My First Observance of Good Friday

Q: What is Good Friday?

A: Well that's easy. It's a day for remebering the crucifixion of Jesus.

Q: What should we do on Good Friday?

A: Remember that Jesus died to save us from sin.

Q: What is the purpose of this remberance?

A:                                       

...How would you answer this question?

    As Holy Week has been rapidly approaching and is now here, I have been continually wrestling with the answer to this question. Good Friday has never carried much significance with me...maybe you can relate?  Maybe you get excited about Good Friday as a day off from school! (Don't get me wrong... a day off is always worth being excited about, regardless of the reason!) Maybe you, like myself, have consiously observed Good Friday due to the fact that no one else seems to, and just wait until the church-wide celebration of Easter. (This is the big one for me.) While many Christian traditions "recognize" Good Friday, it seems they don't very often "observe" it. Though this seems to be a cause for my lack of personal emphasis on Good Friday, I am quickly learning that it doesn't have to be an excuse.

    For myself, the key seems to lie in an attitude summed up in one of my favorite quotes, this one by Martin Luther.

"I feel as if Christ had died only yesterday."

    The first time I read this, it radically changed my perspective on Christ's death, along with the entire Gospel. Just dwell on that for a minute, or even a bit longer! What would your view of God, your commitment to Christianity, your view of this physical life, and your appreciation of God's saving sacrifice look like if Christ had actually died yesterday? Reflect on that for a minute... place yourself in the moment of Christ's life and death.

    I know... the truth is, we aren't living in first-century Jerusalem. I've often struggled with how to consciously live for Christ when he hasn't been physically present for some 2000 years. However, I'm compelled to follow a logical conclusion: The absolute truth and incredible significance of Christ's death is equally present, whether he died in the first years of the 1st century or the in the 21st century.

    If I truly believe that Christ died as the Scriptures tell us, than the length of time doesn't have to lessen its significance, because it doesn't lessen its truth! If the Revolutionary War had not occurred, however long ago it was, we might still be under England's rule. If Christ's crucifixion had not happened, we would definitely still be under the curse of sin and eternal death. Two historic, true, documented events that we only experience as history, yet they both (Christ's death infinitely more that the American Revolution) contain a personal significance.

   On Monday, Bryan College held an hour-long worship service centered on Christ's death. The result of not just an hour of worship, but more importantly an intentional focus and meditation on the crucifixion, caused me and those around me to greet each other and - instead of discussing the latest homework assignment - say, "Isn't our God incredible? To think that he loved us that much before we were redeemed, but covered in sin!" This is when the Gospel becomes real... when it means so much to us that we can't help but talk about it, not out of duty, but out of desire.

    So I want to challenge you to observe Christ's death this Friday. And I don't mean simply "think about His death" while you go throughout your day as I've done in the past, but rather really spend some time in reflection of its significance. Do you realize how hopeless we would be without it? Think about how the awesome, matchless love of God is present with us eternally, due to the greatest sacrifice ever made.... and let it radically impact your conversations, your attitude, and the very reason you live.. to share this incredible truth.

Brian

A Book You Should Read

         Cruciform: Living the Cross-Shaped Life 

        
          I just completed what I think is one of the most simple, yet insightful, books available on the outworking of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our daily lives.  God has been shaping my understanding of the Gospel by both chiseling away at my false suppositions and supplementing my already correct ones, leading to a far greater appreciation of what Jesus accomplished for me.  This book fits perfectly into the Gospel-saturated journey that has been weaved into my path in recent days.  I hope that my thoughts about the book will spur you on to read it for yourself, beginning your journey of not only seeing the cross of Jesus Christ more clearly than ever before, but also sculpting your life into the shape of the cross.

            Cathedrals posses some of the most beautiful, ornate architecture of any structure built in the Middle Ages.  Interestingly, some of the floor plans of these Cathedrals were in the shape of a cross.  The prominence of the cross in the structure of the building served as a constant reminder of the Gospel and its prominence in God’s redemptive plan.

           

            In the same way that the Cathedrals were made into the shape of the cross, so our lives should be lived out in the shape of a cross – “the Cruciform Life.”  You and I strive desperately to be something and do something special because we were made to be and do just that.  We were created to be a part of a community-on-mission with God to exalt and proclaim His glory in all things and to all people.  However, instead of joining in this community-on-mission, we selfishly look inward to how we can best further ourselves. 

            So, imagine the simple shape of a cross.  Picture the intersection point of the horizontal and vertical pieces as a nucleus from which all (now four) of the pieces of the cross originate.  We were designed, in all of our actions, to worship God and exalt His name (the upward section of the cross), and point all people with whom we interact, and all of creation to worship Him as well (both the horizontal pieces and the downward piece). 

          Because we have perverted this model into one in which we only look to serve and love ourselves, God sent Jesus to be the ultimate model of the Cruciform Life while on earth, and then to offer His life as an atoning sacrifice, completely restoring us to the God who created us.  As we look at the example of Jesus, we see two things very clearly: He lived as a Son and loved as a servant.  You have to get this.  We are called to serve people and make God’s glory known among all nations, but we cannot do this without first understand our “son-ship.”  Realizing that because of the cross we have God’s total acceptance and affection, we can have the confidence and satisfaction in our relationship with God to “count all things as loss” and take on the role of a servant.

           

            You see, when I understand that no matter what I do, think, say, or what others do, think, or say to me, I still have God’s total acceptance and affection, I am totally free to lay down my life – I have nothing to lose.  Now I can live my life to show others how they too can experience this kind of freedom.  However, I must continually come back to the cross to be reminded of who God is, who I am, and what Jesus has done for me.  Then I go back into the world with new love and passion to serve others with.  This cyclical life is the Cruciform Life.

            What I love about this book is that it does not leave us with some Theological truth, but meets us where we are daily living, giving practical applications of those Theological truths.  How do we live as sons, and serve people?  Using an ingenious, stick-figure drawing, Davis illustrates how to view our daily lives as “waiting tables.”  We have to have our eyes open to see who is sitting at the “tables” of where we work, eat, workout, and shop.  Each of us has areas of influence, and God has called us to serve and love those in our sphere of influence.  So, now we apply the cyclical process of going to the cross, and then acting out the cross to each of these “tables” that we are serving.

            The great misunderstanding of Christianity today is that I have to “do these things” in order to earn the presence and acceptance of God.  You and I can do absolutely nothing to gain or lose God’s affection and acceptance for us.  Jesus earned that for you and I.  If you are trusting in anything else to earn that for you, you are sadly mistaken.  For example, I do not read my Bible so that God will be accept me, I read my Bible to understand better the fact that He already has accepted me in Jesus, and to hear Him tell me that again.  Davis helps us to understand more clearly this concept through his own personal journey.

            I hope that my words have stimulated in your heart a desire to read this book and see more extensively how YOU can live the Cruciform Life that God created you to live.  The truths of the Gospel combined with Jimmy Davis’ personal experiences are sure to impact your heart and mind, compelling you to begin living the Cruciform Life.  I cannot urge you enough to read this simple, short, Gospel-saturated book. 

You can purchase your copy of the book at Amazon Site or Cruciform Site

Also, if you want to enter to win a free, signed copy of the book, go to http://cruciformlife.org/

You can find Jimmy’s blog at  http://cruciformlife.org/blog.htm  

Scott

A Faith I've Never Known.

The following is a brief account of a 2-hour conversation I had this week with an older man who had been involved in missions for - as I understood it - about roughly 30 to 40 years. I would rank this conversation as one of the most influential conversations I have ever had... although honestly, I did a lot more listening than talking. In the interest of not distracting from what I hope to share, I won't mention his full name, but simply refer to him by his first name, Chris.

Background

     For time's sake, I won't relate the entirety of Chris' testimony, but there is a bit of important background information. Chris began his missions ministry in Kyrgyzstan, a predominantly Muslim country, bordering the northeast area of China. He went with a "faith-based" missions organization, which means all he had was a sending church and a call... no raising support, no meeting a "financial quota" before leaving... just a faith that God would provide. While in Kyrgyzstan, Chris noticed the unreached drug addict population, and in response he developed a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center, which not only helped the locals out of their addiction, but reached them with the Gospel through weekly Bible studies. Over time the ministry flourished, and he gradually turned over leadership to the locals. He saw an incredible amount of people come to the Lord, and a society transformed.

Faith I've Never Known

     As I listened to Chris talk, I realized this man had seen God work not just once, but countless times in ways we would describe as "miraculous." While at first I was simply amazed at his stories, I finally began to make a connection that I had been searching for my whole life. Maybe you've heard stories of miracles and incredible acts of God, and wondered why you never experience anything like that... I certainly have! However I finally realized Chris had a level of faith that I had never even considered having.

      When asked, (Being in a dangerous Muslim country) "How do you balance common sense and faith when sharing the Gospel?" He answered, "When you're in the center of God's will and relying solely on Him, He will preserve you as long as He wants you to keep working." He went on to share - not out of pride but out of a testimony to Christ's faithfulness - that he had been mugged 5 times, nearly stoned by a young mob of Muslims (until prayers around the world miraculously stopped them), held at gunpoint 3 times, kidnapped, whipped, and beat, but he was still alive, carrying out God's work because He was still needed for the kingdom. He made the comment, "I haven't been shipwrecked yet, so I'm really looking forward to that one!" Here I saw a man in front of me who stood for what I had been searching for... a faith that the apostles and early Christians had, a faith that allowed them to face certain death and yet miraculously live to continue the work until death finally took them. They suffered for the gospel and lived, because it was all they were living for.

     I've grown up hearing that God doesn't work in miracles anymore, but just through ordinary areas of life. Maybe you're like me and wondered why God did crazy things in the early church, but seems to stay silent today... When did He suddenly decide to become inconspicuous? Call me crazy, but I don't think God has hidden Himself at all! Without making any foolish "absolute" claims, I'm beginning to think that God only works through ordinary circumstances because we don't trust Him in the extraordinary! Too often I find myself viewing faith as "I believe God can ______." But if I'm focused on getting my plans for the next x-amount of years squared away, spending the majority of my thoughts on how to keep myself secure and safe, and wanting my life on earth to be comfortable, how can I expect God to respond to my "faith" in a miraculous way? Maybe I only see God work in the ordinary things because that's how I live... avoiding risk under the banner of "common sense." I'm not saying I don't have faith because I don't proclaim the Gospel in the streets of Afghanistan.. but if God asked me to, could I?

So much more I want to say... but for now, I hope you'll not simply "consider" true faith, but actively pursue it, as God is teaching me to do. And please add your input in this discussion!
Grace and Peace,

Brian