Am I On Top Of Things?
Good Morning Friends,
At the Lawson home we have made 800 palm crosses for this coming Palm Sunday church service at the Moorings. The palm crosses are a sign of victory over our passions through Christ entering our lives and substituting his passion for our earthly passion. Our worship expression of it will be in the singing of the Rutter Requiem. And last night we continued our practice with our chancel choir accompanied by a glockenspiel, harp, oboe, cello, tympani, flute, and organ. It is a wonderful combination of sounds and instruments. So in a way we are celebrating both a Palm Sunday and Passion Sunday. There are a lot of moving parts and that brings us to today’s question that you may want to ask of yourself. Am I On Top Of Things?
Scripture: After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you.
1 Peter 5:10 (NRSV)
For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin.
Romans 7:18-25 (NRSV)
A Song of Ascents. Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications! If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with you, so that you may be revered. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning, more than those who watch for the morning. O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem. It is he who will redeem Israel from all its iniquities.
Psalm 130 (NRSV)
‘You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hidden. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.
Matthew 5:14-16 (NRSV)
Message: There is a riddle that goes something like this: I am always on top of things yet I can reach the bottom of the ocean. I feel good yet I hurt and sting. You can capture me but you can’t hold me. With too much of me you can’t see and with not enough of me you can’t see! What am I? The answer is light and we sing about God’s eternal light on Sunday. Hopefully I will be on top of the pitch. In preparation today we read a song of ascents that is part of the Rutter Requiem. And we read it against Paul’s response concerning our sin, and Peter’s hope of grace and Matthew’s belief of the possibility of God’s glory in our lives. They combine as a good reflection for us in preparation for Holy week. The 130th psalm which was likely sung on the pilgrimages up to Jerusalem during Passover is also part of the Requiem. So imagine Jesus singing it with his disciples walking up the hills to Jerusalem out of the Kidron Valley. Now compare it with Paul’s frank acknowledgement of our condition and what we know to be ourselves, and there will be a conflict between who we are and who we would hope to be. And it dawns on me this morning that what we need in our lives is a passion for something that transcends all of our other passions. We need a relationship with God that is so strong that it can dominate any other passion of life. The reality is that we want to be right but either there is something wrong with our souls or we do the things that we don’t want to, like an addict, knowing what is evil but unable to stop. Friends, sometimes we know that certain things are wrong and are unable to fix them on our own. Sin is living inside us. So, know the difference in the symptoms and learn the difference in how the flesh and the mind can be tuned. I for one need more practice at being in harmony. I need more practice at being light. Here Paul’s dilemma is our dilemma. Paul’s despair can be our despair. But so to Paul’s and Peter’s deliverance can be our deliverance. Friends, we are not defeated unless we give up. Claim the victory that is in Jesus. Keep practicing with perseverance. Easter Sunday is coming and its light is eternal.
Pray we rejoice in the hope of the forgiveness of sins. Pray we are tuned into the message God would have us hear. Pray that if we are out of tune we seek the Master. Pray we be instruments tuned for praise. Pray we are tuned by God to live in harmony with God and man. Pray we experience a vision of eternal glory of restored harmony. Pray that the Messiah, the King of Kings would come to our aid when we call for help. Pray that we will believe help is on the way. Pray that we believe God’s provisions are not only sufficient but overflowing in abundance. Pray that we would discover Christ on the pilgrimage. Pray our worship is encouraged, uplifted and inspired by the captivating presence of grace. Pray that we are compelled by the prospect of grace. Pray we have a passion for God. Pray we are freed to glorify God, the Maker and Redeemer in that day when the battle is done and the heavenly music begins.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 