March: A Holy Time
Luke 19:36-38
As he rode along, the crowds spread out their garments on the road ahead of him. When he reached the place where the road started down the Mount of Olives, all of his followers began to shout and sing as they walked along, praising God for all the wonderful miracles they had seen. “Blessings on the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven, and glory in highest heaven!”
This month we find ourselves building up to the most holy week on the liturgical calendar. As Palm Sunday begins on March 24th, we enter a week of focused devotion to the sacrifice of the God incarnate - Jesus Christ. From his triumphant entry into Jerusalem all the way to the moment the young man dressed in white proclaimed, “You are looking for Jesus Christ of Nazarene, who was crucified. He is risen. He is not here!” (Mark 16:6) The events that unfold during holy week are the cornerstone of everything the Christian church stands on. Without the sacrament of Communion, without the death on the Roman cross, and certainly without the resurrection; Christianity as we know it would cease to be complete.
Holy Week reminds us that Jesus Christ not only offered himself on the cross for us, but he remains the “author and perfecter of our faith.” (Heb. 12:2) Though Christ is no longer with us in the flesh, he gave to us a means to remember him; a way in which we can recount his “emptying” (Phil. 2:5-7) On the fifth day of Holy Week, Christ had a meal with his disciples that would become known as The Last Supper. We still celebrate this sacrament today and speak the words that Christ spoke that night, to his disciples. The words “on the night he was betrayed”, are often recited to begin the celebration of The Last Supper. It’s in those words we find great heartache, but there also remains a hope for restoration and a path to be “born again” (John 3:3) in Spirit.
Luke 23:44-46
By this time it was about noon, and darkness fell across the whole land until three o’clock. The light from the sun was gone. And suddenly, the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn down the middle. Then Jesus shouted, “Father, I entrust my spirit into your hands!”And with those words he breathed his last.
The sixth day of Holy Week, we observe the trial, crucifixion, and death of Jesus. It may seem ironic that we call this day “Good Friday” but the day is good in that it represents the ultimate sacrifice for the atonement of our sins. It is on this day that the new covenant that Christ spoke of is being realized. Good Friday is a day that demands our solemn attention, it is a series of moments for us to remain silent and still.
Luke 24:1-6
But very early on Sunday morning[a] the women went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes. The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead!
Everything from the beginning of creation until this moment was eagerly awaiting its chance for redemption. Humanity had only begun to understand its flaws and even creation had been “groaning”. (Rom. 8:22) Yet, on the first Easter we find that God was moving creation towards ultimate restoration. The time had arrived where cultural, economic, and other barriers were being broken down. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ was something that covered the sins of everyone, for anything, for all time. As the season of Lent draws to a close and we enter Holy Week - let our hearts and minds be fixated on the Lamb of Judah, Jesus Christ.
Peace to you,
Rev. Taylor Kibler
