Ruth 2:17-23

Ruth 2:17-23 

English Standard Version

  At what point do you stop thinking you need a redeemer?

  If you're not out gleaning the leftovers in the fields, but rather have a refrigerator full of food, you may think you're self-sufficient.

  If you have a job that pays a living wage or ample savings in the bank, you may think you're successful.

  If you have a roof over your head in the rain, and heat for when it gets cold, you may think you're secure.

  But all the material success in the world doesn't mean we don't need a redeemer.  We may stop thinking about how badly we need one, but the reality is that we desperately need a redeemer, no matter how many worldly comforts we have.  We cannot secure our salvation for ourselves, and each of us will face health problems that we cannot conquer on our own.  We experience relationship strife and other hardships... and we need someone from outside of this world to secure our salvation for us.

  Fortunately, just like Ruth, we have a redeemer, one who comes to us, who spreads a cloak over us and keeps us safe.  Thanks be to God!

Ruth 2:14-16

Ruth 2:14-16 

English Standard Version 

  Ruth came from a position of lack, having had much taken from her, leaving her homeland, leaving behind whatever old gods she had... and here she is, eating until she is satisfied.  

  The way the word satisfaction is used in Scripture is so beautiful to me.  It gives a sense of completeness, of total ease, of resting in what you have and wanting for nothing.  Imagine eating a bounteous picnic lunch in a warm summer meadow, and then sitting on a swing under an ancient oak tree with the sun on your face and a full stomach and nothing to do.  In such a place, you need nothing, and feel completely at ease, resting in what you hold in your full heart.  You are satisfied.

  This is what we find in God.  Scripture paints a picture of it here and there, and we see snapshots, held up for us to contemplate, and it helps us understand the yearning in our heart for such a reality.  This is the hunger God has set in our hearts, and it can be filled only by God.  As Augustine says, our hearts are restless until they find their rest in God.  May each of us find our rest  in God, and may our wearied hearts know true satisfaction in God and God alone.

Ruth 2:8-13

Ruth 2:8-13 

English Standard Version

  When I was a teenager, I drove a rather noticeable suburban that was always easy to find in parking lots.  I remember my mother telling me to be careful where I parked it, because others would easily know where I was since the car was distinctive.  It was always accompanied by a laugh, but there was some truth in that.

  Others often hear about our actions, even when we intend to keep them secret.  When we are unkind or disrespectful, people find out.  I was listening to a pastor the other day talk about another pastor who was well-regarded as a preacher, but word got out that he was impatient and rude towards his wife, and as that was found out, his ministry eroded.

  In this passage, news about Ruth's dedication to Naomi has gotten around.  Ruth asks why Boaz is treating her so well, and he responds that it is because he has heard of her kindness and devotion towards Naomi, and so he is passing along kindness to her.

  I like to think this is one of the most effective ways the Gospel spreads -- through news of the kindness of Christians traveling around the neighborhood, and others being intrigued about the sweetness of the Gospel that transforms hearts and minds.  May we serve others with selflessness and devotion and, in so doing, spread the Good News of the Gospel.

Ruth 2:1-7

Ruth 2:1-7 

English Standard Version 

  When Ruth started gleaning in the fields, picking up the leftovers, I doubt that it felt like the start of something wonderful.  I suspect that it was exhausting, backbreaking work, and she likely wondered if she'd made the right decision, wondered if she should have gone back to Moab with Orpah.  It would've been easy to second guess herself.  She was in a strange land, doing hard work, likely wondering what hope looked like.  And yet, in that time, all she could do was keep working.

  Faithfulness to God's calling often looks like that.  It's showing up, day after day, trusting that God is at work, that there is something secure beneath your feet when you step out in faith.  It's easy to look around, to second guess, to wonder if you've made the right decision, and yet God is there, as God promises to be, and God's vision is longer than our own -- and so may we learn how to be patient with God, how to be faithful, even in those seasons that can sometimes feel like drudgery, and may we trust God to hold up God's promises, as God has always  done!

Ruth 1:19-22

Ruth 1:19-22 

English Standard Version 

  The whole town was stirred.  In some places, this is a great thing -- remember when the father throws a party when the prodigal son returns?  Here... probably not as much.  Moab was a place of traditional enemies of Israel, and marriage to Moabites was discouraged due to their worship of other gods.  So Naomi leaves and then comes back only with this Moabite woman, and the whole town is stirred, wondering what has happened.  Doubtless many are judging her, whispering behind close doors, perhaps welcoming on the outside but inwardly suspicious.

  If you base your future on what everyone says about you, it's hard to know how to proceed, because you'll always be afraid of judgment if you take one wrong step.  Similarly, if you only associate with those who are deemed proper by society, you'll miss out on some of the richest experiences in life that come with the diversity of this world that God has created.  Strive for human acceptance, and you'll end up disappointed, because the crowds will push you this way and that way as human opinion shifts and changes.

  God is faithful, even in the valleys, even when the world thinks hope is lost.  Naomi was in a place of despair, having lost so much in her time in Moab.  And yet God was not finished with Naomi.  God was at work, just as God is at work in our lives.  It's hard to see at times, we can all agree with that -- but just because we cannot see what is ahead does not mean that God is not at work.

Ruth 1:15-18

Ruth 1:15-18 

English Standard Version 

  What I would love is for everyone in the world to stop for a moment before they lay their head on the pillow at night and hear the Holy Spirit whisper into the depth of their soul:  where you go, I will go.  Where you lodge, I will lodge.  It's such a beautiful pledge of companionship, even to the point of death, which is exactly what God has promised all who believe!!  When we die, God will be there, for we will be ferried through the curtain of death into eternal life.  God is determined to be with us, and there is nothing that death can say, for the Lord of life has spoken a claim over you, and nothing shall stop God's claim on your life!

  If Christians live with this comfort in the depth of their souls, going into the world with the confidence of a people beloved by God, then perhaps we can be agents of peace and hope, inviting the world to hear how God is already at work in the world, already calling to every heart, whispering this pledge of companionship and grace.

Ruth 1:6-14

Ruth 1:6-14

English Standard Version 

  I was watching Batman Beginsi the other night, and Alfred is often lost in the midst of all the drama and the fighting, and yet there he is, faithfully serving Bruce Wayne, day after day, dedicating himself to the success of another.  

  Naturally, when I read Ruth, I think of Batman.  

  Naomi fades into the background here, but in the midst of her despair, as she returns to her homeland since Moab has not been kind to her, she's thinking of the futures of Ruth and Orpah.  She wishes the best for them, and releases them from whatever obligation they may have had towards her.  It's not about her -- she is thinking of others.

  It's the same thing Christ does on the cross.  If he were thinking of himself, he would have climbed down off the cross and went on his way.  Instead, he was thinking of you, and his love for you held him to the cross, so that you might live.

  When we choose to selflessly serve, we may fade into the background.  Perhaps we aren't the star of the show.  But to choose to serve is to choose the way of Christ, to choose to think of another, as Naomi does in leaving Moab.  It doesn't come naturally to us, and it looks different in each of our lives... but it is the wiser path, the one that echoes into eternity as heaven tells the stories of selfless love, over and over again.

Ruth 1:1-5

Ruth 1:1-5

English Standard Version 

  Sometimes, when I'm not too caught up in my own life, I think about some of the situations in the larger world.  I wonder about the Syrian families who have fled violence, leaving behind the lives they knew and winding up in refugee camps.  I think about the Rohingya, stranded without a home.  There are two refugee camps in Kenya with over 100,000 people in them.  Each family was faced with a terrible decision, and they chose to flee, to choose uncertainty that might bring life over a situation that looked as though it would bring only death.  In those times, you make the best decision possible, but so often, it doesn't turn out like you think, like you hope.  

  Ruth begins with one of these tragic choices.  There was a famine in the land, so Naomi and her family flee to Moab, hoping to build a life there, but it doesn't work out like they imagine.  Naomi's husband dies, and then her sons die, and she is left alone with her two Moabite daughters-in-law, each stuck in a situation they didn't anticipate, wondering what comes next, wondering what hope looks like for them.

  In the bleakest of situations, God is there.  The Bible isn't simply a highlight reel of people's greatest times in their lives.  The Bible shows us the lowlights, the despair, reminding us that this part of life, that this part of the walk of discipleship -- when we are in despair, the Bible has something to say to these parts of life, too.  The Bible is real, and it addresses real life issues, and this matters, because we can relate to what we find in the Scriptures, and what happens in real life can relate back to the Scriptures, to remind us that God is involved in real lives with real people, just as God is involved today, in whatever you are in, and there is hope that lives yet! 

Sermon for March 21, 2021 -- John 14:1-7

 

John 3:30

John 3:30

English Standard Version 

  I keep coming back to this verse, so simple, so complicated.  It goes against everything in my being -- I've lived my life focused on myself, on my comfort and my success and my reputation and my image... society tells me to pursue wealth and pleasure for me, to think about my feelings and my desires.  

  And yet here is this ancient Scripture, reminding me of what I know is true in the depths of my bones -- that it's not about me, and that the way to fulfillment, to Truth, to grace, goes not through me, but through Christ, through selflessness, through sacrifice.  

  May I have the strength to pursue this.  May we seek Christ, and in finding him, may we find ourselves.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

English Standard Version 

   If I'm correct, today is the 70th anniversary of my Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Keith -- happy anniversary!  What an amazing story of faithfulness and dedication -- it's one that is written anew, every day, day after day.  It's amazing how the days don't seem to pass quickly, and yet you look back and see how far you've traveled.  Rachel and I will be married 15 years this June, and each day we take another step on our journey.  

  Discipleship is the same way -- each day we can make the choice to love, to serve, to worship.  We don't realize it, but over the years, we grow in faithfulness and discipleship, day by day, and God is at work in us, transforming us.  The wonderful thing about God's love, that we try and imitate in a marriage covenant, is that God is always there, always faithful, no matter what.  Despite my shortcomings and failings and poor choices, God is every faithful, always there, choosing to say yes to us.  

  So let us celebrate the gift of covenantal love!

Matthew 24:9-14

Matthew 24:9-14

English Standard Version 

  Today's a great day to remember that St. Patrick was actually Scottish!  (If you're looking for an interesting read, How the Scots Invented the Modern World is a good one)  St. Patrick was captured as a slave and toiled in Ireland before escaping to Scotland, where he made the decision to go BACK to Ireland and proclaim the Gospel.  It reminds me a little of Acts 14 when Paul was stoned outside the city and then got up and went back in.  Some people are so certain of God's call on their lives that they're willing to face certain death to proclaim the Good News.  In doing so, they fulfill the words of Jesus -- that the Gospel will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations.  Jesus doesn't promise his followers that their lives of discipleship will be easy or pain free -- what he promises them instead is that the Word of God will endure, and those who dedicate their lives to Christ will find themselves in the glory of eternity.  That vision draws us forward, and it makes people willing to endure suffering in this life because they are compelled by a vision of eternity.  Why else go back to the place that enslaved you?  Because you are so caught up in a vision of the Kingdom that you want to be a part of it, and you want others to be a part of it, too.  You have to let God convert your heart into something that has a love for others.

  It's not easy to follow Christ wherever God may lead.  And yet the glory of God is so beautiful -- what else is worth investing our lives in?

Acts 2:42-47

Acts 2:42-47 

English Standard Version 

  Who wouldn't want to join this group, right?  They're devoted to one another, they're filled with awe as wonders and signs are done amongst them, they're willing to share with each other, breaking bread with one another.  They're glad and generous, they praise God together, and new people are coming in daily.  It sounds amazing, right?  

  One way to tackle this text is to take each step as a prescription and try and duplicate it through human efforts.  And this would doubtless yield some good things, although you might just end up frustrated at the end of it all.  

  The Holy Spirit is awfully hard to force to do anything.  Whenever humans have tried to do things that rightfully belong to God, the results never look like they do when God does something.  God can create an environment like this -- it's a group of people depending on the power of the Holy Spirit, leaning into God, fully reliant on God and God's strength.  This is a group of people who show up and see what God is doing, grateful that God has brought them together, no matter how different they might be.  True community is formed by God, and it's re-shaped by God continually, as the people of God cling not to their vision of what the church should be, but rather follow the work of the Spirit as the people are called and sent.

Genesis 15:7-17

Genesis 15:7-17 

English Standard Version 

  In my opinion, this is one of the most important passages of Scripture, and to understand it, you have to understand middle eastern treaties.  So back in the day, they'd cut animals in half, and the weaker party would walk through the middle, expressing the belief that the same would be done to the weaker party if they didn't keep up their end of the treaty.

  In this passage, Abraham cuts the animals in half, but then God, symbolized by the smoking fire pot and flaming torch, passes through the middle of the animals.  In essence, God is taking the risk here, saying that God will keep up the covenant, even though God is by far the stronger party.  In essence, even if humans fall short, God is offering to keep the covenant. 

  Friends, this is the God we worship -- one that takes our burdens upon God.  Not because God has to, but because God wants to.  God voluntarily takes this on, out of pure love for you and me!

Hebrews 10:19-25

Hebrews 10:19-25 

English Standard Version 

  This has to be one of the greatest passages in the New Testament, right?  We root ourselves in the saving blood of Jesus, and then we sprout upwards, breaking through the ground through a new way opened for us, rocketing into the sky, all the while growing stronger at the core, thanks to the full assurance of faith, washed with pure water that feeds us, that nourishes us, as we hold fast without wavering thanks to the way our roots anchor us, held by the faithfulness of God, branching out to shelter one another, encouraging one another, gathered together like a forest.

  Maybe you don't feel like a mighty oak?  Maybe some days you feel more like a sapling, held upright by strings and praying the wind doesn't blow too strongly or that the storms remain at bay, for you doubt your ability to weather another night of storms.  That's ok.  We grow into our eternal future, and we do so because it is Christ that secures us, Christ that helps us grow, Christ that protects us, Christ that feeds us, Christ that calls us, Christ above, Christ below, Christ around us.  It is not our ability to remain steadfast in the storm that secures us, but rather it is Christ's willingness to hold fast to the cross in the dark of the night that washes us clean and demonstrates the faithfulness of God.

Romans 12:1-2

Romans 12:1-2 

English Standard Version 

  Christ hung on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins, and so Paul is appeal to us to be a living sacrifice as our spiritual worship.  Our minds are called to be focused on Christ, and in so doing they are renewed, that we may learn and follow the will of God.

  We've just journeyed through Mark, followed Jesus through his public ministry, watched as he endured trial and suffering for us.  How do we respond?  What is our next step?  How can awe capture our hearts for how deeply God loves us?  

  The world that God has made is an incredible, beautiful place.  We are blessed to live each day in it.  And yet, there is a Kingdom far better than this world, and that is where our ultimate allegiance lies.  May our hearts be fixed on that Kingdom and our ears ready to listen, that we may hear the ways that God is sending us into this world as witnesses, as missionaries, offering ourselves as living sacrifices, pouring ourselves out so that others may hear the Good News of a God who loves them.

Mark 16:1-8

Mark 16:1-8 

English Standard Version 

  Carrying on the tradition of reasons the Gospels are true -- if you were going to make this up as an author in the first century, you'd never have women going to the tomb alone -- their testimony wouldn't have been considered nearly as valid as a man's at the time.  The natural thing would've been for one of the disciples to go to the tomb, naturally expecting to do just what Jesus said he was going to do.  But the Gospels have women going to the tomb... because that's how it happened.  

  In the same way, would you end your Gospel with the women fleeing in fear?  Or would you have them leave in joy, rejoicing and proudly proclaiming that He is Risen, just as he said he would be?  If you were going to tell the story, you wouldn't write it like this... unless this is how it happened.

  The women went to the tomb, expecting to find death, and in that place, they found life more abundant than they could have imagined.  

  What Christ gives us is the ability to look at death and see life, for death has been defeated.  We are draped in Christ's glory, set free from the punishment of sin, and claimed as Christ's own forever.

Mark 15:40-47

Mark 15:40-47 

The Message 

  One thing to note here -- Pilate has the captain verify that Jesus is really dead.  There are some theories floating around that Jesus was only mostly dead, and that he was really just injured and someone broke him out of the tomb and he was really still alive.  First, note that the Romans were really, really good at killing people.  This wasn't something they would have been likely to mess up.  But even if they did, realize that people started proclaiming his resurrection within days.  Even if Jesus had survived the whippings and beatings and crucifixion, don't you think his broken and battered body would have been evidence that it was all a sham?  Wouldn't someone have noticed that perhaps he looked a little off?  Remember -- the disciples largely went to their deaths proclaiming that he was risen from the dead.  Do people die for a story they know isn't true?

  One other thought... we take for granted how broadly Jesus appealed to people.  His followers ranged from the poorest lepers in Jerusalem to Joseph of Arimathea, a highly respected member of the Jewish Council.  Jesus isn't for just the rich or just the poor -- he comes to us all, to save us and to challenge us and to re-make us, to orient us towards life and to surround us with mercy.  Jesus loves you, no matter what.  Transformed by God's love, Joseph lived expectantly on the lookout for the Kingdom of God.

  How can you and I live expectantly on the lookout for the Kingdom of God today?

Mark 15:31-39

Mark 15:31-39 

The Message 

  Jesus was constantly praying the Psalms, even here in his last breath, he cries out to echo Psalm 22, a Psalm of despair that ends in praise, for it anticipates the rescue of the Psalmist by God.  The coming rescue doesn't change the current despair of the Psalmist, and yet one can see the sliver of sunrise on the horizon even in the darkness of the night.  

  Towards the end of this passage, in the heartbreaking moment of Christ's death, we see the purpose of the death revealed.  The curtain in the temple had always been present to separate the Holy of Holies, the place where God resided, from the rest of the Temple, to protect people from being overwhelmed by the presence of God.  At the moment of Christ's death, when his sacrifice was complete to atone for human sin, the curtain is gone -- no longer is there a barrier between humanity and God, for Christ's sacrifice removes that, and we can approach God with confidence, trusting that we are received with the righteousness that Christ deserved, for our sin is cast away and we are made new through the sacrifice of Christ.  We are renewed and our hope is restored.

 

Sermon for March 7, 2021

Mark 15:21-30

Mark 15:21-30

The Message 

  The reason some things in the Gospels are so specific is so that if you had questions, you could go and ask.  When Mark refers to Simon from Cyrene, he adds the details about Simon having two children named Alexander and Rufus so that you could go talk to Simon and ask questions if you had doubts about the story.  If you were making something up, would you be so specific, or would you be vague, afraid that someone might check your story if you made it seem real?  

  The people stopped by to taunt Jesus, because they have short memories.  That's the only thing that allows us to ever look at the suffering of another person and not be compassionate -- we forget about our own suffering, or we forget that one day we, too, will suffer.  When people are young, they're often impatient  with the elderly, forgetting that one day they, too, will be elderly.  When people are older, they look at the young and wonder about how things have changed, forgetting that they, too, were once shaking things up.  Jesus was suffering, he was dying, and the crowds did not take compassion, thinking that one day they, too, would suffer and die.  They jeered, for in the moment, they were well and he was not.

  I have made many mistakes in my life, and I'm not finished with those.  I have been very sick at times, and I have needed much help then as well as in other times.  I'm guessing you have instances like this as well.  When we come across another who is suffering, either due to their own folly or due to chance, may we take compassion, remembering that none of us are immune from suffering.  May we be patient, just as Christ came and was patient with us, just as Christ came and suffered with us, suffered for us, for out of his suffering came hope, just as we can hold onto hope, often for and with one another, in the midst of whatever suffering comes our way.

Mark 15:6-20

Mark 15:6-20 

The Message 

  If you live your life for the approval of others, you'll end up disappointed.  

  What did Jesus do for people?  He literally healed the blind and sick and spent his life teaching people about how much God loved them.  In the end, they turned on him -- not because of who he was, but because he wasn't who they expected him to be.  He was perfect, but their expectations were wrong.  So they cried out for his crucifixion.

  If your measure of success if how well people like you, at some point, you'll find yourself in a place like this, thinking about how hard you tried to please everyone, and you'll end up let down, even if you did nothing wrong on your own.  People are complicated.  I'm complicated.  You're complicated.  The things we strive for on this earth, if they are not God, they'll let us down.

  However, the vision God paints in Scripture is that of a God who wants to fill us with peace and joy.  If we empty ourselves for God, God will fill us with grace and love.  Empty yourself for anything else, and it'll only demand more.  God, however, wants to come in to you and fill every nook and cranny of your life with himself, which will ultimately leave us more fulfilled than our minds can imagine.

  Every day, every moment is a choice.  What are we chasing?

March 2021 Newsletter Letter

Friends in Christ --  I've been watching a series on Netflix called Blown Away.  It's a competition among glass blowers where every episode is a 4-hour race to see which artist can create the most stunning and beautiful piece.  As someone with absolutely no artistic talent, I'm always impressed by talented artists, and the work these artists do is incredible.  Watching a talented artist at work is watching the end point of a long, long process.  They've put in countless hours, years, and decades to hone their craft.  No one comes in on day 1 and is a finished product.  They consult the muse and invest in the craft, growing in ability over time. 

  It's not unlike Christianity.  None of us are finished products, but we grow in faith over time.  From the beginning of our faith journey, we're called to put in the time, to invest in our faith, so that we grow as Christians, as disciples.  We're learning what God has in store for us, daily depending on God, and maturing as believers so that we can then teach younger Christians about our faith.  Lent is our faith life in miniature -- we start at Ash Wednesday and walk towards the cross, emerging on the other side of it as a people transformed. 

  I heard a thought from a colleague the other day that contemplated that perhaps the church's greatest strength is learning to sit with people in their pain.  It's really stuck with me.  As Christians, we have a fundamental hope that allows us to dwell in the most painful parts of life and trust that the end of a chapter is not the end of the story.  We can sit in those places and hold people where they are -- even at our lowest points, we know that God is there, that God comes to us, because God is unafraid of the messes of our lives.  I see such strength in the way that the people of Highlands love one another.  There's a tenderness and a willingness to embrace one another in the hard places.  I hope that others come to know the love that I've seen in our congregation, because it's the love of Christ, who comes to us and loves us as we are.  

  Friends, this Lent, on our journey to Easter, may we pay special attention to the people in our communities in pain, and may we be willing to sit with them in their pain.  We can't fix most things.  When we don't have words, we can sit in silence, bearing the light for one another, living witnesses to the unfathomable grace of Jesus Christ.  Thanks be to God.

Mark 15:1-5

Mark 15:1-5 

The Message 

  It is amusing to imagine them tying the Lord of Hosts, the One who tells the mountains where to ascend to the heavens and the trees how far to spread their leaves, and thinking that they had everything under control.  It'd be like taking sidewalk chalk onto the interstate and coloring a little stop sign on the roadbed.  Cars might stop there, but only because they choose  to -- it wouldn't be because your sign was so commanding.  In the same way, this rope didn't have any power over Jesus Christ, the One who will ride on the last day to liberate humanity from evil's last dying grasp.  It bound Jesus because he was willing to be bound by it, because he was willing to submit himself to what it meant, because he loved you enough to be bound.  That's the only reason the rope could hold him.  Pilate was impressed, maybe because he started to understand what true power really was.  Jesus Christ demonstrated power by a willingness to give up power, a power shown in perfect love.  

  Do you know that you are loved, perfectly?  

  No matter what happens in life, you are held in love and power, and nothing can take that from you.

Mark 14:66-72

Mark 14:66-72 

The Message 

  In isolation this scene, like any other sin, is heartbreaking.  We can look back at Peter's promises to never deny Jesus.  We can look back at all the warnings Jesus gave.  We can look back at so many things, but in the moment, Peter fails, and his failure is written across the pages of humanity.

  What's beautiful, however, is that Peter's failure doesn't get the last word.  Peter's failure is terrible, but this isn't where the story ends.  Jesus knew Peter would fail, and Jesus called him anyway.  Jesus knew Peter would fail, and Jesus sends Peter out afterwards anyway.  How much more able is Peter to tell people about a God who graciously forgives even the most grievous failure?  How much more in awe is Peter of a God who loves unconditionally? 

  Jesus knew you would fail, and created you just the same.  Jesus knew you would fail, and God loves you and redeems you just the same.  Jesus calls you and sends you, for your sin, no matter what it may be, isn't the end of the story.  Don't go convinced you've found a dead end -- Jesus brings life out of death, and can bring hope out of failure.

Sermon for February 28, 2021 -- John 8:12-20

Mark 14:61-65

Mark 14:62-65

The Message 

  There are people who say that Jesus is just a great teacher, and they ignore any aura of divinity around him.  However, that image sort of falls apart when you read all the words of Jesus.  In the midst of a trial that would decide whether he would die a painful and brutal death on a cross, he claimed to be the Son of God and that he would come again on the clouds of heaven, fulfilling the prophetic vision from the book of Daniel.  His words decided his fate, and he was sent to his death.

  Jesus could have denied everything.  He could have disappeared, slipping from their grasp.  He could have fled the scene, or blamed someone else.  Anything to escape crucifixion.

  Instead, he stayed and accepted the punishment for all of human sin.  He allowed that weight to be placed upon his shoulders, so you would not be burdened with it.  This Monday morning, may you enjoy the freedom and the hope you have in Christ, rejoicing with great joy for the fact that we can look forward in hope.