40 Days of Lent 2015

Be An Interrupter

ReRead:  John 12:9-11

Tuesday 3/24/15   Day 30  

Ponder:  Influencial people are interrupters.  They cause a “stir” people notice.  Raising Lazarus brought influence to not only Jesus but also Lazarus.  Lazarus cannot keep his mouth shut; he has to tell others about what Jesus did for him.  He has to tell others Jesus is his Messiah…THE MESSIAH.  Lazarus was dead, and now he is alive.  Humanity, apart from the work of Messiah, is dead in sin.  We need a resurrection to be spiritually alive to God; believe in the work that Jesus did to make us right with God.  If Messiah has raised you out of spiritual death into eternal life, like Lazarus are you able to keep your mouth shut?  

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Be An Interrupter

ReRead: John 12:7-8

Monday 3/23/15   Day 29

Ponder: Mary’s extravagant exaltation and worship of Jesus caused such an interruption it made human flesh scramble to feel equal with God. Judas, nudged by Satan, diverts the attention off from Jesus and onto humanity. The holiness and omnipotence of God is minimizing to sinful human flesh, and we don’t like how it makes us feel, do we?

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Be An Interrupter

ReRead:   John 12:4-6

Saturday 3/21/15   Day 28

Ponder:  Have you ever found yourself close to God, enjoying a time of worship, and your expression of praise and worship upset someone else around you? Religion loves conformity doesn’t it?  Seems like there’s always a Judas around trying to hijack our authentic and unique worship. Mary is seeking to bring glory to God in a simple way; the only way she knows how in a moment.  This woman is not a prominant person in the community, she is a simple woman who loves Jesus and demonstrates it in extravagant ways.  Judas, the betrayer of Christ, throws his opinions out on the worship floor hoping to sound more spiritual and wiser.  He says, “Why was this perfurme not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?”  He is wise as a serpent, because all he wants is to take care of his needs and image; he cares nothing about exalting the Messiah or loving the poor.  He’s a thief.

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Be An Interrupter

ReRead:   John 12:3

Friday 3/20/15   Day 27

Ponder:   Certain scents can attract us or repel us.  I really enjoy the soft and subtle scent of certain perfumes.  It’s pleasant for me.   Jesus is enjoying his friends, but getting ready to make his final journey to Jerusalem where he will be crucified.  Mary is worshiping at the feet of Jesus; it is her favorite place when Christ is with them.  She values Jesus and his teaching and spares no cost to communicate it to him.  Mary interrupts Jesus and the evening festivities by taking a pound of costly perfume (used to anoint for burial), extravagantly pours it on Jesus, and wipes his feet with her hair.  Jesus, Mary, and the home smell like perfume.

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Be An Interrupter

Read:   John 12:1-11

Thursday 3/19/15   Day 26

It was six days before the Passover; Jesus stopped by the house of some dear friends to share a meal and visit.  Lazarus, Martha, and Mary always made a place for Jesus in their home. They all had a story about Christ’s love for them.  Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead; that’s a pretty amazing story! Martha was a great cook and host, so every time Jesus returns he appreciates Martha.  What about Mary? Mary has been set free from a life ignorant to sin.  She is a learner and worshiper; she sits at the feet of Jesus. All three of these friends of Christ, love being with Him.  Here’s the Good News: Jesus loves being with them, too. The relationship is reciprocal. 

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Jesus, the Interrupter

ReRead:  John 4:19-23

Wednesday 3/18/15   Day 25  

Ponder:  This woman recognizes her encounter at the well is with a prophet; this man seems to speak on behalf of God.  Interestingly, this woman seems to focus on what has religiously divided the Jews and the Samaritans rather than focus on Who or what connects them.  Notice here that Jesus does not enter the religious debate.  Instead, Jesus draws attention to what God desires and requires: those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in Truth.  What is spirit and Truth?  

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Jesus, The Interrupter

Monday 3/16/15   Day 23

ReRead: John 4:13-15

Ponder: Water is necessary for our physical bodies; we must drink water for our bodies to function properly.  Water flushes out toxins, provides fuel for our muscles, helps us to stay mentally focused, and much more. We also need spiritual water.  Jesus, the Interrupter brings “a spring welling up to eternal life” that is necessary for flushing out lies, providing fuel for our mission, and helping us stay faithful in the difficult places of life.  Are you drinking from the well of eternal life?

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Jesus, The Interrupter 

ReRead:  John 4:16-18

Tuesday 3/17/15   Day 24  

Ponder:  The woman at the well found that Jesus interrupted her ideas of what constituted her worth and value.  It was not her husband who made her valuable; it was not the five husbands she had or the man she was living with at the time who made her valuable. None of them were able to communicate her value to her. Jesus came to the well to interrupt her life and to help her see how much she was loved for who she was to God; to see herself anew.  Do you need to know you are valuable to God not because of what you do or don’t do, who you know or don’t know,  but just because you are His lovely and treasured creation?

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Jesus, the Interrupter

ReRead:   John 4:9-10

Saturday 3/14/15   Day 22

Ponder:  Jesus is a pro at answering a question by requesting an action that interrupts the human status quo. This surprised woman responds to Jesus’ request with a question.  His request makes her head spin; he is asking her to break the cultural rules and serve him. At this moment, the woman merely sees a Jewish man not the Messiah and Lover of her soul. I can just hear the calmness is the voice of Jesus saying, “Daughter, if you only knew who I Am and the riches of heaven at my command, then you would ask me to bring great and satisfying things into your life.” Why doesn’t Jesus just tell her who he is from the start?

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Jesus, the Interrupter

ReRead:   John 4:7-8

Friday 3/13/15   Day 21

Ponder:  Jesus says to this Samaritan woman, “Give me a drink.”  He is alone because the disciples have gone into the village to buy food. Jesus breaks the rules or “norms” of Jewish culture; Messiah speaks with a woman in public, engages in coversation with a Samaritan (Samaritans are dispised by Jews), and asks her for a drink from her jar which would make him ceremonially unclean by Jewish Law.  Have you ever noticed Jesus is indifferent to cultural “norms?” 

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