Lamb of God

How many times have I heard and read the story about Jesus’ arrest, unfair staged trial, and sentencing to death? So many. I know the prophet John the Baptist called Jesus the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. (John 1:29) I know the sacrifice of animals by priests for many years were offered to atone for the people’s sins and had to be made over and over again and that the sacrifice Jesus made by giving His own life is a once for all deal. (Hebrews 7:27)

I know the deep, beautiful parallel of the Passover lamb and Jesus: how hundreds of years before, the blood of a lamb spread on door posts of  the Israelites’ homes kept the angel of death away and how Jesus’ blood, willingly spilt, covers our sins, marks our hearts as His own, and defeats death. (Of course we must believe and accept this incredible gift)

I should have noticed before, but as I was listening to the story of Jesus’ trial and sentencing, Continue reading

The Courage of Christ

My family and I decided to attend the “Journey to the Cross” Good Friday event at our church, not fully knowing what to expect.

In the last few years, this type of observance seems to be becoming popular, replacing services in which we just sit, sing songs and pray.  Those are good things to do but I’m glad people have used their creativity to come up with ways for people to physically walk through, smell, taste, hear and feel the story.  The story of Jesus’ death and resurrection can become benign to those of us who have heard or read it year after year.  It may even cease to really affect us or make us think harder about the gravity of what Jesus did and experienced.

The “Journey to the Cross” is the first experiential-type setting we’ve been through in first person as if walking in Jesus’ place, sensing a tiny bit of what it must have been like for him.  We began by entering a room set up as the last supper, Continue reading