A few weeks ago, my husband and I uprooted multiple bushes in our front yard and in their place planted a series of rosebushes and flowers. I have enjoyed being greeted by tiny shoots of new growth on each of our new plants each morning when I leave the house. As we go through Holy Week preparing our hearts for Passover and/or Easter, I cannot help but think that the excitement I have over the growth of tiny leaves and shoots is the way that the Father looks towards us, his creation.
We know that our God is intentional. I do not think it a coincidence that the death and resurrection of our Messiah occurred during the season that ushers in new life. It reminds us of both the vulnerability and continued sustainment of creation through a benevolent and caring Creator. God provides all that is needed for his creation to thrive, including the opportunity of salvation through Yeshua’s sacrifice.
This weekend, through a variety of observances and traditions, we will remember that sacrifice.
There is a unique beauty in this period of time, despite differences in theology and tradition; that we are all unified in our remembering Messiah’s death. As we know, Yeshua said in Matthew 18:20 (NIV), “For where two or three gather in my name, there I am with them.” It is mind blowing to imagine the power of having so many believers worshipping God in unison, both Jew and gentile. It is truly heaven providing a tiny taste of the unity that TJCII promotes to facilitate within the body.
As we enter this appointed weekend, beginning with Passover on Friday evening, let us reflect not only on what God has done in our own lives but also within the body of Messiah in bringing us together as a closer community of Jewish and gentile believers. Let us rejoice in not only the fruit that the Lord has brought, but also the fruit that is to come. Let us intercede for new connections and new salvations.
Let us not be distracted or dismayed by the troubles of the world as Yeshua said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world,” (John 16:33b, NIV).
Lastly, let us rest in the Lord who makes all things new. Just as my new plants growing with leaves and shoots, so is the Lord growing and refreshing us for a new season unshackled by sin through Messiah’s sacrifice.
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. – Isaiah 43:19, NIV