Resurrection is God’s YES to the New Covenant of Jesus (Easter)

Easter is a joyous celebration of God intervening dramatically in human history. The Bible is the long history of God reaching out to people to have a holy love relationship with them. There is joy and chaos as the Apostles try to understand what is going on. They were obviously confused. We need to understand that this is a real, historical event before we can go on to understand what it means for us and our own Baptismal Covenant.

1. Was Jesus really dead and did this really happen?

Jesus is the Lord of a New Covenant (Palm Sunday)

The readings are preparing us for the Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and the Easter Experience. The Readings remind us that Jesus had great courage in facing opposition, modelled humility and obedience and made a New Covenant of forgiveness with believers. This New Covenant includes the Ten Commandments but adds the possibility of forgiveness through repentance and faith in the shed blood of Jesus. The Readings help us understand that Jesus is more than a teacher of goodness. Jesus is the Lord of a New Covenant relationship with God. As we prepare ourselves for the Easter experience it is a good time to examine our lives for evidence of humility and obedience to our half of this New Covenant – which is our Baptismal Covenant.

1. Have you “set your face like flint”?

What is the Goal of your Life? (Lent 5)

Children ask us all the important questions. My daughter Mary for example asked me “What percent of people are happy in their work?” I told her I had no idea but would guess that less than half the population are happy, enjoy what they are doing and feel their lives have meaning and purpose. Most people seem to just drift through life without ever really thinking about where they are going. If you do not have a goal, any road will take you there. This is why one of author Stephen Covey’s “Seven habits of successful people” is being proactive. Being proactive means consciously deciding on a goal and then focussing your actions on achieving that goal.

1. Paul is urging the Phillipians to focus on the right goal