I should have said earlier that I wanted to wait and write this post after I went to my first Maundy Thursday Tenebrae service. I wanted the experience of 'darkness' well on my mind and in my soul before I attempted to talk about tonight.
Because tonight is a dark night.
Tonight we sang mournful songs, and read scriptures that slowly unfolded the story of Christ's betrayal, arrest, trial, the beatings and humiliation he endured, his crucifixion and finally his death and burial. I can honestly say that this is the first service I have attended that left Christ in the tomb.
As well it should. Tonight, like tomorrow is time to remember Christ's death and suffering.
The song we sang focused very much on Peter and his experience outside of the High Priest house. Here he was waiting, watching, and wondering what would happen next.
We far to often skip over this time of sorrow, of pain and of darkness. We want to rush to the empty tomb, to Easter. But we cannot, we must not. Far to much of our lives we are left waiting, watching and wondering for us to miss this opportunity.
Over the past number of months, maybe the better part of the year God has been teaching me a lot about sitting in the darkness of pain and sorrow. I dislike it. A lot. The darkness of pain and suffering is not where I want to be. It is not where many of us want to be.
But it is where we must go. It is where we often go. I think that somewhere along the way we have made the Christian message too easy. We miss the cross, we miss the pain, we miss the suffering and skip right to the end. That is why so many of us are so caught of guard when the dark of pain and sorrow strikes. We have been following a gospel of resurrection without the cross.
We must remember before Jesus came out of the tomb, he went in it. Before we can experience new life we too must die. However we do not go alone. Christ is with us. He is our knowing guide, our teacher, our friend.
Accept the pain of salvation, as you also accept the joy of salvation.
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| Christ is the Light shining against the darkness. |
*** Special thanks to First Baptist Halifax for hosting tonight's service, it was very moving.***
