Liturgical Calendar - Jeremiah's Vow

Lent 2022 | 1st Sunday in Lent: Celebrate!

Every Sunday in Lent is considered a mini Easter and is therefore not counted among the days of Lent. During this time we should pause to celebrate the goodness of God as he brings us closer to himself and into a deeper understanding of the work of Christ in our lives.

Today we’re going to celebrate the Grace of God.

There are many misunderstandings and misconceptions about what the grace of God is. And I will not try to dispel all of them in this post. What I would like to do is consider what the ministry of Christ means for us if we accept Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection as God’s plan for our redemption.

For those of us who claim the name of Christ and have become followers of him, the greatest realization we can accept and celebrate is that God has done something for us that we cannot do for ourselves.

God has entered into the human condition and walked among us experiencing the fullness of the human experience so that we might know he understands what it is like to be one of us. The miracle of the incarnation is not only that God became like us. That in and of itself is truly glorious. The miracle of the incarnation is that God truly understands what it means to live in a world that is broken and drifting away from him.

God’s grace, as it is seen in the life and presence of Jesus upon the earth, is the proof of God’s glorious love for us.
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The weight of sin and the effects of spiritual brokenness upon men and women cannot always be fully understood. It is something we experience in unique ways because we are individual people. One of the challenges we face is recognizing that though we might experience similar events we do not always experience the same manifestation of emotions. What this means for us is we should not compare our experiences. We should just recognize how each experience shapes us into the people we are becoming.

Now, what does this have to do with God’s grace? That is a good question. And I would answer it in this way.

God’s grace, as it is seen in the life and presence of Jesus upon the earth, is the proof of God’s glorious love for us. That God would exit his perfect heaven and enter into our broken world so that we might have a relationship with him is worthy of celebration. The reality of God’s grace can sometimes escape us because we do not, or maybe we simply cannot fully appreciate the cost of Jesus entering into the world to God.

The Christian church has taught this idea, this doctrinal truth, from the very beginning. And so for those of us who have the benefit of centuries of theologians and divines speaking to it, Jesus’s entrance into the world feels as if this is something “normal”. But the truth of the matter is this is anything but normal. Anything God does is supernatural. And even though we accept as an axiom of faith the entrance of Jesus Christ into the world through the miracle of the incarnation, we should not lose sight of how truly glorious this reality is.

As we celebrate this first Sunday in Lent, I encourage you to take a moment, to pause and reflect on this wonderful reality that we have been gifted. In just a few short weeks we will remember the fullness of the sacrifice of Christ. But as we journey towards Resurrection Sunday, we should stop and rejoice at the goodness of God as it is seen in the grace of God.

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Lent 2022 | Day 4: Remember

What is the purpose of remembering?

It is to give you a chance to relive and rehearse what you’ve been through without necessarily having to live through it again.

One of the obstacles we have to overcome when engaging in a time of remembering is dealing with emotions that haven’t been addressed or have gone unresolved. These memories are important even when we do not necessarily have a clear path forward.

The goal of remembering should be to enter into a deeper analysis of the events and to discern, as best we can, the lessons we can take away from them.

We should not be surprised when we find ourselves stuck on a memory unable to move forward. This is actually quite common. It’s at times like these when we should seek the counsel of a trusted friend or mentor. Sometimes in conversation the combined wisdom of your lives can bring about some new insights that may have gone unnoticed before. This may not be the best approach for everyone.

The goal of remembering should be to enter into a deeper analysis of the events and to discern, as best we can, the lessons we can take away from them.
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Sometimes writing down our memories and reflections can be helpful. Other times using our imagination to put ourselves into that situation may be the way to go. Regardless of the method we use, the goal should be to look at the event and the choices that we made, and possibly the mistakes that were made in order to gain a better understanding of how we can grow and move forward.

As we continue our journey towards Easter, it is good to take a moment to reflect and remember on those things that could keep us from embracing the fullness of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. This time of reflection is key in helping us to consider where we are on our journey of faith.

As we look back and even consider where we might go in the days, months, and years to come, remembering when we are not in the immediate emotional state of that event gives us an opportunity to think and look at what happened with a little more clarity.

This is not an easy task for many. But in spite of the challenges, it is well worth the effort. When we remember and reflect and consider where we have been and where we would like to go we grow as individuals and as members of the faith communities to which we belong.

We should not underestimate the power of our own spiritual maturity and development. It may be something other people do not consider to be of value. However, as followers of Christ, we are called to a continual journey of development. This journey can sometimes lead us to places and conclusions we did not anticipate or expect. But regardless of where we end up we can put our trust in Christ to lead us from there to the place he said he was preparing for us.

To walk by faith can sometimes feel like an overwhelming challenge. But that challenge should not cause us to despair or lose hope. We should continue to turn our attention towards Christ, allowing him to continue his work in us as he conforms us into his image and cultivates in us those disciplines that will yield a harvest within our lives.

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Lent 2022 | Day 3: Light

One of the many challenges we face in faith is learning to trust God.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.
James 1:17 KJV

God is light. The very notion of this strikes us as confusing. The reason is that as people with bodies the idea of our bodies giving off light makes no sense. And yet this is one of the key descriptors of God’s being given to us in Scripture. What are we to make of it?

Even if we were to accept that God is light in a literal sense we should not be surprised by this. For God is purity itself.

It is both terrifying and comforting to think of God as being light. It is terrifying because it means there is nothing that can remain hidden from him. It is comforting because there is nothing that can remain hidden from him.

The comfort we have in knowing that God knows all it is that God is not surprised by what we bring to him.

One of the many challenges we face in faith is learning to trust God. The description of God as light should increase our trust because it means there is nothing we should try to hide from him. We might feel shame in confessing it out loud because it means admitting the truth to ourselves, but that is far less difficult than living under the burden of the truth we’re trying to hide from the world.

The description of God as light should increase our trust because it means there is nothing we should try to hide from him.
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The longer we wait the more difficult it becomes. The more accustomed we become to its presence in our lives. The more we fear its revelation to the world.

And so as we begin the season of Lent I think it’s appropriate for us to take time to consider what things in our lives we should allow God’s light to shine upon. This does not mean some form of public confession needs to be made. Although that is not necessarily excluded. But it does mean making a clear and unequivocal confession to God, seeking his forgiveness with a sincere heart.

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Lent 2022 | Day 2: Prayer

God is not merely interested in hearing what we have to ask of him. God is interested in speaking to us.

1. The purpose of prayer is to position our minds and hearts according to God’s purposes

There are many misconceptions about what the purpose of prayer is. Enacted because we have not fully appreciated the lesson that Jesus gave to his own disciples when they asked about the subject. Often times when we think about prayer we see it as one-way communication. That means that we are the ones speaking and God is the one listening. But this misses an important aspect of the relationship we have a God.

The reality is that God is not merely interested in hearing what we have to ask of him. Even though he invites us to do it. We have to recognize that God is interested in speaking to us. That doesn’t mean we will always find it easy to hear what he has to say. But God has spoken. And God will continue to speak. The question is will we recognize his voice when he does?

This is what prayer seeks to find an answer for. Not only can we communicate with God and to God what is on our hearts and in our minds, but God can speak to us and share with us what he feels we must know.

2. The reality of prayer can be difficult when we merely desire for God to satisfy our whims

Related to the purpose of prayer is understanding that prayer can at times be difficult. God is not some divine Santa Claus who is sitting in heaven waiting for his children to offer him all the reasons he should fulfill their requests. That is not what prayer should be. And yet many of us have made it that or something similar.

There is a deeper reality that God is seeking to create within us. And that is to make us and conform us into the image of his son Jesus Christ. That we might live in accordance with his purposes and fulfill his will. So how has God determined to provide us this information? Through a listening for the prompting of his Spirit as our ears have been trained through the reading of his word.

The Bible serves us as teacher to train our ears to recognize the voice of God. When we merely read the Scripture to increase our knowledge we silence what God is trying to say through his revealed word. Yes, we can learn from the Scripture, but I think it is more important that we learn to listen by the Scriptures.

3. The power of prayer is found when we surrender our will to that of God’s.

There is a power to prayer that is oftentimes left unused and unseen. The power of prayer will be experienced when we are no longer trying to cajole God into doing what we want. When we stop and listen and learn what it is God desires we become more able to do what God has revealed to us.

Of the many challenges associated with praying, one of the greatest is understanding that when we surrender our limited understanding to God’s infinite wisdom we will come out better in the end. And so prayer functions in our lives to reveal those areas of our lives where we are not truly surrendered to God’s will.

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Lent 2022 | Day 1: Faith

The sacrifice of Christ on the cross is the fulfillment of promises and prophecies that God gave to his people from the moment they fell and were removed from the garden of Eden.

On this Ash Wednesday, as we prepare to enter into a season of reflection it is important to not lose sight of what we’re marching towards. Within the liturgical calendar, the season of Lent is a time of preparation. In this season we look back over the last few months to the journey that began during the season of Advent.

In Advent, we celebrate the coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. But in Lent, we prepare ourselves to acknowledge and celebrate the reality of Christ’s ultimate sacrifice on the cross.

The sacrifice of Christ on the cross is the fulfillment of promises and prophecies that God gave to his people from the moment they fell and were removed from the garden of Eden. On virtually every page of Scripture, we see the hand of God and we hear the voice of God through his messengers declaring the fulfillment of his ultimate redemption. A redemption that would bring to an end the sorrow and suffering that was brought into the world by sin.

The first day of the season of Lent is a time of reflecting upon the impact of sin in our lives. In particular, in those churches that have a service on Ash Wednesday, a particular practice has been used to mark both day and the believer. The use of ashes (which are made by burning the palm branches of the previous year) to signify that this life we lead on earth is transient and will eventually come to an end are imposed upon the foreheads of every believer.

The ashes are applied in the shape of a cross and the words “remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” With these words, we are reminded we are mortal and that this life will eventually come to an end. However, the ending is merely a transition from life on this earth to life before God.

We rehearse and remember the reality of the Lenten season because we as a people have a propensity to forget. And it is in this forgetting that we should force ourselves to remember.
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The season of Lent, which leads to the celebration of Easter morning, begins with a solemn service where we are called to remember that the weightiness of the season requires a seriousness of thought and reflection upon our lives. The celebration of Easter 40 days after Ash Wednesday should be a time of great rejoicing. After 40 days of reflection and meditation, we should be properly prepared to receive the glorious news that salvation has been purchased for us.

We might wonder why we believers who have already received the message of the gospel and the promises to which it signals should rehearse and repeat the season from year-to-year. I find that the reason is much simpler than we would care to admit. We rehearse and remember the reality of the Lenten season because we as a people have a propensity to forget. And it is in this forgetting that we should force ourselves to remember.

As we begin this season of the line I would encourage you to take some time to consider those areas of your lives where we all must surrender again our trust in our own abilities for a genuine confidence in Christ’s.

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Lent 2022 Series

In this season we are looking to bring into clearer focus the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ as it was incarnated in Jesus as he died on the cross and was raised from the dead on the third day.

Tomorrow we begin the season in the Christian calendar called Lent. The season of Lent is a time of contemplation and preparation. It is a time when we refrain from indulging in certain things for the sake of our souls.

It is not that continuing with the normal rhythm of life is bad or wrong. It’s just that in this season we are looking to bring into clearer focus the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ as it was incarnated in Jesus as he died on the cross and was raised from the dead on the third day.

In the season of Lent, we contemplate the reality of sin and the impact it has on our lives in our journey of faith. We take the time to look back at where we have been and to look forward to where we are going. This time of reflection and contemplation serves to prepare us for what we will be celebrating on Resurrection Sunday morning.

Lent is also a time of preparation. This means we are looking forward to the fulfilled hope of Christ’s resurrection. The regular rhythm of the liturgical calendar provides us with a framework that helps us to remember how the promises of God have been fulfilled throughout the passage of time. This continual call to preparation will persist until Christ returns. We need to be reminded that until we see the fulfillment of our redemption when we have finally entered into God’s eternal rest, we must not lose sight or lose heart along the way.

The journey of the Christian faith should be a steady and persistent walk with God. What this means for us on a daily basis is that in spite of the challenges we might encounter we can trust in God’s goodness toward us.

And so we enter the season of Lent. Readying ourselves to celebrate the great gift of salvation and the resurrection of Christ. But also recognizing that in order to properly appreciate this gift of grace we must put our hearts in a proper posture to receive.

I invite you to read the reflections and devotions over the next several weeks. Meditate on the ideas discussed. Pause when led to do it. Pray a little more than you may feel comfortable. Read Scripture seeking to hear rather than to be informed. In these small and simple practices, we cultivate the kind of faith that endures difficult times.

For many of us taking the time to consider where God has brought us can be challenging. But it is worth the effort and I invite you to join this journey towards Easter morning as we contemplate various ideas over the next few weeks.

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Easter Sunday

Reflection

He is RISEN!

Christ is risen indeed!

This acclamation and response has become one of the most common used during the celebration of Easter in the Christian Church all over the world. It declares the glorious news that Jesus conquered sin and death.

After all that happened at Jesus’s trial and crucifixion, the hope of the disciples seemed lost. The darkness of the day seemed to seep into their souls as well.

But, on Sunday morning everything Jesus said was restored by his exit from the tomb. In that moment hope and joy were infused with life and power. The promises of God from ages passed were being kept and fulfilled.

Today we celebrate. We celebrate because what once appeared lost and finished was only just the initiation. The end of one story had become the opening lines of a new chapter of another. And this new story was filled with possibilities never before imagined.

Happy Easter!

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The Complete Lent 2021 Series

Lent 2021, Day 40 | Holy Saturday

Reflection

“Saturday Mourning”

The darkness deepening
Our sadness winding
listing in the waves

The loss of friendship
Our life upending
crashing on the shore

The Master descending
Our hope departing
for now, the world is cold

Our weight compounding
Our fear increasing
a future, left unsure

The Lord is silent
His voice is quiet
We wait for Easter morn’

by: Victor Scott
Holy Saturday (April 3, 2021)

The Complete Lent 2021 Series

Lent 2021, Day 39 | Good Friday

Reflection

On that first “Good” Friday, there was nothing good happening. At least not from an earthly perspective.

The Son of God was falsely accused and tried in the middle of night. Those who should have defended him fled for their lives. And all who wanted him dead were doing all in their power to see it happen.

But if this is all you could see, then a dark picture was taking shape.

We look back with a different vantage point. What we see, is filtered through the completed text of the New Testament and the collective wisdom of a church 2,000 years removed from those difficult event.

As the Holy Spirit began to work in and through those first Christians, the overwhelming sadness of that first Good Friday would give way to an incomparable joy. The light of God’s grace in the sacrifice of his Son would change everything we ever thought we knew about God.

All of the questions that were lingering in the mind of those disciples would eventually find their answer in the resurrection of Sunday morning. The darkness on Golgotha as Jesus entrusted his spirit to the Father would be replaced by the shining brilliance of a risen savior.

The reality of Good Friday is not that Sunday is coming. Even though it is.

The most helpful thing to remember about that first Good Friday is that in spite of what we know or think we know, if God is involved we need to wait and see what God has in store.

The call to a holy patience is not easy to tolerate. But it is the price we pay to see how God fulfills his promises.

Let us give thanks to God for Good Friday. It is the first step toward a resurrection on Sunday.

The Complete Lent 2021 Series

Lent 2021, Day 38 | Psalm 119:173-176

Psalm 119:173-176

¹⁷³Let your hand be ready to help me,
    for I have chosen your precepts*.
¹⁷⁴I long for your salvation, O Lord,
    and your law is my delight.
¹⁷⁵Let my soul live and praise you,
    and let your rules help me.
¹⁷⁶I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek your servant,
    for I do not forget your commandments.

* Through these reflections, those phrases that identify God’s word, revelation, or law will be highlighted in the text in the hopes of accentuating the many and varied ways we can visualize what God has given to us for our good.

Reflection

As we conclude our study through Psalm 119, I wanted to take a little time and look at what we have learned. The author of this psalm wanted to look at and extol the wonders, beauty, and majesty of God’s word. The synonyms and images used to describe God’s revelation have been many. And the implications are just as varied.

First, God’s word is not just for religious exercise. Engaging and consuming of God’s word has very practical ramifications for how we live in the world and with others. To know how to live well, we need the best information and insights we can get. There is no greater wisdom than that given by God. Therefore, we should seek it, meditate on it, and employ it in our daily living.

Second, God’s word is a source of comfort. The constant reminder of God’s faithfulness and goodness are found throughout God’s word. We are given encouragement to remember the grace and mercy of God; to be called to deep trust and truer affection of God as we read and consider the history recorded.

Third, God’s word is a library of instruction. God desires for his people to know how to live in a way that reflects his character. In order to achieve this, we have to learn what is in line with God’s character what is not. As we study God’s word, we can see what he commands. As we grow in our obedience, we are transformed. As we are transformed, we become more like Jesus, who is our example of a God-filled life.

Finally, God’s word is a promissory note. What God has promised he will fulfill. To do anything less is to be accused of being a liar. God will comply with every promise he makes, and he makes no promise he cannot fulfill. This is the beauty of God’s love. He can do what he says. Just because we would have done things differently doesn’t mean God has failed. It should help us realize there are still things we don’t know.

God’s word is anchor for our faith. When we go to it we can find the God who gave us those words. But we have to be looking for him there to find him.

Commentary

Verse 173: The phrasing of the verse leaves the impression that the Psalmist, by choosing God’s precepts, is “reminding” God of what God has promised. Now, God does not need reminders. And that is not really the intent. The author is not putting a demand upon God. Rather, the author is acknowledging the reality of what God has promised to do when a believer lives in obedience to what God commands.

Verse 174: When we have come to know what God has said, our desire for salvation intensifies. What this would suggest is not that the gift of salvation has been rescinded and then reapplied. It would make more sense to see how delighting in God’s law is a steady reminder of the gift of which all who believe in Jesus are the beneficiaries of.

Verse 175: The write describes the posture of life they are taking. They want to live in such a way that it is obvious to all who see, that they are committed to God with the totality of their being. For the soul to “live and praise” God means that in daily living there will be an element of worship. That in all things God will be glorified.

Verse 176: The final verse of the psalm is a bit odd. The oddity is that after all the various ways that the Psalmist describes and rejoices in God’s faithfulness to keep them, they end on a note of deep humility. This acknowledgment of a tendency for failure serves two purposes. First, it is a humble admonition to wandering away from God is not only possible, but far more likely than we would like to admit. However, the petition is made for God to seek our the wandering sheep. Second, through this humble declaration we can see that we can trust in God’s faithfulness to seek us when we wander and to never abandon us when we feel like we have disappointed God. Even when we drift (or even run) off course, we know what we have learned about God. And it is this knowledge that will help us find our way back home.

The Complete Lent 2021 Series