Saturday, April 20, 2019

The Middle of the Story

           
Friday night our pastor preached on the crucifixion as I am sure many pastor did.  It was a sad but wonderful message for it set the stage for the middle of the greatest story ever told. First came the birth, but actually the beginning of the story starts in Genesis 1:1.  Over and over God tells the story, over and over through different men and women who played important roles in this story.  Through history as it unfolds, tower of babel, a flood all over the world,  one King after another, countless idols and some of the most horrific act done to mankind.  It's all there in the beginning.  Now we are at  the middle part of the story, first came His birth, born of a virgin, preaching at 12 in the temple, worked for His father, heading for the cross.  Called 12 men to train to train others after He was gone. The betrayal, the denial, the prayer in the garden to the Father.  Getting closer to the middle of the story, His beating, His carrying of His own cross, nails pounding in His flesh.  The weight of His body as it hung on the cross, watching His mother, His disciples, the guards, the crowd, the other two on the cross, all part of the story.  Then His final last words, the day turning into night as He breathe His last, those watching trembling from fear.

To so many there that day, actually almost everyone thought it was the end of the story.

I hate it when a story ends bad. I watched a show the other night about a Marine home from Iraq, he went awol and hid out in the wood.  He met some others living a remote lifestyle and thought he had found a new life.  I thought this is going to end well...wrong...he turned out to be a murder running from the murder of his wife.  He killed some of the people he was living with then himself.  I was stunned at the ending, why would they make a movie with such a bad ending.

But, that's how stories go sometimes.  There He is, dead on the cross, all those things He said, forgotten, He was dead.  His mother wanted her Son down from the cross so He could be buried.  Nobody planned on Him dying so funeral arrangements had been made, there was no tomb for Him until a rich man gave a tomb to the family.

Everyone was sad, distraught, disappointed, grieving , this is how this ends.  Wait, didn't He say something about rising again, but He is dead, cold, blue, dead laying in a tomb. It's over.  

Up from the grave He arose,
with a mighty triumph o’er his foes;
he arose a victor from the dark domain,
and he lives forever, with his saints to reign.
He arose! He arose! Hallelujah! Christ arose!

The song, Up From The Grave He Arose, is the end of the middle of the story.   We are living in the end of the middle of the story. He has died, rose again, sitting at the right hand of His Father.  He will never have to be born of a virgin again, never be crucified again, never die again, never have to rise again.  Without this part, the cross, the last part of the story cannot happen.  He had to endure the cross for us so He could come again to take us to our heavenly home.  Praise God for the story of Jesus, who like His Father really had no beginning, He always was but suffered a middle so we could have an eternity ending.  
Happy Easter 

                  


16 comments:

  1. I'm reminded of the scene where others rose from the dead and returned to their own families. Truly! He is the Son of God! He has laid death to rest!

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    1. Someday He will call us forth from death to our new life unless He comes before we die then we will meet Him in the air. Either way brother we are heading to our eternal home, it will the end of life as we know it here and the beginning of new life.

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  2. Betty, love your thought about how Jesus came to suffer through the middle of the story so we could have an eternal ending. What an amazing Savior he is! Happy Easter!

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    1. It does not take Easter to remind me of His suffering for the lost. Some people are won to Him by fear of hell, some through the fire. Me, it was the love that won me. I read the Old Testament for four years as a lost person, started at the beginning like you do any book. It showed me I was a sinner and I had heard of Jesus and heard He died for the whole world. But I never took it personal. I was searching for some answers to fill up the hole in my heart. thank God He never gave up on me, at 35 I finally put down the thought I could survive hell and accepted Jesus death and the resurrection for my sin. The old old story never gets old. Blessings.

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  3. I really love your analogy here about stories that end well. I totally would have been shocked to watch a movie that ended so horribly. Usually that isn't something that screenwriters do unless they are telling a true story about someone famous. And then, since they are famous, people generally know beforehand how it will end.

    I too am grateful that we serve a RISEN SAVIOR and that God's story has a happy ending for all who believe!

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    1. I thought the movie was a true story but it was not. there are some really weird movies on Netflix, b movies as we use to call them. It started out so good, like he was just one of those vets who was suffering from PDST, halfway through I thought this must not be true but kept watching, it was the ending that was full blown horrible.

      There are so many out there who do not have a happy ending to their stories because they are without Jesus. I have been praying for a young women who is not saved, she is so into herself she plasters all her woes on facebook. She even ask me to pray for her to find peace and inner strength. I have send her an invitation to meet with soon, that I could tell her how to have peace inside. Her name is Michelle.

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  4. Blessed are we who are living in the happy ending part of the story, Betty. This is a wonderful reflection, my friend!
    Blessings!

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  5. I find I must keep that in mind at all cost, too much misery all around. A friend of m mine is a foster Mom of three after raising three boys. Socials services called her this past week to see if she could take in three more, she did, then they called a few days later and had three more. They could not get anyone on their list to take them, she did so she ended up with nine temporary. she vented on facebook about it, broke my heart, still cannot get it off my mind. We live with our son and family and we are 72 but if we had our own place I would take at least three of them, make beds on the floor. I mentioned it to my daughter in law this morning because they are thinking of adopting, well she is anyway. When sin affects children I want Him to come now. His heart living in me is so painful at times. I ask Him, why do you wait, why. It's the only real wait I question anymore. Then I meet someone who is not saved and then I know. Woe to me if I do not tell them the old old story we just celebrated with new clothes, tons of food, Easter basket, wonderful music. I sang with the worship this Sunday. When we practiced it was so much fun, then Sunday was here, we practice again and I kept thinking, man oh man, there was no wonderful music at the cross, just lightening and darkness. Even at the resurrection, only excitement when they discovered He was not in the tomb and they ran to tell others. My heart is burdened right now for a women, her name is Michelle, she is lost and seeking. pray she will take me up on my offer to meet with me. Pray please. Thanks for listening to me bear my heart. I am looking forward to being in heaven with you sister.

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  6. Without His Resurrection, this would have been just another crucifixion story.

    But with His Death and Resurrection, we can be with Him for eternity.

    Love the Ball brothers. that song really said what needs to be said all the time.

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  7. Another southern gospel music heart...yeah. Our worship team was suppose to learn this but the man in charge was sick for two weeks before Easter so He had to do things most of us knew. I was the only one who knew this song. You are so right, they had crucifixions all the time, lite them on fire to light and posted them all along the road to the city. they had no idea how Jesus they were being obedient to the prophecy of long ago when they hung the Son of God on a wooden cross. Thanks for visiting my site.

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  8. Wow, that song is powerful! I hadn't heard that one before. Thank you so much for another encouraging, inspiring post, sweet sister. SO thankful for the cross and that it was not the end of the story.

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  9. I hope to sing it someday with a couple from our church. wanted to do it Easter Sunday but the songs were already picked out and no time to learn a new one. The Ball Brothers are a fairly new group. I seem to play all the old ones more then learning a new one but I sure like this song. Been praying for you. Have a great day.

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  10. Praise God for the resurrection, for bountiful love and grace, and for our salvation.

    Thank you, Jesus!

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  11. Thanks Linda for stopping by and also thank you for all the good Godly advice you put on your blog. You are a wise women, full of grace and love for others.

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  12. Thank you for this great thought. As I was reading it I also realized that my parents are not nearing the end of their story, they are nearing the end of the beginning of their story! This life is only the first part of our stories in Christ. 70-90 years is a very short first part of eternity! Praise God for eternal redemption and life. :-)

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