Leaning Into Lent | Week 6 | Holy Week - Wednesday (4-1-26)

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:08

Welcome back. It is Wednesday of Holy Week. Thank you for joining us for our Linton Devotions. I'm going to thank Pastor Mike again for joining me and Pastor Sarah as well. It is a different kind of structure during this week on Monday. We use the lectionary text that were the daily lectionary texts for Monday. So as opposed to going Old Testament, New Testament, uh gospel lesson like we did the first five weeks, dear Holy Week, we're really um looking from a uh kind of a broader view and then kind of honing in on a couple of different things, helping us to hear the uh the stories moving us towards uh Good Friday and then uh Easter. And so today's texts come to us from Isaiah 50, uh, four through nine A, which is a weird thing the lectionary does. If you don't ever understand why is there a letter there, it's because it's like, you know what, we're gonna stop halfway through this verse. Um and so it's four through nine A. Don't read ahead to B. Um, but uh you can't you don't you can keep reading as much of the Bible as you want, which is not far a lecturing text. So uh Hebrews 12, 1 through 3, um, and then uh John 13, 21 through 32. Um, and so for as as we continue on as you move in, um, I thought I would just only have three verses, I am gonna read the Hebrews 12, 1 through 3, and then we can just kind of talk by all of it because I kind of feel like these two the Hebrew text in a way kind of connects the two pieces. So, or I guess connects the third diesis. Uh therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the cross was set before him, uh that was set before him, endured the cross. I messar, for the sake of the joy that was set before him endure the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endures such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. Thus ends the reading of the lectionary for uh uh the New Testament lesson for Wednesday. But let's talk about all of them. Um start wherever you want. But what has struck you from these passages this morning, and uh what did you want to highlight?

SPEAKER_02 2:35

For me, the Isaiah 50 passage is really talking about trusting in the Lord and the way Isaiah uses Lord, he uses Lord a lot as he refers to Yahweh, our God the Father. Um, Jesus Christ the Savior is not known at this time. So all reference to the Lord is Yahweh. Uh, trusting uh talks about uh how God will help overcome, uh combat the accusers and those that are against uh the writer, and just that holy trust in uh God the Creator. Uh when we move into the newer passage there with Hebrews, uh it becomes faith, a little change, uh a little different kind of kernel uh from trust to faith. Um and then you get into the actual savior part. And uh that's powerful.

SPEAKER_01 3:36

Yeah, I I like this uh idea. So uh the there's this great cod of witnesses, EC Hebrews talks about, and so and and then it leads into this idea of perseverance, which is what you were just saying in Isaiah, it talks about you know those people that are coming up against you. And so you've got uh this witness or this this uh concept that in the great cod of witnesses, all those who are filmed before us, uh, you have something in common with them. They too had to persevere. Isaiah, the person who um Isaiah is speaking to um the the the Israelites, the the people and Jesus is the archetype of it all. Jesus had to endure the cross, which is the ultimate form of personary, the ultimate form of like doing some, doing hard things. And it's it's almost like on Wednesday, what I hear is uh, you are about to do something hard, but you can do it. Christ did it, Christ endured the hardest things, Christ is with you. And so uh God from Isaiah um through John and Hebrews, it is with all the people, with all of us, helping us endure through perseverance. And Jesus is the, I love this term, pioneer and perfecter. Yeah. He's the one who did the endurance in the way that no one had died before. So he's the person to show us how to that he defeated death. He pioneered this whole defeating death thing and he perfected it. So if we lean on Christ, we trust in Christ, if Christ is in us, all the things we say, then we too can overcome whatever these battles within us are. Um, whether they are known things that are coming up against us or unknown things, whether they're self-inflicted or external pressures, um, that whatever we need, the perseverance we need, Christ pioneered in credit as a weekend too. We can be a part of that with Christ.

SPEAKER_00 5:19

Yeah. So surely Hebrews, uh, the passage from Hebrews is a really famous passage for of encouragement, I think. I I think it's one of those that you'd probably see on a wooden sign in Hobby Lobby, probably. Um, but you know, encouragement to live your faith and to view your faith as a as a marathon instead of a sprint. Um, which I remember you've talked about before because you've talked about have you've done marathons before. Um I did. Anything worse, don't you? And I won't run for anything. I'll say what my husband says. If I'm running, you should run too because something's chasing me. Um that's the only time I will ever run.

SPEAKER_01 5:56

Um, but my new philosophy is if I'm gonna end up where I started, I'm just not gonna leave.

SPEAKER_00 6:00

Right. I like that too. Um, but yeah, it just it requires endurance and it requires focus, not just like pure speed. Um, and not just like tanking your way through. Um and that, you know, like an actual marathon, so I've heard. Um, there's a reason for it. It's not just because that's what it says to do, but it helps to prevent you from becoming burnt out or weary or faint-hearted by just again reflecting on Jesus' own suffering and Jesus' own perseverance, and then realizing, oh, that that that's all he's asking of us too. Which sounds like kind of a big ask, but it's not really with with practice.

SPEAKER_02 6:40

Joy is an interesting word there in verse two. Uh my translation says, for the joy set before him, he endured the cross.

SPEAKER_01 6:50

That's a weird line.

SPEAKER_02 6:51

As if to say, you know, he knew what was on the other side, maybe, you know. And that uh he knew physical, you know, just breakdown totally of the physical body didn't compare to what's coming. And uh I'd written a little note at the at the very end of the passage, keep the faith. Don't lose heart. Keep the faith.

SPEAKER_01 7:18

Um, as uh turn my attention to the John passage, again, as we said on Monday, John tells the story differently than other people do. And that's one of his uh one of the unique features. The other ones are actually called the synaphic gospels because they have so much in common, but I think Mark and Luke. I forgot that John's passage Jesus hands Judas to Brad, which is very different than being like as we're hanging out then, hey, just like oh no, one of y'all is gonna betray me. And everybody's like, oh, who is it? Who is it? This time, Jesus is it's it's like he just um confronts the the conflict at all. And it this is what he says. Um and so while reclining next to Jesus, he asked him, Lord, who is it? Uh Jesus answered, It's the one who I give this piece of bread when I've dipped it in the dish. So when he had dipped the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. And after he received the piece of bread, Satan entered it to him. Jesus said to him, Do quickly what you're going to do. Now, there are a lot of theological directions I could take this passage because it just it it is a like like this whole concept of of Satan entering Judas after Jesus gave him the bread and wasn't even there before because he was saying really mean things on Monday, right? But just the the idea of of how Jesus identifies Judas in this John passage is so almost uh visceral, it's so uh uh heavy and like it being in that room. It'd be one thing if you're just like talking, talking, talking, talking, talking, and all of a sudden you see Judas tip his hand in there with Judas, Jesus, and everybody pauses, right, and looks like but this one Jesus like looks him right in the eye and is like it's you, dude. You're the one.

SPEAKER_00 9:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 9:04

And Judas took the cue, this is my time.

SPEAKER_01 9:11

Also at the very end of that passage, after receiving a piece of bread, he immediately went out and it was night. Like now, I know there were not subsections and headings when they were John wrote the ver Bible, but they were not chapters and verses, right? But I like how the um the translators for this version of the Bible clambring just stops this section there and it goes, then moves into the new commandment at verse 31. It's like the and it was night. It's like this really heavy ending to the scene. Like, all right, there will not be daylight again until Easter, right? If it was night, and there's this weight and this heaviness that comes on this Wednesday night of reading. Like, all right, tomorrow is Monday, Thursday, then it's gonna Friday, good day's night. What else? Whether it's from Isaiah or Hebrews, we got on him.

SPEAKER_00 10:03

I find it interesting in John that Judas asks, Who's going to betray you? And then Jesus says, the one who I give this to, and then he gives it to him. And then the disciples are like, What's happening? Like, is it not obvious? He just said, Yeah. But they're they're just they're sitting there wondering, like, oh, is did he do it because he needs him to go get something? Did he say that because like why is he saying that to him? I don't know if it's they were in disbelief that it could be him, or if they were actually just confused or not paying attention or something. But it is interesting to me that that's that's their initial reaction. And they're not just like, oh, you, you're the one.

SPEAKER_01 10:39

Well, and one level of like uh symbolic appreciation that I probably lack um or my directness as just a human being, is whenever he's asked, so who's it gonna be? Like why can't do the it's just my years.

SPEAKER_00 10:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 10:53

But the one, I want to dip my bread, uh, I want to give the bread to it's like obviously there's some deeper meaning there that John is conveying that I don't don't fully appreciate. And maybe I did learn in seminary or at some other point, meaning one of you two can bring me up to speed. But to me, it was like, can you just say like do this? That one. You anything else? That'd be a weird place to leave it.

SPEAKER_02 11:19

Say something else. Let's move past the night. Then the next verse there in uh 3132. Interesting passage there. Jesus says, Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in him. It's like that final step is taken, that final flip of the switch. Uh I think of it like a conduit, a pipe that uh connects the two, Father and Son perfectly. Now Jesus knows that uh the reason for his coming is about to be fulfilled, and it's now his just to take the steps forward. He's already aligned with the Father's will.

SPEAKER_01 12:01

And Sam, we were talking about storytelling earlier in John, and you can tell too, this is like a transition scene. It's like when the narrator comes back into the movie after a heavy ending or a heavy something happens, and we're moving into this next, all right, we're moving to the passion narrative now. It's like John is like he's putting the button on the last part and saying, All right, this is the Yoni Red. Yeah, this is it right here. And he's really John's like holding us as the reader and like carrying us into this, okay. It's how to move is to this big part. Jesus gets glorified.

SPEAKER_00 12:32

I think that and it was night part is a big part of that. Because you read it is night and you're like, okay, here we go.

SPEAKER_01 12:40

All right. Well, speaking of, it's okay if it's a little heady because it is. I didn't know this. Um, this has this have you heard this is tradition called Spy Wednesday? Never heard of that. Me either. I'm gonna I'm gonna pick it up and start calling that. You need a conversation on Spy Wednesday and Monet Thursday and good. Could add another title there. Yeah, no. I don't know if that's real or not, but uh sorry that I read that somewhere. Um, I uh would love uh Pastor Mike to end us in a word of prayer. I would certainly love to.

SPEAKER_02 13:10

Let's pray. Father, we're grateful to sit before you this morning to proclaim you as our our Lord Jesus Christ, our Savior. Thank you for your holy word and for the richness of uh faith that you give us to your son. Thank you for the opportunity to share together and to share with our church community. You are a loving God, and we are so appreciative and love you so much. Lead us now as we continue the steps of holy week in Jesus' name.

unknown 13:43

Amen.

SPEAKER_02 13:44

Amen.

SPEAKER_01 13:45

All right, thank you all. Um, we'll see you tomorrow night for worship, and then we'll see you Friday morning and then Friday night for worship, uh, Friday morning for devotion and a Friday night for worship. So I thank God for be with us.