Pastor Darryl

Last week the basis of our meditation hinged on one sentence spoken by some Greeks: “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” Remember “seeing” is believing, but there are many ways of seeing.

This week we enter Holy Week, leading up to the crucifixion of Christ. This event will change the entire world. The Gospels tell us that Jesus arrives in Jerusalem with welcoming shouts from a large crowd. He is hailed as a king, a mighty one, coming in the name of the Lord, someone who will be a great leader, to rid them of their overlords. So, after this wonderful entrance, what do the people expect?  What do they see? Is this how they really see Jesus, after alll of the signs He has given. Is their sight really that poor? Do they see the greatest gift for them ever to be given? What do we see? The events of Easter are coming.

Come and see Jesus.

Pastor Darryl

Before meditating on the Word, pray, asking God the Father through his Son Jesus Christ, for the gift of the Holy Spirit to be your guide, to enlighten and empower.

You receive the Holy Spirit as you meditate. He gives instruction as to what God the Father has to say and give to you through his Son. Meditating on Godʼs Word is not just reading or listening to words. The Holy Spirit comes to you, not only taking you back into the historical events surrounding what Jesus said and did, but rather the Spirit takes Jesusʼ words and applies them to you in your own situation. Meditating and trusting in Godʼs word allows the Holy Spirit to enter your thinking, preaching to you. His work creates something that happens personally, turning meditation into an act of reception rather than something we do. Here Luther offers some advice: “If such an abundance of good thoughts comes to us, we ought to … make room for such thoughts, listen to them in silence, and under no circumstances obstruct them. The Holy Spirit himself preaches here, and one word of his sermon is far better than a thousand of our prayers.”

Pastor Darryl