The Passion of Christ

 

Sunday, March 16:  Passionate about the Kingdom, by Bill Butts

Read Luke 19:28-44

As you read these verses, try to put yourself there as it happened. Can you see him riding into town on the colt?

Are you one of the ones spreading their cloak on the road?

Wouldn't you love to have been in that crowd shouting Praises to the Lord?

The excitement and the power of the Spirit was so great that day that when the Pharisees wanted Jesus to quiet the crowd he said, "If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out."

The favor of the crowd wouldn't last long; the praises would soon turn to calls for his death. The same voices who shouted "Hosanna!" would less than a week later be shouting, "Rid the earth of him!"

Jesus knew what was going to happen to him and the city of Jerusalem, but for this moment there was a proper reception for the great King. Jesus wept over the city because it failed to recognize who he was and would suffer greatly because of their rejection of God's only Son.

Monday, March 17:  Passionate for God's Honor, by Pat Lasley

Read Mark 11:15-19

On Monday, Jesus went to the temple finding the commerce, commotion, and activity inside totally unacceptable. The money changers and vendors had set up their tables and hawked their wares in the outer part of the temple area called the "Court of the Gentiles." This particular area of the temple was the only place where non-Jewish people were allowed to gather for worship and prayer to the Lord. This section of the temple was given to the Gentiles in accordance with Isaiah 56:7 where the prophet declares the temple "would be a house of prayer for all nations." Now this Court of Gentiles was a smelly, noisy area being used as a shortcut between the city and the Mount of Olives. This is hardly the type of conditions conducive to prayer and worship!

Jesus was passionate about his Father's honor and demonstrated it by the ejection of the sellers and changers from this area reserved for God's purposes. And although his actions resulted in a quieter, cleaner place where it would be easier to concentrate on one's prayers, his real assault was on sin which was brought into the temple. He revived in the minds of the observers the spiritual ideals and atmosphere of the temple, turning them from worldly aims to heavenly objectives.

In the New Testament church we, like the temple, are to be a dwelling place for the Holy Spirit. If we are to be passionate about God's honor, we also need to eject things from our life that make it difficult to worship, pray, and grow as a Christian. We need to rid our minds of worldly aims that rob us of a more meaningful and fulfilling relationship with Jesus Christ. We need to devote ourselves to Christ and the apostle's teachings - the reading and study of the Bible. And we need to barricade those areas where traffic is short cutting through our courts. Perhaps if we petition God and become passionate about His honor in our lives, He will help us to successfully cleanse our own temple, too.

Tuesday, March 18:  Passionate about Christ's Authority, by Carl Reed

Read Matthew 21:23-27
 23Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. "By what authority are you doing these things?" they asked. "And who gave you this authority?"
 24Jesus replied, "I will also ask you one question. If you answer me, I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 25John's baptism—where did it come from? Was it from heaven, or from men?"
   They discussed it among themselves and said, "If we say, 'From heaven,' he will ask, 'Then why didn't you believe him?' 26But if we say, 'From men'—we are afraid of the people, for they all hold that John was a prophet."
 27So they answered Jesus, "We don't know."
      Then he said, "Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.

In this passages of scripture, the Pharisees ask Jesus who gave Him the authority to chase away the merchants and moneychangers, in the temple. Their question was a trap; they didn’t really want an answer. Jesus exposed their real motives by asking a seemingly unrelated question. The religious leaders wanted to get rid of Jesus because He was undermining their authority. However, Jesus had the true authority from God.
If we follow Christ, we can have authority as well to confidently speak and act on His behalf. Have you made Jesus Savior and Lord of your life, and if so are you exercising your authority? This season, as we celebrate His resurrection, is a wonderful time to do just that!

Wednesday, March 19:  Passionate about Fellowship, by Mel Edgar

Wednesday: Passionate About Fellowship
Read Luke 22:15
And he said to them, "I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.”

Read Acts 2:42-47
 42They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.

When you do not know if you will be alive tomorrow, the time you spend with friends becomes more important.  The apostles learned that and passed on the lesson.
Imagine what you would spend your time be doing if you knew this was your last week on earth. Think of the friends and acquaintances you would want to see before you left.  Who would carry on what you have started? Who would take care of your family?
Jesus best friend was John. He is the one whom Jesus will ask to care for His mother, Mary. Another very close friend is Peter. What will Peter do when the soldiers capture Jesus? How will Jesus explain to the Twelve what they should do next? How will He get everyone together?  There would be plenty of unanswered questions.
When we fellowship as the church we often share food with one another and it is easy to see the significance of Jesus’ last meal with the Twelve. It would be a time to share, a time to reflect, a time to fellowship, a time to transition from their three years together to the tremendous sacrifice Jesus was about to give.
Imagine the thoughts going through Jesus mind during his ministry. He mentored and lived with the Twelve. They weren’t the only ones who would be impacted by his death; the Bible says that one hundred and twenty followed them through His ministry.   This large group was with him in His more public moments and most likely provided an atmosphere of fellowship which we experience in the church today.
Jesus knew he would suffer and die and be absent for three days. When He came back everything would be different. His relationship would be on a different level.   And even though he returned to his rightful place in heaven somehow he is still able to have fellowships with each of us individually.
Jesus has taught us by that fellowship is important whether one on one, in small groups, or in His Church.

Thursday, March 20:  Passionate about Prayer, by Terry Miller

Read: Matthew 26:36-46 and Luke 22:38-46

Gethsemane – Mount of Olives: A place where Jesus went to frequently
talk with his Heavenly Father. A place of solitude; a place reserved
for his closest friends Peter, James, and John. When they entered that
place together, the 3 friends stayed "A stone's throw away." Even
though Jesus planned for them all to pray separately, having them
close by gave Jesus support during his suffering. Jesus knew that he
had to approach His Father alone.

We can only imagine the pain and agony the Son of God was
experiencing. Think of all the sins and hopes of the world coming to
rest upon his shoulders. We often crumble at one difficult thing which
turns up the pressure; now think of having that pressure multiplied by
a million. Instead of praying we often try to make things right
through our own power. Jesus went directly to God and prayed three
times that night in Gethsemane while the disciples could not keep
their eyes open. What happened the third time Jesus prayed? God sent
an angel to strengthen him, but the Bible says that he felt such dread
that sweat "like" drops of blood emerged from his skin.

Read 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Gethsemane was an example of Jesus practicing continual prayer. When
we find ourselves struggling we want such times of prayer to be
answered with a dramatic "YES!" and for circumstances to meet our
expectations. God answered Jesus with a "Yes," but it was not what
Jesus preferred. God said, "Yes, you must go through this pain."

Read Hebrews 5:7

Jesus defeated death and was resurrected; God answered his prayer and
showed his approval of Christ's humility. The cup of his suffering was
not removed because God supplied the strength for him to drink of it
victoriously. Jesus has a passion for prayer in the roughest moments
and we should passionately follow his example when the pressure is on.

Friday, March 21:  Passionate about Sacrifice, by Jon Underwood

Read John 19:28-30

When we talk about being "passionate," we ordinarily are referring to something "fun," something we want to do again and again. So how can we talk about being "passionate about sacrifice"? There's no fun in that—is there?

Sometimes our passions are about what's important, even if it's not fun. Jesus had been focused on the sacrifice of his own life through his entire ministry. When Peter tried to deter him, he said, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men" (Matthew 16:23). As he contemplated his impending death, he said, "Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save me from this hour'? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour" (John 12:27). Jesus knew what was coming. With single-minded determination and passion, he walked deliberately to the cross.

But why? The writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus, "for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart" (Hebrews 12:2, 3). What was that "joy set before him"? Was it returning to his Father? Surely that was part of it, but if his goal was merely to be with the Father, he would never have left. His goal was to be with the Father—with us!

He was passionate about his sacrifice because he was passionate about us. So when he called out, "It is finished," he meant our way to the Father was complete. Now we can be passionate about serving him, even sacrificially, because we anticipate that same joy set before us.

Saturday, March 22:  Passionate about Hope, by Jon Underwood

Read John 19:38-42

It was Saturday—the Sabbath. The disciples no doubt had always observed the Sabbath with joy. Following Jesus, they had learned to remove the legalistic strictures that the Pharisees had attached to the Sabbath. "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath," he had said (Mark 2:27). But their joy was gone on this Sabbath. Jesus had predicted that too. "I tell you the truth, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices" (John 16:20).

What they needed was hope. But that was gone too. One of Jesus' friends would confess the next day to a stranger (who turned out to be the risen Jesus), "We had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel" (Luke 24:21). "We had hoped," but not anymore!

Sometimes we face dark times. Our hopes and our joy are dimmed. It's Saturday in our souls, and Jesus is in the tomb. But after Saturday comes Sunday. After burial comes resurrection. Jesus' prediction of the disciples' grief ended with this promise: "You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy" (John 16:20).

We can have that same hope. Unlike the disciples on that Saturday, we know what happened on Sunday. And when it's Saturday in our souls, we know Sunday is coming. Our grief will turn to joy. Our passion can be focused on hope. "And hope does not disappoint" (Romans 5:5).

Sunday, March 23:  Passionate about Victory, by Jay Russell

Read Luke 24:1-8

There are many reasons why people visit the grave of a loved one. Some visit a grave because they feel that location brings them closer to the spirit of the one they lost. Some visit the cemetery out of loyalty to the memories they cherish. Some walk and sit next to the grave stone for reasons they could not fully explain. No matter what their motive is for visiting, the etchings on the stone remind them all that death is the inevitable conclusion to every human being.

Long ago on the first day of the week a group of women went on a mission to treat the body of Jesus with their spices were unaware they were actually walking on to the field of victory. Where they had expected to encounter the cold reality of death, they met heaven's soldiers proclaiming Jesus Christ's great victory over death. The last stronghold of sin and Satan – the grave – was defeated that day when the Son of God emerged to do what no one had ever accomplished before. Death had itself been put to death!

No longer would God's people walk into cemeteries thinking this is the last time they would see their friend, their spouse, or their child. Death would still separate God's people from one another, but because of what Jesus accomplished that day the separation would be temporary.

One of the greatest quotes of all time appears in this section and it puts the whole celebration of Resurrection Sunday in perspective

"Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!"