Jesus’ death purifies us

ApriL  15

Read Zechariah 13:7-9 and reflect on the passage.

Holy Saturday is as dark as it gets. Jesus is dead, in the grave, all hope has evaporated. It does not get darker than Holy Saturday.

But it is “Holy” Saturday because it is not as if darkness, pain, or suffering has no value. As is the case with all kinds of suffering, on the other side of the pain is a holiness that would not be realized otherwise.

I cannot think of anything I have ever done that was worthwhile that did not have some kind of discomfort associated with it. The refining that is spoken of in this passage in Zechariah is no different. Only one third make it through the trial, and for them it is just the beginning. After the trial comes the refining, which although painful, makes things pure—or rather, holy.

On Holy Saturday, the disciples of Jesus probably felt as if all was lost. For them, the trial was over and the refining had just begun. The result: a holiness that could not have been attained apart from the trial and refining process.

Questions

1. What has the trial and refining process looked like in your life?

2. Are you willing to endure refinement to experience holiness on the other side?

Prayer

Father, help me endure trials and refinement so that I can be purified.

—Brodie Taphorn

The Word of Life – Walking in the Light

1 John 1-10

If it makes us happy, we want to share it! When it fills our heart with joy, we want to share it! When it gives us hope, we want to share it! When it brings us such love and peace we can handle anything, we have to share it!

John shared the message of the Lord because as he stated in 1 John 1:4; “We write this to make our joy complete.”

As John and many others of that time did, we have not seen, touched or heard Jesus in person, so we cannot truly fathom how a man with such greatness could walk this earth in genuine humility. It’s a beautiful story, yet quite difficult to comprehend.

Getting this account straight from those who experienced it first hand is exciting! “The life appeared; we have seen it and testify to it, and we proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the father and has appeared to us.” 1 John 1:2

John continues by telling us; "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word has no place in our lives.” 1 John 1:9

Walking in the light is an expression used to give us an honest look at ourselves. In the light all of our flaws are revealed. Standing strong in the Lord, admitting our wrongs and asking for forgiveness is walking in the light WITH the Lord. Pretending we have no sin is walking in darkness, and we cannot walk with God in that place, for he is not there.

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, the blood of Jesus, his Son purifies us from all sin.” 1 John 1: 7

I love the lyric; "The more broke we are the more the light gets through." in a song by
Jason Gray called Glow in the Dark. This dark world needs his light! 

Walking in the light with our God keeps us light hearted, as we are not weighted down by earthly things. As Ken Davis says at the end of his daily radio segment:

“Lighten up, and live!” 

Read/Listen to 1 John 1:1-10