Brief Reflection on Maundy Thursday and Love

In light of my recent post on Christian leadership, I decided that today is an appropriate day to again reflect on the how the church behaves differently than the world. On the church's calendar, today is Maundy Thursday. This day derives its name from the Latin word that is the root of our word mandate. It's called this because of Jesus' words in John, "a new command I give to you" or a new "mandate." This mandate comes after his washing of the disciples feet. Jesus is displaying that his style of leadership is built on love and service, not on power. With this "new mandate," Jesus instructs his disciples to do the same to one another and then says that this is how the world will know that they are his disciples, by their love (John 13:34-35)

The love that Jesus speaks of here is not a feeling, but a lifestyle of putting others before yourself and treating others as you would want to be treated. This is love that Jesus shows us by laying down his life on the cross. This is love is more than just a singular action or a feeling, it is a virtue or a "a certain quality of character" as C.S. Lewis describes virtue in Mere Christianity. Our God is love, it is a part of his nature, and here Jesus commands us to make love apart of our character as well. So, while we typically spend this week think about what Jesus did for the world, today we are reminded of what He has asked us to do as well. We are to make love one of our defining characteristics like Christ did. As Paul wrote in Colossians 3, we are to clothe ourselves with love which binds all other virtues together in perfect unity.

“As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends." (John 15:9-13 NIV)

St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day is one of my favorite days of the year. It's not for the same reason that most like St. Patrick's day, instead it's because of St. Patrick and the impact he had on the world. Patrick left his home in England and went to Ireland to preach Jesus to the people that he earlier lived among as a slave. In short, God did great things with Patrick. You can read a lot more about him over at Mark Driscoll's blog. St. Patrick's Day is all about remembering one of God's faithful servants who spent his life preaching the good news of Jesus Christ.



I would also recommend the book Saint Patrick by Jonathan Rogers. It's a short and easy read. It really hits a the heart of what Patrick's life is all about. It's definitely one that you could read most if not all of in a day or a weekend. 


Take some times today and thank God for the missionaries who spend their lives spreading the good news and love of Jesus Christ around the world. That's a much better way to honor Patrick instead of dressing in green, faking an Irish accent, and talking about leprechauns. I would, however, recommend some corned beef and cabbage, that's some good food.


Happy Saint Patrick's Day! I'll leave you with some of the words of Patrick.


"For there is no other God, nor ever was before, nor shall be hereafter, but God the Father, unbegotten and without beginning, in whom all things began, whose are all things, as we have been taught; and his son Jesus Christ, who manifestly always existed with the Father, before the beginning of time in the spirit with the Father, indescribably begotten before all things, and all things visible and invisible were made by him. He was made man, conquered death and was received into Heaven, to the Father who gave him all power over every name in Heaven and on Earth and in Hell, so that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord and God, in whom we believe. And we look to his imminent coming again, the judge of the living and the dead, who will render to each according to his deeds. And he poured out his Holy Spirit on us in abundance, the gift and pledge of immortality, which makes the believers and the obedient into sons of God and co-heirs of Christ who is revealed, and we worship one God in the Trinity of holy name."

St. Patrick's Confession


"I bind unto myself today
The strong name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three."

St. Patrick's Breastplate

Happy Thanksgiving

I will give you thanks, for you answered me;
you have become my salvation. The stone the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone; the Lord has done this,
and it is marvelous in our eyes. The Lord has done it this very day;
let us rejoice today and be glad. Lord, save us!
Lord, grant us success! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
From the house of the Lord we bless you. The Lord is God,
and he has made his light shine on us.
With boughs in hand, join in the festal procession
up to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will praise you;
you are my God, and I will exalt you. Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
his love endures forever. (Psalm 118:21-29 NIV)

Thanksgiving and the Eucharist

If you've read my blog at all, you probably know of my appreciation for the church calendar. I think that it is a fantastic way to create regular spiritual rhythms throughout the year. The church year is actually about to begin with the first Sunday of Advent on November 27. Before Advent begins, however, there is another holiday that is not a church holiday. This Thursday is Thanksgiving, a day packed with food, football, family, and afternoon naps. It is supposed to be a day of being thankful for what we have and what we've been given. Thanksgiving is not a church holiday, but I believe that it ought to be.

Since Jesus instituted it, the church has had it's own Thanksgiving feast. This feast, however, is not celebrated only once a year. Many churches celebrate this thanksgiving every week. The celebration that I am talking about is the Eucharist. The Eucharist is now know to many as the Lord's Supper or Communion. The name "eucharist" is a from Greek word and means "thanksgiving." The celebration of the Lord's supper includes a time of giving thanks to God for what he has done for us.

I find it oddly appropriate that before the church calendar begins, millions celebrate a day of thanksgiving.  Before we begin the church holiday cycle again, it seems providential that we set aside a day of thanksgiving and give thanks one more time for what God has done this past year. I would encourage you to be intentional about what you are thankful for this thanksgiving. I'm not saying that everyone should celebrate communion on Thanksgiving day, but we should be remembering what we should be the most thankful for, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus on the Cross. No matter what has happened in the past year, we can thank God for Jesus' sacrifice. We should regularly give thanks like we should regularly discuss Christ's birth, death, and resurrection. But just like Christmas and Easter, the church should set aside a day to throw a large party to give thanks to God for what he has done. So before we enter the season anticipation, give thanks to the Lord for what he has done.

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever." Ps. 106:1

Merry Christmas!

Today begins the Christmas Season. No the Christmas season does not start in December (or in November). Christmas officially begins on the 25th and goes for twelve days. So I would encourage you not to just celebrate Christmas today, but for the next twelve. Give to others and celebrate the great miracle of the incarnation. I also would encourage you to remember the words of Paul from Philippians.

In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:

Who, being in very nature God,
   did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage;
rather, he made himself nothing
   by taking the very nature of a servant,
   being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
   he humbled himself
   by becoming obedient to death—
      even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
   and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
   in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
   to the glory of God the Father.

Philippians 2:5-11 (NIV)


Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve

Christmas Eve marks the end of Advent and the beginning of Christmas. Advent is about waiting for the coming of Christ. Many of us just pass the time waiting for the holiday. We wait on presents, time off, good food, and time with friends. These are wonderful things and are all a part of this time of the year, but the observance of Advent is about the wait for Christ's first coming and the reminder that we are still waiting for His second coming. Even though the Christmas begins tomorrow and we will celebrate the miracle of the incarnation, we will still be waiting for the second coming of Christ if he does not come tomorrow. I'm reminded of what one of my high school Bible teachers said about the Bible. He said that the Bible tells us, "He is coming, He has coming, He will come again." Tonight we move from the remembrance of when he was coming to the time that he came. As you celebrate the coming of Christ, don't forget that he is coming again.

O Immanuel, our sovereign and lawgiver, desire of the nations and Savior of all: Come and save us, O Lord our God. Come, Lord Jesus.

The Other October 31st Holiday

St. Patrick's Day isn't the only Church holiday that gets overshadowed by other festivities. Today is actually a church holiday. No, not Halloween (even Halloween was originally the eve of All Hallows or All Saints Day celebrated by the Church). Most people treat Halloween as a chance to dress up and scare people, but October 31st is actually celebrated by many Protestants around the world as Reformation Day. On this day in 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany. This document, even though Luther may not have intended it to, sparked the Refomation of the church in the 16th century. For Protestant Christians, our heritage is traced back to Luther and his teachings.

If you, like me, are apart of the Restoration movement which was started by Barton Stone and Alexander Campbell. We are connected to Luther. Alexander Campbell was a came out of the Scottish Presbyterian church which owes its heritage to John Knox. Knox was trained in Geneva, Switzerland by Calvin and his teachings. Calvin was influenced by Martin Luther's teachings.

Martin Luther is one of the fathers of Protestant movement, so today when you are dressing up or handing out candy, remember what Martin Luther and others did so long ago to try to make the church a better place. Happy Reformation Day!

The Easter Season and Other Updates

The Easter season is upon us.  Most of us think of easter being one day, but it's really a seven week season known as Eastertide.  On the Fiftieth day after Easter, Pentecost is celebrated (see Acts 2).  Fifty days are to be dedicated to the celebration of Jesus' Resurrection from the dead and its impact on our lives.  This season is a time to remember the resurrected life in which we live.  Dustin said in sunday's sermon at Jeff St, Jesus' resurrection not only means that he's not there any more, but we won't be there either.  Because of Jesus defeated death, we in the end will too.  We live in hope of the future resurrection from the dead for all of us.  I would suggest that for the Easter season, we should all read through NT Wright's book Surprised by Hope. He discussed what impact resurrection has on our lives.  I'm going to start (actually pick it back up again) reading it as soon as I finish the book that I'm currently reading.  As a side note, if this interests you and you live in Lincoln, Jeff St Christian Church just started a series called "Beyond a Better Place" dealing with the impact of resurrection on our lives and what happens when we die.

Now for the other updates: I joined a site called Booksneeze.com that distributes books to bloggers for free in exchange for a blog review and a review on a site like Amazon.  So you can look forward to seeing more book reviews from me.  The first one will be the Revised and Expanded edition of John Eldridge's book Wild at Heart.  I'm also hoping that I will be able to get a copy of a book called Plan B that they are making available on tomorrow.



Last update, this weekend, I'm headed to the Stone Campbell Journal Conference at Cincinnati Christian University.  So, there will be an update on my time there.

Have a good Easter Season.  He is risen...

Good Friday

It's Good Friday, and I don't need to add my own words to what this day is all about. Instead, I will leave you with this:

Matthew 27:45-56

From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land.  About the ninth hour Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani?”—which means,“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

 When some of those standing there heard this, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.”

 Immediately one of them ran and got a sponge. He filled it with wine vinegar, put it on a stick, and offered it to Jesus to drink. The rest said, “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split.  The tombs broke open and the bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life.  They came out of the tombs, and after Jesus’ resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many people.

 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Sonc of God!”

 Many women were there, watching from a distance. They had followed Jesus from Galilee to care for his needs.  Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons.

Romans 5:6-11

You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.  Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.  But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!  For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!  Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

Thanksgiving Week + my Sermon

So I had a four thanksgiving dinners this past week. It all started a week ago with the Mahannahs. I went over there to enjoy a thanksgiving meal with their family. It was a wonderful meal with lots of food and about 5 or 6 different pies. I really enjoyed the night, even though most of the time my upcoming sermon the next morning. I got back later that night and ran over my sermon a couple of times.

The next morning I got up and was nervous like CRAZY about preaching. This was the first time that I have ever preached on a Sunday morning. The services went really well, the second service than the first. I had a great time doing it. Once I got on stage to start speaking, it just kind of flowed out. I'm so glad that I got a chance to do that. Everyone gave me good reviews of my sermon, so apparently it was decent. If you want to listen for yourself it's here: http://www.eastpointecc.com/sermons/2008/20081123.htm

That night was my second of 4 thanksgiving dinners. It was a potluck thanks giving dinner, which means there was lots and lots of good food to be had. It was a fun time to hang out with my small group from church.

The next thanksgiving dinner was on wednesday night. I ate thanksgiving dinner with the family that I'm living with. I was another traditional thanksgiving dinner with all the fixins. I stuffed myself with lots of food. It was wonderful, although, there was not pumpkin pie that night.

My last thanksgiving meal was back with the mahannahs on thanksgiving day. We ate ham, since we already had turkey. Then I ate 4 pieces of pie that night. Then I stayed up late that night to play video games with Chris and Ryan. I stayed for the next day and played more video games. It was a great way to celebrate the holiday and getting all of my school work done for my internship.