A lot of ministries and businesses begin all starry-eyed with the vision of what they could become. Tons of energy gets poured into these ventures, often led by visionaries who see ten years into the future (with not one obstacle or problem considered). These projects get off the ground with fervency and passion and single-eyed direction. What is often neglected is the reality that the energy and passion to launch is not necessarily sustainable. Not all goes according to plan, workers grow weary, and soon there is the oft-experienced phenomenon called mission drift; barely perceivable at the beginning, but as years go by, the slippage becomes a project-wide irritation, feelings get hurt, objections arise and the discovery is made that the whole thing has come off the rails.
The religious rigidity of the Pharisees and Sadducees may have been like that. Not an intended destination, but slowly, over centuries, traditions became sacred, building up like barnacles on a boat. Enforcing these manmade laws gradually took precedence over the intent of the Scriptures. And finally, God Himself, in Jesus, could not make His message heard or understood. Even the temple in Jerusalem was not spared. It had become, in Jesus’ words, a marketplace and a den of thieves, with animals for sale and moneychangers cheating those who came to sacrifice. Jesus’ fury at this sacrilege was evident as he drove all this commerce out of His Father’s house.
It’s his final week. He has just days to accomplish his mission as a spiritual darkness settles over the city. The rejection of his person and message are almost complete. Even now, at this late hour, his own disciples are frustratingly filled with misunderstanding and thickheadedness. Still, there is work to be done, teachings to give, and a terrible loneliness and inexpressible horror to face.
I’m struck by the phrase in Hebrews 12: ‘for the joy set before him‘ (that’s us, his joy!) We were his motivation when he was being crucified. Knowing we would be his, buoyed his determination. His church would rise as the New Covenant in his blood. The next phase of God’s Plan ‘A’ would be an explosive multiplication of believers in the Resurrected Jesus (we are a part of that ongoing Plan in 2025). If you’re reading this, you are most likely a part of this expansion of God’s Kingdom. Oh! The lengths Jesus went to, to redeem us and have us for his own.
As we continue to walk through this Holy Week, may the truth blossom in us to a fuller faith, to a richer communion, to a tighter fellowship with Jesus – and his church! PD
