Author: kezha1

The resurrection of Lazarus had a double result – faith in some & unbelief in others. And this was evident especially within the Jewish Leadership. They only saw Jesus’ Ministry as a threat and feared it would provoke a uprising of the people…to the point that the Roman government would violently crush the insurrection, and with it take all their position & authority. Thus Caiaphas callously & shrewdly suggested that if they killed Jesus it may bring security for the entire nation. But in doing so, Caiaphas unknowingly uttered a prophecy that was far more profound than he could ever realize. It echoed Isaiah 49:6 that speaks of Christ & His Gospel Message as the light for the nations, and that His salvation would reach to the ends of the earth. Unwittingly, Caiaphas was used mightily of God, showing that Jesus’ death was necessary for salvation, not only for the Jews but for the whole world…His death not merely protection from a military invasion of Rome, but ultimately from eternal punishment.

In the Old Testament a yoke symbolized submission & slavery. When the Law was first given by God it was a good gift to His people…but man turned it into an unbearable & unreachable burden. And when the Law was understood as a way of earning salvation, it became a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1) In contrast, the yoke of Jesus, while demanding, is easy because it’s from One who is meek & lowly in heart. For when we take His yoke upon us, we will walk in perfect rhythm with Him, following in His steps. (I Peter 2:21) And because Jesus fulfilled the Law’s requirements perfectly… He can provide true rest for our souls, or as Psalm 116:7 says, “Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you.”

In our service for the Lord we usually start out with great courage & the right motives…but then we take on burdens that aren’t meant for us to bear. Jesus tells us in Matthew 11:28 to, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give your rest.” When the immense feelings of responsibility, possible failure, or despair in serving the Lord are overwhelming…it’s time to roll those burdens over onto more capable shoulders…namely the Lord’s. For He can take away the weariness & disappointment – replacing it with an awareness and understanding of Himself & His Presence.

Just as death no longer has authority over Jesus Christ, the Living One, it no longer has reign over the Believer’s life. Jesus sacrificed Himself for our sins, once for all, making the Way possible for us to come to the Father…a bridging of the gap so to speak, between sinless God & sinful man. But the hinge-pin of these verses…the single phrase we should carefully consider is, “In the same way”. If we are alive to Christ, like Him, we must then consider ourselves dead to sin, for a corpse can’t sin. And this new life isn’t just a gift of eternal life from God…it’s the gift of the indwelling God, the Holy Spirit.

Usual Jewish burial customs dictated that a corpse would be thoroughly washed & anointed with perfumes such as nard, myrrh, & aloes. The body would then be wrapped in a simple white shroud…the face covered with a special cloth out of honor & dignity…and the hands & feet tied with strips of linen. Rationally, a dead body can’t hear…but when Jesus shouted into that tomb it was the divine power of God’s voice that enabled life to return into Lazarus. The same is true of the spiritually dead when God’s call raises them to life. Ephesians 2:4-5 says, “But because of His great love for us, God, Who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved.” Divinely, God’s voice can penetrate the dead tomb of our hearts, enabling us to hear, obey, & walk out of the grave into His glorious light.

Another Proverb that follows along the same vein is Proverbs 23:13-14, “Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish him with a rod, he will not die. Punish him with the rod and save his soul from death.” Neither one of these Proverbs advocate child abuse of any kind, but both endorse starting a child’s life out well by using chastisement & instruction in order to change behavior. For it’s when we allow ourselves to enable our children rather than correct them that we will bear the guilt from the consequences of their unwise decisions.

The tomb is empty and therefore…

We have hope. (Romans 8: 38-39) We can trust. (Romans 15:13) We don’t have to possess an anxious heart anymore. (Philippians 4:6-7) We can face any challenge. (Isaiah 46:4) We can be encouraged. (II Thessalonians 2:16-17) We can have eternal life. (I Peter 1:3) We have forgiveness of sins. (Ephesians 1:7) We have peace. (John 14:27)

Simon Peter had nobly pledged his undying devotion to Jesus… only to break it not once, not twice, but three times. And in Luke 22:60-62 it tells us that when Peter had denied the Lord the third time, Jesus turned and looked straight at him…and the startling realization of what he had actually done caused Peter to go outside & weep bitterly. One of Don Francisco’s songs entitled, “He’s Alive” spells out the hopeless sorrow, guilt & anguish Peter experienced as he relived those grand but pompous promises he had made to Jesus, only to be shamed in the end by his self-serving actions. But if we think about it…we are all like Simon Peter. We all make promises to God that we break that only compound our regret. We all make grandiose declarations of faithfulness, only to fall away in times of crisis. And we all pledge our devotion, love & dedication to the Lord… only to forget we even made them. But the Lord’s mercy & grace is ever present…His faithfulness always evident… even when we disown Him… for He will never forsake or disown us.

Jesus was well acquainted with affliction… and today, Good Friday, as we ponder the agony, pain, & torment He endured on our behalf on the Cross, let’s consider affliction in our own lives. Charles Spurgeon once wrote, “The Lord’s mercy often rides to the door of our hearts on the black horse of affliction. Jesus uses the whole range of our experiences to wean us from earth & woo us to Heaven.” No one is immune from the crushing difficulties & hardships of life, and we see this in Isaiah 48:10, as it reveals how God tests us in the furnace of affliction in order to refine us. But we must also remember that the One Who endured all affliction for us is now sitting at the right hand of the Father interceding on our behalf. Thus by His merciful kindness we can lift our eyes above our current suffering & affliction to see eternity…or as Paul wrote in II Corinthians 4:17, “For our light & momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.”

Foot washing was a common part of hospitality & courtesy normally given all guests as they entered your home. The unseemly chore given to the lowest ranking member of the household…in an desert environment where everybody’s feet were dusty & dirty. So here we see the Twelve disciples & Jesus in the upper room with apparently no servants to carry out the task of the pre-meal foot washing. But what we also see is that none of the Twelve offered to take it upon themselves to do it…thus they all started eating with dirty feet…including Jesus. Did Jesus wait until the meal started to see if one of the disciples would man-up and serve his friends by washing their feet…not to mention washing the feet of the Master? I can almost hear Jesus sigh deeply as He got up from the table…the Creator humbling Himself before His creation in the great act of humility, respect, compassion, honor, & selfless love. His example demonstrating that rank & privilege doesn’t give us the right to be arrogant & self-important. Or as Paul wrote in Philippians 2:3, ” Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.”