of the brutality of the suffering he would
have to endure. However, like the writer of Psalm 71, Jesus
trusted fully God’s plan of salvation: That ultimately,
there is nothing that can separate us from the love of God.
It is this love that redeems, restores and reconciles us.
“My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing unto thee; and my
soul, which thou hast redeemed.” Psalm 71:23
Rev. Bob: Wednesday of Holy Week
March 31, 2010: Psalm 70 and John 13:21-32
In Psalm 70 David writes a song inspired by
God
that is a prayer for help. People are trying to kill David.
People are trying to put him down into the ground. They
rejoice over David's troubles as he cries because of his
troubles. Therefore, David sings to The Lord his God for
holy spiritual and physical help.
In John 13, verses 21-32, during the Passover meal, Jesus
predicts his betrayal by Judas Iscariot, as well as, the
revelation of his glory as the Son of Man. Jesus is
preparing to celebrate for the first time the
New-Passover-death,
which is made possible by the sacrifice of Jesus' blood and
body on the cross of Calvary. We need to thank God-in-Christ
always for the daily spiritual and physical help that
Jesus provides to us. |
Rev. Vincent Coles: Maundy Thursday,
Holy Thursday April 1, 2010: Exodus 12:1-14 and John
13:1-17, 31b-35
The passage in Exodus regarding the
establishment of Passover and the passage in John regarding
the washing of the disciple’s feet before the Passover meal,
speaks of getting one’s self ready for life changing events.
In Exodus, the preparation of the Passover
meal, the animal sacrifice, the placing the blood on the
door posts and the making of bread without yeast, Moses
taught the people that following instructions will lead to
freedom, their freedom from Egypt.
On Maunday Thursday, Jesus prepared His
disciples for His impending death by crucifixion, by
instituting what we now call, “The Lord’s Supper.” Christ
instructed the disciples to remember the importance of
loving each other. He taught them that love will humble them
to do what was needed when they shared the gospel with
others. In both cases, failure to
follow instructions and or the failure to prepare ourselves
with humble love for service will make us ill equipped to
rise to the next level in our Christian journey. How can we
lead if we don’t love the people that we are leading? How
can we be the mediums of deliverance if we are not delivered
by following instructions? How can we be truly free?
Pray that Jesus will instruct us with humble
love as we ready ourselves to do His will.
Pastor Albert F. Campbell: Good Friday
April 2, 2010: Psalm 22 and John 18:1-19:42
The dye was cast. Jesus’ fate had been
sealed. Jesus knew full well at the time, as he hung
perilously on the cross to which he had been nailed that he
had to go the way of death. It was imperative that he should
die, and it would be soon. Yet it is
not so much that Jesus knew he had to die and that his death
was inevitable. But to die so ignominious a death as the
shameful public death by crucifixion?... It would evoke from
his heart and mind and lips some of the most critical words
he had ever spoken during his brief span of years on this
earth. While all that Jesus spoke
from the cross might be said to constitute an important last
will and testament, and therefore each word should be
cherished and studied and learned-from, nevertheless none
seems to be quite as soul-wrenching as that which he
borrowed from the Ancient Psalmist and made his very own.
Some have chosen to call it the “Cry of
Dereliction”, the soulful sigh of one who has been
abandoned, left alone in the crisis of all crisis in his
life to bear it all by himself: “My God, my God, why hast
thou forsaken me?” But when all was
said and done, the final two words he spoke, not only
brought comfort and solace to his own soul, but also they
give hope and assurance for the worst of crisis in our own
lives (including the crisis of death); and they were, “It is
finished”; and “father into thy hands I commend my spirit”!
Bro. William P. Henry: Holy Saturday
April 3, 2010: Lamentations 3:1-9, 19-24 and John 19:38-42
Some years ago, I heard a very popular
televangelist say that “mercy” is not operative in this age
of grace. Well, I’m not so sure I agree with him that grace
has supplanted mercy. As for me, daily I thank God for His
mercy. Every Sunday morning as we
“pass the peace” in our worship service, we do so with these
words: “Life is sometimes unfair, but God is good, all the
time.” Yes, there are those times when life does become a
burden; when it seems as though everything goes wrong. And
it is at those times when we cry out, where is God? Does He
know? Does He care? But something
happens! Light shines through a crack, and we once again
have hope. God’s mercies show up and before we know it,
there’s a new beginning, a new day: Brand new mercies.
And so, what happened on Friday appeared to
have been the end: Darkness, Gross darkness. What was
thought to be a tragedy became an opportunity for two men
Nicademus and Joseph of Aramethea who, up to this point,
were followers, but from a distance. Perhaps remembering how
merciful God had been to them, despite their fear of
exposure or ridicule they were empowered to claim the body
of Jesus. So they placed it in the darkness, gross darkness
of a borrowed tomb. But wait, it’s
only Saturday! Wait, Sunday’s coming when the light of God’s
mercy will blaze out of the darkness shining through Jesus
our risen Savior. “So let's walk right up to him and get
what he is so ready to give. Take the mercy, accept the
help.” Heb. 4:16 |