John Stanko

Can you imagine what it must have been like for those disciples, who thought Jesus was dead and gone, only to find that He was  alive and thriving? It must have been a shock to say the least and that is what I want to talk about in this entry. I want to look at one of the women who went to the tomb on Sunday morning only to find it not as she thought it would be. So let's go back in time and see if there is any lessons we can learn from her encounter with the empty tomb.

TWO ANGELS AND THE LORD

When Mary came to the tomb, she found it empty and went to inform the disciples. They went running and found it as she said, while Mary stood outside crying, assuming that someone had stolen and hidden Jesus' body. Two angels sat in the empty tomb and spoke to her, asking her for whom she was looking. She said that she was looking for Jesus, and repeated her assumption that someone had taken Him away. It was then that Jesus Himself appeared to her:

At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”) (John 20:14-16).

Mary was well acquainted with Jesus and certainly knew His voice, yet her preconceived notion that Jesus was dead and gone prevented her from recognizing Him. Her thinking affected her perception and she couldn't hear God speaking to her, even though she knew His voice. The same can happen to you and me.

EASTER BREAKTHROUGH

Mary's thinking was an impediment to hearing God. The same can happen to you. You can be consumed by worry, fear, doubt, wrong assumptions, or anxiety and miss the Lord, even though you're familiar with His voice. You can read His word and still not comprehend it because of your heart or, should I say, mind condition. You would do well to heed the admonition found in Hebrews 4, where the writer warned,

God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts" (Hebrews 4:7).

What situation do you consider hopeless into which God is trying to speak today? Where is there a tomb in your life, where you think you know what the outcome will be, but where God wants to speak to your heart and bring hope and life? You may not think your heart is hard, but any number of things can numb or deaden you to the presence of God in your life and His voice in your heart. So in effect, God can be speaking to you and you not realize it's Him. Thus the barrier to your breakthrough isn't in your circumstances but rather in your mind.

One of the lessons of Easter is that what is impossible with man is possible with God. You must see your situation from God's perspective or you may miss what He's trying to say and do, and that would be a real tragedy. So go to the tomb today, but don't go in a hopeless state of mind. Go expecting to hear the Lord and see new and fresh things. When you do, your circumstances may not change, but how you see them will, and that may be the breakthrough you are looking for and God wants you to have. Have a great week and a blessed Easter celebration!

There isn't a day go by that I don't quote John 8:32 to someone, "You will know the truth and the truth will set you free." Why is this such an important passage? It's because we are often holding on to a truth that we think is the truth but in reality is a half-truth or non-truth. If something isn't freeing but restricting us from being or doing all that we could, it is not the truth Jesus was addressing.

In Jesus' day, the Jews held the "truth" that no prophet could come from Galilee or no good from Nazareth. Thus, they missed the truth of Jesus because they held some other "truth." The first Jewish believers knew the truth that everyone had to follow the law of Moses even after they professed faith in Christ. Thus, they missed the freedom that came from putting their total trust in Jesus.

We could go on and on about the "truths" that have bound whole cultures. At one point, we "knew" that the world was flat, the sun orbited the earth, that people with lighter skin were superior to those with darker, and that bleeding someone who was sick would make them well. Men and women were ready to, and often did, die for these so-called truths. Sincerely holding that a belief is true isn't the issue, for I can be sincere and that only makes me sincerely misguided.

What truth are you holding about yourself that isn't setting you free, but limiting your effectiveness? Are you thinking, "I'm too old," "I'm too young," "I'm not that talented," "I can't get my hands on that kind of money to start my business," or "I can't write"? If you are, is that the truth or is it a lie that appears to be or sounds like truth? Are you part of an organization that believes the same kind of limiting "truths"?

I regularly try to find time to examine various truths I hold about myself that may or may not be true at all. They may be limiting me and putting me in a box. It's true that I'm an author, I'm creative, I'm a source of joy and inspiration for many people, but there were times when I haven't walked in those truths and was bound.

How about you? Are there any truths about yourself that haven't set you free but tied you up? If so, then those things aren't the truth at all; you are only labeling them as such. Spend some time examining these ideas, conclusions, or assumptions that have limited your ability to create or be purposeful. Only then can the truth be the truth, which is powerful enough to transform you and set you free.

I heard someone say once that humans are rational beings who do irrational things. After 45 years as a pastor and hearing people tell me all kinds of strange behavior (and seeing some of it firsthand), I am inclined to agree with that statement. I have reflected on it often, and would like to share some conclusions with you this week—and continue our discussion next week.

IRRATIONALITY

Our irrationality manifests mostly with where we begin in our thought process, not with the process itself. In this short space, I think it best to give you an example and go from there. In Mark 3:1-5, we read

Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.” Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent. He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.

How often have you said, "Lord, if I had a sign to confirm Your will, I would know and obey!" In this story, the Pharisees witnessed a magnificent and startling sign: A man's withered hand was un-withered right before their very eyes. What was their response? We read in Mark 3:6: "Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus."

They saw Jesus perform a miracle and what was their response? They determined He had to die! That's irrational, but the problem was not in their conclusion but in their starting point. They assumed they knew all there was to know about the Sabbath and further believed it was their job to protect that day from violators on God's behalf. When they saw the miracle, they evaluated it from an irrational starting point. You might even say they had a stronghold in their mind for the thought that no creature could do what Jesus did on the Sabbath and get it away with it had a strong hold on their mind. From then on, they acted perfectly rational, for if they were correct (which of course, they were not), then the rational thing to do was punish Jesus for His offense.

STARTING POINT EXAMPLES

What's my point? The point is that you have starting points and they impact how you rationally carry out your life and ministry. Here are some examples:

Starting point: "The earth is flat." Result: Early explorers refused to go so far and no farther, otherwise they would eventually fall off the end of the earth.

Starting point: I don't have time to write a book." Result: You don't even try. Truth: You have all the time in the world (24 hours every day) but are probably using the lack of time as a front for your fear.

Starting point: "I don't have money to give." Result: You don't give, God doesn't bless you, so you have less to give. Truth: Even a small "widow's mite" can have an affect on God and the situation into which you are giving.

Where are you rationally living in a pattern that began with an irrational, incomplete, or flawed starting point? The only way to find out is to continually challenge your thinking where starting points are concerned. You don't have time to write a book? How is it then that I have written as many as i have?. You don't have money to give? How is it that you have $200 for cable television service or $75 to have your nails done or $89 for the latest doo-dad you need for your hobby? Because you have never challenged your "need" for so much television or the fact that your hobby or beauty needs are expensive and out of control, you don't give. You are correct (rationally) that you don't have money to give—because you are wasting it on something to satisfy your own desires. Your starting point is "I need this" or "I deserve this," and thus you follow through rationally on your flawed premise.

This week, challenge some of your starting points and check them out to see if they are passing as rational and consistent with the values you espouse. If they aren't, then if you change your "starting point," you can change your life! Next week, we will examine how to change your starting points. Until then, have a blessed week.