Easter Ponderings

It has been on my mind lately that I haven’t felt productive in my faith. My life feels “wrong” to some degree, like I’ve missed the path He set out for me. With it being Easter season, Lent has been on my mind. I didn’t practice it in the past so I decided to learn about it. 

I didn’t end up honoring Lent in its time this year, however it had several points that intrigued me. Lent is 40 days long, which is an important number repeatedly in the Bible. In reading here forty days is pointed out as significant for Noah, Moses and Jesus. The times that forty were illustrated always pertained to a time when God took the person out of their old life, and prepared them for a new way of life through Him. It’s also important to note that Lent was a time to reflect on the things that Jesus spoke of- fasting for self discipline and to focus one’s mind on God, sacrifice and giving to others. 

I thought about what the entire forty day season leading up to  Easter was really about, and the graphic above came to mind. Like those chosen for their forty day journey into new life in Him, we need to keep our minds on what kind of life God has called us to. That forty day period should lead us towards it, continually strengthening and growing us in our faith each year, instead of only being a time of reflection or remembrance of His sacrifice.

Good Friday ponderings

It’s Good Friday. 

I was thinking on and off about Jesus sacrificing for us humans, and me in particular. I thought about how I should be appreciating my life more and live like his sacrifice was worth more than my current plodding along seems to value it. It came to me- What if there’s a second  side to the crucifixion that we don’t think about as much-

What if it is just as important for us to concentrate on the fact that Jesus was willing to take on the full measure of sin for the entire world- as it is for us to see this is also the ultimate example of loving obedience to God?

His Father says, “I need you to do this, Jesus, for mankind, and for my purpose with them to be fulfilled.” And despite his human understanding of the horrifics required, he loved his Father enough to say yes. He understood that God had put this into his life for a reason so he obeyed Him because He believed, and his love was shown in his obedience.

WHAT IF we simply need to understand this is how wholeheartedly we need to be as we come to the Lord as Believers? To believe with a whole heart, and to follow Him with that same loving devotion.

The Original Sin

Most people are taught the “original sin” occurred when Eve disobeyed God's command given to her and Adam in the Garden of Eden. In Genesis 1:15-17, God tells Adam that he is free to eat from any tree in the garden except the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. But in Genesis 3:1-13, Eve listened to the words of “the serpent” (the Devil in disguise), ate from the tree and enticed Adam with it too. So, sin is labeled as anything that is disobedient to God.

An important aspect of the “original sin” is being missed in this explanation. In Matthew 22:36-38, Jesus is questioned about what the Greatest Commandment is. He replies, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment.” (NIV). If you love Him with all you have, then there is no room for love of self. This is the part we fail to emphasize in the talk about Original Sin. We don't often speak about the motivation behind it, and focus only on the fact that someone was not following God’s directions. 
The New Testament says your actions as a Believer are to be out of love for others- not driven to “earn God's love” or prove yourself righteous. These two motivations focus on self, not others. It is important to understand that this has been the ultimate problem we will face as Christians- a battle against your own self seeking. It was the original sin that brought this about. In this one act, the Devil manages to deceive Eve by appealing to her self. He tells her in Genesis 3:1-5, “You will not certainly die...For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” This idea that she could be as big and good and wise as God was a hard temptation to fight, and thinking of herself, not her God, she made the choice. Now that desire to choose self interest will always be present in our souls.

It is incredibly important that we recognize that selfishness and self centeredness will be one of our greatest temptations and weaknesses in our faith. Selfishness will drive the majority of sin we encounter in our time here on Earth. For example, greed or love of money, is discussed in Matthew 6:24, and again in 1 Timothy 6:10. It is described as the “root of all kinds of evil.” I challenge that it is not simply a matter of the love of money that causes these “kinds of evil.” I believe it is a matter of selfishness. What drives someone to be greedy but a desire to make themself happy with things only money can provide? In thinking of what they can do for themselves with newly gained money, they quickly forget concern for how making and having this money will affect others.

Remembering that self serving is the exact opposite of what God calls for doesn't mean that you, your needs and wants, cease to be important. It means you need to recognize that pleasing yourself first comes naturally, and that you must be on guard so that you don't fall into a pattern of following those feelings all the time. Keep in mind that putting yourself first means you cannot put God first as we are told to do in the greatest commandment.

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of others.” Phillipians 2:3-4