Liturgical Calendar - Jeremiah's Vow

Lent 2023 | Day 40: The Gospel’s Hope

The Gospel will always be more and better than we can ever imagine. This is what makes it the best news ever proclaimed.

Over the last several weeks we have looked at many facets of the Gospel. These are not an exclusive list. They are simply a representation of the many ways in which we can consider and reflect on the Good News of Jesus Christ.

The challenge when engaging in this kind of journey is knowing where to start. But also where to stop. How far can we travel down this road before we forget why we began? While this concern does not necessarily apply strictly to the Gospel, it is worthy of a moment’s thought.

We began this exploration considering the underlying premise of the Gospel. And what was that? That we are finite. That this life will inevitably come to an end. But in the meantime, what will we do with the days we are given? How will we fill those days?

Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of this season of reflection, the season of Lent. We are asked to remember that we are dust, and that to dust we shall return. This stark reminder is not to frighten us. It is to help us orient our expectations and demands. The expectations we have of ourselves. The demands we may feel we must place on others.

The reality of our lives is they will end. So, what are we looking forward to?

This is where our journey should lead us. Where our wanderings should terminate. As believers in Christ, the Gospel is a message of hope. It is a message that reminds us that while our lives may end on earth, they will continue in eternity.

The Gospel’s hope is that death is no longer an enemy to fear. We have been invited into a new life. A life that will begin here and that will never end.

This new life has been purchased by the glorious sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. The promises made by God to men and women long since past were fulfilled in Jesus.

What a remarkable idea to meditate on. The Gospel will always be more and better than we can ever imagine. This is what makes it the best news ever proclaimed.

As we prepare to celebrate Resurrection Sunday, I pray we will never lose sight of what God has done for us. Let us look to Jesus and remember hope has found its perfect and fullest expression in him.

Lent 2023 Series

Why I don’t say “but Sundays coming” on Good Friday

It’s a seemingly innocent phrase I know. But I’m concerned that it has actually created some serious struggles within many people’s relationship with God.

And I do think these kinds of phrases that “wish away” or “skip ahead” of the reality of Silent Saturday are a small example of the context that has created much of the deconstruction happening right now.

Because it’s one thing to say “but Sundays coming.” And it’s another thing to actually live with the reality of Silent Saturday.

For many, it creates a spiritual dissonance. It ignores a crucial reality of the Christian life.

And most times it reveals that we as Christians can misunderstand God, and thus miss His invitation into what He has for us in embracing Silent Saturday.

We can misunderstand when God seems to be silent.

We can misunderstand when God seems to be inactive.

We can misunderstand when God seems to be distant.

These misunderstandings are fairly consistent among God’s people historically and still today.

Many Christians (myself included for too much of my life) were not taught sufficiently how to understand when it seems like God is silent, inactive, or distant.

Though theologically most of us know that because of God’s self-revelation through Creation, Scripture, and Jesus – He could never actually be considered silent, inactive, nor distant.

It still feels this way many times for many people. And it’s a struggle to understand what’s going on when we experience these things…

And we aren’t the only ones who have wrestled with these realities.

Of course, Job is the most extensive story on God being seemingly silent, inactive, and distant.

However, we also see these realities in the final days of Jesus.

In his time in prayer in the garden where God appears to be silent.

In his time during the trial and beatings where God appears to be inactive.

And in his time on the cross where God appears to be distant.

Remember:

“He was despised and rejected – a man of sorrows, acquainted with deepest grief…He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth. Unjustly condemned, he was led away…He had done no wrong and had never deceived anyone. But he was buried like a criminal; he was put in a rich man’s grave…”
Isaiah 53:1-12 (NLT)

So how do we understand these experiences?

I would propose that Silent Saturday holds the key to understanding them.

And most of us have not embraced Silent Saturday enough to have gleaned the lesson it has for us.

Either our emphasis is on Good Friday – usually focused on man’s activity of sin & repentance,

Or on Resurrection Sunday – usually focused on God’s activity of grace & salvation,

Has many times caused us to minimize or ignore completely Silent Saturday and what this day of “inactivity” means for us.

Silent Saturday is an invitation into the in-between, into the already-not yet, into the every day life experience of the Christian.

You see, the majority of experiences in life are those between the lows and highs.

They’re the times waiting on something or someone.

They’re the times where answers aren’t clear.

They’re the times that you know what’s next but aren’t there yet.

They’re the times when God is likely inviting you into knowing Him beyond your own activity or your need for His activity.

When He is saying:

Just allow me to be with you

and allow yourself to be with me,

without needing anything from me

or imposing an expectation on yourself that you think I have of you.

When He is saying:

Just be quiet.

Still your soul.

And trust me.

When He is saying:

It’s okay if you need to focus on the every day things of life,

just know that I’m in those too just as much as I’m in the highs and lows.

See, it’s the invitation of Silent Saturday that informs a full understanding of a relationship with God.

Something beyond simply being saved by Him or servants of Him.

But instead being His friends [John 15:15].

Without it we find ourselves stuck in the cycle of our continual need for God to constantly be at work “saving us from our sins.”

Death and Resurrection, while crucial components, are not the full Gospel story.

Burial is a crucial part of the story.

Silence is in the middle of death and life.

The space between Friday and Sunday is the space relationships are made of.

And it’s a space God is inviting you to spend time in this Holy Week.

Don’t miss His invitation amid the commotion of the cross and the crowds.

He’ll be there.

Expecting you’ll know Him.

In the silence of Saturday.

Lent 2023 | Day 38: The Gospel’s Accuracy

This is why the Gospel is needed. We need God to descend to us. And God did.

In several of our previous reflections, we noticed the simplicity, clarity, and focus of the Gospel. Each of those facets of the Gospel is related, but are unique points to consider on their own. Today’s reflection is similar to these previous inquiries, but again, is worthy of its own consideration.

The Gospel’s Accuracy speaks to the issue the Gospel specifically targets. The Gospel speaks to and addresses THE issue that plagues humanity’s relationship with God. And what is that issue, it is that we cannot reach up to God. The reason we cannot is sin. But, the issue is that we simply could never rise to the heights where God dwells.

This is why the Gospel is needed. We need God to descend to us. And God did.

When Jesus entered the created world, God became like the creature. God descends so that he might make a way for fallen men to ascend. It does not matter what we try and do, we cannot surmount the distance. It does not matter how hard we try, we cannot overcome the deficit. It doesn’t matter how much we learn, we cannot improve ourselves sufficiently to stand in God’s presence.

This is the issue. And the Gospel by its very declaration points to these shortfalls. And we, as its recipients have to decide if we will accept what the Gospel identifies. It does not matter if we like it. It does not matter if we wished it was different.

The Gospel is accurate regarding what it addresses. If we will accept what it speaks to, the greater our ability to get in line with what God is doing in, with, and through the Gospel.

Lent 2023 Series

Lent 2023 | Day 37: The Gospel’s Foundation

This is the Gospel’s foundation. The character of an unchanging God. For without it, the Gospel becomes an empty promise and a false hope.

When we think about the Gospel, what is it that gives the Gospel its power and authority? To put it a slightly different way, upon what basis does the Gospel offer to the promises of redemption and salvation?

The Gospel’s foundation is an important aspect of the conversation. If we do not fully understand what the Gospel is built upon, we may find ourselves questioning what we have believed. We can struggle with our understanding of what God has said. We can struggle with whether or not we living up to what we have been taught God has commanded. But if our questioning is about God Himself, we have a more fundamental issue.

The Gospel’s foundation is God’s character. Can we trust the one who initiated the message of the Gospel? Can we believe what He has said about Himself? What He has said about us?

When we call God’s character into question, the Gospel has nothing to stand on. The foundation of the Gospel’s power is that it’s rooted in the goodness, grace, and mercy of God. To take it a step forward, God’s immutability is essential to our confidence.

To know that God will not fail is to no longer have to worry about when we inevitably will.

God, speaking through the prophet Malachi, said, “For I am the LORD, I change not…” (Malachi 3:6 KJV)

There is no need to fear erosion, decay, or instability in God. God does not change.

God will never falter in doing justice.
God will never get fatigued in showing mercy.
God will never fail to accomplish his promises.
God will never fear the enemy of our souls.
God will never forsake those who have trusted in him.
God will never forget what He has promised to do.

God is the God who does not change.

He is true to his word because he is true to himself.
He is confident in his ability because he is the creator of all things.
He can make promises because he is the one who produced all that is seen and unseen.

This is the Gospel’s foundation. This is what the Gospel was constructed on. And because of this foundation, we can find hope when it seems lost. We can seek peace when it feels fleeting. We can enjoy love when we think ourselves unlovely.

This is the Gospel’s foundation. God and God alone.

This is the Gospel’s foundation. The character of an unchanging God. For without it, the Gospel becomes an empty promise and a false hope.

But we are not those who have no hope. We can rejoice in singing that old hymn:

Verse 1
My hope is built on nothing less
than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

Refrain:
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand:
all other ground is sinking sand;
all other ground is sinking sand.¹

Lent 2023 Series

https://hymnary.org/text/my_hope_is_built_on_nothing_less [↩]

Lent 2023 | Day 36: The Gospel’s Perspective

One of the greatest enemies to Gospel proclamation is thinking that God will get back around to the person who crossed my path if I missed my chance.

Within various theological camps, the question of who can be saved and who will be saved can be quite contentious. Regardless of the system, arguments are made in order to do several things.

To safeguard the truth of Scripture
To teach what the Bible teaches
To honor the character and glory of God
To not teach false doctrine.
To not give false hope to those who hear the conversation.

These, and a few more I haven’t thought of, are given as justifications for the discussion around who God intended to be the beneficiaries of the Gospel. My goal in this reflection is not to argue for, against, or even with any of these systems. I just want to speak to a simpler realization.

The Gospel’s perspective on this issue is one we should reconsider. When Jesus ascended into heaven, he did not leave the disciples with a theological discourse. He did not provide them with a complicated set of rules they would have to obey. Jesus gave a simple directive. Go into the world, as you live your lives, and teach those who are willing to live as I have taught you to live. This is the essence of what we know as the Great Commission.

Jesus did not give the original disciples any indication of who they should go to. He did not give them any particular insights into who would make great candidates for the Gospel message. Jesus did not even give them any warnings of who they should avoid.

What Jesus did was give directions to make Gospel sharing and Gospel instruction a normal part of their faith journey. So, what does this mean as it relates to the Gospel’s perspective?

The simplest implication is that from the Gospel’s perspective, and therefore from our perspective, it does not matter what God is doing behind the scenes. The task in view of the world is to share the Gospel with anyone and everyone we encounter.

One of the greatest enemies of Gospel proclamation is thinking that God will get back around to the person who crossed my path if I missed my chance. This way of thinking fails to appreciate the call to service we have all received as disciples of Jesus. To look at the world and those who walk in it in this way is to justify our disobedience as trust in God’s love and mercy.

When our hearts become callous to the needs of a fallen world and those who are still lost within that same world, we reveal how little we truly understand the Gospel.

The call of Jesus to every disciple is to carry the good news as far and as wide as we can. To share it with anyone and everyone. Not because all will be convicted and converted. But to share it because we don’t know when or where God will use his servants and his Gospel to draw another soul unto Himself.

This is the perspective the Gospel takes. That it is not up to us to determine what God is doing, has done, or may do. The principal reality for which I will give an account to God is whether or not I was obedient to what he tasked me with doing. And as far as I can tell, the commands Jesus give to the original disciples are still in effect. Until they change, we should serve and assume as if they are the standing orders we must comply with.

Lent 2023 Series

Lent 2023 | Day 35: The Gospel’s Beauty

The Gospel is beautiful because God the Father is the one beholding it. The Father is the one who has determined how precious and exquisite the work of the Son is.

The old adage says, “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

The idea is that it is the one who sees that determines if what they are looking at is beautiful. To a large extent this is true. Beauty can be quite subjective. This is where individual preferences come from.

The Gospel is not beautiful in this way. The Gospel’s beauty is not dependent on the perspective of fallen sinners. The Gospel is beautiful because God the Father is the one beholding it. The Father is the one who has determined how precious and exquisite the work of the Son is.

After Jesus was baptized by John, the Father spoke from heaven saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Jesus says this about the Father’s love for him: “For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.” (John 5:20 NKJV)

And again in another place: “Therefore My Father loves Me, because I lay down My life that I may take it again.” (John 10:17 NKJV)

The Gospel is beautiful because of the love we see on display between the Father and the Son. The Father is showing us so much more than just his grace toward sinners. The Father is showing his affection toward Jesus.

I will not claim to fully understand what this means. I just know I appreciate the way Jesus speaks of the Father. And the way the Father has decided to speak of the Son.

This aspect of the Gospel is more about what is happening between the enactors of the Gospel. But, it impacts us. Knowing that the Father and the Son share this love for one another, we can behold what that love provided for us.

And that is eternally beautiful.

Lent 2023 Series

Lent 2023 | Palm Sunday

The Collect

Almighty and everlasting God, who, of your tender love towards mankind, has sent your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ, to take upon him our flesh, and to suffer death upon the cross, that all mankind should follow the example of his great humility; Mercifully grant, that we may both follow the example of his patience, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.¹

The Lessons

Psalm: Ps. 73

O. T.: Zech. 9:9-12

Epistle: Phil. 2:5-11

Gospel: Matt. 27:1-54

Meditation

Hosanna • Hillsong | Gigi De Lana • Jon • LA • Jake • Romeo |

Lent 2023 Series

Collect and Lessons are from the Book of Prayer and Order (2020). [↩]

Lent 2023 | Day 34: The Gospel’s Scope

In Christ, even the creation would be restored to its intended purpose and glory. The creation had also been waiting for its redemption.

What is impacted by the effects of the Gospel?

It is an important question. We rarely consider what God was doing in providing a way of salvation affects everything else God created. God is always doing more than we can fully understand. Or even appreciate.

The Apostle Paul tells gives us a glimpse of this in his letter to the Romans. Let’s look at what he says regarding the creation.

²²For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. ²³Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. ²⁴For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? ²⁵But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.
Romans 8:22-25 NKJV

Paul definitively states this. He personifies the creation to help his readers understand that it was not just the human race that fell. The whole of creation suffered the devastating impact of Sin. The failure of Adam and Eve subjected the entirety of the created order to the decay of sin.

But in Christ, even the creation would be restored to its intended purpose and glory. The creation had also been waiting for its redemption.

The Gospel’s scope is not merely to save the lost. It is to redeem the totality of God’s creation. John says it this way in the open lines of his Gospel: ^“All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made” (John 1:3 NKJV).

And Paul in his letter to the Colossians says this:

¹⁶For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. ¹⁷And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist.
Colossians 1:16-17 NKJV

The one for whom and by whom all things were made was also on a mission to put everything back into order. This is the Gospel’s scope. It encapsulates the length and breadth of creation.

Lent 2023 Series

Lent 2023 | Day 33: The Gospel’s Accessibility

The Gospel is for everyone. Jesus will never deny or reject anyone who desires to partake of the Gospel’s promises.

One of the most interesting encounters we see Jesus have is when he meets with children. One can see the all too common feeling that children, just by being what they are, can be “distracting.” So, the disciples felt it was important to move them away so the adults could spend time with Jesus.

Let’s read what happened.

¹³Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them. ¹⁴But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God. ¹⁵Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will by no means enter it.” ¹⁶And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them.
Mark 10:13-16 NKJV

It is worth remembering what King David said in one of his Psalms regarding children.

³Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord,
The fruit of the womb is a reward.

⁴Like arrows in the hand of a warrior,
So are the children of one’s youth.

⁵Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them;
They shall not be ashamed,
But shall speak with their enemies in the gate.
Psalm 127:3-5 NKJV

Children are not to be seen as burdens or inconveniences in our lives. They are one of the most special gifts we can receive. And what’s more, they are a constant reminder of God’s faithfulness. In each child, we see the continued revelation of God’s promise never to destroy the human race.

⁸Then God spoke to Noah and to his sons with him, saying: ⁹“And as for Me, behold, I establish My covenant with you and with your descendants after you, ¹⁰and with every living creature that is with you: the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, of all that go out of the ark, every beast of the earth. ¹¹Thus I establish My covenant with you: Never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of the flood; never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth.”
Genesis 9:8-11 NKJV

All of this context is to help us better appreciate what Jesus was doing when he corrected the disciples. The children were, and are, an integral part of understanding that the Gospel is not just for the “mature.” The Gospel is for everyone. Jesus will never deny or reject anyone who desires to partake of the Gospel’s promises.

The Gospel’s accessibility is for anyone who seeks it. This is such a wonderful promise. One that I pray we would recognize intentionally.

Lent 2023 Series

Lent 2023 | Day 32: The Gospel’s Zenith

Regardless of what we might understand at the outset of our journey of faith, God’s ultimate goal is to restore humanity to fellowship with him.

The word zenith was original used in reference to celestial bodies such as stars and planets. It marked the highest point reached as the object moved through the sky. In the course of time, it became a reference to any high point whether literal or metaphorical.

With this in mind, what is the Gospel’s zenith? What is the “highest point” we can identify on this journey of faith?

Regardless of what we might understand at the outset of our journey of faith, God’s ultimate goal is to restore humanity to fellowship with him. This goal will be attained at the culmination of all things.

Whether we think about it often or not, there is a powerful eschatological component to the Gospel. If you are not familiar with he word eschatological, it is in reference to what will happen at the end of time and Jesus returns.

For the Christian, the Gospel is the doorway into the Christian life. But the Gospel is also the ongoing pursuit of the Christian’s journey. There is nothing more important. Or at least there should not be.

As we continue to mature in our understanding of God’s grace; as we grow in our trust of God’s promises; as we endeavor to embody the example of Jesus in our own lives, we indicate that we are on the steady march toward God’s ultimate purpose. These serve as the markers of our progress toward that end.

If you are wondering what all this has to do with our Gospel focus, it’s this: the zenith of the Gospel is the eternal glory of all those who endure to the end. Jesus spoke of those who continue in faith in his warning and description of the events at the close of history in Matthew 24. Tucked away in that passage he offers this simple promise.

¹³But he who endures to the end shall be saved.
Matthew 24:13 NKJV

The world will put all manner of obstacles in our way. Some are the result of our own actions. Others impediments will be the result of the action of others. And the vast majority of them will be there because we live in a world deeply affected by sin.

Regardless of the reason, we are called to endure. To continue to hold onto the promises of God. To not allow the challenges of the world to keep us from marching toward God’s purpose.

The zenith of the Gospel is found in Jesus leading us into God’s presence. We experience some of that in passing moments here in this world. Some longer than others. But there will come a day when what comes and goes will come and stay.

I look forward to that day. And so should you.