Jesus - (Ben Hur)

Good Friday Meditations

Jesus Smells! : a Good Friday Reflection from Euangelion


Mother Kirk: the agony : poetry about the crucifixion.

Jesus

"In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." Hebrews 9:22

Celal Birader Has Found The First President Of His Fan Club

HERE

Dear James,

You are too kind; and, I am very flattered.

You are probably only seeing Jesus in me as my family will attest to my many faults and failings.

Nevertheless, be assured that the job will always be yours for the asking.

Sincerely,

Celal Birader
Icarus Redeemed

Jesus of Nazareth

“Jesus of Nazareth took the total risk of speaking and acting as if the answer to the question were this: when the true God comes back to deal with evil, he will look like a young Jewish prophet journeying to Jerusalem at passover-time, celebrating the kingdom, confronting the corrupt authorities, feasting with his friends, succumbing in prayer and agony to a cruel and unjust fate, taking upon himself the weight of Israel’s sin, the world’s sin, Evil with a capital E.

When we look at Jesus in this way we discover that the cross has become for us the new Temple, the place where we go to meet the true God and know him as saviour and redeemer. The cross becomes the place of pilgrimage where we stand and gaze at what was done for each one of us. The cross becomes the sign that pagan empire, symbolized in the might and power of sheer brutal force, has been decisively challenged by a different power, the power of love – and that this decisive challenge shall win the day.

The question is then posed to us in the strongest and clearest possible way. Dare we stand in front of the cross and admit that all that was done for us? Dare we take all the meanings of the word ‘God’ and allow them to be recentred upon, redefined by, this man, this moment, this death? Dare we address the consequences of what Jesus himself said, that the rulers of the world behave in one way, but that we must not do it like that? (...)

Only so, I believe, can we even begin the task, to which the subsequent lectures will return, of working in our own day with mature, Christian and sober intelligence to address the problem of evil which still haunts the world which God loved so much.”

Source : “Evil and the Justice of God”
a series of lectures for 2003 by the Canon Theologian, Dr N. T. Wright
Lecture 3: Evil and the Crucified God
March 17 2003
(written up in retrospect from notes, December 2004)

Salvation not by Works

[9] After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.

They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands.

[10] And they cried out in a loud voice:

"Salvation belongs to our God,
who sits on the throne,
and to the Lamb."

[11] All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God,

[12] saying:

"Amen!
Praise and glory
and wisdom and thanks and honor
and power and strength
be to our God for ever and ever.
Amen!"

(Revelation 7:9-12)

This morning in church we sang a hymn which contained this phrase "Salvation belongs to our God".

What does this mean ?

One thing it must mean is that its' antithesis i.e. "salvation belongs to US" is completely excluded.

What does that imply ?

It implies that we [man] cannot do anything to earn, keep or work for salvation.

Isn't that great ?

Isn't that wonderful ?

Isn't that why the multitude are singing and praising the Lamb who is on the Throne ?

Which is the "Odd One Out" ?

There's a television programme here in the UK called "Have I Got News For You". It's a weekly comedic take on things that have been reported in the news during the previous week.

Can you look at the four pictures above, think of what's been happening in the news recently and guess where I'm going here ?

But, let's not get ahead of ourselves.

There is one round in the programme called the "Odd One Out" round. It's where 4 pictures are presented in clover leaf fashion :

"The "Odd One Out" round [is]where four personalities, characters or objects are presented to a team, whereupon it [the team] must identify the interloper, and the topical, amusing or ridiculously obscure link between the other three." (1)

Before getting to the so-called "odd one out", I want to focus on "the ridiculously obscure link between the other three" for now.

You might have read somewhere on the Internet that a judge in Turkey issued a court order banning access to YouTube in Turkey. What was the reason ? The reason was that some videos had been posted there insinuating certain things about Mustafa Kemal Ataturk which were deemed to violate certain laws about what can and cannot be said about him.

Doesn't that remind you a little of the Muhammad cartoons over a year ago ? Is there some connection ? We'll get to that in a minute.

But, now is probably a good time to bring Elvis on stage.

I can't ever remember Elvis being at the centre of the kind of controversy surrounding the other two. Nobody has ever "insulted" Elvis so that his fans took to the streets, burned effigies or sought court orders against the offender(s).

Wait a minute.

I suppose there was a time when a certain Michael Jackson sought the mantle of "King of Rock and Roll". He purchased the rights to quite a number of Elvis songs and even married (for a while) the King's daughter. Elvis fans may have observed these machinations with contempt and a certain outrage.

Michael before long found himself disgraced in one scandal after another and so Elvis remains safe as the King of Rock and Roll and his fans can rest easy.

Yes Elvis the King, of rock 'n roll, that is. King . . . and more ? According to THIS some see the Elvis phenomenon as a new religion.

A religion ? With that said we are now getting closer to the "ridiculously obscure link between the other three". Perhaps what I am saying is that these people have been made into gods by their devotees.

For what is G-o-d but that which is forever above and beyond all criticism, above and beyond all faultfinding which is but blasphemy?

And such are to a greater extent Muhammad and Ataturk, aren't they ? And to a lesser extent so is Elvis.

Reference to the deification of Muhammad in what is known as "folk Islam" could be mentioned to demonstrate that man does not find it enough to worship that which is completely transcendent.

Is there something in all of this which points to a deeper reality, a universal need in man to worship a divine/human messiah ?

I think there is.

The exploration of this question should take us back to the very beginning of history - literally back to Adam and Eve where in Genesis, the first book of the Bible, we read the following :

11And He [God] said, "Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?"

12The man said, "The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me from the tree, and I ate."

13Then the LORD God said to the woman, "What is this you have done?" And the woman said, "The serpent deceived me, and I ate."

14The LORD God said to the serpent,
"Because you have done this,
Cursed are you more than all cattle,
And more than every beast of the field;
On your belly you will go,
And dust you will eat
All the days of your life;

15And I [God] will put enmity
Between you [the serpent] and the woman,
And between your seed and her seed;
He shall bruise you on the head,
And you shall bruise him on the heel."

(Genesis 3:11-15)

All people are descended from Adam or in other words we can say all are from "Adam's seed". But here the promise has to do with the "woman's seed". Can you see that from the portion I highlighted above ?

At the time this prophecy was written down it may not have been clear that the only person in human history who is not of "Adam's seed" was to be JESUS born of the Virgin Mary -- entirely of the "woman's seed".

Many people might say they believe this but can they explain what was the reason why JESUS came into the world this way ?

For the answer we must go to another portion of the Bible called Romans where it is written :

12Therefore, just as through one man [i.e. Adam] sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned--
(Romans 5:12)

There's a lot being said in that one verse. Have you noticed ? It gives us the reason why there is sin and death in the world .

Earlier in Romans we read this :

23for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

(Romans 3:23)

And ...

23a For the wages of sin is death

(Romans 6:23a)

The punishment of sin is judgement as it says :

27 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,

(Hebrews 9:27)

The good news is ...

23b the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

(Romans 6:23b)

The Bible tells us that in order to be saved from sin and the judgement to be faced for sin when we stand before God we must call JESUS LORD :

9that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;

10for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.

11For the Scripture says, "WHOEVER BELIEVES IN HIM WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED."

12For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him;

13for "WHOEVER WILL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED."

(Romans 10:9-13)

Every one's conscience speaks to the possibility of having to give an account after one's death. It is right and necessary to call JESUS LORD because He is the Son of God. The One to whom and before whom all will stand to give account has been identified :

31For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.

(Acts 17:31)

and here :

5Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

6Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

7but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.

8And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!

9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name,

10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

(Philippians 2:5-11)

The heart of man seeks a saviour and always will do so. There are false messiahs who may have been greatly gifted intellectually or accomplished great things in their lives but there is only one who a) died for the sins of the whole world and b) rose from the dead and lives now with real power to save - JESUS the one and only Son of God.

Come and as it says in Scripture "Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him." (Psalm 34:8)

Think you don't need God's offer of salvation in JESUS ?

"He who trusts in himself is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom is kept safe." (Proverbs 28:26)

Will you do it now ?

Will you acknowledge JESUS IS LORD and be saved from your sins for all eternity ? You can do it now privately just between you and God as you read these words.



(1) "Have I Got News for You" from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jesus the Jew and Christian Practice

"(. . .) What all of this gets at (...) is how difficult it is for Christians to simply take the "Jesus of history" (itself a problematic notion) as normative for their faith and practice in any straightforward way.

First, as Derek also points out, the church has never confined Jesus' influence to the example set by a historical figure 2,000 years ago, much less to the latest scholarly reconstruction.

For Christian faith Jesus is first and foremost the living Lord whose Spirit continues to guide the church. Of course, that faith would be a mirage if the Jesus of history didn't do and say the kinds of things recorded in the gospel accounts.

But Christians aren't committed to slavishly imitating all the details of Jesus' life, even the religious details. That much was made clear at the Council of Jerusalem. (. . .)"

Read more of this quality posting at verbum ipsum .

The truth of the final paragraph above can also be seen in the Risen Lord Jesus's message to the Seven Churches of Asia Minor (all located within the borders of modern Turkey). More particularly see 2:9, 2:14, 2:20, and 3:9 .

Christ in Whom are ALL the Treasures of Wisdom and Knowledge

Do you know this JESUS ?


"One of the most precious truths that we have in Chrisitianity is that "Leader" of our religion is alive and near to each one of us. Jesus promised to be with us until the end of the age. This He fulfills through His Spirit. Because of His nearness He is able and does speak to each one of us individually. This is a fulfillment of the promises of the New Covenant: "No more shall every man teach his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, 'Know the Lord.' For they all shall konw Me, from the least of them to the greateest of them says the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more (Jer 31:34)." No other religion has a God so near (echo of Deut 4:7)."

H/T MOJO & Girls

If We Really Believed JESUS loved us ...

click HERE to read the meditation.

JESUS is our greatest need

"Knowing God without knowing our own wretchedness makes for pride.

Knowing our own wretchedness without knowing God makes for despair.

Knowing Jesus Christ strikes the right balance because he shows us both God and our own wretchedness."

-Pascal, Pensees, XIV.192

"...Christ in you, the hope of glory" (Colossians 1:27)

My church has this “verse for the year” tradition. And, this year it’s Colossians 1:27. I’ve really gotten blessed by our verse this year.

We’ve had a sermon entitled “In Christ alone” around the text of Colossians 1:1-8 which amplifies and fleshes out our theme verse.

You can listen online or download the MP3 by right clicking and selecting “Save Target As” here.

Fame and Fortune are fleeting if at all attainable.

And, at death we leave all of earthly ‘glory’ behind.

But the Christian at death obtains the glory for which “Christ in us” has been the “hope”: it’s the genuine article.

We have Christ “in us” which is what every believer is promised
( John 20:22, Acts 2:38, 2 Corinthians 6:16, Romans 8:9, and many others).

This is what it means to be a “Christian”.

The Cross of Forgiveness

from Rachel Warwick's Flickr album

Jesus by another name ?

Just finished reading "Desperately Seeking Paradise" by Ziauddin Sardar.

The review by Ralph Blumenau captures the essence and significance of this book by a British Muslim journalist better than any other review i have read.

Sardar mentions a certain Parvez Manzoor who comes across as a kind of intellectual mentor to Sardar's group of would be Islamist reformers calling themselves "Ijmalis".

Manzoor's agenda? Reconciling Transcendence and Existence !

Sooooo interestingly while blog surfing i came across this comment :

Jesus gets the glory. Jesus, not "Transcendence," is the name above every name.Someday every tongue will confess, "Jesus, Christ, Lord" to the Father's glory.

For context click here.