The Holy Spirit Lives In You

Pardon me, sir. I did not do it on purpose. —Last words of French Queen Marie Antoinette. She had accidentally stepped on the foot of her executioner on her way to the guillotine.

Before the Passover Festival, Jesus knew that His time was up. In a few short hours, He would leave the world and go to His Father. There was no question about His love for the men He was sharing His last meal with. But the next day, He would prove His love for the whole world.

They had moved beyond the awkwardness from earlier in the meal, but for those closest to Him, the words of His pending departure caused confusion and concern. As part of His “Farewell Discourse,” Jesus offered them words of comfort:

“And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” (John 14:16-17)

Help was on the way: an Advocate, a Counselor, the Spirit of Truth. The prepositions Christ used are revealing. This Spirit had been with them. Soon, He would be in them. This is no small distinction! Not for them, not for us. The Holy Spirit of God is not just around us, not just among us, but He is in us. And if you have opened the door of your life to Christ, He is in YOU. The movement of the Farewell Discourse is profound: from “with us” to“in us.”

Of all the famous last words ever spoken, are these not, perhaps, the most important we will hear? Jesus’ final words telling us who we are because of Who is in us.

Holy Spirit, let me never, never get over the wonder and awe of who I am in Christ and who You are in me. Give me the peace to ponder this, the passion to envision it, the faith to live out the truth that You indwell me. Amen.

When Things Go From Bad to Worse

I can’t sleep. —J.M. Barrie, author of Peter Pan

He could see it in their eyes. They were starting to get scared. This was not some sort of parable or illustration… this was for real. Jesus was telling them of His impending death and departure, and Judas had already left the group, destined to set into motion the events that would climax in His innocent blood being shed.

“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” (John 14:1-3)

Jesus knew that over the next hours, days, months, and years His disciples would have to learn how to trust and believe Him. He knew that in centuries to come, we would need to learn the same. In His final discourse to the disciples and His future encouragement to us, His teachings were twofold: the Spirit will be in you on earth, and I will come back for you one day. Trust Me—I have it all figured out.

Jesus, what can I do but praise You for Your provision? You have given me everything, and the only thing I truly need on earth: Your Spirit in me. I trust and believe in You. Even when circumstances on earth go from bad to worse, I trust and believe in You. And I trust and believe that You will be coming back to take me to a place prepared for me. I trust and believe. Amen.

Identifying With Christ

We cannot close our eyes to the reality of suffering, for it is the reality chosen by the one we name Lord and Christ. And the path He walks here is the one He bids us to follow. —Theodore W. Jennings Jr.

Do you ever dream of a God who gallops into the scene on His white stallion, takes care of all the bad guys, and then rides off into the eternal sunset with everybody in town saying, “Wow, who was that mysterious God?” And then (in my dream), everybody is knocking down my door, begging me to share the Gospel with them so that they can have this God on their team, too!

It doesn’t appear to work that way. “Bad guys” come in many forms today, and bad guys bring suffering of many kinds. It might be physical, emotional, or even spiritual. And no, Jesus doesn’t scare them all away. Suffering was His reality; suffering is our reality.

“Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses… Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:14-16)

I think God may even allow suffering to gently move us toward Jesus so that we can identify with Him. That’s a deep thought, and it’s definitely worth thinking about as we celebrate Easter. Our suffering is a shared experience with Jesus—something that can bring deeper intimacy to our relationship with Him. He may not rescue us the way that we wish, but in His goodness, I believe He offers some things far more valuable. He invites us to “approach the throne of grace” and “receive mercy.” He’s really offering Himself to us, welcoming us into intimacy through shared suffering.

Dear Jesus, I ask You to open my heart and my mind. Use my suffering to help me more closely identify with Your suffering so that we can share these experiences in unity. I do need Your mercy and grace in my time of need. I thank You for becoming a human so that You can sympathize with my struggles. Thank You that I can enter into Your presence with confidence because of what You have done for me on the cross. Amen.

His Pain, Your Gain

We have so theologized the passion and death of this sacred Man that we no longer see the slow unraveling of His tissue, the spread of gangrene, His raging thirst. —Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel

The images in the movie “The Passion of Christ” stunned us all. After decades of dissecting the meaning of the Cross, some of us had become desensitized to the fact that the crucifixion was all too real that day in Jerusalem: real whips, real nails, scarlet blood, steaming sweat, bitter tears—real suffering.

“Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:4-5)

The writers of the Gospels don’t go into the gory details of the Cross. They described His mode of torture and execution as quite a matter of fact. (Historians and Hollywood have willingly filled in the graphic descriptions.) Prior to the Cross, Jesus knew the normal demands and limitations of the human body. We don’t have an indication that He got sick, but He may have. We do see plenty of hunger, thirst, and being physically tired. He definitely understands physical suffering; He certainly sympathizes with our physical suffering.

The important thing is that Jesus is here, and Jesus cares. And Jesus did something about it. Because of the suffering that He endured through His death on the Cross, we can know a peace that surpasses all comprehension, joy in spite of our circumstances, and intimacy with Him through that shared experience.

Lord Jesus, Isaiah predicted that You would carry my sorrows and take up my infirmities. So I leave them with You now. Thank You for the peace that was bought through Your punishment and the healing that I can know through Your wounds. I claim that now through faith in You! Amen.

Beyond Symbolism

To the abandoned child wailing in the city street, the mother weeping over her stillborn infant, the man moaning in the torture cell, the parent with no food or medicine to give a dying child, the Indian hunted down by ranchers’ dogs, the one betrayed by a friend—to all the wounded and suffering, despised and dishonored, the Gospel points to Jesus and says, “Behold your suffering, behold your God!” —Theodore W. Jennings

Let’s go back to the night before Jesus’ death. He needed to make a point to His disciples: You need to be sacrificial servants. So He took out the cloth and the wash basin and washed the grimy feet of His followers. It was powerfully symbolic. A real attention-getter. It was the perfect conclusion to the message that He was communicating to His somewhat remedial disciples.

“Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” (John 13:14-17)

They got the message. The sermon was over. Or was it?

What if the foot washing wasn’t just a “lesson illustration”? What if Christ’s actions weren’t just symbolic? What if the foot washing was authentic—an extension of who Jesus really is?

I sometimes worry that Christian “faith” has become too theoretical and not enough actual. Practical Christianity has been put in a symbolic box—particularly the things that require sacrifice and suffering. But again, Christ’s suffering and our suffering are a shared experience. His sacrificial service to us cost Him His life. Our sacrificial service to each other and the world is also costly. But it’s the real deal! It’s actually an extension of who we really are in Him.

Dear Jesus, I don’t want to live in the theoretical. Lord, I believe that I am in You and that You are in me. Live through me today as a sacrificial servant in a practical way. May this be another experience that we can share together that will add unity to our relationship as we love the world together. Amen.

Your True Source of Love and Acceptance

Yet while none of its suffering can be exaggerated, the fact remains that the cross’ greatest cause of anguish may not have been the nails impaling the hands and feet. The greater cause may have been its shame. —D. Bruce Lockerbie

Jesus Christ was a human being with emotion. The Bible says He suffered from loneliness (Matthew 26:40), frustration (Mark 8:21), anger (Mark 3:5), and He experienced the feeling of abandonment (Mark 15:34).

However, when He was on the Cross, He shared in the most painful of all human emotions: rejection.

• He was rejected for who He was by the authorities who scoffed at His claim to be the Son of God (Matthew 26:63-66).
• He was rejected by those who loved Him when the disciples abandoned Him in His time of need—when Peter denied Him three times (Matthew 26:73-74).
• He was regarded as worthless by those in charge. At the insistence of the crowds, Pilate released a notorious prisoner, Barabbas. For the sake of political convenience, he gave into the crowds’ demands to “crucify him!” (Matthew 27:15-22)

In the end, only a few women and John stayed by Him. When He was finally recognized and received for who He was, it was too late.

Are you experiencing the agony of rejection? Rejection is yet another aspect of suffering that can draw you into deeper intimacy and unity with Christ. Christ can sympathize with you, and this shared suffering can be a major point of contact between the two of you because not only has He been there, but He promises to always be here with you and never ever leave you or forsake you.

So yes, when it comes to rejection, Jesus “gets it.” He understands big-time. And He’s with you and in you right now, ready to walk through it together.

Jesus, honestly, I really desire that the people around me would fully accept me and unconditionally love me. But that’s never going to be a reality, is it? I thank You for using this desire to draw me into a more intimate relationship with You, who will never reject me and never leave me! Thank you for using the suffering of rejection to lead me to You, the true source of love and acceptance. Amen.

The Power of Christ’s Resurrection

Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone, but in every leaf in springtime. —Martin Luther

Sunday morning, the disciples were still locked away in hiding. The body of Jesus was still sealed securely in the tomb… or so they thought.

At some point in the night or early morning, Almighty God the Father and God the Holy Spirit performed a miracle. Molecule by molecule, they defied the natural laws. They were restructuring cell walls, purging toxins, replacing decayed biochemicals, and expelling the microscopic scavengers… until the body was ready once again.

And with a breath, the soul and Spirit of Christ came to earth again. Emmanuel again. God in the flesh, alive again! Supernatural? By all means, it was. God’s business is supernatural—re-creating, reversing decay and destruction, and giving new life. God’s business is resurrection, and those who are in Christ are part of it, right here, right now:

“We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.” (Romans 6:5-8)

This is all part of the incredible mystery of life “in Christ.” It’s hard to explain… perhaps even impossible to describe, but when we see this resurrection in action, it’s undeniable.

A couple of years ago, right after Easter, I received an email that said it all:

Dear Pete,

It was 7 years ago Easter weekend that I was at the end of my downhill spiral. I had just spent the weekend choosing drugs over life and the custody of my first son and felt as though I had nothing left to live for. I cannot describe the overwhelming peace and joy that I experience today! I was allowed to serve at two services and attended the third. It’s like there is no other place I belong on Easter morning…

Chemical abuse, abortion, desperation—and then one day, someone introduced her to the risen Christ. Today she walks with Him in forgiveness and grace and shameless worship. If you really want to see the resurrected Jesus, just look at people like her because she, somehow, was resurrected with Him, too.

Jesus, this is really too amazing for my mind to absorb, but You are God, able to do far more than I could ever comprehend. By faith, Lord, I accept what You say is true—that my old self was crucified and that I have been raised with You for new life in You. Make this mystery a reality in my life today! Amen.

Having Faith in the Resurrection

And I tell you that the evidence for the life, the death, and the resurrection of Christ is better authenticated than most of the facts of ancient history… —E.M. Blaiklock, Professor of Classics at Auckland University

Christians, in general, seem to have a pretty good handle on the theology of the cross. I mean, that’s how we got into a relationship with God in the first place. Jesus died for us so that we could be forgiven so that we can relate to God on an intimate personal level.

But what about our theology of the resurrection? Is it really important to prove and believe that the resurrection of Christ really happened? What if Christ was not raised from the dead? Let’s let the apostle Paul answer that:

“And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith. More than that, we are then found to be false witnesses about God, for we have testified about God that he raised Christ from the dead. But he did not raise him if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.” (1 Corinthians 15:14-19)

That’s a pretty serious list. If His body is still in the grave, faith is useless, faith is futile, we are still in our sins, none of us will be raised after death, and we are (basically) idiots to be pitied more than everybody else.

The list of objective evidence regarding the resurrection is substantial.

• Jesus’ body was dead.
• The stone was rolled away.
• The tomb was empty.
• The Roman guards were AWOL.
• The grave clothes were present.
• Hundreds of witnesses reported what they saw.

Books and books have been written on this topic, and they make for great inspirational reading. If Jesus wasn’t raised? It’s game over. But if He was—and if we believe that He was—then really, the game has just begun.

Living God, facts are facts, but faith is faith. Please—by the Truth of your Word and the power of the Holy Spirit—give me genuine faith in these facts. Allow me to move beyond superficial belief and begin to experience the mystery of the resurrection and all of its implications. Amen.

The Transforming Power of the Resurrection

What gives special authority to the list (of witnesses) as historical evidence is the reference to most of the five hundred brethren still being alive. St. Paul says in effect, “If you don’t believe me, you can ask them.” —Dr. Edwin Yamauchi, Professor Emeritus of History at Miami University

There is no question that the Romans were successful in crucifying Christ. The apostle John personally confirmed the death of Christ. John was there; he recorded the soldier’s confirmation that He was dead, and he saw them jab Him in the side with a spear causing water and blood to flow from His heart (John 19:33-35). Many others saw His body wrapped and placed in the tomb. Everything appeared to be over. But the sunrise of Sunday revealed a stone that had been rolled away, guards who had fled for their lives, and an empty tomb.

This is where it starts to get good… because people started seeing Him alive. The apostle Paul recorded that the living Christ appeared to Peter and then to the disciples and more than 500 other people (1 Corinthians 15:3-8). Hundreds of these firsthand witnesses would still have been alive at the time that Paul wrote this letter.

If you took the resurrection to court and each of these 500 witnesses had only six minutes of testimony and cross-examination, it would add up to over 50 hours of firsthand eyewitness accounts confirming that Christ was alive. The list of witnesses also included those who were hostile toward Christ before their encounters with Him. The most notable of all these was the apostle Paul himself, who encountered the resurrected Christ long after the fact. In his words:

“Then he [Jesus] appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born. For I am the least of the apostles and do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect.” (1 Corinthians 15:7-10)

What stands out to me in Paul’s account is not only his record of what happened but also how it affected him personally. This encounter with Jesus transformed him from an arrogant religious leader into a humble, faithful servant… a man transformed by the grace of God.

May it be the same for each of us!

Dear Jesus, Your Word says knowledge makes us arrogant. But love edifies. What a tragedy it would be if the proof of Your resurrection became an object of my pride rather than fuel for my faith. I am truly nothing without You. It is only by Your grace that I am what I am. I praise You, Lord. Glory to Your name! Amen.

The Hope Found in an Empty Tomb

It’s Friday, but Sunday is coming!

I love Peter. Not only is he my namesake, but I can appreciate the way he was prone to live on the extremes: he was bold and boisterous when he was with Christ, but when he was separated from Christ, Peter was a wimp. He caved under the pressure, even cowering to the questions of little girls, denying that he had ever even known Jesus at all. (See Mark 14:66-72).

We might look at the cross today as symbolic of some sort of victory, but it was devastating at the moment. The significance of Christ’s death was the shedding of innocent blood—the perfect and final sacrifice for human sin. But what is the significance for us if He was raised? I can’t answer that any better than Peter:

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may be proved genuine and may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” (1 Peter 1:3-7)

What a contrast! Yes, Jesus had to die, and we had to be crucified with Him to get to this point. But what a difference the resurrection made to Peter and what an astounding difference it makes to us. In the mercy of the Father, through the resurrection of Jesus, God has given us two crucial things: new birth and living hope.

Where would we be without either of those?!

Jesus, touch me with the Truth today. Quiet my heart that I may ponder what You did on the cross. Ignite my heart that I may celebrate what You did through the resurrection. Amen.

Forever Changed By the Living Jesus

The resurrection gives my life meaning and direction and the opportunity to start over no matter what my circumstances. —Robert Flatt

Information alone rarely changes lives. But when someone experiences the truth, their future is often changed for good. This is certainly the case with Jesus. Sure, people’s lives get changed for all sorts of different reasons, but the transformation that we see in the disciples’ lives is irrefutable evidence that they believed they had encountered the living Christ.

Remember the disciples back in the Garden of Gethsemane? At the first threat of real danger, “everyone deserted him and fled” (Mark 14:50). But then, “Bam!” Just like that, something changed. These guys became radical and fearless, willing to give their lives in the name of Jesus Christ. What happened?

“On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.” (John 20:19-20)

This encounter with the living Christ completely transformed them from men who were hiding behind “doors locked for fear of the Jews” into an unstoppable team. History and tradition show us that the disciples were tortured, exiled, and killed because they wouldn’t shut up about their encounter with the resurrected Christ.

• James of Zebedee was beheaded in A.D. 44
• Philip was scourged and crucified in Phrygia
• Matthew was martyred in Ethopia in A.D. 60
• James was stoned and clubbed in A.D. 94
• Matthias (Judas’ replacement) was stoned and beheaded in Jerusalem
• Andrew was crucified in Edessa
• Peter was crucified
• Bartholomew was beaten and crucified in India
• Thomas was thrust with a spear
• Simon the Zealot was crucified in A.D. 74
• Judas of James was crucified in Edessa in A.D. 72
• John was exiled to Patmos

We can truthfully say that billions of people can testify to the change that the resurrected Christ has made in their life! Yes, I believe that information is important. That’s why we are so committed to telling the truth from the Scriptures. But it has to go from head knowledge to a living, relational experience with the risen Christ.

Risen Christ, I don’t want to just know about You. I want more than just the facts that show You rose from the dead. My heart yearns for You. My heart seeks You. I am open to experiencing You today, on a personal level, in any way that You choose! Amen.

Reflection:

1. This Easter season, what truth is the Spirit revealing to you about Himself and about His life in you?
2. How would your life change if you lived with a greater awareness of the resurrected Christ in you today?