Monday, March 29, 2010

This week is Holy Week, sometimes called Passion Week. It is the week leading up to Easter. It is the week in which Christians all over the world remember the passion and sacrifice of their Lord and Savior. It is the most significant week in our faith as it commemorates the events leading up to the most significant event in history, the Resurrection!

Begin your time with God with the following readings…

When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?” The crowds answered, “This is Jesus, the prophet from Nazareth in Galilee.” – Matthew 21:10-11

Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some sly way to arrest Jesus and kill him. “But not during the Feast,” they said, “or the people may riot.” - Mark 14:1-2

There is a sense in which the story of Christ’s passion begins right here. Can you feel the tension in the Gospel story rising? Jesus is coming to the holy city, Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the religious, social and economic center of Jewish life. Jesus is coming into the very center, the heart of things, and Matthew tells us that the whole city is stirred. Not only is the city stirred and excited, but the religious leaders are also worked up about Him. Jesus has not exactly been on good terms with the religious leaders of His day before this point, but at least they weren’t trying to kill him! Now the story turns and things really begin to heat up.

It is as if everything that has come before has been almost preliminary to the events of the coming week in Jesus’ life. In reading the Gospels up to this point we know of Jesus’ virgin birth. We know Jesus as a great Rabbi through his teachings. We know Jesus as a divine agent through His miracles. We even have some hints of who He really is and what His real purpose is (although eve those closest to Him were still confused about these things). But it is not until this week that our picture of Jesus truly becomes clear. It is through this week that all of the pieces of God’s redemptive plan finally come together in the person of Jesus Christ.

For too many of us, Holy week is really just another week. Oh sure, we celebrate Easter on Sunday by going to church and then to brunch and eating way too much and feeling guilty about it on Monday. However, very few of us take the time to meditate and reflect on the events of this week and their significance for our lives as Christ followers today.

But today just as more than two thousand years ago, Jesus is coming! He is coming into the very center of our lives. His arrival stirs people. Some are stirred to fear and anger towards Him. Some are stirred to curiosity and questions about Him. Some are stirred to humility and repentance because of Him. Some are stirred by love and adoration for Him.

Take a few moments on this Monday at the beginning of Holy week to let the Spirit of God stir your heart about the coming of Jesus.

Oh Lord, may your arrival in my heart stir me to greater love and adoration of you and, may your arrival in our world stir many to repentance and humility.
Amen, Come Lord Jesus!

Jeff Frazier