Good Friday

S: Philippians 3:8-11 “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith— 10 that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.” 

O: On this somber day we are reminded the price of our sin. It is Death, a death that has been paid for; not by our own means, but despite our constant shortcomings. This makes me think back to my baptism. Through the death of Christ, we are baptized into that death as well. We need to constantly be reminded of how we have died, and how we need to continue to die…. Die to our fleshly desires; die to our cultures and worldly request to conform to their patterns; to die to our selfish hearts. It is like how we need to “live” in our baptism everyday, we must also die everyday to these things as well. New sins find us, as well as old temptations linger around. We are reminded that it is a struggle, and not something that can not be done without intention. In verse 11 “by any means possible”. This seems very mindful and full of sacrifice. How quick we are to make excuses or find even a good reason to why we need to focus on this earth, and this body. What would it look like to live a life of “by any means possible”? What if that was our attitude of God, and our everlasting eternity? How would that start to shape and mold our lives?

A: This seems a bit harsh, but we need to think what this is all about. This is about our eternity in Heaven. This is about making a choice; do we follow what Christ has asked of us, or do we fall into the temptations of the devil and follow his guide. I can get so caught up in the world, and even doing some good things in this world, but at what cost? I always remember these words from PT “there is only one letter difference between a good idea and a God idea, but there is a huge difference in the outcome”. This is how we need to live our lives, not settling for something good, but for seeking something Godly in everything we do. We each are presented with unique experiences and circumstances special to us. God has placed us in these situations so that we might advance His kingdom. I know I can get so caught up in trying to run programs or set up services for people that I miss out on just talking with the people involved and getting to know them, and getting them to know my God. I need to slow down and really give a “by any means possible” attitude when I am out and about during my day. I need to remember why we do what we do, and for who we do it for!

P: Heavenly Father, I pray to you today that you open our eyes. We want to see you in everything we do, and everywhere we go. You have tasked us with advancing the kingdom, so I pray that you penetrate the hearts of all believers to really believe in this task, but also to take a call to arms and actually get out and do some advancing. We are so thankful for the opportunities you have given us. Even in times of seemingly chaos all around, we still hold true that you are our rock, and through you we can weather any storm. We thank you eternally for sending us your son to die for us, so that we too might join the Heavens in basking in your glory. Be with us all as we step out into our daily lives so that we might shine a light onto those around us, we want the people of this world to see you through us as you have given us Immanuel. We know today is not the end of the story but it is just the beginning of the next chapter. We trust that you have a plan and you are in control. Help us to remember the death of Christ, but a death so we, who are unworthy, may be given life! Amen. 

Jeffrey Thompson