Lockdown

Good morning, how has your week been ? I hope you have been keeping well especially those working at the hospitals, our seniors and those living alone.

We are living in an unprecedented moment in history with the whole world in lockdown. No country can escape. How quickly things have changed with this pandemic ! Suddenly, many people are scared realising the fragility of their lives. Strangely some are ignoring the warnings. They are like the people on the Titanic partying on after it struck the iceberg unaware the ship is going down.

I would like to encourage you this morning. We don’t have to be afraid, our future is secured in Jesus. This is a unique opportunity to witness to the world our confidence in the Gospel. Someone posted on Facebook this week from Isaiah 26:20, easy to remember as the day we went into lockdown in NZ, March 26, 2020

Go home, my people, and lock the doors! Hide for a little while until the Lord’s wrath against your enemies has passed. Look! The Lord is coming from the heavens to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will no longer hide the murderers. The guilty will be found.
Isaiah 26:20-21

When I read this I thought of Noah and his family going into the ark. And of the first Passover when the Angel of Death passed over all the families in their homes who had put the lambs blood on the doorpost, but killed all the first born in Egypt.

When God has his families in lockdown, the world better watch out but we have his peace. When I read the preceding passages starting from Isaiah 24, I realised that they were talking of the time when the Lord will come and reign on the Earth and the Judgment preceding that. I’d encourage you to read Isaiah 24-26 this week and see what the Lord shows you.

To bring us back to this moment, right now we are sharing Communion with all Christians throughout the World. Good Friday is less than 2 weeks away and all of us will be home for Easter. At this time nearly 2000 years ago, tens of thousands of people made their way to Jerusalem, so that city swelled many times its normal population. With an estimated 2 million people in Israel while Jesus was alive, somewhere between 200,000 and 1 million people were in Jerusalem for Passover the year Jesus died!

Now on the first day of Unleavened Bread, when they killed the Passover lamb, His disciples said to Him, “Where do You want us to go and prepare, that You may eat the Passover?” And He sent out two of His disciples and said to them, “Go into the city, and a man will meet you carrying a pitcher of water; follow him. Wherever he goes in, say to the master of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover with My disciples?”’ Then he will show you a large upper room, furnished and prepared; there make ready for us.” So His disciples went out, and came into the city, and found it just as He had said to them; and they prepared the Passover. In the evening He came with the twelve. Now as they sat and ate, Jesus said, “Assuredly, I say to you,  one of you who eats with Me will betray Me.” And they began to be sorrowful, and to say to Him one by one, “ Is it I?” And another said, “ Is it I?” He answered and said to them, “It is one of the twelve, who dips with Me in the dish. The Son of Man indeed goes just as it is written of Him, but woe to that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had never been born.” And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, “Take,  eat; this is My  body.” Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said to them, “This is My blood of the  new covenant, which is shed for many. Assuredly, I say to you, I will no longer drink of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in the kingdom of God.” And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.
Mark 14:12-26

Jesus was like a prisoner on death row about to be executed and he shared his last meal, the bread and the wine  with his disciples. His next cup of wine will be when he comes again and that is something to remember and really look forward to. You are part of the Body of Christ, all around the world. You are not alone.I hope that encourages you this morning.