billhayes

Christ took the elements of the Jewish Passover meal -- the bread and the cup -- and changed their meaning. For practicing Jews the bread and cup were meant to remind them of God saving them in Egypt. Jesus took the same bread and cup and said they now could be used to remind us of the ultimate saving act of God --- Jesus' body broken and blood shed on the cross for out salvation.

Christ has power over all other spiritual beings -- and is equal to God. It is important all other powers are under His power. His power is supreme. This is the power we have as we do God's work and will in the world.

At the first Passover, the blood of the lamb was put on the doorpost of the houses of the Hebrews -- and the Angel of Death "passed over" those houses. Jesus want to make sure the disciples -- and we -- realise that His death was going to atone for our sins -- and the Angel of Death would --- as it were -- "pass over" us because of what Christ has done. We are free to new life through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Paul prays the the Church at Ephesus would realise the power it has. This is the power of the risen Christ -- the power that the Holy Spirit gives us to reach out to those in need and make a differnece in out hurting world. May we all see - understand -- and use this great power we have as the Body o Christ reaching out into the world with His love and His grace.

Christ -- by His death on the cross -- truly paid the price for sin and set free those who believe in Him. We are no longer slaves to sin -- but now can live the new life in Christ. The Holy Spirit is needed to help us remain in that new life Christ calls us to -- and frees us for. Paul addresses this in Romans 6 -- calling on believers to live the new life Christ has freed them to live instead of going back to the old life of slavery to sin. Even though I know Christ has saved me from the "old life" of slavery to sin, I truly need the Holy Spirit to help me live in the "new life" instead of going back to the old ways.

For me, the passage where Jesus washes the Disciples feet sums up servanthhod. Jesus tells them He has come to serve. This sums up the concepts from Isaiah 53 for me.

Jesus died for my sins. He was my substitute on the cross -- dieing for my sins. He -- who was sinless -- died for me -- the sinner. 1 Joh 4:10 says "AND THIS IS LOVE, NOT THAT WE LOVED GOD BUT THAT HE LOVED US, AND SENT HIS SON TO BE AN ATONING SACRAFICE FOR OUR SINS." I like to substitute "MY SINS" for "OUR SINS". It helps me remember that it was for me He died. At our Church on Good Friday we have a special service that concludes with each worshipper driving a nail into a wooden cross. This is a powerful reminder that Jesus died for each of us!

In the Old Testament the idea of the Day of Atonement was that one day a year the people would place their hands upon a lamb -- then release it into the wilderness. God ordained this to show that the lamb would take the sins of the people. Really, all animal sacrafice was a form of substitutionary atonement. The animals had not sinned -- but took the place of the people who had and were making the sacracfice. (The story of Abraham, Isaac, and the ram is a great illustration of God providing the sacrafice for our sins). Isaiah alludes to Substitutionary Atonement. This is truly what happened with Christ -- Christ died -- not for His sins -- but ours. He was a substitute -- taking our place -- receivingthe punishment -- for our sins.

Jesus clearly saw Him mission and work in the the world in terms of Isaiah's vision of the Lamb of God. The most compelling passages for me are the Last Supper passages -- particularly Matthew 26:26-29, Mark 14:22-25, and Luke 22:14-23. Luke 22:24-27 is an example of how Christ saw Himself as a servant, but the clearest example of this comes from John 13:1-20 -- Jesus washing the Disciples feet -- then explaining that action in terms of servanthood. The more I look at these passages, the more amazed I am at the saracficial nature of God -- giving of Himself -- dieing for our salvation -- then rising again for our life -- here and ever after.

A blessed Easter to all! I had emergency gall bladder surgery this week, so I am having to stay away from Church today -- but I still celebrate the Reussurection of The Lord. Isaiah 52-53 is pretty clear -- "The Lamb" will die for the sins of "many nations" -- even "for all". This does not mean that everyone will be saved -- but that Jesus' sacrafice makes it available to all. It's up to each individual to decide if they are going to accept the saving work of Christ for themselves -- and truly begin to follow Christ. I heard a story of a Presbyterian minister being examined as he was coming into a Presbytery. This fellow had lived the life of an alcholholic before turhing his life over to God and going into the ministry. He had attended a Seminary that some thought to be very liberal. Some were afraid he would teach that all would be saved. On the floor of Presbytery he was asked if he believed that all would be saved. He replied "Well -- I believe that if God can save someone like me -- he can save just about anybody else." That's the way I feel about it -- if God can save me, God can save anyone -- if they will let Him! Peae! Bill Hayes

I'm new with these studies -- but have been an ordained Presbyterian minister for 20 years. That doesn't mean I know everything -- I am still learning and opening myself up to God's direction and knowledge of God's word and will. I look forward to learning from God and from each of you! I believe that we can know that John was referring to animal sacrafice when he called Jesus "the Lamb of God" because -- being raised in a Priest's family (although we do not know how long Zehcariah lived after John was born) he would have known the Hebrew tradition of animal sacrafice, the OT laws concerning the animals to sacrafice, etc. By divine revelation he knew that someone was coming who would be God's answer to our sins. Even in ELizabeth's womb he knew who Jesus was (Luke 2:41) -- so as an adult told others who Jesus was -- "the La,b of God who takes away the sins of the world" -- God's perfect sacrafical answer -- to our sin -- and the only way real answer to our sins. The comprehensive "sins of the world" is a radical concept in that, for other religions, salvation is only individual -- each individual has to "do something" to obtain salvation. For Christians, salvation comes because of our belief in what Christ has done for us. I like what the author Frederick Buechner says about this: "There is nothing you have to do. There is NOTHING you have to do. There is nothing YOU have to do. There is nothing you HAVE to do. There is nothing you have to DO." THanks be to God -- who give us the victory throug our Lord Jesus Christ!