Dying to Live

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." - John 12.24

Not only is this true but it is VERY true ... truly, no REALLY TRULY ... Jesus said.  Strangely enough this "truly" truth has been coming to my mind repeatedly over the last few days. Dying to gain life.

Miriam Rockness posted about this same topic on her blog about Lilias Trotter. Through the death of the seed comes the promised fruit of life. Lilias wrote,  "'Death is the gate of life.'  Does it look so to us?  Have we learnt to go down, once and again, into its gathering shadow in quietness and confidence, knowing that there is always 'a better resurrection' beyond?" - Parables of the Cross
I sat with that thought for some time before reading the rest of the post. ... Have we learnt to go down, once and again, into death's gathering shadow in quietness and confidence, knowing there is always "a better resurrection" beyond? 

Jesus went to the cross once for all time. He went down to death's shadow ... in quietness and confidence, knowing the resurrection beyond was infinitely better! He did this that one time on the cross ... on the hill called Golgotha (the place of the skull - death!) outside of Jerusalem (city of peace - shalom). He did this for us. He did this so that we could know with confidence that through death comes life. Through dying to self comes shalom ... that which is infinitely better! We reap the fruit of Jesus' death. We reap life ... infinitely better life ... from death. But, in order to do so we must die to self ... once and again ... with confidence so that we may reap the fruit of peace - shalom, well-being.

Our journey of Lent draws near to the cross ... to death, death of all that we have struggled against and with on this journey. As we walk through this week, let us do so in quietness and confidence, knowing there is better resurrection coming ... resurrection to life!

Hosanna, LORD, Hosanna!"

Palm Sunday. The people making their pilgrimage to Jerusalem for the Passover Feast. Thousands of Jews walk the roads. And, then they see Jesus ... one they know has given sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, strong legs to the paralyzed, and restored limbs to the diseased. And, just a week ago ... brought Lazarus back to life. Four days dead! And, now Lazarus lives.

They see Jesus on a donkey ... and Zechariah begins to speak ...
"Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem!

Behold! Your King is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey... 

Could it be? Right now? Right here? Before our eyes? Our Messiah has come! Save us, Lord, save us! Jesus! Our Messiah!"

And, the crowds go wild! People run into the fields and gather branches. They lay them before Jesus, wave them in the air and declare, "Hoshiya-na! Lord, hoshiya-na! Save us! Lord, save us!"

As you say those words today in the liturgy of the Table ... think of yourself in the crowd calling to your King. No, not like the first picture ... pretty as it is ... but more likely like the ones after.* And, then reflect ... will you be like those on that day who in four days will cry out "Crucify him!" ... or will you stand at the Cross with a heart overflowing with ... I can't find words for it ... joyful grief? ... that your King is come. Jesus, Messiah is come with righteousness and salvation for all who believe on His Name.

Hoshiya-na, Lord! Hoshiya-na!

*It was probably more like the middle two pictures but I love the last one.

Lazarus and Life

This morning's lectionary gave the option of reading about Jesus raising Lazarus from death to life. The reading did not include the passage when Jesus said to Martha, "I AM the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?"

I don't know if that just stopped you in your tracks, but it did me. Jesus is about to call Lazarus from death back to life. Jesus, who is Life itself, is about to taste death and be raised to life again. And, he he asks Martha ... and us ... if we believe in Him, we shall not die but live forever. Do you believe this?

Do you believe this?

Strangely enough, my first reading this morning was from the book The Secrets of Hebrew Words. The book fell open to the word "life". God moment! The author, Rabbi Benjamin Blech, said,

"The word for life in Hebrew ends with YiM, the grammatical indicator of plurality. We are granted not one life, but two; not HaY but HaYYiM.
     Why does the Torah begin with the letter bet, which corresponds to the number 2?* Because our sages teach that God created not one world, but two. There is olam ha-zeh, this world, and olam ha-ba, the world to come.
     Our life must always be lived with the awareness that the grave is not our end, but merely the second beginning. 'Know whence you came and to where you are going and before Whom you are destined to give final accounting' [Ethics of the Fathers 3:1]"

We are granted not one life but two ... because we believe in Jesus Christ, the One who is Life and promises it abundantly!

Are we not all like Lazarus? Do we not all need to be brought back from death to life? Are we not all like Martha? Do we not all need to believe that Jesus is the resurrection ... the One who brings back to life ... and is the life? In this we shall live! Not one life, but two!

The Secrets of Hebrew Words, Benjamin Blech, 1996. Jason Aronson Inc., Northvale New Jersey. p. 45.
*Bet is the second letter of the Hebrew alphabet.

Happy map to a richer reality...?

I watched a TEDTalk the other day that discusses the option of giving cell phone map apps alternative routes, therefore giving its users a richer and happier reality to their commute. Instead of taking the most efficient, direct route to your destination ... one that may take you on highways, tollways, and clogged arteries ... you may decide to take a more scenic route and arrive at your destination a minute later but far more at peace. Using social science research new maps are created to give you the most happy route, the most beautiful route, the most peaceful route, the most memorable route.

As I watched this talk by Daniele Quercia, I wondered ... what about the Lenten route? What about a route of struggling against sin and temptation. What about the route that takes us through suffering ... so that we may become like Jesus? What does that route look like? I doubt that many would choose that route ... and yet that is the route that truly leads to a richer and deeper reality. The route of suffering shows us the love of the Father. Paul Claudel said, "Jesus did not come to explain away suffering or remove it. He came to fill it with his presence." 

May we choose to follow Jesus on whatever route he takes us ... let us pick up our cross and follow Him ... that we may be filled with His Presence. That is the most happy route, the most beautiful route, the most peaceful route, the most memorable route. It leads to life in Him! Amen?

TEDTalk: Happy Maps by Daniele Quercia

Thus says the LORD: Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.
Jeremiah 16.16

I will trust, I will trust, I will trust in You...

When struggles and hurdles assault ... inside and out ... here is music from
the Word to encourage. Blessed Lent +++