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Lent 2009


Be Not Too Hasty

By Mark Beasley
Friday, April 3, 2009
Scripture Verses
 Zechariah 12:10-13:6 (NIV)

10 "And I will pour out on the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem a spirit [a] of grace and supplication. They will look on [b] me, the one they have pierced, and they will mourn for him as one mourns for an only child, and grieve bitterly for him as one grieves for a firstborn son. 11 On that day the weeping in Jerusalem will be great, like the weeping of Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo. 12 The land will mourn, each clan by itself, with their wives by themselves: the clan of the house of David and their wives, the clan of the house of Nathan and their wives, 13 the clan of the house of Levi and their wives, the clan of Shimei and their wives, 14 and all the rest of the clans and their wives.

Zechariah 13
1 "On that day a fountain will be opened to the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to cleanse them from sin and impurity.

2 "On that day, I will banish the names of the idols from the land, and they will be remembered no more," declares the LORD Almighty. "I will remove both the prophets and the spirit of impurity from the land. 3 And if anyone still prophesies, his father and mother, to whom he was born, will say to him, 'You must die, because you have told lies in the LORD's name.' When he prophesies, his own parents will stab him.

4 "On that day every prophet will be ashamed of his prophetic vision. He will not put on a prophet's garment of hair in order to deceive. 5 He will say, 'I am not a prophet. I am a farmer; the land has been my livelihood since my youth. [c] ' 6 If someone asks him, 'What are these wounds on your body [d] ?' he will answer, 'The wounds I was given at the house of my friends.'

Devotion
Perhaps most people can recall a trip or a journey of some sort.  It may have been a business trip, or maybe it was a family vacation.  For our family, a vacation drive from Indiana to Florida has typically been filled with anticipation.  We can barely contain our excitement about the upcoming activities once we arrive!  However, in our excitement to reach our destination, we have often missed valuable opportunities for growth and sharing during the drive – opportunities that no doubt would have enhanced the trip even more, and perhaps might have had an impression lasting beyond the trip itself.  Sharing with each other – confiding hopes and dreams and doubts and fears – offers us the chance to grow closer to each other.  It also reminds us of the family love that we share: the love that connects us.

As we experience this Lenten season and approach the joy of Resurrection Sunday, let us not be too hasty in our journey – too hasty to miss the grieving and weeping that accompanied Jesus’ death.

Jesus was mocked.

He was spit upon.

He was beaten severely.

And then He was painfully executed.

We cannot celebrate a King’s resurrection without first grieving over a Savior’s sacrifice for us.  We ourselves should not be too busy, nor too proud, nor to hasty for Easter’s arrival to miss the opportunity, as the prophet Zechariah wrote, to “grieve bitterly” and mourn for “the one they have pierced.”  Jesus’ resurrection, and consequently our salvation, is nothing if not for the supreme sacrifice He made for you and for me.

Prayer
Father in Heaven, I thank you for the blessings of this day.  Help me to be mindful, particularly during this Lenten season, of the love you have for us through your son Jesus’ death for me and for my sins.  Holy Spirit, fill my heart with gratitude this day as I seek opportunities to serve you.  In Christ Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.