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April 2009 Newsletter

WHAT HAPPENED AT THE CROSS?

By Jean Manning

 

For many years I asked Jesus the question: Why did you have to go to the cross?   I have prayed much for understanding. 

 

The cross is the power of God to those who are being saved

The apostle Paul is fully aware that the message of the cross is so powerful and he did not need to speak with great words of wisdom or great oratory for fear lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect  (1 Cor.1:16). For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God  (1 Cor.1:17).

Paul continues to emphasise to the church at Corinth that he determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified  (1 Cor.2:2). He did not present himself nor did he speak man s opinions because he knew that the word of God would be made manifest by the Holy Spirit and demonstrate the power of God. My speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God  (1 Cor.2:4-5).

Paul says the wisdom of God revealed at the cross is a mystery and if the rulers of that age had understood this wisdom they would not have crucified Jesus, the Lord of glory (1 Cor.2:7-8).

 

The events that happened at the cross

Matthew s record  Matt. 27:33-56.

v34 Jesus refused the offer of sour wine mixed with vinegar to dull the pain.

v35 His only remaining personal effects were His garments and these were divided among the soldiers who crucified Him.  His garments went to the Gentiles.  The priestly mantle that was intended for the Jews to bear before all peoples was given to the Gentiles.

v37 The sign over the cross declared the accusation that the religious leaders had brought against Him. This is Jesus the King of the Jews  This sign was for all to see as they passed by.

v38 Two robbers were crucified with Him; one on either side.  They reviled Him and mocked him (v44), along with those who blasphemed Him as they passed by (v39), and the chief priests, scribes and elders (v41).

These had all seen the miracles and signs that revealed that Jesus had come from God, yet they now declared they would believe He was the Messiah if He came down from the cross (v42-:43).

All these only saw a man, Jesus of Nazareth, upon the cross.  They had no understanding of the Old Testament Scriptures that foretold this event that the Messiah must suffer and die in this way.  It was not until the day of Pentecost that they were cut to the heart  when Peter told them they had crucified God s Messiah in human form. Peter proclaimed: Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ  (Acts 2:36-37). At the cross, they were full of unbelief.  The cross was foolishness to them.

v45-49 At this point the land was covered in darkness [as it was in the beginning, Gen.1:2, when darkness covered the face of the deep], because the manifestation of God in the flesh, was being destroyed. 

v46-49 As Jesus cries out to God some of the onlookers are stirred to action.  Some offered Him drink (v48).  They assumed He was calling for Elijah, the miracle worker of God (v47). Others continued to mock him (v49).

v50 Jesus cried out again and yielded up His spirit .

v51 At this point in time, the veil in the temple that separated the place of worship [the Holy Place] from the Presence of God [the Holy of Holies] was torn in two. 

What had just happened at the cross had forever opened the way for mankind to have direct access to the place of God s dwelling! This event was earth shattering. The earth quaked and the rocks were split. 

v52 Resurrection life began.

 

Mark s record -  Mark 15:22-41.

Mark s recording of these events is very similar to Matthew s with:

the offering of the pain killer,

the blasphemy and mockery,

the dividing of His garments,

the accusation The King of the Jews  written over His head for all to see,

the recording of the two robbers who were crucified with Him,

the darkness covering the whole land,

the cry of desertion,

and the tearing of the temple veil.

There are two major additions:

a) v39 A Centurion, a Gentile, received revelation of who this man, Jesus, really was.   Truly this Man was the Son of God .

b) v40 Women who had been His followers and had ministered to Him were watching what was happening.

 

Luke s record - Luke 23:32-49.

Once again this account of the events at Calvary agrees with what Matthew and Mark have written. As well as what we have already seen, Luke, who writes his gospel to give us an orderly account  so that you may know the certainty of those things in which you were instructed  (Lu.1:3-4), adds some very important things.

Forgiveness and revelation are recorded by Luke, and the cross is revealed as the doorway to the Paradise of God.

v34 Jesus forgives His killers and says: Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.  Because of a lack of revelation, these religious men had cast off all restraint. 

v38 The inscription that was nailed above Him was written in letters of Greek, Latin and Hebrew. This meant that the Roman soldiers, the travelers passing by and all the Jewish people could see and read it.

v40-41 One of the criminals crucified beside Him had become aware of his sin and knew he was deserving of punishment. He also recognized the innocence of Jesus.

v42 This criminal received  a revelation of who Jesus was. Lord, remember me when you come into your kingdom .

His confession of sin and recognition of Jesus as Lord rewarded him with the promise from Jesus, Today you will be with Me in Paradise  (v43). In this way, Jesus is revealing that it is through acknowledging Him as Lord that the doorway to the kingdom of God is opened.

v47-48 There is revelation for the centurion and for some of the onlookers as well as for the criminal.

 

 

John s record - John 19:18-37

Like Matthew and Mark, John quotes from Old Testament Scripture to confirm the things that happened at the cross.

John is the only one of these gospel writers who is recorded as being present at Golgotha. He is the disciple whom He loved standing by  (v26). He tells us that he wrote this gospel that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name  (Jn. 20:31).

Jn.19:19 Pilate wrote the title that was above Jesus. He refused to change the inscription when the chief priests of the Jews asked him to do so. It was to Pilate that Jesus had acknowledged that He was indeed a king. Jesus further had acknowledged: For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world  (Jn.18:37).

v20-22 Pilate insisted that what he had written would remain for all to see in Hebrew, Greek and Latin.

v26-27 Jesus spoke to both his beloved friend and His mother, committing them to relationship with each other.

v28 Jesus reveals His human need as He says: I thirst .

v30 He completes His earthly work as a man. The Great High Priest of God relinquishes His earthly life, making that sacrifice once and for all (Heb.9:11).  He said: It is finished!  His flesh life was totally dealt with.

v31-33 Jesus was found to be dead when the soldiers came to take Him from the cross.

v34-35 John testifies that blood and water flowed from Jesus  side when the soldier thrust his sword into Him. And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you may believe. 

v40 Then they took the body of Jesus . 

 

JESUS CAN NO LONGER BE FOUND AT THE CROSS

a) There we receive forgiveness

All sin was dealt with and a mighty victory was won. 

Jesus wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross.  Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it  (Col.2:14-15).

Jesus died; His flesh life was destroyed. Paul reminds us in Romans 6:5-7 that if we belong to Christ, we are to be united together in the likeness of His death  knowing that the old man is crucified with Him and we are no longer to be slaves of sin.  And those who are Christ s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  (Gal. 5:24)

 

b) The cross is the doorway into the kingdom of God

It becomes the place of deliverance from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of light. The robber on the cross beside Jesus was born again  into God s eternal kingdom as He believed and received Jesus as Lord. 

 

c) Revelation of the man Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah of God, happened at the cross.

 

d) Jesus created one new man in Himself  Eph.2:15, Jesus reconciled Jew and Gentile to God in one body through the cross  (v.16).

 

We cannot remain at the cross 

Jesus is no longer there. Jesus told the robber beside Him, Today you will be with Me in Paradise .  The cross made a way for us to enter into the very presence of God.  But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ  Eph.2:13. The veil in the temple was torn so that all could have access to the presence of God the Father. We now have access by one Spirit to the Father  (v.18).

The cross is central to our experience But God forbid that I should boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world  Gal.6:14. It is through the cross that our flesh is dealt with and thence we are to move on into the walk of sanctification, growing up into Christ in all aspects. Even as Jesus humbled Himself to the death of the cross  (Phil.2:8), so we are to come to the cross to have our fleshly desires dealt with so that we can inherit the kingdom of God.

Let us lay hold of that for which Christ has also laid hold of me   Phil. 3:12b

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CALENDAR

April:

Apostolic Conference at SHILOH Centre

10^th Good Friday & 11^th Easter Saturday session times: 10am for prayer and worship

       11am Teaching, 1.30pm Lord s Table & Testimony, 2pm Teaching,

        3.15 Teaching (4.30 finish)

Worship & apostolic preaching/teaching

10^th Friday  7.30pm at SHILOH Centre

 

12^th Easter Sunday  COMMUNITY SUNDAY at SHILOH

                    9.30am Teaching

                   10.30am  Worship/Communion/Preaching followed by fellowship lunch

 

May: Fri 15^th  Worship and waiting on Holy Spirit 7pm

           Sat. 16^th  Training day at SHILOH: sessions  10.30-12.30

                                                                                       1.30  4pm

           Sun. 17^th  COMMUNITY SUNDAY at SHILOH  9.30am Teaching

                 10.30am Worship/Communion/Preaching followed by fellowship lunch

 

May  June:

Africa Trip  Team depart 4^th May for Ghana & Liberia; travel to Kenya on 18^th May. Seminars in Tanzania and Rwanda, arrive home 10^th June.

 

June: Fri 12^th  Worship and waiting on Holy Spirit 7pm

           Sat. 13^th  Training day at SHILOH: sessions  10.30-12.30

                                                                                       1.30  4pm

           Sun. 14^th  COMMUNITY SUNDAY at SHILOH  9.30am Teaching

                 10.30am Worship/Communion/Preaching followed by fellowship lunch

 

MID YEAR TRAINING SCHOOL SHILOH SCHOOL OF MINISTRY

Monday 29^th June  Saturday 18^th July 2009 [three weeks]

Venue: SHILOH CENTRE, 19 Russell St TOOWOOMBA QLD 4350

 

For Pastors, Leaders and those called to minister in the body of Christ

The length of the school is three weeks. We plan to start each day at 10am with prayer & worship. There will be three teaching sessions per day, finishing at 4pm. There will be no evening sessions. We want to promote the opportunity for fellowship amongst the attendees which can happen freely in homes in the evenings. There is no charge for the school and attendees are welcome to come for one, two or three weeks as they are able.

 

TRAINING SCHOOL FOR CHILDREN & YOUTH, ages 4 to 13

Monday 6^th July to Friday 10^th July

 

Kenya Famine Report

On the 6^th March we first opened an appeal to feed hungry families in Kenya. The appeal was sent to our mailing list in Australia and USA [we have a small mailing list there]. As well our local newspaper included a short note about the appeal and two local residents have responded to that. The response has been encouraging and as of 3^rd April, we have received over $12,000 AUD. $10,000 has been forwarded, $3,000 of that to be distributed this week in Kenya. Plus the money in our account we have been advised of a further $6,000 coming for the relief of hunger. We realise that it is a national crisis in Kenya and we are endeavouring only to meet the needs of hungry families that are in churches where we know the ministers well. Of course the church folk live in the midst of neighbours and relatives who are hungry and we have been informed that the Christians share the little relief that they receive with their neighbours and relatives.

We have insisted on clear accountability and that the money is sent for food aid only. We understand that this is happening.

We are enclosing excerpts from emails received since 18^th March when we last reported.

 

Bishop Kennedy Makoka, based in a village near Kitale:

I would like to appreciate the money I received through apostle Akeck, This is how I have used the money. Cash 9000/kenya shillings.

I bought 4bags of maize at 2200/ each bag which is ksh.8800/.

I gave out to each family 8kg of maize each bag is 90kg  so one bag of maize was shared among 11 families, so 4 bags I gave 44 families and gave  it out yesterday with the village elders, It was tough time as many families remained but we are trusting God for the next period as we are recording down those whom we given so the next time we give to others.  The balance of 200/ksh I used for transport of the maize into the village. I say thank you so much for the support to Kenyans who are starving.  Continue praying for us, as it will take time till we start harvesting maize in September or October.

 

Pastor Thomas Opiyo based in Eldoret:

Thank you! I received the funds which you sent through Apostle Mbugwa, ksh 7,000. This is how I divided it among the needy families, some from our fellowship and some outside our fellowship, but all are of the household of FAITH. I gave ksh 3,000 to the three widows, gave ksh 500 to a fellow pastor who began a church within our area, and is needy, ksh 1,300 bought food and has been divided among four needy families in our fellowship. I remained with ksh 2,200 for food in my family. God bless you.

 

Apostle Andrew & Kathleen Wafula, New Covenant Ministries [a number of related churches and a large children s home, Webuye:

With the money, Ksh. 50,000 [$1,000, half of this was food aid and half given for his orphanage] we have bought more maize for the children. We have also paid high school fees in part for the 36 students. They had been sent home for fees and now we are able to have them back. The children have food now and the students are back in school. Thank you very much for the money which is really helping us out. The hunger disaster in the country is still so bad and we have asked the saints to pray more than ever. In some parts of the country children are not going to school because they are just too hungry to go and the teachers are likewise going through hard times. Rains have delayed coming and this is the planting season. People cannot plant because it is still dry and hot. Last Saturday and Sunday we met in Webuye with most of our pastors to pray and fast for the economic situation in the country. We had a wonderful time with the LORD and we closed after the Sunday service with the breaking of bread. We had all the members present rededicate their commitment to the Lord. Many thanks for the prayers and financial support you are giving us and our country, Kenya. We need prayers. Kenya needs prayers. We are calling on the true apostles of Christ to stand their ground and tell God the problems facing the country should come to an end right now. We are praising the lord and praying. Thank you for your support and may God bless you.

Apostle Peter Akeck, Kakamega:

The distribution of the relief has been on going and is now completed. We focused on the the first 43 families that did not benefit from the second relief you sent. You sent us a total of Kshs 36,500.

We drew a budget that would last the 43 families for two weeks[beginning last week].

maize meal 6 sacks-- Kshs 25,560; Cooking fat---Kshs 6,020; Kerosene 20 litres Kshs 1,400

Airtime to help me in coordination  Kshs 500; Transport Kshs 1,200.

Thee are other cases that concerned us in the process of operating through our strict budget and we could not ignore them. These are those who caught wind of the help we are giving and so they came out to meet us, very aged women and young children. We were so moved with compassion that we could not ignore them. They too were in great and dire need of food relief. We gave them some money to buy some food stuffs, about Kshs 1,500.

The needs are so overwhelming by the day and only God knows how tomorrow shall be for these people. We are trying to make a difference through the sacrificial funds we receive from you, and every time, we just can't help all of them who come to us. The needs keep growing. The situation keeps worsening and the people keep suffering and some even dying. The help coming in is significant and appreciable only never enough, but we trust in the unchanging God to arrest the situation and turn around things. We are consulting with God to find out what is in His heart and what word He has for us. We continue to thank all the wonderful people who have been touched by our situation here and who have continued to sacrificially contribute to the needs of these dying people.

Right now the needs here have taken a new twist. This is planting season. These families now ravaged with hunger, also do some small scale farming but by this time, they cannot afford the seeds and the fertilizers. That means they will not sow and that means they will not reap by the end of the year. That can only mean that they will continue starving. We are therefore also praying, that as the Lord continues to touch you to provide for their maize meal that helps to keep them alive, may He also help you to help these poor farmers with seed to sow and fertilizer to enrich their poor farms. The long rains season has started in earnest here in Kakamega and so planting has started. We pray for you all and keep hope alive in the Lord to keep the needs of these people met. The two weeks will be over and they will need more food but God shall be with them. God bless you all.

 

The situation is that the rains have come in some areas of Kenya but there is five months growing time and in some cases the people cannot afford to buy the seed to plant. We trust that many other charities and NGO s are addressing the crisis in Kenya. We have not heard of any official response from the United Nations or the Australian Government but we may have missed that. The Kenyan Government seems to be very ineffective in addressing the crisis. Our commitment is to continue to give aid through the churches as these are our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are well aware that the problem is much bigger than us but we are being obedient to Christ with your help. THANK YOU.