Words of Reflection
One of the most frustrating things to deal with in life is an incomplete story. It’s only human nature to want resolution, to see the tale brought to its conclusion so that the “open loops” in the narrative no longer take up emotional space in our lives.
The folks behind blockbuster movies and television shows understand this need well. A well-placed cliffhanger in a popular franchise ensures that folks will return to see how it plays out. Will the heroes emerge victorious? (most likely yes) Will the villains get their comeuppance? (it’s almost assured) Will the audiences be happy? (some will, some won’t) Will the studios make enough money to keep churning out more for years to come? (you can be sure of that)
This idea of an incomplete story figures into our Lenten journey as we shift from Saturday to Sunday. For six days of the week we are called to focus our attention on the passion of Jesus: his betrayal, arrest, torture, and death. We contemplate the cross and its meaning, along with our call to repentance and a deeper yielding of our lives to Christ. It is a needed time of reflection, but the tension of the unfinished story can rest heavy on our souls.
As we enter the “mini-Easters” of these Sundays during Lent, we are invited to remember the rest of what happened after Jesus died. We turn the page from the cross to the empty tomb and find the much-needed reminder that the story didn’t end on Calvary—it continued (and continues) on in the truth of a risen Savior who conquered the grave as a definitive victory over the one who tempted him in the wilderness. We may hold back a bit on a full-blown celebration of the resurrection until Easter, but we let the reality of it once again refresh our souls with the knowledge that sin and death did not have the last word.
Sunday is a glorious day to dwell in the fulness of all God has done, all God is doing, and all God will one day do.
Scripture for Meditation:
The Jews then responded to him, “What sign can you show us to prove your authority to do all this?”
Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”
They replied, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and you are going to raise it in three days?” But the temple he had spoken of was his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples recalled what he had said. Then they believed the scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.
—John 2:18-22 (NIV)
Song: Glorious Day
One day when heaven was filled with His praises
One day when sin was as black as could be
Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin
Dwelt among men my example is He
The Word became flesh
And the light shined among us
His glory revealedLiving He loved me dying He saved me
Buried He carried my sins far away
Rising He justified freely forever
One day He's coming
O glorious day (glorious day)One day they led Him up Calv'ry's mountain
One day they nailed Him to die on a tree
Suffering anguish despised and rejected
Bearing our sins my Redeemer is He
The hand that healed nations
Stretched out on a tree
And took the nails for meLiving He loved me dying He saved me
Buried He carried my sins far away
Rising He justified freely forever
One day He's coming
O glorious day (glorious day)One day the grave could conceal Him no longer
One day the stone rolled away from the door
Then He arose over death He had conquered
Now is ascended my Lord evermore
Death could not hold Him
The grave could not keep Him
From rising againLiving He loved me dying He saved me
Buried He carried my sins far away
Rising He justified freely forever
One day He's coming
O glorious day (glorious day)One day the trumpet will sound for His coming
One day the skies with His glories will shine
Wonderful day my beloved one bringing
My Savior Jesus is mineLiving He loved me dying He saved me
Buried He carried my sins far away
Rising He justified freely forever
One day He's coming
O glorious day (glorious day)
O glorious day
John Wilbur Chapman | Mark Hall | Michael Bleecker
© 2009 Curb Songs; Be Essential Songs; My Refuge Music
Questions for Contemplation:
As you make your way on this Lenten journey, are you finding ways to make Sundays different? What could you do, even today, to spend some intentional time in “the rest of the story?”
Can you think of hymns or songs that have been particularly meaningful for you in focusing on the resurrection of Jesus? What was particularly striking to you about those songs?
Even as we remember that the story of Jesus didn’t end at the cross, we also do well to remember that it didn’t end at the empty tomb either. In what ways does anticipating the return of Jesus and the culmination of the Kingdom story impact our “mini-Easters?”