To understand these events: the Last Supper, the betrayal, the denial, the judging, the beatings, the cross, the death, and the resurrection; I find it necessary to understand it was part of a bigger plan. A redemptive plan.
You see God created this perfect place (The Garden of Eden), knowing full well that in giving two humans free will they would choose to sin. One thing I know about God is that He knows all things and thus knew that sin would come into His perfect creation. Yet He still created. He still gave Adam and Eve free will.
So in order to restore and redeem His creation, He set into motion a plan filled with a "never stopping, never giving up, unbreaking, always and forever love" (taken from "The Jesus Storybook Bible, by Sally Lloyd-Jones). This plan was a love story in which God would himself come to Earth (His creation) and He would get rid of sin and provide a way for restoration to occur with His beloved children.
In this day and age, it is so easy to overlook the magnitude of the events of this week so long ago. We have the big picture. We see the whole story, how it played out and so we skip to the happy part of the story. Yet we all to often fail to live in the pain and joy of the story. You see this story is yours and mine. We would not have a chance in this world without the pain and joy of this story. This is not a story just about the disciples, or the guards, or the Pharisees, or the people of Jerusalem. The events took place for you and me because He loves you and me.
As I mentioned above, I believe that all too often we fail to live in the pain of the death of Christ. We fail to understand what we have been saved from. Death is often too commonplace in our minds, everybody is going to die at some point you know. We just hope for it to be quick and as painless as possible. Our perspective remains far too temporal instead of eternal. Thankfully we have a choice regarding our eternity due to His pain and suffering on the cross. He paid for our death and eternal condemnation.
I also believe that we fail to live in the joy of His death and resurrection. Oh on Easter Sunday we stop and sing a few extra songs, we listen to the Good News, we say the words "He is risen, He is risen indeed", we may participate in Holy Communion, but then we walk out the doors of our churches and by Monday we are joyless and defeated once again. (Does that sound familiar?) He is risen! We are free. Free from sin's control in our lives. Free from shame and guilt. We are free to enjoy a life filled with power and joy--the abundant life. No, it's not pain free, it's not easy, in fact it is often harder and more painful, but it is endured with the freedom and love and grace that can only be experienced because of the resurrection.
One of my favorite verses in scripture in regard to living as a Christ follower is this:
"I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain the resurrection from the dead." Philippians 3:10-11
Often we like to fixate on the first part of that verse. Knowing Christ and the power of his resurrection. I know for many years I did just that, I never went further. Then one day it struck me that without death there is no need for resurrection. So unless I can share in Christ's sufferings and become like Him, then I will never know the power of the resurrection. Imagine power in your life that can raise the dead!! How would your life look different? What would you be willing to do and face in light of that power? There is no fear in love and His love was shown in His brutal death on a cross. But the story doesn't end there. You see perfect love cannot be wrapped in linens and put behind a stone, it is not dead. Perfect LOVE is living and personal, and so He arose and when we choose to accept His love for ourselves, we have access to the power of His resurrection.
We need to reflect during this Holy season but we need to remember in our lives that Sunday is coming. He is alive and so are we. We can live in power. Not just during Easter, but each and every hour of each and every day. For you see, the ultimate Sunday is coming, when we will see Him face to face. Praise God!
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