Easter Week Devotions: Tuesday
Passion
READ:
Mark 15:21-39
The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.
Marshall Mathers, better known as rapper Eminem, described his early years by saying, "I didn't have nothin' going for me . . . school, home . . . until I found something I loved, which was music, and that changed everything."
You don't have to like his lyrics or agree with his lifestyle to catch the meaning of his statement. Life was nothing until he found something that captured his heart and mind. Something dramatic happened when he found a passion in life.
Passion is an unusual word that contains opposite meanings. Its Latin root refers to suffering that comes from being acted on by external forces. But another definition conveys the idea of being carried along by inner enthusiasm and excitement.
Is it any wonder this is called Passion Week? During the days between Passover and Easter, we focus on the sufferings of Jesus--His tears for the city of Jerusalem, His agony of prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, the insults and abuse that preceded His crucifixion, the unimaginable pain (physical, mental, and spiritual) of bearing the sins of the world on the cross.
But Passion Week also reveals the inner fire that carried Christ toward Calvary, even when He knew what lay ahead. If Jesus had never said, "The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost" (Luke 19:10), people would still have known it by watching what He did. When mockers told Him to come down from the cross and save Himself, He ignored their taunts. He came to save everyone but Himself.
Just as surely as Passion Week reveals the heart and soul of Jesus, it shines a searchlight deep into our hearts as well. It probes why we are living and asks what has captured our hearts and minds. When Jesus Himself becomes the passion of our lives, nothing is ever the same. --DM
REFLECTION
Be
passionate about Jesus.