On the side of the road...
It is so interesting to me, as we walk through Holy Week, to remember that Passover coincides with Easter. I can see that this is no coincidence, but rather a logical parallel from the beginning.
That first Passover, the Psalmist reminds us, was accompanied by the frenzied task of getting ready to vacate a home of several hundred years in a matter of days. They baked unleavened bread so it would be ready at a moment’s notice. They put together as many of the family belongings as they could, slaughtered the lamb, and painted the lintel posts so that the Angel of Death would pass over them in the night while he claimed the first born of every Egyptian family. They continued to wait, ready, until they heard “GO!”, and then they left their homes with all haste to travel through the desert to a place they had never seen. No doubt they left many things behind, but we know they carried idols to false gods with them, both materially and in their hearts.
Another momentous Passover event happened when Jesus went to Calvary. Jesus had called His disciples from the countryside, the towns, the lake shore to follow Him. He owned nothing except His clothes, and He called them to leave everything they owned behind in order to be His disciple. They followed Him in hope and fear, trying to absorb His teachings as best they could, marveling at His miracles, and struggling with their own unbelief. There were some who wanted to follow Him, but couldn’t bring themselves to leave everything behind. After the last Passover meal in the Upper Room, the disciples even left their faith in Jesus behind and hid. All they had left was fear.
Thank goodness God had an answer for that.
This year we have been on a journey to the Cross, and we are almost there. Again, Passover is upon us. The Lamb of God has saved us from the Evil One with His own blood. Soon we will celebrate His Resurrection!
But this year, especially, we have joined in His fellowship of suffering. We have been separated from many we love, from the physical comfort there is in hugs and handshakes, from the sound of our voices joining in song and praise together. Some of us have left jobs behind… and loved ones.
What else has God ordained for us to leave behind?
Sometimes during the sermon, I doodle on any little scrap of paper I can find. Forgive me this vice, but it was a way to occupy 4 wiggly children in church for many years and it rubbed off. Being a visual learner, I found that the pastor’s words “stick” better in my mind if I draw them.
This drawing was one of those doodles. The path to the Cross. It is long, full of twists and turns (and hopefully not too many detours) and eventually comes to the foot of the hill upon which the Cross sits. The trail up the mountain is gradual, and along the way are some rest stops— places where God has asked me to spend a few minutes considering leaving some baggage behind.
The baggage consists of things my Old Self has been dragging around most of my life. Christ asks us to put off that Old Self and turn to Christ (Eph. 4:22ff). The Old Self harbors idols—the ones David reminds us are made by people out of silver and gold, that cannot hear or speak. They are individuals, personas, false identities, careers, ambitions, possessions—anything that we cling to as more important than God.
At each stop, He asks me what idols I am still clinging to. Which parts of my False Self are still precious to me? Then I have to stop and look around in my heart—there must be something still rattling around or He wouldn’t have asked me to look. After all— He lives in there. He knows.
Take heart, though. We aren’t left empty when we leave things by the side of the road. With each piece we surrender, we are granted the joy of putting on the New Self—the New Creature In Christ. We move forward and upward to find that there is no comparison—the New Self is glorious— just as He is. We begin to look and feel more like Him with each surrender of the Old.
On the Cross of Calvary, Jesus surrendered everything. What has God written for you on the sign posts? What parts of the Old are you called to surrender by the side of the road?
Psalm 135
1 Praise the Lord!
Praise the name of the Lord;
Praise Him, O you servants of the Lord!
2 You who stand in the house of the Lord,
In the courts of the house of our God,
3 Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;
Sing praises to His name, for it is lovely.
4 For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself,
Israel for His special treasure.
5 For I know that the Lord is great,
And our Lord is above all gods.
6 Whatever the Lord pleases He does,
In heaven and in earth,
In the seas and in all deep places.
7 He causes the vapors to ascend from the ends of the earth;
He makes lightning for the rain;
He brings the wind out of His treasuries.
8 He destroyed the firstborn of Egypt,
Both of man and beast.
9 He sent signs and wonders into the midst of you, O Egypt,
Upon Pharaoh and all his servants.
10 He defeated many nations
And slew mighty kings—
11 Sihon king of the Amorites,
Og king of Bashan,
And all the kingdoms of Canaan—
12 And gave their land as a heritage,
A heritage to Israel His people.
13 Your name, O Lord, endures forever,
Your fame, O Lord, throughout all generations.
14 For the Lord will judge His people,
And He will have compassion on His servants.
15 The idols of the nations are silver and gold,
The work of men’s hands.
16 They have mouths, but they do not speak;
Eyes they have, but they do not see;
17 They have ears, but they do not hear;
Nor is there any breath in their mouths.
18 Those who make them are like them;
So is everyone who trusts in them.
19 Bless the Lord, O house of Israel!
Bless the Lord, O house of Aaron!
20 Bless the Lord, O house of Levi!
You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord!
21 Blessed be the Lord out of Zion,
Who dwells in Jerusalem!
Praise the Lord!
Take a minute and let God speak to you as you worship with modern day psalmist, Audrey Assad, in her new song, "Even Unto Death".
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