Lent | Easter Sunday 2012: Day 47—Reflection
April 8, 2012 | 
Author [08APRIL2012] Lent | Easter Sunday 2012: Day 47—Reflection and Meditation
O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our humanity, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen
♦ Psalms 118:1-2, 14-24
“The sun has risen. Seek the Son of Man no more among the dead. He has broken the bonds of death. Alleluia! A fire grows in our hearts. Jesus abides with us. His mystery accompanies us. Death gives way to glory. Alleluia!”
Easter Sunday: He is Risen! “Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” (John 20:29)
It’s 11:30pm on Easter Sunday as I put down my closing thoughts on this Resurrection Remembrance. While part of me has celebrated outwardly remembering the significance of what this day represents, I have wrestled with disturbance in my soul for most of the day too. Part of me was sad. Bothered. Bugged. Annoyed.
I tried to ask my soul what the deal was, but it seemed too agitated to respond to me until a few hours ago. Maybe it was simply a matter of selfish immaturity (soul sulking???), but here is what my soul said to me.
I didn’t like rushing through this day. The past forty days I have spent focused on the need for and work of reconciliation that our Savior has provided us. I’ve anticipated this day, looking ahead and waiting specifically for it as I intently scrutinized every dark place within me. I acknowledge the need for the redemptive work of Christ and wanted to enter into this day in celebratory fashion, yes, but I also wanted to soak in reverent adoration at the feet of our Victorious Savior King as well—and not just alone, but with the corporate body…all of us worshiping and adoring our Great Redemptor God. So much of today felt “plastic” and “polished” …several moments felt awkward and out of place for me. I wanted to savor the Bread and Wine of Your Paschal Feast with You…but that was also missed from my day. Perhaps I had unrealized expectations. This day isn’t about me, but I do share with the Body proper as a participant. So, I’ve already repented of my selfish wants and extended forgiveness without condition for whatever offense I had taken earlier. As a crucified member who shares the Cross of Christ, I cannot afford to be downcast or downtrodden. I choose to move on. I, Your soul, am not bummed, bugged, or bothered anymore. Christ has Risen and He is my Victory.
So, I will end this day with my heartfelt prayer to Jesus, the One who has saved me for the joy of Himself and given to me the Victory and Peace this world holds no comparison to—
O Lord, my Lord, thank you for the Victorious Cross. Thank you for the Empty Tomb. Thank you for your unrelenting passion that never failed me and the Mercy of your unceasing Grace that prevented my heart from becoming hardened as Pharaoh’s was. Lord Jesus, when you turned me with prophetic revelation back in the fall of 2001 it was those words that have never escaped me…that encounter with you exceeded any other experience I had previously shared with you. I cannot thank you enough for that supernatural visitation. So tonight, I thank you with the prayer of those words that have spoken life to me and held me close to you for these last eleven years—“My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not treat the grace of God as meaningless.” (Galatians 2:20). Glory Be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be—world without end. Amen.
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Hi Jeff… Thank you so much for the hard work you put into the Lenten days. I read all of your posts and they blessed me.
Today’s reflection is interesting and honest. While I do not share your sentiments, it causes me to wonder if Easter services might find a place for testimonies. After all, weren’t testimonies from those who saw Jesus after His resurrection THE first Easter sermons? / Services? The idea of a believer sharing their story about the way Jesus found him or her is family friendly, intimate and cannot be disiputed. …just sayin’…
Thanks for the comment, Bonnie. I’m glad my journals and writing were able to be a blessing to you. I appreciate that.
I suppose my thoughts and reflections from yesterday might be lacking in context. More and more, I find my heart broken by the contemporary “church machine.” Certainly, mine is a sentiment that is not shared by many whose experience with the “church” has been dominated by the “machine.” My opinion is not meant to be taken as a pejorative commentary; it is merely a perspective that has been born of much study, examination, and personal soul-searching.
I absolutely believe personal testimony has a place in the church, but I’m not sure that tweaking or refining the “service” or “sermon” is the salve for my sore. My heart is heavy over what I continue to witness as the overwhelming product born out of the contemporary Protestant evangelical church which is unhealthy, shallow, theologically malformed, and Biblically illiterate Christians. Forgive my sweeping generalities, but there are numerous studies, surveys, and polls that support my broad brush strokes. Again, it is not my intent to put down people or programs… there are many well-intended and fruit-producing programs in the church today, and there are people who are growing in the ways of Christ, but not to the degree and numbers that are intended.
Recent conversations I have been part of continue to lend support to my position rather than detract from it. One comment I heard recently from a Christian of over four decades proclaimed Satan the present day ruler of earth (not true). Another “life-long” believer, this week, told me we’ll never be free from sin on this side of eternity (not true). Still, others do not believe we can “do the things Jesus did” much less truly follow him in a real sense (flawed understanding). Thousands upon thousands of Christians suffer from issues of anxiety, fear, worry, and depression to the point they require prescription medicine to cope with life… (really???). There is something wrong.
Personally, I think the metrics we use for determining a healthy church are wrong… or perhaps our definition of “healthy church” needs examination. In either event, I do not profess to have all the answers either. I’m just thinking out loud as I try to figure out why things aren’t working as Jesus outlined and the disciples taught and wrote of in what we have in our Bibles.
I’ll continue to think out loud and offer what I believe is transparent critique… of me and the church. I’m glad you shared with me on my blog. For the record, the Paschal Tridium isn’t over
— counting today, we have forty-nine more days of Easter to celebrate… forty until the ascension of Jesus and another ten that follow until the Day of Pentecost. I’m planning to stay “parked” here as long as I can. Be blessed!
Here is an article by Michael Yousef … “A Literal is a Liberal is a Liberal”. It may explain the cause for the effect we are seeing.
http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=1394792
http://www.onenewsnow.com/Perspectives/Default.aspx?id=1394792
Adding to your “proofs and examples”, I have heard the following statements from believers:
1. It’s OK to kill a baby (in the womb). The child won’t have a chance to sin, so it is assured a place in heaven.
2. Street evangelism is not Biblical.
3. Calling out sin (as Nathan did to David) is not New Testament. (1Corinthians 5)
4. It’s OK to “play god” because we are made in His image.
thanks again for the conversation…and the link. While I find it interesting, I don’t know if I necessarily see the connection with Yousef’s words and the plight of the contemporary church. I hear him calling out liberalism, but I don’t know if that is the entirety of the issue(s) we face today.
Coincidentally, I happened to see this article posted today http://redeemercitytocity.com/blog/view.jsp?Blog_param=420 that I think might be a bit more inclusive of circumstances contributing to our plight. However, I would stress that I (personal opinion) believe the problems go deeper still. I am putting this book on my “wishlist” and will be sure to read it when it is released in a couple weeks.
Douthat’s book (good catch) … looks interesting and serves to make the point that many are scratching their heads wondering what has gone wrong. I can answer that in one word… sin.
I get it; the one word answer, “sin.” And, FWIW, I agree. The problem as I understand it is that we (humanity in general and Christians in particular) have become desensitized to what sin is. We all too often will identify sin as tangible manifestations or acts committed or omitted according to our personal ethic or cultural virtue. We’ve lost sight of the fact that sin (hamartia) is literally “missing the mark” of God. As we miss the mark, we increase our distance and separation from God.
Understanding the problem: being separated from God, is only the first step. Repentance follows with a “turn” and movement back toward God…so we don’t continue to miss the mark and remain distant and separated from God. Union and reconciliation with God corrects wrong-thinking about Him. Helping people to see this and move in His direction is the corrective we need. The million dollar question is this: what steps do we take to get back on a course that leads to correction? I think it is recognized by many that what we are doing isn’t working. I think I heard someone once say “if you keep doing what you have always done and expect different results… this is the definition of insanity” or something like that.
disiputed = disputed
literal = liberal
Sheesh!
Here’s an out of the box Easter Testimony model.
http://www.kvue.com/news/Tim-Tebow-speaks-at-Celebration-Church–146602355.html
Thanks for the link… I’m not so sure I’m on board with this sort of thing. I definitely think it is out of the box (to use your words), but for a celebration of Resurrection Sunday I would personally prefer a different style of gathering. I wonder how many of the 15,000 (by one report) to 30,000 (by another count) persons attending were there to worship Jesus or worship Tebow. I got nothing against the young man and root for his success in all his endeavors, but Christian celebrity leaves a bit of a sour taste in my mouth. The article said it had more of a Rock concert feel than a worship service.
If I were given planning freedom for a Easter Testimony model… I would arrange the meeting near a body of water; preferably “living” or moving water. I would encourage testimony from believers and ask if there might be symbolic re-baptisms so people might identify with the death, burial, and re-new-birth of the resurrection. Hopefully, there would be some acoustic instruments (djembe, guitar, harmonica, etc) that would help us sing hymns, psalms, and praise choruses. We would also share in a picnic style or BBQ communal meal following participation in the celebration of the Lord’s Supper.
Thank you for baring your soul. It is refreshing.
Thank you, Ms Nancy. You are missed