Mark Chapter 15

Together with chapter 16, these events are the most important in all of human history.

"Very early in the morning..." Timing is everything. Of course, it's not normal for someone to be on trial all night, but the Jewish leaders are in a hurry. This needs to be done before Passover. How ironic that God Himself will be killed promptly so that the celebration of His rescue of His people won't be tainted by a public execution. Passover is also on Saturday, the Sabbath day of rest, the day God rested from his work of creation. Do you see the irony here? Jesus will breathe his last breath on the cross on Friday and say, just as He did after 6 days of creation, "It is finished." The world will be made again. He will rescue his people from slavery...again. Jesus chooses the exact time and place of his crucifixion, with layer upon layer of meaning.

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Jesus cries out in agony...but there is more. Jesus takes the sin of the world upon himself and his Father turns away from him...but there is more. Even at this moment--perhaps especially at this moment--Jesus chooses his words carefully. He is quoting Psalm 22, perhaps the most powerful prophecy of the crucifixion in all of the Old Testament. It describes in great detail the events of the crucifixion, hundreds of years before the fact and prior to the invention of crucifixion as a form of capital punishment. More importantly, it also describes resurrection. Psalm 22 begins in agony, but ends in victory. Jesus is predicting his resurrection, and this fact is certainly not lost on the people most familiar with the Old Testament: the Jewish council and the Pharisees. Even as he's hanging there on the verge of death, Jesus is saying to them, "This isn't over. Remember the rest of Psalm 22?"

For he has not despised or scorned the suffering of the afflicted one;
he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.

From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly;
before those who fear you I will fulfill my vows.

The poor will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the LORD will praise him—
may your hearts live forever!

All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD,
and all the families of the nations will bow down before him,
for dominion belongs to the LORD and he rules over the nations.

All the rich of the earth will feast and worship;
all who go down to the dust will kneel before him—
those who cannot keep themselves alive.

Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord.

They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn:

He has done it!

Read Through Mark Begins March 23

Have you ever been to a party where you didn't really know the guest of honor? It can be sort of awkward, right? We like the party, but the depth of celebration is limited by our knowledge of the one being celebrated. Easter tends to be like that too. For some of us, our knowledge of the Risen Jesus deepens our celebration on that day. We realize that Easter is about much more than one Sunday a year - it's about a daily celebration of a Savior that has given us new life here and now. For some of us though, we don't have that level of knowledge so Easter can tend to be just one other "church thing." This year, we want to help you deepen your celebration.

This spring, we are corporately reading through the Gospel of Mark. Beginning on Monday, March 23, we will begin reading one chapter per day. As you read this account of Jesus' life, death and resurrection, we believe that your celebration will be more meaningful this year than maybe any year before. Cameron and Brad will blog here to discuss each of the daily readings. You can subscribe to this site to receive the daily posts by email, also.

So...read along with us. It's going to be a great ride.

If you haven't listened to our launch message for the new series and the daily readings, go HERE and do that first!

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN STUDYING THE BIBLE AND READING THE BIBLE

Great Day...Great Holiday!

What a weekend. Easter Sunday on March 23...can't say I'm a fan of the early date. In case some of you don't know how Easter is determined, here is a little trivia for you: Easter is always the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox, which is March 20. The Hebrew calendar is lunar and the date identifies with Passover. On our Roman calendar it hops around. This Easter was the earliest that any of us will ever see for the rest of our lives. The next time it will occur this early is 2228, and unless anyone is planning on hanging around this planet for another 220 years, it ain't happening!

Okay, enough trivia. It would be great to get feedback from you regarding a couple of things. How did the 21 Day Journey through the book of John go for you? Did you make it? Did you enjoy it? Would you be up to doing something like that again?

Also, one thing I realized this weekend is that we are not prone to traditions as a family. According to studies of my generation and younger, we are not alone. Would those of you who have Easter traditions be willing to share some of your traditions with us?

School's back and we are in full swing again. We posted the drawings from the kids on our site, so go check them out.