Good Morning Friends,
Typically, after Easter as on Good Friday we can have a little bit of a letdown as we are reminded of the emptiness of our life without Christ. But the party is to keep on going and it is to grow. I hope that is what is happening this year. In today’s scriptures we face the times when we run out of joy and we too like the two Marys, as bookends of Jesus’ earthly ministry, ask Him to supply the truth of His relationship…the power of His friendship that we are to trust. And we get some instruction on how to grow into this from Peter. So, today we look at how our God works in small ways and in big ways as we ask for our own salvation, How Do We Develop A Post Resurrection Spirit Filled Relationship With Jesus?
Scripture: On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.” Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
John 2:1-11 (NRSV)
But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet. They said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ She said to them, ‘They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.’ When she had said this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? For whom are you looking?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ She turned and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbouni!’ (Which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, ‘Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” ‘ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her.
John 20:11-18 (NRSV)
Therefore let the entire house of Israel know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified.’ Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart and said to Peter and to the other apostles, ‘Brothers, what should we do?’ Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins may be forgiven; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you, for your children, and for all who are far away, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to him.’ And he testified with many other arguments and exhorted them, saying, ‘Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.’ So those who welcomed his message were baptized, and that day about three thousand persons were added.
Acts 2:36-41 (NRSV)
Little children, let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action. And by this we will know that we are from the truth and will reassure our hearts before him whenever our hearts condemn us; for God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything.
1 John 3:18-20 (NRSV)
Message: There are those life changing experiences that are so dramatic that we know that life has changed forever. For example, things changed after Pearl Harbor and 9/11 and the pandemic, and of course after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. These types of moments in which we are challenged define us. They can be spiritually powerful personal moments that define us as well. Mary Magdalene had two of them. First, when Jesus caste out the 7 demons that possessed her and secondly, and most importantly, at the site of the empty cross, the empty grave, the empty clothes nicely folded. This later event is indeed a decisive moment for all of us, for all history, if we trust in its power and forgiveness. And it presents us a choice that will define each of us. And it begs the question of whether we are going to remain blind or are going to turn and see Jesus. Friends, hopefully you have experienced the power of the resurrected life flood you. Hopefully you have let go of the past and are entering a future where you realize that you are not in charge. Here we are to surrender to God and acknowledge the sanity of letting go and committing to a spirit filled relationship of love. Here we extend the personal to the collective and the image of this teaching moment is of a wedding, and more specifically the one that started Jesus’ ministry. And here friends is the message as the journey and our education continues toward Pentecost. It is not just what we do as individuals that matters but also what we do collectively. Like weddings there are times to celebrate the bond of unity and commitment. We are to have events that are to mark the importance of family and community. And here in the story of the Wedding at Cana we get a picture of the seriousness of running out of wine halfway through the feast. And here after Easter Sunday you might feel that you are running on empty as well. But Jesus has this covered. Jesus takes responsibility and cares about our embarrassing shortcomings. Here Jesus takes the water of external purification and uses it to restore joy. Here Jesus for His first miracle turns water into wine and reveals the scope of God’s interest in our lives. And here in the life of Mary and later Peter and Paul links it to the joy of sharing the Good News. Friends, not only is Jesus interested in life and death matters but also our everyday needs and not only our personal ones but our collective ones as well. Friends, miracles happen when we understand that Jesus cares, transforms and extravagantly provides for our collective needs and that is the journey of Eastertide to Pentecost. That is the joy of sharing the Good News of a spirit filled fellowship. It is what we are experiencing now in a new way.
And So, the first truly Christian sermon was offered by Peter who gave an elucidation of Jesus’ works, Jesus’ death, Jesus’ resurrection and Jesus’ ascension to the right hand of God. And basically, how to develop a relationship with Jesus. And it starts with this: Peter, in today’s text, unequivocally accuses his hearers, including us, of being responsible for the crucifixion of Jesus. And this, I think, is meant to be understood in the context of the call to repentance that immediately follows. The point Peter is making is this: even though the Jewish leadership were responsible for Jesus’ crucifixion and the crowd went along with them, and the double-speaking Roman Governor, who, while washing his hands and proclaiming Jesus righteous, handed Him over to be crucified… and even though the Roman soldiers played their part too, we are all just as guilty. Yes, the very person who denied Jesus three times on that awful day is asking people to repent for he had been restored by the risen Lord and thus had every right to call others to repent and trust Jesus so that they too might be restored too. Likewise, the eleven, apart from John, had all run away and had plenty to be ashamed of and yet were standing with Peter in the power of the Spirit. And this Spirit convicted them with a question like was asked of God to Adam in the garden. So, where are you in your relationship with Jesus? Like the song, where were you when they crucified my Lord? And here is the point of it all, in a culture that tells us that we should get what we want and what we are entitled to, and that we ought to live our happiest, best life, it goes against the grain to dwell on something sorrowful. And yet, we are invited to take a journey through the last days and hours of Christ’s life for a purpose of understanding the only way of moving forward. Now we are to use the experience for a Holy purpose not just individually but collectively so we might continue the joy of the resurrection in a Pentecost shared.
Pray our experience of Holy week, our seeking and finding of Jesus, continues to change us. Pray we realize that the very same Jesus who was crucified, resurrected and ascended to heaven was declared by God, in the outpouring of the Spirit to be both Lord and Christ. Pray we realize that we are guilty because we are all sinners. Pray we repent and receive forgiveness in the grace of confession and baptism. Pray we learn from the greatest of all teachers what it means to be a Christian. Pray we be as one because Jesus prayed that we would be. Pray we learn first and foremost to be committed to honesty with one another. Pray we realize that honesty is a sign of true friendship. Pray we realize that life can be so superficial if we hide from the truth. Pray we embrace the reality that people appreciate candor more than candy talk… frankness more than flattery. Pray we are careful not to beat up on each other. Pray we use kind words not harsh words so people can accept constructive criticism. Pray we be both humble and harmonious. Pray we be spirit filled in our personal relationship with God but also in our personal relationship with each other. Pray therefor that we devote ourselves to each other so that the party can go on…. Pray we bring our needs to Jesus. Pray we break with customs and save the best for last. Pray we have a personal relationship with Christ but also a collective one. Pray we rejoice in the transformation of frowns into smiles…of fears into hope…of sorrow into joy. Pray we experience the joy of the abundance of new wine in Jesus. Pray we drink freely of that which has been poured out in us. Pray therefor we take ownership of the needs of others to hear the Good News and encourage each other in the joy of our life together.
Blessings,
John Lawson
Daily Devotionals 