S - John 19:31-37 (NIV): "Now it was the
day of Preparation, and the next day was to be a special Sabbath. Because the
Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked
Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. The soldiers
therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with
Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that
he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers
pierced Jesus' side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.
The man who saw it has given testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows
that he tells the truth, and he testifies so that you also may believe. These
things happened so that the scripture would be fulfilled: "Not one of his
bones will be broken," and, as another scripture says, "They will
look on the one they have pierced.""
O - The events of Jesus' trial, torture,
execution and burial are framed by the Scriptures and the religion of the day.
The religion of the first century allowed its leaders to condemn an innocent
man, pressure the government for his unjust execution, claim the authority of
the Scriptures while violating them and yet "keep the sabbath". Jesus
refused to accept the Sabbath of religion and died as he lived … keeping and
fulfilling the Scriptures.
A - Jesus would not have consistently warned his
followers to be on guard against the yeast of the Pharisees if there was little
or no actual danger to us from it. This
sad combination of using the words of Scripture while refusing their meaning is
always a possibility for me and for all. The Scriptures will be fulfilled,
the question is will I be included or excluded at the conclusion? The primary purpose of the Scriptures is to
testify to Jesus and the second use is for me to assess my own life. They were not given to us so we could justify
our lives and culture but rather that we would welcome a rectifying of our
lives and culture by believing them and yielding to the transforming work of
the Spirit. Today, I am to remove the
beam from my own eye, accept the new wineskins being offered and do the work of
believing.
P - Lord who is life,
Today I admit my susceptibility to the yeast
of the Pharisees. I want your word, the Scriptures, to handle me … not just me
handling them. I ask for my vision and
my life to be enabled according to your will on earth like it happens in
heaven. Today, I am little and weak and on my best day I admit I only see through
a dark glass dimly. Please undo and remove from me the yeast of the Pharisees
and bring into my life the yeast of your kingdom … unto the transformation of
the entire batch called Steve. Lord, I do love you back. Thank you for wanting
me near, for inviting me to work with you and to live in you. My answer to you is yes!
Steve
