Monthly Archives: March 2021

Chronicles, the 2nd

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If you recall, the first post in Chronicles of Calvary, is about Simon.

Simon was ordered to carry the cross of Jesus. You can read about him here.

Surveying the Cross” Simon of Cyrene – Daily Encouragement

Let’s move on to the second person in these Chronicles.

The centurion at the cross would have been the soldier in charge of the executions. It was his duty to make sure that all was in order and finally, that the prisoners would perish.

In Mark 15, the centurion at the crucifixion plays a prominent roll. Here are a few verses:

37With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.

38The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

39And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, c he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!”

40Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joseph, d and Salome. 

41In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.

42It was Preparation Day (that is, the day before the Sabbath). So as evening approached, 

43Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. 

44Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. 

45When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph. 

The Long Good Friday: The Story of Longinus the Centurion | The Inglorius Padre Steve's World

I bolded (is that the right word?) the verses that reference the centurion.

In 39, he made a proclamation. He was fortunate enough to be present at the most important moment in the history of the world. I think that he knew who that man was, hanging there on the cross.

Verse 45 tells us that he made a pronouncement. Pilate, the Roman ruler, wanted to know for sure, that Jesus had died. The centurion was responsible for that knowledge.

Isn’t it cool that we can learn from the centurion?

We can proclaim that Jesus is God’s son. He was divine and human while he lived on earth. That is information that we can confidently shout from the tallest mountain. Proclaim it today!

We can also pronounce that Jesus died…and is risen! Our faith is for nothing if Jesus never died. Because only in death, can he be risen. And that, is what Easter is all about.

Tomorrow’s post will compare the two thieves that were crucified with Jesus. God bless!

Chronicles of Calvary

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Springtime is upon us! Along with spring, the Easter seasoned has arrived.

What does Easter mean to you? Eggs? Ham? Going to church? Victory over sin?

Maybe all of these things. Easter, in general, is the celebration of Jesus being crucified and his resurrection from the dead.

As a bible-believing christian, Easter marks the central focus of my faith.

The Bible talks about the crucifixion of Jesus. There are some details but the entire picture is left for us to fill in.

This series will highlight various aspects surrounding the cross.

Chronicles of Calvary.

Locating Golgotha – TaborBlog

This is probably the hill where Jesus was crucified. It lies just outside of Jerusalem.

The hill is called Calvary.

The death of Jesus is the culmination of a series of events.

Think of a tapestry woven together with multiple threads. On there own, they may not be significant.

But when seeing all of these paths come together in sweet harmony, you can now begin to appreciate the importance of Calvary.

Here is an example. Enter Simon, the man who carried the cross.

Matthew 27:32, “As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene, named Simon, and they forced him to carry the cross.” NIV

Mark 15:21, “A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross.” NIV

Luke 23:26, “As the soldiers led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus.” NIV

Who was this Simon? He was the man who helped carry the cross of Jesus.

And that is our first Chronicle of Calvary.

My guess is that Simon did not know who Jesus was. Perhaps he had heard of him. We will probably never know.

But Simon was in the right pace at the right time. God needed Simon to carry that cross.

I think that Simon and his very short biblical appearance points to us.

  • God has a plan
  • We are part of this plan
  • God sees the whole plan
  • We only see a tiny portion of the plan
  • God has our part designed for us in this plan
  • We can do our part

And that is enough.

God will take care of the rest.

I hope you enjoyed this first Chronicles of Calvary post.

Stay tuned this week.

The Chronicles will continue.

Shadows, the good kind.

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Last week, we discussed how shadows can be harmful to our faith. We can be afraid of the shadows in life. But we also know that God is light and the shadows have no power against God. Click here if you want to read last week’s post.

Ponder your shadow for a moment.

Other than our vision, how else do we perceive a shadow?

You can’t touch it. Rather, it touches you. Do you feel it?

It makes no sound and you certainly can’t taste it.

But can a shadow interact with our physical world?

As with most (probably all things) things, we can look to God’s Word for some answers.

Dealing with shadows is no different.

Here are the verses in Acts that originally prompted me to write about shadows in the first place.

“12The apostles performed many signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon’s Colonnade. 13No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. 14Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number. 15As a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on some of them as he passed by. 16Crowds gathered also from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and those tormented by impure spirits, and all of them were healed.” Acts 5:12-16 NIV

Did you catch v. 15? Apparently, there was power in Peter’s shadow!

I see a process here. If I may, let me break that process into each step.

  1. Verse 14 says that “more and more…believed…” God was doing miraculous work in peoples’ spiritual lives.
  2. Verse 15 states, “As a result…”. Result of what? The salvation that these people were experiencing. The people must have been thinking that God can heal physical issues as well as spiritual issues.
  3. Faith was being bolstered by the numbers of salvations. When people get saved, there is always rejoicing.
  4. Due to this new hardy faith, people were taking physical action. It seems that action will follow a decision.
  5. This action led them to find the disciples, specifically, Peter. Verse 12 explains the interest in find these men.
  6. Faith surpasses proximity. Peter did not even need to touch these people. God’s power finds people of faith.
  7. Physical healings took place. God will sometimes meet spiritual needs before physical needs. Other times, it is reveresed. Either way, it was evident that there was an outpouring of God’s power.
  8. God gets the glory. Regardless of how the healing happens or even if it spiritual or physical, God is the one who is doing the healing. Yes, Peter was involved but God only because God chose to use him in this moment.
St Peter Following St John As He Heals The Sick With Shadow" Paper Art, 34"x46" - Traditional - Prints And Posters - by Global Gallery

While we live through our days, we encounter negative shadows practically every day. But God is so faithful. He can turn bad, fearful, and scary shadows into live-giving shadows.

First of all, look to God. Desire Him, not what He can do.

Once we get that priority straight, God can start to move us through the process I described earlier.

Because God is all-powerful and equally mysterious, He will do what He wants, when He wants to.

Keep close to Him and enjoy the ride!

A life lived for God is never lived in disappointment!

Shadows

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Have you ever been spooked by your own shadow?

Own Shadow Stock Illustrations – 908 Own Shadow Stock Illustrations, Vectors & Clipart - Dreamstime

Whether or not you get frightened by it, your shadow is harmless. It is not the real thing so there is no merit to putting fear into it. More on that to follow.

With shadows on the mind, let’s look at two verses that might shed some light (pun intended!) on shadows.

Psalm 23 is, perhaps, the most well-known chapter of the bible. Believers and non-believers alike could quote portions of it from memory.

“The Lord is my shepherd…” WOW! Talk about an attention-grabbing start!

But wait for verse 4, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4 KJV

There is also a ‘shadow’ reference in the New Testament. Yes, there are multiple verses but I am going to look at one. James 1:17 gets the spotlight (yes, another pun intended).

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” James 1:17 NIV

Here are the two verses side by sided so you can make a comparison.

Psalm 23:4 “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” KJV

Shadow: a death-like or deep shadow; being in extreme danger

James 1:17 “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” NIV

Shadow: either a shadow cast by an object, or a faint image or copy of an object.

Sometimes, we find ourselves in the first situation. We are facing what may seem like death. But God does not lead us into death. Behold, He is with us in our trouble. We can take great comfort in these words.

We can also count on God’s faithfulness. His character remains unchanging. James says God is not like the shadows that shift and change with the passage of time. We can count on Him.

Next week, there is another shadow that needs to be brought to light (yep, on purpose).

So here is this week’s take home from twominuteswithtim;

If you are gripped with fear or are unsure of your circumstances, trust that God has not left you or changed His mind about you. He is madly in love with you and will protect you.

I hope this post was a bright spot in your week. Lit!

Watt? Another light joke?!?!

H.E.L.P. part 4

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This past week has been uplifting. I am going to share some experiences with you but in order to protect the individuals involved, I am calling them Friend.

But before I do, here are links to the earlier posts in this series. This post, H.E.L.P. part 4, will be the final post.

Consider the Source

H.E.L.P.

H.E.L.P. part 2

H.E.L.P. part 3

Alright, back to this week. As I have been discussing God’s help in our lives, I experienced that help first hand. Here are some events that showed me how God decided to help me this week.

Friend 1 – told me that my family’s return to church (we have been going back to church in person instead of watching online for two weeks now) makes it feel “normal” again

Friend 2 – came over with his chainsaw and helped me cut wood for the fireplace

Friend 3 – gave me a hug

Friend 4 – asked me how my novel is coming along (yes, I am writing a novel but I am not ready to share it with the general public)

Friend 5 – sought out my advice on some board games he was thinking of purchasing

Friend 6 (and his wife) – had my wife and I over for dinner

These are real examples of how my day was brightened or I was encouraged in my faith. I had divine help this past week and it came in the form of People

H – Holy Spirit

E – Ekklesia

L – Logos or Library

P – People

Have you ever had a person step into your world, at just the right moment, to lift your spirit?

Did you ever need a word of encouragement only to have your best friend call you?

It seems that Jesus is often disguised in human form.

In fact, the Word tells us that “the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” John 1:14 NIV

God knew that we, as humans, could not comprehend the Divine. We needed flesh and blood.

Jesus was flesh and blood. And so are the people around us. And God uses them to help us.

So, to wrap up this little journey into divine help, we can know that God wants to and is able to help us whenever we need help. The question, then, is not a question of ‘will’ but ‘how’ will that help arrive.

Friends, stick close to Jesus. Look for Him and He will H.E.L.P.

God bless you!

Until next week!