FRIARPUK'S POSTINGS: March 2018

1 Corinthians 15:1–11 (ESV) Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

In our culture most refer to the period of Good Friday to Easter Monday as the Easter weekend. However, Easter began today and continues for seven weeks right through to Pentecost Sunday.

But because most of us get caught up in the idea of Easter being a four day weekend there is one day¬—a very important day—that seems to be lost on us.

Ask most what the day is called between Good Friday and Easter Sunday and without hesitation most call it Easter Saturday. But in fact it is Holy Saturday, whereas Easter Saturday is to fall in six days time.

Although this needs to be mentioned here it is not the focus. We need not be too concerned about the right title for certain days. Instead we do well to visit Holy Saturday, the day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday, and see the happenings of this day and how it affects us in our Christian walk.

After all, Jesus walked the way of the cross, for us. And now this walk, we walk hand in hand with Jesus through every part of our lives. Well, this is at least what Jesus wishes to do with us.

In First Corinthians we have heard Saint Paul was a hard worker for the Jewish cause, persecuting Christians and the new church. And after his conversion just as hard a worker for the church! But the language Paul uses in his letter to the Corinthians makes Jesus stand out in a most peculiar way. In fact, in completely the opposite way than that of Paul!

The saying is true for Paul, “when the going gets tough the tough get going.” But surprisingly it’s not for Jesus, who rather than being active was passive and on Holy Saturday, stopped in grave for the Sabbath of all Sabbath resting in death and, at the same time, descending into hell.

Listen to the language of Saint Paul in these verses…

Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.

The repetition is a little lost on us in the English, but Paul pushes the passivity of Jesus in his death and resurrection in the text. That, Jesus was buried, he was raised, and (in the Greek text) he was caused to be seen by all from Peter(Cephas) to finally himself.

Jesus fulfilled his mission of salvation in the stillness of the cross, he fulfils the Old Testament law by his stillness in the grave on Holy Saturday, and he fulfilled the will of God, restoring the relationship between God and humanity to what it once was in the Garden of Eden.

And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation. (Genesis 2:2–3 ESV)

On the cross and in the grave, Jesus puts a stop to earning our salvation through works or self-righteousness. In the stillness of his death and in the grave Jesus fulfils the Sabbath and the Jewish Law; he was still and knew that the Father was God, even though he was God too. And in this stillness of death and descent into hell, without any help, from any of us, he took the Old Adam on himself and gave us himself, atoning for our sin, making us holy and giving back our relationship with God the Father.

So how are we to reflect on Holy Saturday; the passivity of Christ on the cross, his stillness in the grave, the true unity his holiness gives us when we rest in him verses the activity of the sinful nature within, and God’s desire to rest—to rest with us?

As restless as we are, how do we rest in these days that are far from passive, while our secret thoughts and actions are anything but holy, in our constant desire to do what we want rather than be in God’s presence? How often do we seek to add our deeds to Jesus stopping on the cross and his Sabbath rest in the grave?

Take care, brothers (and sisters), lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. (Hebrews 3:12–14 ESV)

Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. (Hebrews 4:1–2 ESV)

Satan, the sinful nature within, and sins committed take their toll on us.

It so easy to fall into unbelief, to stumble into thinking I haven’t done enough and therefore actively seek to add to what Jesus has done. Or, to be deceived into running from God and your sin believing that you’re no longer worthy.

Then there are many when tested by the trials and tribulations of this life lose faith in Jesus’ trials and tribulations on the cross for them and their loved ones and the power of his taking sin on himself to the grave and hell.

On the other hand, in trying to unburden one’s self, many trivialise sin, believing what we are or what we have done is of no consequence. Or at least as bad as what someone else has done or is doing. In this way many make God out to be a liar; cheapening his death for sin and the sinful nature.

It seems each of us is dammed if we do or dammed if we don’t! The old Adam within sins when we try to do almost anything, and the old Adam is right there again when we try to hid or divert guilt away from the sneakiness of our human nature.

This is where we as Christians are called to let the passivity of Jesus’ death on the cross, stillness in the grave, and descent into hell, work our salvation.

We can be still in Christ; in his passivity we receive his complete belief and trust in our heavenly Father. His stillness now resides in you and me. That which is completely contradictory to our human nature; Jesus’ stillness works "fulfilled Son of God'' activity within us. The Holy Spirit grows faith, and enables us to stop and rest in God’s word, and rest in the work Jesus did on the cross by being completely still.

For us sharing in Christ is now believing to the point where we can stop in him, enter his holy rest, and let the word and work of God, work in us. With the eyes of faith we are caused to see in his word our story, our life, as one with each other and God in the garden of eternal paradise. This only happens when we, like Jesus in the grave, remain passive and still, and he having been raised now powerfully works within the stillness of our trust in him together with the Holy Spirit to bring us into true refreshing rest not found anywhere else in this life.

So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. (Hebrews 4:9-10 ESV)

And we know… the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Hebrews 12–13 ESV)