These Holy Week reflections will be available beginning at 5:00 PM each day through the FCC Facebook page and on the FCC website.  The purpose is simple: to invite you to read, reflect and pray.  It’s all part of the work of preparing ourselves for what is coming and discovering once more the truth that is found within the most difficult story of our faith. 

John 13:21-27

²¹ After saying this Jesus was troubled in spirit, and declared, “Very truly, I tell you, one of you will betray me.” ²² The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. ²³ One of his disciples—the one whom Jesus loved—was reclining next to him; ²⁴ Simon Peter therefore motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. ²⁵ So while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?” ²⁶ Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.”  So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot. ²⁷ After he received the piece of bread,^[i]Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “Do quickly what you are going to do.”

What is the worst kind of betrayal?  Is it the spouse who betrays a partner through an affair?  Is it the friend who stabs you in the back when you least expect it, or the boss at work you trusted who suddenly turns on you.  Betrayals come in many shapes and sizes and the worst part is that all of us will experience them.  When they happen there is at first surprise, and then doubt that what just happened really happened.  Then comes the pain, reality sets in as the trust that had been so strong and reassuring gives way to a wound that’s hard to heal.  

I don’t know what Jesus really thought about his betrayal by Judas, but the text says his spirit was “troubled.”  For three years he had laughed, suffered, taught, walked, and grieved with the men who dined with him that night.  Together they had become brothers, family, and trusted companions. You can imagine the surprise around the table when Jesus began saying that one of them would betray him.  This was no ordinary night either.  Just before talk of betrayal began, Jesus had washed the feet of his friends.  He used that moment, as he often did, to teach them about what it means to live as a servant to others.  

This would not be the first time Jesus would face betrayal.  Peter would go on to deny him three times.  The crowds who welcomed him into Jerusalem with palms waiving in the air would demand, a few days later, that he be crucified.  And as Jesus hung on the cross his disciples would scatter in fear. 

Woven through the many betrayals this week would bring is the same spirit of forgiveness that was at the heart of all that Jesus did.  Maybe you have heard about the seven last words of Jesus on the cross.  The very first of the seven are those of forgiveness.  In Luke 24:34, Jesus looks down from the cross and says “Forgive them father, they know not what they do.”  

The God who  became our Emmanuel in Jesus understands the many deep pains of life because he has experienced them too.  God understands the sting of betrayal and still responds with words of forgiveness.  To forgive like this does mean to excuse the betrayer but to release the power that the wound of betrayal can have in our lives.  Forgiveness gives the cross meaning and every time we do it, the power of the cross is made real today.  If you are still burdened by the pain of a betrayal perhaps it’s time to move toward forgiveness, to release the power this wound has over your life and  be free.  

Pray: Holy God, give us the power to forgive those who have betrayed us so that we might find the freedom in life to serve you more completely.  Amen

Read

John 12:23-26: ²³ Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. ²⁴ Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. ²⁵ Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.26 Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me.

Reflect

How good are you at reading between the lines?  Some people just seem to have the knack for picking up on the underlying meaning behind the words of the person who is talking.  This can be a handy skill in relationships where sometimes you need to be able to “take a hint.”  As much as we want people to be straight up and direct with us, this is not the case in many situations.  Relationships can go sideways very quickly without the ability to pick up on hints and read between the lines.  

Days before Jesus was betrayed he was dropping hints of what was coming.  He was, as he says in verse 24, the kernel that would fall to the ground and die so that many more seeds could be created.  His allusions like this were often missed by his disciples.  Maybe these clues were so outside of their experience that they couldn’t read them.  Maybe the hints Jesus made about his future were too painful to imagine.   

As skilled as we can be at reading between the lines, we can be just as skilled at ignoring the things we would rather not admit or think about.  The mirror we use to see ourselves and the world is often painted to make it easier to accept.  The urge to see things as better than they are is hard to resist.  But this week is about facing the hard truth.  Jesus said that anyone who loves their life will lose it while those who hate their life will keep it.  Time to read between the lines.  It may be too much to think about losing our lives or hating them altogether, but we could imagine something we could give up to make more room for following Jesus.  Isn’t this where sacrifice begins?  Every sacrifice is like the kernel that falls to the ground so that so many more good things can be born from it.  What sacrifice could you make this week that would allow something good to be born in your life or someone else’s?  

Pray

 Gracious God, show me the sacrifice I can make this week that will bring new life to others.  Amen

These Holy Week reflections will be available beginning at 5:00 PM each day through the FCC Facebook page and on the FCC website.  The purpose is simple: to invite you to read, reflect and pray.  It’s all part of the work of preparing ourselves for what is coming and discovering once more the truth that is found within the most difficult story of our faith. 

Read: John 12:1-12 

Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. ² There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. ³ Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. ⁴ But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, ⁵ “Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?” ⁶ (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) ⁷ Jesus said, “Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. ⁸ You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.”

Reflect

Identifying the motives that drive the decisions that other people make can be hard to assess, sometimes impossible.  Even when a person confesses their true motives we might find it hard to accept based on what we see happening.  Who of us hasn’t been unwilling to extend our trust when the actions and words of a person don’t appear to agree.  I am still amazed at how convinced someone can be that their motives are genuine and sincere, even though to me and others this is not how it appears. 

Maybe Judas had convinced himself that he was sincerely concerned for the poor when he protested the act of service Mary performed by wiping the feet of Jesus with expensive perfume.  Without the clarification in this text about his real motives, any one of us would think his idea was a good one, as if he was just being practical and a good steward.  This makes me wonder about how easy it is for us to convince ourselves that our motives are about serving others when in reality we are only serving ourselves.  

If it’s hard to understand the motives of others, it must be just as hard, even harder, to be clear about our own.  One way to think about motives is to ask ourselves a simple question: What do I stand to gain by _______?  Fill in the blank with anything you might do for others.  If your service to others is highly visible and brings you recognition then how does that affect your motivations?  Do you experience disappointment if your service is not recognized?  Have you experienced your act of service as a way of alleviating guilt?  

I believe all of us get our motives mixed up at times, and what we do becomes more about us than serving people and serving God.  Admitting this creates a window into our hearts through which God can help us see the truth about who we really are and how we need to change.  

Pray

Holy God, give me the humility to see the true motives of my heart and the courage to set aside my own needs and comforts so that I may be of more service to you.   Amen

The environment we live in today is packed with so much information, much of it fear producing, that we cannot possibly process all of it in ways that allow our mental and spiritual health to remain strong and flexible.  Some people have reached a tipping point and announced they are taking a break from news or contact with others.  I can understand this response and appreciate the healing power that can come from something as simple as changing what we listen to and watch.  Scary news and fear-filled conversations stimulate that part of our brain designed to keep us out of danger.  This is good when there is something we can do to stop a threat or escape it, but it’s a different matter when we don’t have that kind of control.  Taking in fearful news keeps us in a state of readiness; prepared to respond at any moment.  We are not designed, mind, body or spirit, to sustain that level of vigilance for prolonged periods of time.   We need to also rest.

Just as we feed the mind things that drive up our fear, we can also feed it things that allows us to calm and find rest.  If you decide it’s time to take a break from the daily trough of bad news, which I hope you do, you might also find something else to focus on.  As Christians we are people of good news, and when good news is what we take in it gives us the strength we need to deal with the bad.   You’ve heard it said many times, “you are what you eat”, and this is also true of the news we dine on each day.  

So during you bad news break, find some good news.  Read a story that gives you joy and makes you smile.  Watch a movie that makes you laugh.  Get lost in a book that transports you to a place where you can relax.  Have a conversation with a friend that lets you forget everything else going on around you.  And don’t forget that there are many verses in the Bible that can be a source of strength and hope.  Here are just a few:

Philippians 4:13  “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”

Isaiah 41:10  “Do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.”

Isaiah 40:31  “But those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.”

Matthew 11:28  “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

Joshua 1:9  “Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

The journeys that depend on endurance are my least favorite, I would much rather keep moving than have to slow down and endure for a while.  You know the experience, we’ve all had it.  The long drive on vacation that slows to a crawl because someone has a flat tire 20 miles ahead and everyone needs to slow down to watch.  It’s the sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach after the receptionist at your doctor’s office that tells you the doctor is running behind and you wait two hours before finally getting called back.  Endurance is a required but not sought after experience we all must face.  

Endurance is a common theme in the Bible, found in all the times waiting was required.  The Israelites waited for their 40 years of wandering in the wilderness to come to an end before they could finally enter the Promised Land.  For hundreds of years God’s people waited for the messiah to appear.  Waiting showed up frequently in the Book of Psalms, along with the general complaint against God for not acting quick enough.  Except for the story of creation which lasted 7 days, everything else people hoped for took a long time to happen.  

Today I am thinking about the long wait and Psalm 13 where we read: 

How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
    How long will you hide your face from me?
² How long must I bear pain^[a] in my soul,
    and have sorrow in my heart all day long?
How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

³ Consider and answer me, O Lord my God!
    Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death,
⁴ and my enemy will say, “I have prevailed”;
    my foes will rejoice because I am shaken.

⁵ But I trusted in your steadfast love;
    my heart shall rejoice in your salvation.
⁶ I will sing to the Lord,
    because he has dealt bountifully with me.

The first four verses are one long complaint, nothing is going right and there is no end in sight.  It’s become so bad in fact that the writer thinks it would be better to sleep and never wake again.  And then comes the “but” and the key to endurance found in the last couple of verses. Even though the writer feels like giving up, it doesn’t end there.  There’s an obvious change in tone with words reflecting a healthy kind of stubbornness that leaves all the complaining behind, choosing instead to trust and rejoice.

Its sure isn’t easy to do this, but when we choose to trust God and to find those good things that let us rejoice, the long wait starts feeling shorter and less of a burden.  Trusting and rejoicing instead of giving in to the complaining we feel like doing, is our way of refusing to let the circumstances get the best of us.  It’s a healthy kind of stubbornness, one of those rare virtues that make it possible to endure the long wait.