No harm befalls the righteous, but the wicked have their fill of trouble. ~Proverbs
12:21
The righteous cry out and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all. He protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken. Evil will slay the wicked. The foes of the righteous will be condemned. The Lord redeems His servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him. ~Psalm 34:17-22
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely, He will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge. His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror by night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If you make the Most High your dwelling—even the Lord, who is my refuge—then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. They will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra. You will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon Me and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him My salvation.” ~Psalm 91
“Abba, Father, everything is possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what You WILL.” ~Mark 14:36
Kathy often says, and I agree with her, that this night is the Holiest night of the year. This is the night that Jesus chose to walk away from all the protection that was His and chose to endure the cross because of love. He could have turned and decided to just go back to heaven. He had that right. Instead, He looked down through history, saw me, and you too, and knew that this was the only way that He could have us with Him forever, in the home that He had described for His disciples in the upper room, during the Seder, their last meal together. He chose to submit to His Father’s Will, and walk through hell to redeem.
Maundy means “command.” It refers to the new command that Jesus gave His disciples in the upper room that evening. “A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35) Now, here He was, defining love by His actions.
“As I have loved you,” How had He loved? He had knowingly washed His betrayer’s feet. He had patiently endured squabbles among His disciples, ridicule and taunting from religious leaders, the ones who should have known Him, and He healed and blessed many who only wanted physical blessings, but easily turned on Him when He didn’t do things the way they expected.
Now, this night, evil is pulling out all the stops and it looks as though victory is in its grasp. It appears that the Proverb has it backwards, the righteous certainly appears to be harmed. Evil is winning the day! Now more than ever, we need to step back and keep the big picture in view. This is the dark shadow that accentuates the brightness of God’s glory. This is the moment that God is using to not only secure His eternal victory, but to show us how to walk through our trials also.
Paul instructs, considering this moment: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Eph. 5:1-2) We love Jesus for His wonderful attributes, but don’t we love Him most for His sacrifice? It is sacrificial love that speaks to the world of a love that is beyond them.
When we love beyond our feelings, to a place where we can do it sacrificially, it is by this kind of love, that all man will know that we are His disciples, because we are imitating Him. It’s that kind of love that turns the proverb back right side up because, just like with Jesus, wickedness cannot defeat it. Bearing only the scars that we gave Him, kept as signs and souvenirs of his love for us, Jesus arose in a glorious victory! So, if we love like Him, we will also be like Him in victory. The Psalmist’s statements will be true because we endured with Him and will live with Him forever.
Prayer: Oh Lord, what wondrous love is this! Beyond comprehension, almost humanly impossible. No wonder we don't do it very well! And yet if we depend upon Your Holy Spirit within us, that is present because of our faith in Jesus Christ, and gifted to us by Your Grace, then we can love like Jesus and that changes the world! So, forgive us for living so small, when we could give more of ourselves to Your cause and Mission, in Jesus' name, amen.
Song: Go to Dark Gethsemane
The righteous cry out and the Lord hears them; He delivers them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. A righteous man may have many troubles, but the Lord delivers him from them all. He protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken. Evil will slay the wicked. The foes of the righteous will be condemned. The Lord redeems His servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in Him. ~Psalm 34:17-22
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely, He will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with His feathers, and under His wings you will find refuge. His faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror by night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. If you make the Most High your dwelling—even the Lord, who is my refuge—then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. They will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and the cobra. You will trample the great lion and the serpent. “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. He will call upon Me and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. With long life will I satisfy him and show him My salvation.” ~Psalm 91
“Abba, Father, everything is possible for You. Take this cup from Me. Yet not what I will, but what You WILL.” ~Mark 14:36
Kathy often says, and I agree with her, that this night is the Holiest night of the year. This is the night that Jesus chose to walk away from all the protection that was His and chose to endure the cross because of love. He could have turned and decided to just go back to heaven. He had that right. Instead, He looked down through history, saw me, and you too, and knew that this was the only way that He could have us with Him forever, in the home that He had described for His disciples in the upper room, during the Seder, their last meal together. He chose to submit to His Father’s Will, and walk through hell to redeem.
Maundy means “command.” It refers to the new command that Jesus gave His disciples in the upper room that evening. “A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35) Now, here He was, defining love by His actions.
“As I have loved you,” How had He loved? He had knowingly washed His betrayer’s feet. He had patiently endured squabbles among His disciples, ridicule and taunting from religious leaders, the ones who should have known Him, and He healed and blessed many who only wanted physical blessings, but easily turned on Him when He didn’t do things the way they expected.
Now, this night, evil is pulling out all the stops and it looks as though victory is in its grasp. It appears that the Proverb has it backwards, the righteous certainly appears to be harmed. Evil is winning the day! Now more than ever, we need to step back and keep the big picture in view. This is the dark shadow that accentuates the brightness of God’s glory. This is the moment that God is using to not only secure His eternal victory, but to show us how to walk through our trials also.
Paul instructs, considering this moment: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” (Eph. 5:1-2) We love Jesus for His wonderful attributes, but don’t we love Him most for His sacrifice? It is sacrificial love that speaks to the world of a love that is beyond them.
When we love beyond our feelings, to a place where we can do it sacrificially, it is by this kind of love, that all man will know that we are His disciples, because we are imitating Him. It’s that kind of love that turns the proverb back right side up because, just like with Jesus, wickedness cannot defeat it. Bearing only the scars that we gave Him, kept as signs and souvenirs of his love for us, Jesus arose in a glorious victory! So, if we love like Him, we will also be like Him in victory. The Psalmist’s statements will be true because we endured with Him and will live with Him forever.
Prayer: Oh Lord, what wondrous love is this! Beyond comprehension, almost humanly impossible. No wonder we don't do it very well! And yet if we depend upon Your Holy Spirit within us, that is present because of our faith in Jesus Christ, and gifted to us by Your Grace, then we can love like Jesus and that changes the world! So, forgive us for living so small, when we could give more of ourselves to Your cause and Mission, in Jesus' name, amen.
Song: Go to Dark Gethsemane
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