Are You Ready To Grow Into The Solution Of Christ?
Good Morning Friends,
Returning home yesterday from a Disney Vacation on Pentecost I began to think about how all the seemingly random events of the experience combine to mold behavior and how all the seemingly random events of the Holy Spirit have molded our past and will mold our future as well. The problem is that the world is changing so fast that responding to change with a traditional script just does not work anymore. Are You Ready To Grow Into The Solution Of Christ?
Scripture: But the Lord God called to the man, and said to him, “Where are you?” He said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself.” He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?” The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate.” Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this that you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent tricked me, and I ate.” The Lord God said to the serpent, “Because you have done this, cursed are you among all animals and among all wild creatures; upon your belly you shall go, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.” The man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all living.
Genesis 3:9-15, 20 (NRSV)
Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.
Acts 1:12-14 (NRSV)
And that is what the soldiers did. Meanwhile, standing near the cross of Jesus were his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing beside her, he said to his mother, “Woman, here is your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Here is your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his own home. After this, when Jesus knew that all was now finished, he said (in order to fulfill the scripture), “I am thirsty.” A jar full of sour wine was standing there. So they put a sponge full of the wine on a branch of hyssop and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished.” Then he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. Since it was the day of Preparation, the Jews did not want the bodies left on the cross during the sabbath, especially because that sabbath was a day of great solemnity. So they asked Pilate to have the legs of the crucified men broken and the bodies removed. Then the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once blood and water came out.
John 19:25-34 (NRSV)
But he was wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the punishment that made us whole, and by his bruises we are healed.
Isaiah 53:5 (NRSV)
O sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth.
Psalm 96:1 (NRSV)
Message: Jesus spent His life teaching us to abandon our scripted behavior, our pursuit of pleasure for its own sake, our yearning for honor from others, for control over others. Jesus fulfilled Scripture so that we might be part of a new song. What Jesus understood and understands now is that we have an innate ability to think differently. What the events of the weekend taught me, as we visited The Animal Kingdom, The Magic Kingdom and Epcot is that the world is changing so fast that responding to it with old language and actions just will not cut it. The Country Bear Jamboree presentation at Disney is as example. The animatronic bears sing about a wayward child suggesting that we “not whoop him but shoot him instead.” This will have to go, as has the auctioning of women in the Pirates of the Caribbean being replaced with the innuendo of a woman holding a chicken and the auctioneer taking bids for feisty laying hens. Two generations ago things were different, if a child were caught stealing from a neighbor, physical punishment would probably result. Today, try that and you might end up with a visit from the Sheriffs Department. Knee-jerk responses to stimuli are often counter-productive. Instead, we are urged to be more flexible in our response, to ask questions, to encourage a change of mind and heart that would change behavior. Perhaps it was the cast member at the Enchanted Tiki Room in Adventure Land that got me thinking about this. As we entered in and sat down for the singing bird and flower show he grabbed the mike and turned toward the control panel and began to give the spiel introducing us to the ride at Space Mountain. Yes, we desire surprises and the reality is that Jesus gave us the most surprising story in history and offers us the opportunity to join in it.
Pray we are devoted to prayer as a solution to identifying proper action. Pray our prayers be so continuous that our response time is current and in the moment. Pray we think in new ways to respond to a new world. Pray the love of Christ stretch our thinking and emotional intelligence. Pray we are amazed at the dramatic effect of Christ fulfilling scripture in a way that frees us to write our own script. Pray we embrace random acts of kindness moved by the Spirit. Pray we embrace God’s Kingdom. Pray we really begin to think about where we are and what it is we have done. Pray we are truly ready to live a new song that makes it clear that respect and love for others is more important than our own pleasure.
Blessings,
John Lawson
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