the basic message #E20
Matthew 27:50-51
And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split.
Most of us have heard this passage many times, particularly at this time of year (Easter). When Jesus died, the temple curtain was torn from top to bottom, as the passage above describes. We tend to think that a curtain is a thin piece of cloth, but as I understand it, this curtain was made of many, many layers of linen, and would require tremendous power to tear. The curtain separated the “Holy Place” from the “Most Holy Place”, which gains significance when we realize the tearing of the curtain represented God allowing us to access him directly. Prior to the resurrection of Jesus, the people had to rely on the priest to communicate with God on their behalf. And so, I ask you today, what barriers have you re-constructed between God and yourself?
Matthew 11:28-30
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
What a soothing and pleasant invitation. How could we not answer, “Yes, Lord, give me rest”. Jesus never erects barriers between himself and his children- only we can do that. We all build flimsy little fences to hide behind when we don’t want Jesus to see us. What is your fence? Some of us build the fence of justification. We decide that the way we live is fine, although we don’t follow scripture as we should. We realize that Jesus never “looks the other way”, so we must shield our activities with a little fence so Jesus won’t be able to see us. How foolish we are. Many of us look back at Peter boldly telling Jesus that he will follow Christ through any circumstance, yet Jesus plainly told Peter that he would deny him that night. Peter constructed a barrier between he and his Lord. Perhaps your barrier is drug or alcohol abuse. You get high or drunk while you crouch behind your little fence. After you sober-up, you step out boldly and shout, “Here I am, Lord Jesus, I’m ready to follow you now”. Maybe your business causes you to build a wall. You step behind that fine brick wall to cheat a customer, or an employee. But come Sunday morning, you rush from behind that wall and put that big check in the collection plate. Does God want your filthy, corrupt money? He wants your dedication to him through honest and fair dealings with everyone. You can justify your crooked deeds all you want, but God’s standards never change.
John 8:31-32
To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you really are my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
The plan is simple, incredibly simple. 1. We read the teachings of Jesus. 2. We compare his teachings to our own lives. 3. Whatever we’re doing different from what he taught must change. Did I miss something?