Just pondering the other day… what happened the moment Jesus died? I was meditating on the story found in the Bible, Matthew 27: 45-56.

45 From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. 46 About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi lama sabachthani?”—which means, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
47 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”
48 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. 49 The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”
50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.
51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. 52 The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”
55 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs.     56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

In verses 45-48, we see the condition of humanity. Jesus experiences our lostness at an excruciating level during these hours hanging on the cross. He experiences darkness, aloneness, and confusion.

Darkness. How amazingly ironic that the one who is light is wrapped in darkness for 3 hours before his death. Luke tells us that the sun stopped shining for these three hours…an eclipse? How it happened we don’t know, but it was dark. John introduces Jesus as the light. “The true light that gives light to every person was coming into the world”. John 1:9. But now, the light takes on our darkness. Jesus makes the trade…give me your darkness and I will give you light.

Aloneness. “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” How desperately alone we are! Dallas Willard writes in his excellent book, Hearing God, that we are not able to truly be with others. “It is simply not within human capacity to care effectively for others in the depths of their life and being or even to be with them in finality—no matter how much we may care about them.” No matter how close you may be with another human, there is no way that person can know your intimate thoughts or be with you at all moments in your joys or struggles. The only one who really knows us and therefore can truly be with us, is God. Jesus, during these hours on the cross, is truly alone. God the Father / Holy Spirit, has withdrawn from Jesus. Jesus trades his presence with the Father and takes on our aloneness.

Confusion. You would hope that at this dark and alone time of life, Jesus might be allowed to at least exist without being troubled by confusing voices. Not to be. As he cries out in anguish, those at the foot of the cross hear him shout in Aramaic, “Eloi, Eloi…”, meaning “My God, my God…”. They thought he was calling for the prophet Elijah. The crowd is stirred, they get a bit excited. After all, this guy had, it was said, done some pretty amazing things, maybe he could call up Elijah! Let’s stay and watch! I imagine Jesus, his heart sinking as he hears the confusion, thinking, “Why can’t they see what is happening? Can’t I say anything without others confusing the issue?”. Jesus takes on our confusion in order to be our truth.

Darkness, Aloneness, Confusion. A picture of life apart from God. This is us, as written in Ephesians 2:12, “without hope and without God in the world”.

But then it happened, “he gave up his spirit”. Jesus dies. And, “at that moment” three things happen, the curtain in the temple was torn, the earth shook, and the tombs broke open.

The Curtain. Hebrews 10: 19-22 “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.” This curtain separated the Most Holy Place, the Holy of Holies in the temple from the rest of the temple. This is the place where God’s presence existed in a special way with his people. But, because of his holiness, and our sin, we were prevented from entering into the presence of God. No more! We now have access to God!

Earthquake. The East Coast felt the the tremors just a few days ago. And earthquake reminds us that the foundation, the earth itself, is not beyond shaking. The death of Jesus lays a new foundation. A new building, a new creation has begun. “For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ.” 1 Corinthians 3:11 The quake told everyone in Jerusalem that a new reality had begun. Jesus now offers to rebuild our lives!

Tombs breaking open. How strange! How…almost comical! Hey mom, did you hear? Uncle Josiah was at Bingo last night! He’s been dead for years! Something new has begun. Jesus often uses powerful miracles to demonstrate in a visual, experiential way his authority over hidden, unseen realities. Death has been conquered. You can’t argue with Uncle Josiah back at Bingo. And, because we see death being demolished, we can believe that sin and the devil are beaten as well. Jesus frees us from sin, death and the devil.

At that moment! At the moment of his death, when Jesus gives up his spirit…he makes the trade. Give me your darkness, aloneness, confusion, and I will give you access, foundation, life!

Grace and glory

Jay

Journey3 is a movement with three parts.

We Believe. We gather on Monday evenings at 7 as a larger group in order to grow in our ability to believe Jesus.

We Build. We meet in triads (groups of 3-4) to share life in a deeper way.

We Bless. We go into our beloved city of Portland to make a difference by serving people who need a touch from God.

Interested in living life the way God intended you to live? Email me…Jay@Journey3.org.

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I am feeling for Peter. You may know the story. Jesus is about to be betrayed and will be tortured and killed. At the end of their final meal together he tells his followers

“This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written: “‘I will strike the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.” Peter replied, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.” “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” But Peter declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the other disciples said the same. Matthew 26:31-35

I am feeling for Peter because I can identify with him. He wants to do the right thing. He wants to be loyal to Jesus. He wants to be committed and courageous. I imagine Peter standing up and slapping his hand on his sword, ready for action! Isn’t this a good thing? Aren’t we supposed to give it all we have? After all, Jesus tells us that anyone who follows him must be willing to die, to deny self, to take up the cross and follow him. In the Old Testament, God tells Joshua to be strong and courageous. Later Paul writes that he wants to “press on toward the goal of the upward call of Christ.” He wants to be committed and courageous. So…why does Jesus argue with Peter? Why not say to Peter, “Hey, thanks for your commitment! Thanks for being willing to stick with me through anything!”?

The answer I think goes back to the transfiguration. In Matthew 17, we read the story. Jesus takes Peter, James and John to a mountain top and there Jesus is changed in appearance before them and talks with Elijah and Moses. Peter is caught up in the moment and wants to stay and live in this time of joy and amazement. Again, this is not a bad thing. King David wrote in the Psalm 27, “One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple.” It is a good thing to want to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord. This is what King David wanted and this is what Peter wanted on the mount of transfiguration.

But then, the voice of God the Father is heard. While they were gazing on Jesus with Moses and Elijah, God speaks, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” These are the exact words the Father speaks at the baptism of Jesus in Matthew 3, except that the Father adds the last sentence, “Listen to him!”. And here, I think, is point. Before courage, before worship, before our acts of commitment, the Father charges us to listen to Jesus.

Peter, Jesus says on that terrible last night, listen to me, it is written that you all will run. Peter, listen to me, you will deny my three times, I am telling you the truth. This is not a time for acts of courage. Peter would try anyway and ended up whacking a servant of the high priest with his sword. Even then, Jesus says…listen…not now, we are not fighting with swords now.

Later, after the resurrection, Jesus reinstates Peter and renews his call. And by then, I think, Peter has it figured out. What does Jesus want from him…courage, commitment, worship? Yes, but before any of these…listen!

Grace and glory

Jay

Journey3 is a movement with three parts.

We Believe. We gather on Monday evenings at 7 as a larger group in order to grow in our ability to believe Jesus.

We Build. We meet in triads (groups of 3-4) to share life in a deeper way.

We Bless. We go into our beloved city of Portland to make a difference by serving people who need a touch from God.

Interested in living life the way God intended you to live? Email me…Jay@Journey3.org.

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I have been caught up lately in the Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:14-30. You may be familiar with this story that Jesus told. As with any of the teachings of Jesus, there is so much more to the story than is first apparent.

This is the story where we get our usage of the word, “talent”. In the story a talent is a measurement of money, my bible’s footnote says, about $1,000, so I would assume it might be closer to $10,000 in today’s terms. A lot of money.

The story goes, that a master went on a long journey. Before he goes he “entrusts his property” to 3 servants. To one he gives 5 talents, to another 2 talents and to the third one talent. The first two servants put their money to work and each of them doubles what he was given. The third buries his talent in a hole. When the master returns he praises the first two servants but condemns the third.

What was the difference between the 3 servants? The text says that the master gave the talents, “each according to his ability”. I have in the past thought this to mean natural abilities. That is, I thought this meant that the 5 talent servant was a better natural money manager than the other 2. But, as I look at the story, the only difference I can see is that the 5 talent servant “went at once and put his money to work”. He is quick to initiate and take action. The 2 talent servant puts his money to work…but it doesn’t say “at once”…I am thinking he was a bit hesitant. Why? There’s a clue with the 1 talent servant. He is afraid and digs a hole, hiding his talent. I think this third servant was intending to put the talent to work, but he let his fear rule him. When the master condemns him, he doesn’t do so on the basis of his fear. The master doesn’t say, “You should have not been afraid! Your fear shows that you are no good.” No, instead the master calls the third servant a “wicked lazy servant”.

There is a strong truth here about managing anxiety. Anxiety, often showing up as fear, is a constant in the human condition. I am convinced that all 3 servants were fearful when they received their large amounts of money from the master. The third servant says to the master, “I knew that you are a hard man”, and so he was. The master had high expectations. The challenge is not to avoid anxiety and fear…this can only happen by digging a hole. The challenge is to manage expectations and move ahead.
Here is a simple flow chart which pictures the choice before the servants:

FEAR > LAZINESS > WICKEDNESS
Or
FEAR > ACTION > FAITHFULNESS

The 5 talent servant faces his anxiety and decides to do something, to take action. He and the 2 talent servant are commended by the master, not for success, but for their faithfulness. The 1 talent servant moves from fear to paralysis. The master calls him a worthless servant. He calls him wicked. This is the reason the third servant is cast outside “into the darkness”. It’s pretty stark language from Jesus. But, you see, this servant is condemned not because he was afraid, but because he let his fear paralyze him into laziness, which then led to wickedness. By the time the master had returned, this servant was wicked, obnoxious, argumentative, even blaming the master for his condition.

So…it’s clear from the story and the context, that Jesus is the master. And, yes, Jesus is a hard man. If you disagree with Jesus…guess who Jesus thinks is right? If you have a different idea for your life’s direction, guess who Jesus thinks is right? Each of us has been given kingdom property. We are entrusted with our lives, and, more importantly, with the authority of the king…Jesus says in Matthew 28, “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me, therefore go and make disciples…”.

What will I do with the kingdom property he has entrusted to me? I feel the anxiety because Jesus is a hard man. He has high expectations. I want to be a 5 talent servant. So I choose to do something! I choose action. Now action for the servant of Jesus can take many forms: service, healing, prayer, bible reading, witness to a neighbor, caring for someone who suffers, worship…

But what action is not, is hole digging.

Grace and glory,

Jay

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