Introduction
Today we are concluding our series, 24 Hours that Changed the World. Three weeks ago we began this journey together as we explored the setting and the important action of Jesus being the bridge that transformed the events of the Jewish Passover into what we observe as Communion. Then we looked at the feelings Jesus experienced in the Garden of Gethsemane as He awaited to be arrested and how those feelings of agony do not have to equal defeat. Last week we spent some time gaining a deeper understanding of the condemnation that Jesus experienced and what we can learn from Christ's response. Today we are going to explore the actual torture and crucifixion of Christ and see how God's loved is revealed within it.
The Passion of the Christ
Many movies have been made about the life and death of Jesus. Six years ago, Mel Gibson released his version of the events unfolding in the last hours of Jesus’ life in the movie, The Passion of the Christ. I don’t know how many of you may have seen it in the theaters or on DVD since then. Debbie and I actually saw it twice in the theater – once in a screening for pastors and their spouses and then we actually took the youth group from our church in Fort Myers to see it together. Since then we’ve watched it about once a year at home. In general I find the movie to be powerful, overwhelming, disturbing in parts, emotionally draining, but riveting and impossible not to watch. Last year my parents had a similar experience watching the Passion Play being put on in Wauchula. And I was talking with my Dad afterwards and he said that the whole program was so intense at some points that he was uncomfortable and just wanted to yell out for everyone to stop please – because he said he didn’t like to think of Jesus hurting in that way – and yet he knew that was only a small fraction of what our Savior went thru for each and every one of us.
That was one of our most powerful experiences in the city of Jerusalem, when Debbie and I visited the two sites where scholars presume that Jesus was crucified. The more traditional site is the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, a very ornate and beautiful Orthodox church, which has been built on top of an old stone quarry that would have been outside the city in Jesus’ day. Inside this magnificent church are the last four stops of the Via Dolorosa, marking where Jesus would have been nailed to the cross, where the cross would have stood, where Jesus’ body would have been laid after being taken off the cross and wrapped and the tomb where Jesus would have been laid. Historically this is thought to be the more accurate of the two places for Jesus’ crucifixion, however it’s hard to picture in your mind when you are there because everything is covered up by the ornate structure of the church. The other site presumed for Jesus’ crucifixion is just outside the space called the Garden Tomb. Right on the edge of this garden area is a cliff outcropping that looks like a skull – you can see eye sockets and a nose. And since Golgatha and Calvary were Aramaic and Latin words for skull, you can understand why so many people identify with this site. Besides, it’s out in the open still and you can just much more easily imagine the scene from Scripture taking place right there.
The Crucifixion of the Messiah
Our Scripture lesson this morning from the Gospel of Mark picks up the story of Jesus’ last hours after Pontius Pilate’s verdict. Jesus is turned over to the Roman soldiers for a beating and humiliation. He was first flogged. Historical research of ancient Rome tells us that it wouldn’t have been just a simple whip used in Jesus’ beating – more than likely it would have been something called a “cat-o-nine-tails” with several strands of leather, each with some piece of glass or nails tied into the ends. Typically the Romans used 2-4 soldiers for these beatings so that they could rotate in and out as they got tired. Sometimes the beatings were so brutal that the bones would be exposed on a person’s back by the time the soldiers were done. The intent was to inflict as much pain as possible without actually killing the person. Again, Scripture indicates no response from Jesus throughout his beating. No doubt his lack of response infuriated the Roman soldiers even more which probably explains their next action.
They called together a whole company of soldiers, we’re talking several hundred here, who gathered around Jesus to humiliate him. They made a crown of thorns and put it onto his head, digging into his scalp. They put on a purple robe symbolizing royalty and spit on him while they mocked him saying “Hail king of the Jews.” They were trying to break him down – trying to get some kind of reaction and response and still they got nothing in return except Jesus’ silence. Finally they took him out to crucify him.
The Romans made those being crucified carry their own cross through the city so that everyone could see, because one of the purposes of crucifixion was to strike fear into people so that they wouldn’t commit crimes as well. The vertical beam of the cross was usually left in place and it was the horizontal beam that would be carried, but that alone could weigh 100 pounds. It’s no wonder that after being beaten by the temple guards and then by the Roman soldiers that Jesus couldn’t shoulder the weight of his cross and Scripture records that Simon of Cyrene was pressed into service to help Jesus after He fell.
Once they arrived at the site of the crucifixion, Jesus would have been nailed to the crossbeam and then the beam raised up and put in place. He would have also had his feet nailed to the vertical piece of the cross. But it wasn’t the nails that killed people. You see, the goal of crucifixion was to keep people in agony for as long as possible before dying – some hung on the cross for two days before death. What you died from was asphyxiation – because while you’re hanging you need to push up to exhale a breath. And every time you push up you are digging at those wounds in your hands and feet. So the longer you hung, the more exhausted you became and the harder it was to pull yourself up and so the breathing becomes more and more shallow until you stop breathing all together. Sometime in order to speed up death, the Romans would break people’s legs because then it was harder for them to pull up and exhale and they would die faster. They didn’t have to break Jesus’ legs though because He only hung on the cross like that for 6 hours before He died. Only six hours – but all for you and me.
The insults continued even as He hung on the cross. They came from the religious leaders standing on the ground beneath him mocking him still, yelling at him to save himself. They came from one of the two thieves being crucified next to him. And yet in the midst of all that pain and agony there was faith. A little band of believers, women and Jesus’ disciple John, stood near the cross in support of Him. One of the two thieves on the cross next to Him professed faith and was promised by Jesus that he would join him in Paradise. And after Jesus had breathed His last breath, one of the Roman centurions who had participated in his death proclaimed that “surely this was the Son of God!”
The Irony of the Cross – Pain vs. Love
The cross was intended by the Romans as an emblem of suffering, shame and humiliation. According to the writings of the Apostle Paul in the New Testament, the cross was a often problem for many early believers – they couldn’t get past the suffering and shame and it was a real a stumbling block for many. But, somewhere along the way, the cross has become a symbol uniting followers of Jesus Christ. In the early days of the Christian church, the symbol for believers was the ichthus, the fish symbol; but somehow the cross has become almost exclusively identified as the symbol of Christian faith. You find it on church steeples. You find it worn as a necklace. You find people carrying it around in their pocket. You find it as a bumper sticker on cars. You will find the cross in every nation and every race throughout the world as a symbol of the Christian faith.
So how can we lift up and celebrate something that once only represented suffering and shame? Because as Christians we believe that Jesus’ crucifixion is the central act of salvation – that through Jesus’ death on the cross, God is working to redeem all of humankind throughout history. In Adam, one man’s disobedience brought sin into everyone’s life, but through Jesus, one man’s sacrifice of love brought reconciliation and hope into everyone’s life. We wear the cross because we follow a crucified Messiah and that we were on his mind while He was hanging on the cross.
I recently read a story called “Green Pastures.” It was actually a play that was performed on Broadway. In the final scene, God and the angel Gabriel are together in a room up in heaven. Gabriel looks out of the window of heaven and says, "Look, Lord, they're beating Jesus with that whip! Is the time come for me to blow the horn?" And God says, "No, Gabriel, not yet!" Again Gabriel looks out the window of heaven and says, "Lord, they're making him carry that cross up the hill by himself! Are you ready for me to blow the horn?" And God says, "No, Gabriel, not yet!" "Lord," Gabriel says with excitement in his voice, "they're nailing him to that cross! Surely you want me to blow the horn now?" And God says, "No, Gabriel, not yet!" Gabriel shakes his head and he says, "Lord, that's a terrible burden for one person. Why are you letting them do it to him? Why?" And then, God, who throughout the entire play has had his back to the audience turns and looks directly at every person in the audience and says, "'Because I love them! Because I love them.”
Conclusion
And this is the great paradox and irony of the cross. The crucifixion of Jesus Christ on the cross of Calvary was the most terrible thing that could happen to someone – physically and emotionally and even spiritually. And yet, it is through the cross of Calvary that we come to know what God is like: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (Jn. 3:16). It is through the cross of Calvary that God is fully revealed, because it is through the cross of Calvary that we come to know of God's love.
Jesus loves me, this I know, for the cross tells me so. Have you discovered God's love in your life? You can, by looking at the cross of Calvary!
Sunday, March 28, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Bible Challenge 3/28 - 4/3
Hello Faithful Bible Challengeers! (I know it is not really a word...but is sounds good doesn't it?)
Here is the schedule for next week. We wrap up Exodus and go into Leviticus.
3/28, Sunday - Exodus 35-38
3/29, Monday - Exodus 39 - Leviticus 2
3/30, Tuesday - Leviticus 3-6
3/31, Wednesday - Leviticus 7-10
4/1, Thursday - Leviticus 11-14
4/2, Friday - Leviticus 15-18
4/3, Saturday - Leviticus 19-22
Have a blessed week!
<><
Here is the schedule for next week. We wrap up Exodus and go into Leviticus.
3/28, Sunday - Exodus 35-38
3/29, Monday - Exodus 39 - Leviticus 2
3/30, Tuesday - Leviticus 3-6
3/31, Wednesday - Leviticus 7-10
4/1, Thursday - Leviticus 11-14
4/2, Friday - Leviticus 15-18
4/3, Saturday - Leviticus 19-22
Have a blessed week!
<><
Friday, March 26, 2010
Friday Fives
Hello All!
Here are some things that I want to pass along to everyone!
1. Church Picnic - Tomorrow is our annual Church picnic at Santos Recreation Park, beginning at 11:30am. It will be a great time of fellowship and fun. Please make plans to come. I hope to see all of you there!
2. Bible Study with Pastor Daryl – Our new world religions bible study will continue next week at 11:30am on Thursday as we examine the beliefs of Judaism. The evening class will not meet that week so everyone has a chance to experience the Easter Tableau. Both classes will resume April 15th.
3. Certified Lay Speakers – If you are interested in becoming a Certified Lay Speaker there is a training coming up. The North Central District's lay servant training event is Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 from 9am to 4pm at Trinity United Methodist Church Gainesville, 4000 NW 53rd Ave, Gainesville, FL 32653. Both days are required. It would be great to have a few certified lay speakers in our congregation. If you have any questions please contact Pastor Daryl or the church office. There are also brochures in the narthex with more information as well.
4. Easter Sunday Items - April 4th is Easter Sunday and we are asking all of you to bring a few items to worship if possible.
5. Personal Care Sunday – This Sunday is Personal Care Sunday for our church. If you have any personal care items please bring them to worship so we can donate them to Interfaith. There will be wicker baskets on the front pew for you to drop these items off.
I hope everyone has a great weekend and I look forward to seeing all of you on Sunday!
<><
Here are some things that I want to pass along to everyone!
1. Church Picnic - Tomorrow is our annual Church picnic at Santos Recreation Park, beginning at 11:30am. It will be a great time of fellowship and fun. Please make plans to come. I hope to see all of you there!
2. Bible Study with Pastor Daryl – Our new world religions bible study will continue next week at 11:30am on Thursday as we examine the beliefs of Judaism. The evening class will not meet that week so everyone has a chance to experience the Easter Tableau. Both classes will resume April 15th.
3. Certified Lay Speakers – If you are interested in becoming a Certified Lay Speaker there is a training coming up. The North Central District's lay servant training event is Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 from 9am to 4pm at Trinity United Methodist Church Gainesville, 4000 NW 53rd Ave, Gainesville, FL 32653. Both days are required. It would be great to have a few certified lay speakers in our congregation. If you have any questions please contact Pastor Daryl or the church office. There are also brochures in the narthex with more information as well.
4. Easter Sunday Items - April 4th is Easter Sunday and we are asking all of you to bring a few items to worship if possible.
- Easter Flower Cross – We are doing the flower cross once again so we need people to bring flowers to help decorate it.
- Easter Sunday Bells – We are asking everyone to bring a bell on Easter Sunday morning. They can be any size, shape, or style. We are going ring these bells in celebration as we make a joyful noise together and truly celebrate Easter and our Risen Savior!
5. Personal Care Sunday – This Sunday is Personal Care Sunday for our church. If you have any personal care items please bring them to worship so we can donate them to Interfaith. There will be wicker baskets on the front pew for you to drop these items off.
I hope everyone has a great weekend and I look forward to seeing all of you on Sunday!
<><
Sunday, March 21, 2010
24 Hours That Changed the World: Condemned By the Righteous - Mark 14:53-72 and I John 4:16-18
Introduction
Today we are continuing our series, 24 Hours that Changed the World. Two weeks ago we began this journey together as we explored the setting and the important action of Jesus being the bridge that transformed the events of the Jewish Passover into what we observe as Communion. Last week we looked at the feelings Jesus experienced in the Garden of Gethsemane as he awaited to be arrested and how those feelings of agony do not have to equal defeat. Today we are going to spend some time gaining a deeper understanding of the condemnation that Jesus experienced and what we can learn from Christ's response.
Jesus' Journey to Caiaphas' House
This morning we pick up in Mark with Jesus having been arrested and bound in the Garden of Gethsemane. Remember the Garden is at the base of the Mount of Olives and it is just across the Kidron valley from the walls of the old city of Jerusalem and the temple complex. So the temple guards who have arrested Jesus have bound his hands and feet and are leading him out of the Garden to the home of the high priest Caiaphas. Also remember that last week we established that it is early in the morning hours of Good Friday, probably around midnight as Jesus is led in the dark across the Kidron Valley and down past the temple. He would have walked passed the pinnacle point of the temple where the devil had tempted him to throw himself down and prove he was the Messiah. He would have continued south past the old city of David, which was established 1,000 years prior to this as David’s center of government. He would have passed the Pool of Siloam, where in John’s Gospel it is recorded that Jesus healed a blind man by spitting into dust and making a paste that he put on the man’s eyes and then sent him to the Pool of Siloam to wash. And He would have entered the city of Jerusalem in the southern end to began climbing the stairway up the hillside to the palace of the high priest Caiaphas. Jesus’ journey that night would have been about a mile and probably in his bound state taken somewhere between 20-30 minutes to walk.
When Debbie and I were in Israel we discovered that there is a church built over every holy site we visited and it was no different when visiting Caiaphas’ house. We took the opportunity to walk outside and stand on the ancient Roman steps where Jesus would have been led up the hill and into the house for his trial. There’s a big underground complex under the church and what you find two floors down is a prison cell, what would have been an old cistern for water. And this is the place where Jesus would have been kept during his trial and lowered down into the hole with a rope around his waist. I had the privilege of doing our daily Scripture reading onsite in the pit. We read from Psalm 88, a Psalm about feelings of abandonment that concludes with the line, “the darkness is my only friend”. Our guide stayed behind upstairs and at the appropriate point in the lesson turned all of the lights off, so that we were just standing in the pit in total darkness, trying to experience what Jesus went through that night as he listened to the Sanhedrin debating his fate in the courtroom above.
The Condemnation of the Sanhedrin
It’s important for us to understand who the Sanhedrin were and how they functioned. This was a council of seventy-one elders and wise sages of the Jewish people. They would have been the most pious people in that time. There were seventy-one because when the Israelites were in the wilderness, Moses appointed seventy elders to help him rule the people in addition to himself – so seventy plus Moses equals seventy-one (Numbers 11). While the Romans were ruling over the political affairs of the time, these seventy-one men had control over the religious affairs of the people – including the temple, religious beliefs and the religious courts.
And we also need to understand that this was a very un-orthodox trial by Sanhedrin standards. Their rules called for daytime meetings held publicly in the temple courts and they never met during festivals. Yet here they are putting Jesus on trial tucked away inside Caiaphas’ house at night and in the middle of the feast of Passover. Plus according to Jewish law they need at least two witnesses who agree to convict and they can’t seem to find that. In frustration they bring Jesus up and ask him who he is: “Are you the Christ, the Son of the blessed one?” In response, the Gospel of Mark shows us that Jesus gave a very strong statement claiming identity with God which the high priests considered blasphemy. Now they need no further witnesses - Jesus was guilty and needed to die. But for me, the saddest part comes after his conviction as these pious men begin to spit on Jesus and then blindfold him so they can hit him and mock him as they ask him to tell them who is hitting Jesus. And then they turn him over to the temple guards for another beating.
Often you hear people say things like: “I’d have any easier time believing in God if he would just show up – knock on their door.” Well he did that once. God came in human flesh in the person of Jesus and this is what humanity did to him. The pious religious people of his day failed to recognize him and condemned him instead.
So Many Questions
So how did this happen? Why did they do this? Why did they fail to see and not only that, why did they act in this way towards Jesus, spitting on him and mocking him? As I thought about that this week, I realized that this story is not just about the Sanhedrin back then, but it’s also about us and our human condition. I think the answer is fear. Jesus was a threat to these men. He was a threat to everything they knew and believed in. He threatened the social order, their authority and standing within the community. Everywhere He went to preach, huge crowds would follow him. As human beings we have an innate desire for security and so when someone or something comes along that is a threat to that, even the most devout follower of Jesus can start to act out in ways that aren’t necessarily in keeping with their faith. Doing the right, moral or loving thing gets thrown out the window when we feel threatened. Fear motivates us to do things that later on we stop and say “What were we thinking?”
I think fear was also behind Peter’s denial of Jesus. He’d been brave earlier that evening. When the temple guards had come to arrest Jesus, Peter was the only one to try and defend Jesus by taking out his sword. In fact he accidentally cut off someone’s ear, which Jesus took the time to heal. Then Peter has the courage to follow Jesus to Caiaphas’ house and to go into the outer courtyard. But his courage only worked up to a point. When he was confronted by people about his relationship to Jesus, and he’s in danger of being harmed, the fear takes over and three times he denies knowing the One he had followed so faithfully.
So What Can We Learn?
So what can we learn from all of this – from Jesus’ condemnation at the hands of the Sanhedrin and Peter’s denial of his Messiah? I think there’s a couple of things to consider and remember in our own walk with Christ.
First, these stories show us that fear isn’t the answer but that perfect love casts out fear.
Our Scripture passage from I John reminds us that rather than reaching for fear, we are supposed to reach for love: “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear.” The question that we ask in our personal lives and as Christians in public policy should not be what is the thing that will make me feel the most secure, but rather what is the most loving thing for me to do? For in the end, love conquers in ways that fear and hate and violence simply cannot do. That is what the Scriptures teach us about the ways of God.
Second, these stories show us that one person can make a difference.
Sometimes all it takes is for one person to speak up. What would have happened in the Sanhedrin if one or two of those men had simply said: “This isn’t right. It’s not in keeping with what God teaches us regardless of what we think about this man, this can’t be right?” Often when we find ourselves in a group of people who are all saying the same thing, we find ourselves too afraid to speak up and say something different. But that reminds me of a quote by Edmund Burke, a famous British philosopher and politician who once said: “the only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.” Keeping silent and doing nothing when you know that something is wrong is a sin as well. These stories are meant to call us to boldness in our faith.
Finally, these stories remind us that God’s grace can redeem even that which seems unforgivable.
Look at and remember Peter. How did these stories get into the Gospels? The Sanhedrin held a closed secret meeting but Peter was present outside at Christ's betrayal. Someone had to share stories. We don’t often share our failures and hold them up to the light for all to see. But we know at least that Peter did. For after Jesus’ resurrection Peter found grace when he met with Jesus. And he would preach about all of this: “Look, I know you’ve denied him and I denied him myself and yet I have to tell you that even when I betrayed the Lord he gave me grace and took me back. And if you’ve denied him, he’ll take you back too.” Peter was so convicted by what he had done that he stood up for Jesus and eventually gave his life for the Gospel. .
And what about the Sanhedrin? At least one member of the Sanhedrin, Nicodemus, helped to bury Jesus after he was crucified. And Jesus had words of forgiveness for everyone involved in his crucifixion. Instead of reaching for fear he reached for love and even from the cross Jesus poured out mercy and forgiveness on those who had put him there as he said: “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”
Conclusion
Our Scripture lessons this morning show us the great danger that happens when we choose to react in fear and they help point us to a different path as people of faith. We have to reach for the loving thing in choosing our response, following Jesus’ own example of dealing with other people. We need to embrace boldness and speak up for what we know is right despite what the crowd might be telling us. But should we fall down in those attempts, Scripture also reminds us that God’s grace is still available to us and can redeem even that which seems unforgivable.
Today we are continuing our series, 24 Hours that Changed the World. Two weeks ago we began this journey together as we explored the setting and the important action of Jesus being the bridge that transformed the events of the Jewish Passover into what we observe as Communion. Last week we looked at the feelings Jesus experienced in the Garden of Gethsemane as he awaited to be arrested and how those feelings of agony do not have to equal defeat. Today we are going to spend some time gaining a deeper understanding of the condemnation that Jesus experienced and what we can learn from Christ's response.
Jesus' Journey to Caiaphas' House
This morning we pick up in Mark with Jesus having been arrested and bound in the Garden of Gethsemane. Remember the Garden is at the base of the Mount of Olives and it is just across the Kidron valley from the walls of the old city of Jerusalem and the temple complex. So the temple guards who have arrested Jesus have bound his hands and feet and are leading him out of the Garden to the home of the high priest Caiaphas. Also remember that last week we established that it is early in the morning hours of Good Friday, probably around midnight as Jesus is led in the dark across the Kidron Valley and down past the temple. He would have walked passed the pinnacle point of the temple where the devil had tempted him to throw himself down and prove he was the Messiah. He would have continued south past the old city of David, which was established 1,000 years prior to this as David’s center of government. He would have passed the Pool of Siloam, where in John’s Gospel it is recorded that Jesus healed a blind man by spitting into dust and making a paste that he put on the man’s eyes and then sent him to the Pool of Siloam to wash. And He would have entered the city of Jerusalem in the southern end to began climbing the stairway up the hillside to the palace of the high priest Caiaphas. Jesus’ journey that night would have been about a mile and probably in his bound state taken somewhere between 20-30 minutes to walk.
When Debbie and I were in Israel we discovered that there is a church built over every holy site we visited and it was no different when visiting Caiaphas’ house. We took the opportunity to walk outside and stand on the ancient Roman steps where Jesus would have been led up the hill and into the house for his trial. There’s a big underground complex under the church and what you find two floors down is a prison cell, what would have been an old cistern for water. And this is the place where Jesus would have been kept during his trial and lowered down into the hole with a rope around his waist. I had the privilege of doing our daily Scripture reading onsite in the pit. We read from Psalm 88, a Psalm about feelings of abandonment that concludes with the line, “the darkness is my only friend”. Our guide stayed behind upstairs and at the appropriate point in the lesson turned all of the lights off, so that we were just standing in the pit in total darkness, trying to experience what Jesus went through that night as he listened to the Sanhedrin debating his fate in the courtroom above.
The Condemnation of the Sanhedrin
It’s important for us to understand who the Sanhedrin were and how they functioned. This was a council of seventy-one elders and wise sages of the Jewish people. They would have been the most pious people in that time. There were seventy-one because when the Israelites were in the wilderness, Moses appointed seventy elders to help him rule the people in addition to himself – so seventy plus Moses equals seventy-one (Numbers 11). While the Romans were ruling over the political affairs of the time, these seventy-one men had control over the religious affairs of the people – including the temple, religious beliefs and the religious courts.
And we also need to understand that this was a very un-orthodox trial by Sanhedrin standards. Their rules called for daytime meetings held publicly in the temple courts and they never met during festivals. Yet here they are putting Jesus on trial tucked away inside Caiaphas’ house at night and in the middle of the feast of Passover. Plus according to Jewish law they need at least two witnesses who agree to convict and they can’t seem to find that. In frustration they bring Jesus up and ask him who he is: “Are you the Christ, the Son of the blessed one?” In response, the Gospel of Mark shows us that Jesus gave a very strong statement claiming identity with God which the high priests considered blasphemy. Now they need no further witnesses - Jesus was guilty and needed to die. But for me, the saddest part comes after his conviction as these pious men begin to spit on Jesus and then blindfold him so they can hit him and mock him as they ask him to tell them who is hitting Jesus. And then they turn him over to the temple guards for another beating.
Often you hear people say things like: “I’d have any easier time believing in God if he would just show up – knock on their door.” Well he did that once. God came in human flesh in the person of Jesus and this is what humanity did to him. The pious religious people of his day failed to recognize him and condemned him instead.
So Many Questions
So how did this happen? Why did they do this? Why did they fail to see and not only that, why did they act in this way towards Jesus, spitting on him and mocking him? As I thought about that this week, I realized that this story is not just about the Sanhedrin back then, but it’s also about us and our human condition. I think the answer is fear. Jesus was a threat to these men. He was a threat to everything they knew and believed in. He threatened the social order, their authority and standing within the community. Everywhere He went to preach, huge crowds would follow him. As human beings we have an innate desire for security and so when someone or something comes along that is a threat to that, even the most devout follower of Jesus can start to act out in ways that aren’t necessarily in keeping with their faith. Doing the right, moral or loving thing gets thrown out the window when we feel threatened. Fear motivates us to do things that later on we stop and say “What were we thinking?”
I think fear was also behind Peter’s denial of Jesus. He’d been brave earlier that evening. When the temple guards had come to arrest Jesus, Peter was the only one to try and defend Jesus by taking out his sword. In fact he accidentally cut off someone’s ear, which Jesus took the time to heal. Then Peter has the courage to follow Jesus to Caiaphas’ house and to go into the outer courtyard. But his courage only worked up to a point. When he was confronted by people about his relationship to Jesus, and he’s in danger of being harmed, the fear takes over and three times he denies knowing the One he had followed so faithfully.
So What Can We Learn?
So what can we learn from all of this – from Jesus’ condemnation at the hands of the Sanhedrin and Peter’s denial of his Messiah? I think there’s a couple of things to consider and remember in our own walk with Christ.
First, these stories show us that fear isn’t the answer but that perfect love casts out fear.
Our Scripture passage from I John reminds us that rather than reaching for fear, we are supposed to reach for love: “God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear.” The question that we ask in our personal lives and as Christians in public policy should not be what is the thing that will make me feel the most secure, but rather what is the most loving thing for me to do? For in the end, love conquers in ways that fear and hate and violence simply cannot do. That is what the Scriptures teach us about the ways of God.
Second, these stories show us that one person can make a difference.
Sometimes all it takes is for one person to speak up. What would have happened in the Sanhedrin if one or two of those men had simply said: “This isn’t right. It’s not in keeping with what God teaches us regardless of what we think about this man, this can’t be right?” Often when we find ourselves in a group of people who are all saying the same thing, we find ourselves too afraid to speak up and say something different. But that reminds me of a quote by Edmund Burke, a famous British philosopher and politician who once said: “the only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.” Keeping silent and doing nothing when you know that something is wrong is a sin as well. These stories are meant to call us to boldness in our faith.
Finally, these stories remind us that God’s grace can redeem even that which seems unforgivable.
Look at and remember Peter. How did these stories get into the Gospels? The Sanhedrin held a closed secret meeting but Peter was present outside at Christ's betrayal. Someone had to share stories. We don’t often share our failures and hold them up to the light for all to see. But we know at least that Peter did. For after Jesus’ resurrection Peter found grace when he met with Jesus. And he would preach about all of this: “Look, I know you’ve denied him and I denied him myself and yet I have to tell you that even when I betrayed the Lord he gave me grace and took me back. And if you’ve denied him, he’ll take you back too.” Peter was so convicted by what he had done that he stood up for Jesus and eventually gave his life for the Gospel. .
And what about the Sanhedrin? At least one member of the Sanhedrin, Nicodemus, helped to bury Jesus after he was crucified. And Jesus had words of forgiveness for everyone involved in his crucifixion. Instead of reaching for fear he reached for love and even from the cross Jesus poured out mercy and forgiveness on those who had put him there as he said: “Father forgive them for they know not what they do.”
Conclusion
Our Scripture lessons this morning show us the great danger that happens when we choose to react in fear and they help point us to a different path as people of faith. We have to reach for the loving thing in choosing our response, following Jesus’ own example of dealing with other people. We need to embrace boldness and speak up for what we know is right despite what the crowd might be telling us. But should we fall down in those attempts, Scripture also reminds us that God’s grace is still available to us and can redeem even that which seems unforgivable.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
Bible Challenge 3/21 - 3/27
Greetings All!
Here is the schedule for next week as we continue our journey through Exodus. I would enjoy hearing your thoughts about what these readings reveal to you.
3/21, Sunday - Exodus 7-10
3/22, Monday - Exodus 11-14
3/23, Tuesday - Exodus 15-18
3/24, Wednesday, Exodus 19-22
3/25, Thursday, Exodus 23-26
3/26, Friday, Exodus 27-30
3/27, Saturday, Exodus 31-34
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Here is the schedule for next week as we continue our journey through Exodus. I would enjoy hearing your thoughts about what these readings reveal to you.
3/21, Sunday - Exodus 7-10
3/22, Monday - Exodus 11-14
3/23, Tuesday - Exodus 15-18
3/24, Wednesday, Exodus 19-22
3/25, Thursday, Exodus 23-26
3/26, Friday, Exodus 27-30
3/27, Saturday, Exodus 31-34
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Friday, March 19, 2010
Friday Fives
Hello my Cyberdesk and Facebook friends!
Here is another installment of the Friday Fives....
1. Preaching Series - We are continuing our preaching series this week, 24 Hours that Changed the World, as we take a look at the condemnation Jesus faced at the trial by the Sanhedrin and what we can learn from His response.
2. Bible Study – We are continuing our Bible Study on the major world religions this week as we take a look at Islam. It is never too late to join. We meet on Thursdays in Fellowship Hall at 11:30am and/or 7pm.
3. Certified Lay Speakers – If you are interested in becoming a certified lay speaker there is a training coming up. The North Central District's lay servant training event is Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 from 9am to 4pm at Trinity United Methodist Church Gainesville, 4000 NW 53rd Ave, Gainesville, FL 32653. Both days are required. If you would like more information please contact the church office. It would be great to have a few certified lay speakers in our congregation.
4. Church Picnic - Our Church picnic is coming up on Saturday, March 27th at Santos Recreation Park, beginning at 11:30am. It will be a great time of fellowship and fun. Please make plans to come. I hope to see all of you there!
5. Hygiene Sunday - Don't forget that this Sunday is Hygiene Sunday. So please bring a few hygiene items to worship that we can donate to Interfaith.
Have a GREAT weekend!
Here is another installment of the Friday Fives....
1. Preaching Series - We are continuing our preaching series this week, 24 Hours that Changed the World, as we take a look at the condemnation Jesus faced at the trial by the Sanhedrin and what we can learn from His response.
2. Bible Study – We are continuing our Bible Study on the major world religions this week as we take a look at Islam. It is never too late to join. We meet on Thursdays in Fellowship Hall at 11:30am and/or 7pm.
3. Certified Lay Speakers – If you are interested in becoming a certified lay speaker there is a training coming up. The North Central District's lay servant training event is Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 from 9am to 4pm at Trinity United Methodist Church Gainesville, 4000 NW 53rd Ave, Gainesville, FL 32653. Both days are required. If you would like more information please contact the church office. It would be great to have a few certified lay speakers in our congregation.
4. Church Picnic - Our Church picnic is coming up on Saturday, March 27th at Santos Recreation Park, beginning at 11:30am. It will be a great time of fellowship and fun. Please make plans to come. I hope to see all of you there!
5. Hygiene Sunday - Don't forget that this Sunday is Hygiene Sunday. So please bring a few hygiene items to worship that we can donate to Interfaith.
Have a GREAT weekend!
Sunday, March 14, 2010
24 Hours That Changed the World: Agony is Not Defeat - Mark 14:32-42 and Romans 8:26-28
Introduction
Today we are continuing our series, 24 Hours that Changed the World. Last week as we began this journey together we explored the setting and the important action of Jesus transforming Passover into what we observe as Communion. Today we are going to talk about the feelings Jesus experienced in the Garden of Gethsemane as he awaited to be arrested and how those feelings of agony do not have to equal defeat.
The Agony of Defeat Has a Poster Child
I remember watching ABC’s Wide World of Sports on TV as a child. Do you remember their intro? It talked about “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat!” And they would show different celebrations for the thrill of victory but there was one poor guy that personified the agony of defeat for years, a ski jumper who fell off the side of the ramp in horrific fashion. I looked him up this week on the Internet. His name is Vinko Bogetaj (prounounced Bo-go-tai), a Slovenian ski jumper who was 20 years old when he was competing in the World Championships back in 1970. He’d already been down the ski jump ramp twice that day and the accident occurred on his third jump. The snow had been picking up and conditions on the ramp had changed. Midway down he realized he was going way too fast and attempted to lower his center of gravity and stop the jump, but instead he lost his balance and rocketed out of control off the end of the ramp, tumbling and flipping wildly, and crashing through a light retaining fence near a crowd of stunned spectators before coming to a halt. Miraculously his only injury that day was a mild concussion. He gave up ski jumping not long after and since he lived behind the Iron Curtain, he was blissfully unaware that the Wide World of Sports had made him the poster child for “the agony of defeat.” So he was shocked when years later he received an invitation to New York to attend the 30th anniversary party for the Wide World of Sports. And he almost fell over when all the famous people like Mohammed Ali came up to him and wanted an autograph. He’d become famous for his seeming defeat on the ski jump that day.
If we went around the room this morning, I think we could all share stories of the times in our lives when we’ve experienced the “thrill of victory” and the “agony of defeat.” I think we all know how to handle and celebrate those times of victory, but dealing with agony is often more difficult. Especially when the agony in our lives arises not by our own hand, but at the hands of others, and certainly when the agony stems from circumstances that seem to be beyond our control. In our Scripture lesson this morning from the Gospel of Mark, we find Jesus wrestling in agony over the events that are about to transpire in his life. And how he handles himself in this time of pain and grief should give us hope as we begin to realize that agony does not have to equal defeat.
A Recipe to Flee
It’s after the Last Supper, the Passover meal that Jesus shared with his disciples inside the Upper Room. And Scripture tells us that Jesus then took the disciples out to the Mount of Olives, to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. Debbie and I had the opportunity to visit the Garden while we were in Israel and the Garden sits at the bottom of the Mount of Olives just outside the city walls of Jerusalem, right across from the area where the Temple would have been. We walked the Palm Sunday road and ended up in the Garden in the late afternoon, in the bright sunlight with the cold wind whipping around us. And as I stood there I tried to close my eyes and imagine what is was like when our Savior was standing here.
It would have been about midnight when their Passover celebration was over since we know the Last Supper lasted about 4-5 hours and was an evening meal. So the streets would most likely be quiet and deserted with most people home asleep. As they left the Upper Room I can see Jesus walking with a purpose while the disciples just follow behind with some uncertainty about where they are going, but following diligently especially in light of the fact that Jesus just told them his time is near and one of them is going to betray him. As they walk down the streets, sandals kicking up dust from the road, I can almost hear them run into each other as they stop at the entrance to Gethsemane. It is pitch black with only the moon and it reflection off of the temple tower to give them light. The emotions they must have felt as they were about to walk into the garden of trees that are hunched over, mangled in stature, and just plain creepy at night. But Jesus tells them to wait. He only asks Peter, James and John to accompany him into the garden for Christ to pray.
Christ knew what was coming because Scripture gives us some indication of Jesus’ mindset that night, as we read that he was “deeply distressed and troubled.” We are also told that He tells the three disciples: "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.”
Folks, that is a recipe to flee if I have ever heard it. Christ is deeply distressed and troubled, He says He overwhelmed to the point of death, and it is night. No one is awake no one is watching...RUN!!! For all that is holy...RUN!!
But not Jesus. He stays. The Message version of the Scriptures relates Jesus’ mindset this way: “he plunged into a sinkhole of dreadful agony.” Just so we are all on the same page agony is “an extreme and generally prolonged pain, intense suffering.” We know what that feels like. And it might seem strange to read that Jesus experienced these feelings, but that’s part of the miracle and beauty for us of the incarnation. Of having God come to earth in human form – there is nothing we experience that God isn’t familiar with – he truly understands and shares our sorrows and grief and pain.
I heard one scholar describe Jesus' thoughts at this moment like this. “Fear and doubt had worked their way into the heart and mind of Jesus. He did not want to die! He was only 33 years old, and the fear of the Roman cross was real. He had often seen the condemned hanging on crosses outside the city gate. He had heard them moan in pain. He had listened to their curses. He had seen them writhing in agony. Jesus was human, and every bit of his humanity shuddered at the very thought of dying an agonizing death upon a cross. Luke, the physician, describes His fear by saying, 'and being in agony He prayed more earnestly; and His sweat was as if it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.' “
Jesus' Response to Agony
So how did Jesus handle the agony and suffering that he was experiencing in his soul? First, he went to God in prayer. When we don’t know what to do, we must pray…the kind of prayer where you throw all of yourself on God. Jesus prayed that kind of prayer in the Garden to his Abba, to his Father. Abba is the Aramaic intimate form for father, equivalent to our “daddy”. The Jewish people never used this to refer to God because they thought it disrespectful, but Jesus being the literal Son of God and being on the most intimate of terms with our Heavenly Father, it was natural for Him to use it. His prayer was honest and heart-wrenching, expressing all of his concerns and needs and wants and desires, pouring them out before God.
One of the things I hear most from people regarding prayer is dissatisfaction because they are unsure of how to pray. There seems to be this perception out there that we must pray in some certain fashion with perfect words or our prayer is somehow less effective. Jesus’ prayer in the Garden didn’t have to fit some magic word formula to be heard – it was authentic and from his heart. And in our Scripture lesson from Romans this morning the Apostle Paul reminds us that “it doesn’t matter if we don’t know how or what to pray” because “God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along…doing our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans” (Message version). When we pray we ought to be less concerned with the words we use than the sentiments expressed to God, and Jesus shows us that it is safe to be vulnerable and put ourselves out there when we pray to God.
And yet, after expressing his agony and the desires of his heart, Jesus was also able to say to God, “not my will but thine be done.” Too often in small or even big decisions we decide what to do or what we want to have happen and then we go to God in prayer and ask him to bless it – to tag along on our plan. And in so doing we reduce God to an afterthought. But rather than an afterthought, wouldn’t you rather be in the center of God’s will? Jesus brought all of his feelings and emotions before God in prayer and then ultimately rested in God’s character, trusting the Father’s will for his life.
And prayer wasn’t the only thing Jesus did that night in the midst of his agony and suffering. He also gathered around him a community of support and was real and authentic with them about what he was going through. Jesus could have gone off to the Garden completely alone to pray. But instead he took a community with him, the disciples. He invited them to pray and be present with him and he shared with them exactly how he felt and what he was going through. There were no phony smiles here. These men had been through so much together in the years that they had followed Jesus. Jesus knew that at least one of the disciples who gathered with him in the Garden would deny him later on, but Jesus still invited him and the others to participate. I think his example should say something to us about the importance of community as we face the challenges of life.
Christ understood the importance of community. That is why most of you have heard me talk about getting into a small group, joining a Bible Study. Get a group of people around you that you can share with, cry with, scream with, a group you can depend on. Christ had that. He took Peter, James, and John with him as He is deeply distressed and troubled and as His soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” Christ himself wanted people around him during one of His darkest hours. He needed community. One of my favorite authors is Henri Nouwen and in his book “Can You Drink the Cup?” he wrote that nothing is sweeter than community - life is full of ups and downs and joys and sorrows but we do not have to live alone. No one is exempt from the need for community - even as pastors we are encouraged not to be lone rangers but to gather around us a covenant group of others with whom we can share our lives. And for me those relationships are sacred because they are a tangible reminder of God’s grace and His love.
Conclusion
In the Garden of Gethsemane on the night before he died, Jesus showed us the power of prayer and the power of community in helping us to get through the pain and suffering we experience. By his own example Jesus taught us that we don’t have to deny our feelings or our pain and plaster on some perfect mask as a cover. Because denying our feelings and distresses is not the way to make the pain disappear. Jesus showed us how to face things head on by going to God in prayer, acknowledging our fears, and by being authentic with those around us. With God agony does not have to equal defeat. It didn't 2000 years ago...and it does not today!
Today we are continuing our series, 24 Hours that Changed the World. Last week as we began this journey together we explored the setting and the important action of Jesus transforming Passover into what we observe as Communion. Today we are going to talk about the feelings Jesus experienced in the Garden of Gethsemane as he awaited to be arrested and how those feelings of agony do not have to equal defeat.
The Agony of Defeat Has a Poster Child
I remember watching ABC’s Wide World of Sports on TV as a child. Do you remember their intro? It talked about “the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat!” And they would show different celebrations for the thrill of victory but there was one poor guy that personified the agony of defeat for years, a ski jumper who fell off the side of the ramp in horrific fashion. I looked him up this week on the Internet. His name is Vinko Bogetaj (prounounced Bo-go-tai), a Slovenian ski jumper who was 20 years old when he was competing in the World Championships back in 1970. He’d already been down the ski jump ramp twice that day and the accident occurred on his third jump. The snow had been picking up and conditions on the ramp had changed. Midway down he realized he was going way too fast and attempted to lower his center of gravity and stop the jump, but instead he lost his balance and rocketed out of control off the end of the ramp, tumbling and flipping wildly, and crashing through a light retaining fence near a crowd of stunned spectators before coming to a halt. Miraculously his only injury that day was a mild concussion. He gave up ski jumping not long after and since he lived behind the Iron Curtain, he was blissfully unaware that the Wide World of Sports had made him the poster child for “the agony of defeat.” So he was shocked when years later he received an invitation to New York to attend the 30th anniversary party for the Wide World of Sports. And he almost fell over when all the famous people like Mohammed Ali came up to him and wanted an autograph. He’d become famous for his seeming defeat on the ski jump that day.
If we went around the room this morning, I think we could all share stories of the times in our lives when we’ve experienced the “thrill of victory” and the “agony of defeat.” I think we all know how to handle and celebrate those times of victory, but dealing with agony is often more difficult. Especially when the agony in our lives arises not by our own hand, but at the hands of others, and certainly when the agony stems from circumstances that seem to be beyond our control. In our Scripture lesson this morning from the Gospel of Mark, we find Jesus wrestling in agony over the events that are about to transpire in his life. And how he handles himself in this time of pain and grief should give us hope as we begin to realize that agony does not have to equal defeat.
A Recipe to Flee
It’s after the Last Supper, the Passover meal that Jesus shared with his disciples inside the Upper Room. And Scripture tells us that Jesus then took the disciples out to the Mount of Olives, to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. Debbie and I had the opportunity to visit the Garden while we were in Israel and the Garden sits at the bottom of the Mount of Olives just outside the city walls of Jerusalem, right across from the area where the Temple would have been. We walked the Palm Sunday road and ended up in the Garden in the late afternoon, in the bright sunlight with the cold wind whipping around us. And as I stood there I tried to close my eyes and imagine what is was like when our Savior was standing here.
It would have been about midnight when their Passover celebration was over since we know the Last Supper lasted about 4-5 hours and was an evening meal. So the streets would most likely be quiet and deserted with most people home asleep. As they left the Upper Room I can see Jesus walking with a purpose while the disciples just follow behind with some uncertainty about where they are going, but following diligently especially in light of the fact that Jesus just told them his time is near and one of them is going to betray him. As they walk down the streets, sandals kicking up dust from the road, I can almost hear them run into each other as they stop at the entrance to Gethsemane. It is pitch black with only the moon and it reflection off of the temple tower to give them light. The emotions they must have felt as they were about to walk into the garden of trees that are hunched over, mangled in stature, and just plain creepy at night. But Jesus tells them to wait. He only asks Peter, James and John to accompany him into the garden for Christ to pray.
Christ knew what was coming because Scripture gives us some indication of Jesus’ mindset that night, as we read that he was “deeply distressed and troubled.” We are also told that He tells the three disciples: "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.”
Folks, that is a recipe to flee if I have ever heard it. Christ is deeply distressed and troubled, He says He overwhelmed to the point of death, and it is night. No one is awake no one is watching...RUN!!! For all that is holy...RUN!!
But not Jesus. He stays. The Message version of the Scriptures relates Jesus’ mindset this way: “he plunged into a sinkhole of dreadful agony.” Just so we are all on the same page agony is “an extreme and generally prolonged pain, intense suffering.” We know what that feels like. And it might seem strange to read that Jesus experienced these feelings, but that’s part of the miracle and beauty for us of the incarnation. Of having God come to earth in human form – there is nothing we experience that God isn’t familiar with – he truly understands and shares our sorrows and grief and pain.
I heard one scholar describe Jesus' thoughts at this moment like this. “Fear and doubt had worked their way into the heart and mind of Jesus. He did not want to die! He was only 33 years old, and the fear of the Roman cross was real. He had often seen the condemned hanging on crosses outside the city gate. He had heard them moan in pain. He had listened to their curses. He had seen them writhing in agony. Jesus was human, and every bit of his humanity shuddered at the very thought of dying an agonizing death upon a cross. Luke, the physician, describes His fear by saying, 'and being in agony He prayed more earnestly; and His sweat was as if it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.' “
Jesus' Response to Agony
So how did Jesus handle the agony and suffering that he was experiencing in his soul? First, he went to God in prayer. When we don’t know what to do, we must pray…the kind of prayer where you throw all of yourself on God. Jesus prayed that kind of prayer in the Garden to his Abba, to his Father. Abba is the Aramaic intimate form for father, equivalent to our “daddy”. The Jewish people never used this to refer to God because they thought it disrespectful, but Jesus being the literal Son of God and being on the most intimate of terms with our Heavenly Father, it was natural for Him to use it. His prayer was honest and heart-wrenching, expressing all of his concerns and needs and wants and desires, pouring them out before God.
One of the things I hear most from people regarding prayer is dissatisfaction because they are unsure of how to pray. There seems to be this perception out there that we must pray in some certain fashion with perfect words or our prayer is somehow less effective. Jesus’ prayer in the Garden didn’t have to fit some magic word formula to be heard – it was authentic and from his heart. And in our Scripture lesson from Romans this morning the Apostle Paul reminds us that “it doesn’t matter if we don’t know how or what to pray” because “God’s Spirit is right alongside helping us along…doing our praying in and for us, making prayer out of our wordless sighs, our aching groans” (Message version). When we pray we ought to be less concerned with the words we use than the sentiments expressed to God, and Jesus shows us that it is safe to be vulnerable and put ourselves out there when we pray to God.
And yet, after expressing his agony and the desires of his heart, Jesus was also able to say to God, “not my will but thine be done.” Too often in small or even big decisions we decide what to do or what we want to have happen and then we go to God in prayer and ask him to bless it – to tag along on our plan. And in so doing we reduce God to an afterthought. But rather than an afterthought, wouldn’t you rather be in the center of God’s will? Jesus brought all of his feelings and emotions before God in prayer and then ultimately rested in God’s character, trusting the Father’s will for his life.
And prayer wasn’t the only thing Jesus did that night in the midst of his agony and suffering. He also gathered around him a community of support and was real and authentic with them about what he was going through. Jesus could have gone off to the Garden completely alone to pray. But instead he took a community with him, the disciples. He invited them to pray and be present with him and he shared with them exactly how he felt and what he was going through. There were no phony smiles here. These men had been through so much together in the years that they had followed Jesus. Jesus knew that at least one of the disciples who gathered with him in the Garden would deny him later on, but Jesus still invited him and the others to participate. I think his example should say something to us about the importance of community as we face the challenges of life.
Christ understood the importance of community. That is why most of you have heard me talk about getting into a small group, joining a Bible Study. Get a group of people around you that you can share with, cry with, scream with, a group you can depend on. Christ had that. He took Peter, James, and John with him as He is deeply distressed and troubled and as His soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” Christ himself wanted people around him during one of His darkest hours. He needed community. One of my favorite authors is Henri Nouwen and in his book “Can You Drink the Cup?” he wrote that nothing is sweeter than community - life is full of ups and downs and joys and sorrows but we do not have to live alone. No one is exempt from the need for community - even as pastors we are encouraged not to be lone rangers but to gather around us a covenant group of others with whom we can share our lives. And for me those relationships are sacred because they are a tangible reminder of God’s grace and His love.
Conclusion
In the Garden of Gethsemane on the night before he died, Jesus showed us the power of prayer and the power of community in helping us to get through the pain and suffering we experience. By his own example Jesus taught us that we don’t have to deny our feelings or our pain and plaster on some perfect mask as a cover. Because denying our feelings and distresses is not the way to make the pain disappear. Jesus showed us how to face things head on by going to God in prayer, acknowledging our fears, and by being authentic with those around us. With God agony does not have to equal defeat. It didn't 2000 years ago...and it does not today!
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Bible Challenge 3/14 - 3/20
Hello Folks! I hope everyone is dry considering the extremely wet weather we have had at the end of the week.
Well I hope everyone enjoyed reading about Creation, Noah, and Abraham this week. Next week we will finish up our journey through Genesis and will start Exodus.
Stay safe, stay dry, and may God bless you all!
3/14, Sunday - Genesis 29-32
3/15, Monday - Genesis 33-36
3/16, Tuesday - Genesis 37-40
3/17, Wednesday - Genesis 41-44
3/18, Thursday - Genesis 45-48
3/19, Friday - Genesis 49 - Exodus 2
3/20, Saturday - Exodus 3-6
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Well I hope everyone enjoyed reading about Creation, Noah, and Abraham this week. Next week we will finish up our journey through Genesis and will start Exodus.
Stay safe, stay dry, and may God bless you all!
3/14, Sunday - Genesis 29-32
3/15, Monday - Genesis 33-36
3/16, Tuesday - Genesis 37-40
3/17, Wednesday - Genesis 41-44
3/18, Thursday - Genesis 45-48
3/19, Friday - Genesis 49 - Exodus 2
3/20, Saturday - Exodus 3-6
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Friday, March 12, 2010
Themed Sundays are Back!
The worship committee is re-instituting different themes for our Sundays together. We are using them to collect items that we as a church can use and donate to charity. Here is the schedule:
1st Sunday of the Month: White Sunday (please bring any white paper goods: napkins, paper towels, toilet tissue, facial tissue, paper plates and the sort)
2nd Sunday of the Month: Canned Food Sunday (to help fill our 2 x 4 boxes)
3rd Sunday of the Month: Christmas Child Sunday (this will be various items for our Christmas Child Shoebox ministry and we will let you know in advance what type of item is needed)
4th Sunday of the Month: Hygiene Sunday (for donation to Interfaith)
5th Sunday of the Month: remains Children's Home Sunday
Please know that any surplus we get of any of this will be donated to Interfaith.
We will begin next Sunday, March 21st with Christmas Child Sunday. Items that are requested are: small toys, such as balls, dolls, stuffed animals, toys that light up or make noise (with extra batteries), etc. Other items would include: t-shirts, socks, ball caps, sunglasses, etc. For additional suggestions, please contact the Church Office.
All of these items will be collected on the front pew in the wicker baskets. Thank you in advance for your support of these causes.
1st Sunday of the Month: White Sunday (please bring any white paper goods: napkins, paper towels, toilet tissue, facial tissue, paper plates and the sort)
2nd Sunday of the Month: Canned Food Sunday (to help fill our 2 x 4 boxes)
3rd Sunday of the Month: Christmas Child Sunday (this will be various items for our Christmas Child Shoebox ministry and we will let you know in advance what type of item is needed)
4th Sunday of the Month: Hygiene Sunday (for donation to Interfaith)
5th Sunday of the Month: remains Children's Home Sunday
Please know that any surplus we get of any of this will be donated to Interfaith.
We will begin next Sunday, March 21st with Christmas Child Sunday. Items that are requested are: small toys, such as balls, dolls, stuffed animals, toys that light up or make noise (with extra batteries), etc. Other items would include: t-shirts, socks, ball caps, sunglasses, etc. For additional suggestions, please contact the Church Office.
All of these items will be collected on the front pew in the wicker baskets. Thank you in advance for your support of these causes.
Friday Fives
Greetings All!
Here are a few things that caught my attention this week that I would like to pass along to you.
1. Preaching Series – This week we are continuing our preaching series entitled 24 Hours that Changed the World. Last week we explored the importance of the Last Supper. This week we are looking at why agony does not have to equal defeat. Throughout this series we will look at important events in the last day of Jesus' life here on earth. I hope to see you all in worship!
2. Bible Study – We are continuing our Bible Study on the major world religions this week as we take a look at Buddhism. It is never too late to join. We meet on Thursdays in Fellowship Hall at 11:30am and/or 7pm.
3. Certified Lay Speakers – If you are interested in becoming a certified lay speaker there is a training coming up. The North Central District's lay servant training event is Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 from 9am to 4pm at Trinity United Methodist Church Gainesville, 4000 NW 53rd Ave, Gainesville, FL 32653. Both days are required. If you would like more information please contact the church office.
4. Daylight Savings Time – Don't forget to set your clocks ahead Sunday morning, March 14th.
5. We Need Your Help! – What if Druid Hills UMC earned a donation every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our church? Well, now it can!
There are two ways you can help!
First, is by using GoodSearch.com. GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up!
Second, is by shopping with GoodShop.com. GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 30 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you'll be supporting your favorite cause.
And if you download the GoodSearch toolbar, our church will earn money every time you shop and search online - even if you forget to go to GoodShop or GoodSearch first! Add the Druid Hills UMC toolbar by clicking here.
I want to say a special thank you to everyone that has participated in this so far. To date we have raised $9.55.
Bonus Items! - Easter is quickly approaching and there are two things I want to bring to your attention. First, we are going to have our Flower Cross once again and once again we will need your help in decorating it. If you have any colorful flowers that you would be willing to bring, please do so on Easter Sunday morning so we can bring our cross to life in celebration of Easter! Second, I am asking everyone to bring a bell on Easter Sunday morning as well. They can be any size, shape, or style. We are going ring these bells in celebration as we make a joyful noise together and truly celebrate Easter and our Risen Savior!
Here are a few things that caught my attention this week that I would like to pass along to you.
1. Preaching Series – This week we are continuing our preaching series entitled 24 Hours that Changed the World. Last week we explored the importance of the Last Supper. This week we are looking at why agony does not have to equal defeat. Throughout this series we will look at important events in the last day of Jesus' life here on earth. I hope to see you all in worship!
2. Bible Study – We are continuing our Bible Study on the major world religions this week as we take a look at Buddhism. It is never too late to join. We meet on Thursdays in Fellowship Hall at 11:30am and/or 7pm.
3. Certified Lay Speakers – If you are interested in becoming a certified lay speaker there is a training coming up. The North Central District's lay servant training event is Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 from 9am to 4pm at Trinity United Methodist Church Gainesville, 4000 NW 53rd Ave, Gainesville, FL 32653. Both days are required. If you would like more information please contact the church office.
4. Daylight Savings Time – Don't forget to set your clocks ahead Sunday morning, March 14th.
5. We Need Your Help! – What if Druid Hills UMC earned a donation every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our church? Well, now it can!
There are two ways you can help!
First, is by using GoodSearch.com. GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up!
Second, is by shopping with GoodShop.com. GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 30 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you'll be supporting your favorite cause.
And if you download the GoodSearch toolbar, our church will earn money every time you shop and search online - even if you forget to go to GoodShop or GoodSearch first! Add the Druid Hills UMC toolbar by clicking here.
I want to say a special thank you to everyone that has participated in this so far. To date we have raised $9.55.
Bonus Items! - Easter is quickly approaching and there are two things I want to bring to your attention. First, we are going to have our Flower Cross once again and once again we will need your help in decorating it. If you have any colorful flowers that you would be willing to bring, please do so on Easter Sunday morning so we can bring our cross to life in celebration of Easter! Second, I am asking everyone to bring a bell on Easter Sunday morning as well. They can be any size, shape, or style. We are going ring these bells in celebration as we make a joyful noise together and truly celebrate Easter and our Risen Savior!
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Sunday, March 7, 2010
24 Hours that Changed the World: The Last Supper Mark 14:12-25 and Jeremiah 31:31-34
Introduction
As we walk together throughout the season of Lent, our focus is going to be on the last 24 hours or so of Jesus’ life, walking from the Last Supper all the way through to his crucifixion and burial. Debbie's and my understanding of just what Jesus went through was greatly enhanced by all the time we spent in Jerusalem and I want to share that with you. These few hours are incredibly important for us to understand because much occurred during this time. For they truly were 24 hours that changed the world.
What Would You Do with 24 Hours?
What would you do if you knew that you only had 24 hours left to live? How would you want to spend that time? Who would you want to spend that time with? My family would be first on that list and then probably a few special friends who have helped encourage and support me over the years. It’s interesting when we look at how Jesus spent his last 24 hours. He knew what was coming and yet He went on with His ministry and teaching. Rather than flee Jerusalem where the religious leaders were becoming increasingly upset with His teachings and influence, Jesus chose to stay in the city and as a good Jew observe one of the holiest of occasions with His disciples – The Passover Seder. He invested a lot of time and energy that night in talking with the disciples, trying to prepare them for the days ahead.
The Significance of the Passover
Jesus had entered the city just a few days before on Sunday. He would have come from the east near Bethany as He descended down the Mount of Olives just outside the temple complex. The crowds were then shouting in His favor as they waved palm branches in the air – “Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” Each day that week He spends time teaching on the steps of the temple courts, pushing harder on His challenges to the religious leaders. However, by Thursday Jesus was no longer showing His face publicly because it was clear that the leaders had a plot afoot to catch Him and most likely kill Him.
So Jesus asks the disciples to go into town and prepare a secret place for them to celebrate the Passover. The sign for them would be a man carrying a water jug, since this was typically woman’s work, the man would certainly stand out. Peter and John went and found the man just as Jesus said, and they were given permission to prepare for the meal in what we now call the Upper Room. Certainly the man who owned the space was also putting himself at risk by allowing them to meet there. Debbie and I visited the Upper Room while we were in Jerusalem – a large cavernous space that would have been perfect for sharing a meal and some fellowship time together.
The disciples would have taken the Passover lamb that morning to be sacrificed at the temple and blessed. Then it would have been given back to them to take and roast for several hours for the evening Passover meal. To me it’s no coincidence that this was the feast Jesus celebrated right before His death. The roots of the Passover Seder go all the way back to the time when the Jewish people were slaves in Egypt. Moses was going before Pharaoh and pleading for the release of God’s people. Plagues of darkness, locusts, frogs, boils were sent upon the Egyptian people in an effort to get Pharaoh to let the people go, but Pharaoh hardened his heart against God and would not listen. And so the last plague involved the death of every firstborn in the land – animals and people alike. And God told Moses that the only way a house would be spared the death of its firstborn would be for the people to make a sacrifice and to paint the blood of the animal over the doorposts of their home. The blood would cover them and death would “pass over” that house. Pharaoh’s own son died in this plague and he was finally convinced to let the Jewish people go and have their freedom. He released them so abruptly that their bread did not have time to rise and so they took unleavened bread with them out on their journey. Later God commanded the Israelites to celebrate the Passover annually, remembering how God spared their lives and provided a way for their freedom.
When we were in Israel I picked up a book called “Enter His Gates To Your Jewish Roots” which details all of the important rituals of the Jewish faith which are in some ways part of our heritage. And it speaks about the significance of the Passover meal. The word “seder” means order and there is a special order to the meal with prayer and food and drink. Each person is to tell the story of Passover as if he himself had been redeemed out of Egypt. The actual telling of the story is from a book called the Hagaddah and many symbols are used to help make the re-telling a vivid story. The food on the Seder plate is all symbolic as well, the lamb shank bone representing the lamb slain for the blood on the doorposts, bitter herbs symbolizing the bitterness of slavery, salt water to represent the tears of the people, charoset, which is an apple paste, symbolizing the mortar the Israelites used to make bricks in Egypt, and a roasted egg symbolizing the new life that was theirs after the Exodus. Also there is always on the table 4 cups of wine representing the four promises that God made to the Israelites about their deliverance. The meal starts about sunset and usually lasts 4-5 hours.
The Transformation of Passover into Communion
The Gospels don’t detail for us the manner in which the disciples celebrated the Passover Seder. Most of them were writing to Jewish audiences anyway, so there would have been an assumed understanding about what took place that night. But what the Gospels do record for us, including our lesson from Mark today, is the unusual thing that Jesus did during the context of their Passover meal that night. For He takes some of the bread and one of the cups of wine from the table and instead of using the ritual words from the Haggadah, He gave it to them with new words. In breaking the bread, Jesus gave thanks and gave it to them saying: “Take and eat, for this is my body.” And in giving the cup, He gave thanks and gave it to them saying: “This is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many.”
Jesus was transforming the normal ritual of the Passover meal into something that foretold what was about to happen to Him. Certainly His words about a new covenant should call to mind those of our lesson from the prophet Jeremiah: “"The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them," declares the LORD. "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people” (Jer. 31:31-33). Jesus was instituting the new covenant, not by the law, but one of the heart. Passover celebrated a rescue from death and a freedom from slavery. And what we celebrate in communion through the eating of bread and drinking from the cup is how Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice and how His blood provided a way to conquer spiritual death and a freedom from slavery to our sins.
Conclusion
He was inviting all people to come and be followers of God. And just as the Israelites were called to remember Passover, those who follow Jesus are called to repeat His practice that night, and through this meal remember our story. The celebration of communion defines who we are, whose we are, and who we are following. What memories define you? What things in your past have happened that you continue to play those mental tapes over and over again in your mind…. Abuse, abandonment, betrayal, loss and grief? But there is one memory that is meant to define you more than any other – and you hear the words every time we gather to celebrate: “Take and eat, for this is my body, which is broken for you. Drink from this all of you for this is my blood of the new covenant which is poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in remembrance of me.” These are the words – this is the meal – this is the memory that is meant to define you.
This is our story as the people of God. We remember our salvation and that it came at the cost of a life, as God himself came down to earth in human form. This is a big deal and we have to get it. And this is what we remember every time that we take the cup and the bread; the memory should shape our life and be our defining story. Because we come into communion remembering that in the last hours of Jesus’ life we were on his mind. We come into communion knowing that we were once slaves to sin and death and we leave this altar rail knowing that we are free – choosing to follow Jesus and accept his grace and peace in our lives.
As we walk together throughout the season of Lent, our focus is going to be on the last 24 hours or so of Jesus’ life, walking from the Last Supper all the way through to his crucifixion and burial. Debbie's and my understanding of just what Jesus went through was greatly enhanced by all the time we spent in Jerusalem and I want to share that with you. These few hours are incredibly important for us to understand because much occurred during this time. For they truly were 24 hours that changed the world.
What Would You Do with 24 Hours?
What would you do if you knew that you only had 24 hours left to live? How would you want to spend that time? Who would you want to spend that time with? My family would be first on that list and then probably a few special friends who have helped encourage and support me over the years. It’s interesting when we look at how Jesus spent his last 24 hours. He knew what was coming and yet He went on with His ministry and teaching. Rather than flee Jerusalem where the religious leaders were becoming increasingly upset with His teachings and influence, Jesus chose to stay in the city and as a good Jew observe one of the holiest of occasions with His disciples – The Passover Seder. He invested a lot of time and energy that night in talking with the disciples, trying to prepare them for the days ahead.
The Significance of the Passover
Jesus had entered the city just a few days before on Sunday. He would have come from the east near Bethany as He descended down the Mount of Olives just outside the temple complex. The crowds were then shouting in His favor as they waved palm branches in the air – “Hosanna in the highest! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” Each day that week He spends time teaching on the steps of the temple courts, pushing harder on His challenges to the religious leaders. However, by Thursday Jesus was no longer showing His face publicly because it was clear that the leaders had a plot afoot to catch Him and most likely kill Him.
So Jesus asks the disciples to go into town and prepare a secret place for them to celebrate the Passover. The sign for them would be a man carrying a water jug, since this was typically woman’s work, the man would certainly stand out. Peter and John went and found the man just as Jesus said, and they were given permission to prepare for the meal in what we now call the Upper Room. Certainly the man who owned the space was also putting himself at risk by allowing them to meet there. Debbie and I visited the Upper Room while we were in Jerusalem – a large cavernous space that would have been perfect for sharing a meal and some fellowship time together.
The disciples would have taken the Passover lamb that morning to be sacrificed at the temple and blessed. Then it would have been given back to them to take and roast for several hours for the evening Passover meal. To me it’s no coincidence that this was the feast Jesus celebrated right before His death. The roots of the Passover Seder go all the way back to the time when the Jewish people were slaves in Egypt. Moses was going before Pharaoh and pleading for the release of God’s people. Plagues of darkness, locusts, frogs, boils were sent upon the Egyptian people in an effort to get Pharaoh to let the people go, but Pharaoh hardened his heart against God and would not listen. And so the last plague involved the death of every firstborn in the land – animals and people alike. And God told Moses that the only way a house would be spared the death of its firstborn would be for the people to make a sacrifice and to paint the blood of the animal over the doorposts of their home. The blood would cover them and death would “pass over” that house. Pharaoh’s own son died in this plague and he was finally convinced to let the Jewish people go and have their freedom. He released them so abruptly that their bread did not have time to rise and so they took unleavened bread with them out on their journey. Later God commanded the Israelites to celebrate the Passover annually, remembering how God spared their lives and provided a way for their freedom.
When we were in Israel I picked up a book called “Enter His Gates To Your Jewish Roots” which details all of the important rituals of the Jewish faith which are in some ways part of our heritage. And it speaks about the significance of the Passover meal. The word “seder” means order and there is a special order to the meal with prayer and food and drink. Each person is to tell the story of Passover as if he himself had been redeemed out of Egypt. The actual telling of the story is from a book called the Hagaddah and many symbols are used to help make the re-telling a vivid story. The food on the Seder plate is all symbolic as well, the lamb shank bone representing the lamb slain for the blood on the doorposts, bitter herbs symbolizing the bitterness of slavery, salt water to represent the tears of the people, charoset, which is an apple paste, symbolizing the mortar the Israelites used to make bricks in Egypt, and a roasted egg symbolizing the new life that was theirs after the Exodus. Also there is always on the table 4 cups of wine representing the four promises that God made to the Israelites about their deliverance. The meal starts about sunset and usually lasts 4-5 hours.
The Transformation of Passover into Communion
The Gospels don’t detail for us the manner in which the disciples celebrated the Passover Seder. Most of them were writing to Jewish audiences anyway, so there would have been an assumed understanding about what took place that night. But what the Gospels do record for us, including our lesson from Mark today, is the unusual thing that Jesus did during the context of their Passover meal that night. For He takes some of the bread and one of the cups of wine from the table and instead of using the ritual words from the Haggadah, He gave it to them with new words. In breaking the bread, Jesus gave thanks and gave it to them saying: “Take and eat, for this is my body.” And in giving the cup, He gave thanks and gave it to them saying: “This is my blood of the covenant which is poured out for many.”
Jesus was transforming the normal ritual of the Passover meal into something that foretold what was about to happen to Him. Certainly His words about a new covenant should call to mind those of our lesson from the prophet Jeremiah: “"The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them," declares the LORD. "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people” (Jer. 31:31-33). Jesus was instituting the new covenant, not by the law, but one of the heart. Passover celebrated a rescue from death and a freedom from slavery. And what we celebrate in communion through the eating of bread and drinking from the cup is how Jesus became the ultimate sacrifice and how His blood provided a way to conquer spiritual death and a freedom from slavery to our sins.
Conclusion
He was inviting all people to come and be followers of God. And just as the Israelites were called to remember Passover, those who follow Jesus are called to repeat His practice that night, and through this meal remember our story. The celebration of communion defines who we are, whose we are, and who we are following. What memories define you? What things in your past have happened that you continue to play those mental tapes over and over again in your mind…. Abuse, abandonment, betrayal, loss and grief? But there is one memory that is meant to define you more than any other – and you hear the words every time we gather to celebrate: “Take and eat, for this is my body, which is broken for you. Drink from this all of you for this is my blood of the new covenant which is poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in remembrance of me.” These are the words – this is the meal – this is the memory that is meant to define you.
This is our story as the people of God. We remember our salvation and that it came at the cost of a life, as God himself came down to earth in human form. This is a big deal and we have to get it. And this is what we remember every time that we take the cup and the bread; the memory should shape our life and be our defining story. Because we come into communion remembering that in the last hours of Jesus’ life we were on his mind. We come into communion knowing that we were once slaves to sin and death and we leave this altar rail knowing that we are free – choosing to follow Jesus and accept his grace and peace in our lives.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Bible Challenge 3/7 - 3/13
Greetings All!
Here is the reading for our Bible Challenge for next week. We have completed one leg of our three-legged challenge, by finishing the New Testament. We now move on the the Old Testament and we dive into Genesis this week.
3/7, Sunday - Genesis 1-4
3/8, Monday - Genesis 5-8
3/9, Tuesday - Genesis 9-12
3/10, Wednesday - Genesis 13-16
3/11, Thursday - Genesis 17-20
3/12, Friday - Genesis 21-24
3/13, Saturday - Genesis 25-28
Enjoy!
<><
Here is the reading for our Bible Challenge for next week. We have completed one leg of our three-legged challenge, by finishing the New Testament. We now move on the the Old Testament and we dive into Genesis this week.
3/7, Sunday - Genesis 1-4
3/8, Monday - Genesis 5-8
3/9, Tuesday - Genesis 9-12
3/10, Wednesday - Genesis 13-16
3/11, Thursday - Genesis 17-20
3/12, Friday - Genesis 21-24
3/13, Saturday - Genesis 25-28
Enjoy!
<><
Friday, March 5, 2010
Friday Fives
1.Preaching Series – This week we are beginning a new preaching series entitled 24 Hours that Changed the World. We are going to spend time over the next four weeks taking a look at important events in the last day of Jesus' life here on earth. I hope to see you all in worship!
2.Bible Study – We are continuing our Bible Study on the major world religions this week as we take a look at Buddhism. It is never too late to join. We meet on Thursdays in Fellowship Hall at 11:30am and 7pm.
3.Certified Lay Speakers – If you are interested in becoming a certified lay speaker there is a training coming up. The North Central District's lay servant training event is Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 from 9am to 4pm at Trinity United Methodist Church Gainesville, 4000 NW 53rd Ave, Gainesville, FL 32653. Both days are required. If you would like more information please contact the church office.
4.Daylight Savings Time – Don't forget to set your clocks ahead next Sunday, March 14th.
5.We Need Your Help! – What if Druid Hills UMC earned a donation every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our church? Well, now it can!
There are two ways you can help!
First, is by using GoodSearch.com. GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up!
Second, is by shopping with GoodShop.com. GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 30 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you'll be supporting your favorite cause.
And if you download the GoodSearch toolbar, our church will earn money every time you shop and search online - even if you forget to go to GoodShop or GoodSearch first! Add the Druid Hills UMC toolbar by clicking here.
2.Bible Study – We are continuing our Bible Study on the major world religions this week as we take a look at Buddhism. It is never too late to join. We meet on Thursdays in Fellowship Hall at 11:30am and 7pm.
3.Certified Lay Speakers – If you are interested in becoming a certified lay speaker there is a training coming up. The North Central District's lay servant training event is Saturday, April 24 and Saturday, May 1 from 9am to 4pm at Trinity United Methodist Church Gainesville, 4000 NW 53rd Ave, Gainesville, FL 32653. Both days are required. If you would like more information please contact the church office.
4.Daylight Savings Time – Don't forget to set your clocks ahead next Sunday, March 14th.
5.We Need Your Help! – What if Druid Hills UMC earned a donation every time you searched the Internet? Or how about if a percentage of every purchase you made online went to support our church? Well, now it can!
There are two ways you can help!
First, is by using GoodSearch.com. GoodSearch.com is a new Yahoo-powered search engine that donates half its advertising revenue, about a penny per search, to the charities its users designate. Use it just as you would any search engine, get quality search results from Yahoo, and watch the donations add up!
Second, is by shopping with GoodShop.com. GoodShop.com is a new online shopping mall which donates up to 30 percent of each purchase to your favorite cause! Hundreds of great stores including Amazon, Target, Gap, Best Buy, ebay, Macy's and Barnes & Noble have teamed up with GoodShop and every time you place an order, you'll be supporting your favorite cause.
And if you download the GoodSearch toolbar, our church will earn money every time you shop and search online - even if you forget to go to GoodShop or GoodSearch first! Add the Druid Hills UMC toolbar by clicking here.
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