Christian Reflection and Prayer

Lent

THERE MUST BE SOME MISTAKE

Read Mark 8:31-33

"And Peter took Him aside and began to
rebuke Him." (Mark 8:32)

Reflection:

It was just a routine checkup and Ann
expected everything to be fine. She felt
good, was sleeping well, had plenty of
energy, she even had been losing weight
like she wanted. The doctor said she was
in perfect health but he wanted her to take
a routine test. She left his office in high
spirits. But when she phoned for the results
on Monday she felt like she'd been slapped
in the face- she had cancer.

Peter must have felt a similar shock when
Jesus said He "must suffer many things, be
rejected and be killed." He couldn't wrap his
mind around it. "Jesus will suffer and die?
There must be some mistake. Jesus is God's
Son, the promised Savior. He can't die! He
has to save us from the Romans." He turned
Jesus aside and started trying to straighten
Him out.

Peter must have been shocked and hurt when
Jesus turned and forcefully said, "Get behind
Me, Satan!" After all, he had only the best
intentions for Jesus.

But Jesus knows mankind's true enemies
are not political rulers like Tiberius Caesar,
but spiritual rulers like Satan, death and hell.
They must be defeated- and the only way to
defeat them is to walk the road of suffering
and death. Jesus' suffering is necessary- so
necessary He will permit nothing and no one
to stand in His way. Jesus is determined to
save us from our sins and win eternal life for
Peter, His disciples, and all people.

THE PRAYER:

Lord You showed such determination to
save us from our enemies. Give me such
determination to follow You in all circumstances.
Amen.

(Lutheran Hour Ministries)

Read Mark 8:29-31

Scripture:

"And He began to teach them that the
Son of Man must suffer many things."
(Mark 8:31)

Reflection:

What is your mission in life? What do you
think you were put here to do? Some of us
find it difficult to answer that question. But
for Jesus the answer is crystal clear. The
reason He became human and was born
into this world at Christmas was to suffer
and die for us.

At Christmas when you look down at that
baby lying in Bethlehem's manger, suffering
and death is the farthest thing from your
mind. But there are already hints about
where His life will lead. If He had not come
to suffer, then why was He lying in a feeding
trough when He should have been lying in a
soft crib? Why was He raised by a carpenter
as His foster-father when that meant He
would take up that trade and everything that
goes with it- the cuts and bruises, the
blisters and calluses?

If God's Son became human to share our
life- and to transform it for us- He had to
share all of it. Not the life of ease and luxury
that few enjoy, but the very opposite- the
worst experiences people have. He had to
know poverty, physical suffering, grief,
loneliness, abuse, ridicule, torture, rejection
and finally death. That was Jesus' mission-
to exchange His life for ours, to overcome
our suffering by His own suffering- and free
us from death by His own death.

And more than that- Jesus tells them the
end of the story- He will not remain dead.
In three days He will rise again.

THE PRAYER:

Lord Jesus, You did not hold Yourself
back from suffering, but sacrificed Your life
to save us all. Thank You for giving meaning
and a purpose to my life. Amen.

(Lutheran Hours Ministries)

"Repent, and believe the Good News"
(Mark. 1:15)

There's an amusing story of a farmer
who owned a very beautiful horse of which
he was very proud. One day he rode him
into town and carefully tied the animal to
the hitching post in front of the general
store. Two thieves, passing through the
town, spied the handsome horse and
decided to steal it. They also decided
on a clever strategy to carry out their
plan. One of them untied the horse and
rode swiftly away. The other remained
by the post. When the farmer emerged
from the store and saw that his horse
was gone, he was about to shout for
help when the conspirator walked up to
him. In a sad, low tone he said, "Sir,
I am your horse. Years ago I sinned,
and for my sins I was punished. I was
changed into a horse. Today my
sentence is over, and I can be released
if you will be so kind." The farmer was
dumbfounded, yet touched by the story.
So he sent the man away wishing him
luck in his new life. Several weeks later
the farmer went to a fair in a neighboring
town. Great was his surprise to see his
own horse for sale there. After gazing
long at the animal to make sure that his
eyes did not deceive him, he walked
over and whispered into the horse's ear,
"So -- I see you've sinned again!"

When we sin again, even though we
don't turn into a horse, our humanity is
diminished. And we are called to
repentance, which means to restore
our lost humanity -- to transform
ourselves into the fully human person
God wants us to be.

(Sunday Sermons on Line)