2021-04-02
Colossians 1:20 MSG
In some churches, on Maundy Thursday (the Thursday before Good Friday) the church is stripped of all flowers, statues and decorations. Any that can’t be moved are covered up with plain cloth, and the church is left empty and bare.
During the Good Friday services, the solemn room reflects the sadness and despair that Jesus’ followers must have felt when He was crucified, and helps people in the church to understand the seriousness of Jesus’ sacrifice. But when Easter Sunday comes, a transformation has happened – all the decorations have been returned, and the church is filled with flowers and colour, celebrating Jesus’ resurrection and victory over death. It’s a powerful visual reminder of how God can change a bleak situation into one that’s full of celebration.
We might think it’s strange to call Good Friday ‘good’ – it seems so far from that – but as soon as we experience the Easter Sunday joy of Jesus’ resurrection, we see how God can bring good out of even the worst times.
If you’re struggling and waiting to see the ‘good’ in your situation at the moment, focus on these words: ‘He was supreme in the beginning and – leading the resurrection parade – he is supreme in the end. From beginning to end he’s there, towering far above everything, everyone. So spacious is he, so roomy, that everything of God finds its proper place in him without crowding. Not only that, but all the broken and dislocated pieces of the universe – people and things, animals and atoms – get properly fixed and fit together in vibrant harmonies, all because of his death, his blood that poured down from the cross’ (Colossians 1:18-20 MSG).
Gen 22:1-18; Matt 26:69-27:50; Ps 22; Isa 53
Kolossense 1:20 NLV
Carolyn Arends skryf: ‘Paassondag is die Christelike geloof se goue medalje oorwinningsrondte, die gelukkige einde. Ek vrees egter Goeie Vrydag. Die beelde van marteling en lyding, die somber musiek, die verskriklike uitroep: ‘My God, my God, waarom het U My verlaat?’ As dit van my afgehang het, het ek heelwaarskynlik Goeie Vrydag oorgeslaan. As ek dit egter doen, sal Paassondag hol word. Ek sal vergeet hoeveel my redding gekos het. Ek sal by die leuen inkoop dat Christus se oorwinning oor die dood – en my besluit om Hom te volg – beteken dat my lewe van moeilikheid gevrywaar sal wees. Die Bybelse skrywers moedig ons aan om die lyding te oordink en bied ‘n geleentheid om met Christus te identifiseer en sy kruis op te neem. Tog, wanneer die werk verlore is, die gewas kwaadaardig is of die vriendskap verraai is, rou ons nie net oor die wond nie, maar ook oor die feit dat ons gewond kan word. Ons voel dat Jesus ons in die steek gelaat het. Ons sien dit nie as vreugde nie, maar as mislukking. Hoe word ons dus Paassondag Christene? Wanneer ek Paassondag verwag en Goeie Vrydag kry, probeer ek onthou dat God se definisie van ‘goed’ by verre my definisie daarvan oorskry.’
As jy sukkel om die ‘goeie’ in jou situasie te sien, lees die volgende: ‘…Die Seun is die begin. Hy is die Eerste wat uit die dood opgestaan het sodat Hy inderdaad eerste in alle dinge is. God het dit goedgedink om met sy volle Goddelikheid in die Seun te woon, en om deur die Seun sy goeie verhouding met alles in die hemel en op die aarde te herstel. Hierdie vrede is bewerk deur die bloed wat aan die kruis gevloei het’ (verse 18-20 NLV).
Sielskos: Gen 22:1-18; Matt 26:69-27:50; Ps 22; Jes 53
Colossians 1:20 MSG
Carolyn Arends writes: “Easter Sunday is the Christian faith’s gold medal victory lap…the Happily Ever After…But here’s the rub: I dread Good Friday…images of torture and suffering…somber music…the terrible recollected cry, ‘My God, why hast thou forsaken me?’ Left to my own devices, I’d probably skip Good Friday. But…if I did, Easter morning would become increasingly hollow. I’d forget how much my salvation cost….I’d start to believe that you can have victory without sacrifice…that you don’t have to die [to self] to live the resurrection. I’d buy the lie that Christ’s…victory over death – and my decision to follow him – means life will be trouble-free…The biblical writers…encourage us to consider suffering…an opportunity to identify with Christ…to take up his cross. Yet…when the job is lost, or the tumor is malignant, or the friendship is betrayed, we grieve not only the wound but also the fact that we can be wounded. We feel…Jesus has let us down. We don’t consider it ‘pure joy.’…We consider it failure….So how do we become Easter Sunday Christians? When I’m expecting Easter Sunday and I get Good Friday…[I try] to remember that God’s definition of ‘good’…far exceeds my own…that almost all the new beginnings…have come from what felt…like terrible endings….What seems like a small (but devastating) death is actually a chance at new life….We must be…broken…to grow into what we were made to be.”
If you’re struggling to see the “good” in your situation, hear this: “He was supreme in the beginning and – leading the resurrection parade – he is supreme in the end….Not only that, but all the broken…dislocated pieces…people and things…get properly fixed and fit together…because of his death” (vv. 18-20 MSG).
Soul food: Gen 22:1-18; Matt 26:69-27:50; Ps 22; Isa 53
2021-04-01
Maleagi 2:6 NLV
Vanaf die heel eerste hoofstuk in Genesis, is dit duidelik dat ‘n verhouding met God die fondasie is waarop alles in ons lewens gebou moet word. As ons dit op enigiets anders probeer bou, bou ons dit op dryfsand. Hoekom? Omdat ons verhouding met ons kinders, ons sibbe, ons eggenoot, ons ouers en ons vriende dan later sal ineenstort.
Indien ons nie verstaan dat ons geskape is met ‘n intense honger na ‘n verhouding met God nie, sal ons nie verstaan waar die innerlike leemte en eensaamheid vandaan kom nie. Gevolglik sal ons (onsuksesvol) probeer om die leemte met drie dinge te vul:
1) Mense. Die regte persoon in jou lewe kan jou behoefte aan liefde en emosionele intimiteit vervul, maar niemand anders as God kan die geestelike leemte binne-in jou vul nie.
2) Dinge. Materiële dinge kan ons vertroosting en gemak bied. Geld bied aan ons die geleentheid om dinge te kan doen – dinge waarvan die minderbevoorregtes net kan droom. Jy kan egter materiële dinge hê en steeds eensaam en ongelukkig wees.
3) Godsdiens. God is nie in godsdiens geïnteresseerd nie; Hy is in ‘n verhouding met jou geïnteresseerd. Godsdiens word net betekenisvol wanneer dit daardie verhouding verbeter, wat dit nie altyd doen nie. Dikwels word godsdienstige reëls en regulasies ‘n afskrikmiddel vir ‘n verhouding met God. Die Bybel is gevul met godsdienstige mense wat die skakel met God heeltemal misgeloop het. Soms is ons so behep met ons godsdienstige ideologieë, leerstellings, doktrines en beginsels, dat ons nie verstaan dat die belangrikste ding in die lewe ‘n persoonlike, intieme, daaglikse, gesels-en-luister verhouding met God is nie.
Sielskos: Lev 1-4; Matt 26:47-68; Ps 31; Spr 8:34-36
Malachi 2:6 NKJV
From the very first chapter of Genesis, it’s clear that a relationship with God is the foundation upon which everything in our lives must be built. If we try to build on anything else, we’re building on quicksand. Why? Because sooner or later our relationship with our children, our siblings, our spouse, our parents, and our friends will break down.
If we don’t understand that we were created with an intense hunger for a relationship with God, we won’t understand where the inner void and loneliness come from. And as a result, we’ll try (unsuccessfully) to fill it with three things:
(1) People. Having the right person in your life can help fulfill your need for love and emotional intimacy, but no one other than God can fill the spiritual emptiness within you.
(2) Things. Having material things can give us comfort and convenience. Having money can give us options to do good; options the less fortunate can only dream of. But you can have material things and still be lonely and unhappy.
(3) Religion. God’s not interested in religion; He’s interested in having a relationship with you. Religion only becomes significant when it enhances that relationship, which it doesn’t always do. Oftentimes religious rules and regulations become a deterrent to a relationship with God. The Bible is filled with religious people who missed connecting with God altogether. Sometimes we’re so preoccupied with our religious ideologies, teachings, doctrines, and principles that we fail to understand that what really matters most in life is a personal, intimate, daily, talking-and-listening relationship with God.
Soul food: Lev 1-4; Matt 26:47-68; Ps 31; Prov 8:34-36
