Praise the Lord, for whom nothing is impossible. He makes all things feasible. He makes all things glorious. He makes all things colorful. He blessed us with a brilliant and fantastic weekend. Friday was cool and Saturday got slightly milder, with an occasional misty rain. The sunrise on Sunday was magnificent, cloudless and appeared as if the Son of Righteous had risen with Healing in His hands. It was all followed by fog, as is so often the case when a gorgeous day is about to follow. The fog was followed by abundant sunshine in the morning, then passing clouds with plentiful sun peeking out throughout the day. It was perfect for the people who gathered for the Maple festival. The Lord blessed us in morning worship time. We went to the sanctuary, where we spent some time singing hymns accompanied by both organ and piano. It was powerful and anointed.
Maple Festival was a blast. As the day progressed the festival goers swarmed the town. People of all ages, young and old, mingled with one another. It was all orderly, peaceful, and celebrative. Food brings people together in fellowship. Our church was in charge of the BBQ chicken. Hundreds of people came. I had the privilege of meeting and greeting so many of them. I met three young women who were graduates Buffalo State University. Two, who were sisters, shared with me that they were currently involved with Campus Crusade, and soon to be ministering to students in Boston at Boston Latin. Boston Latin is one of the most prestigious schools of Boston. I was blessed and inspired by their stories, their zeal for Jesus, and their love for young people.
On Saturday one of my friends whom I have known since 1995 came to visit. He brought along three young women who are from China but they are students at Binghamton University. My friend, along with others, have a wonderful ministry with the Students from China., It was a heartwarming visit with these students who are seekers of Jesus.
Maple festival brings people together. They meet, they greet, they eat, (and eat... and eat) and they renew old friendships and make new ones. Our church family prepares BBQ chicken with much love and they serves hundreds of guests a with much grace and gladness. While we were serving up chicken with much joy and grace, hundreds were over at the school cafeteria, eating pancakes topped with local maple syrup. If chicken or pancakes were not suited to your palate you could get a plate of curly fries, spiedie or Italian sausage sandwiches, apple dumplings with ice cream, maple sundaes, maple milkshakes, maple cotton candy, freshly roasted nuts, "elephant ears", or . . . you name it! There were tasty treats everywhere.
To kick off the Festival on Friday night was the Annual Maple Queen Pageant. Miss Gillian DePuy (one of my wife's former students from last year) won the crown over twenty-four other beautiful young ladies. As the Festival Queen, Gillian and her court spent two days walking around town, befriending young children, planting a new maple tree, welcoming one and all to the festival. She was beautiful and gracious, as were all the members of her court.
In
the Bible Jesus told the story of a rich man who had a poor beggar sitting at
his gate, and the rich man ignored the needs of the poor man. Then for
eternity, the poor man found himself in heaven and the rich man in
Hades. The rich man said to Father Abraham, "Would you please let
that poor beggar go back to my family and tell them about the consequences of
their evil life?" Father Abraham responded, "If they would
not believe Moses and the Prophets, they will not believe even if one should
rise from the dead." That poor man in the parable was Lazarus.
Within
days of this parable being told, we have an account recorded in
John11, of one who rose from the dead, and his name was
Lazarus. When he rose from the dead, we could surmise that
everyone would have believed in Jesus. Every heart should have repented and
surrendered to Jesus. The actual result is stunning, in
that "from that day on they plotted to take his life." The
enemies of Jesus now had a focus: We'll get this one who raises people from the
dead.
They was a
man dead and buried for four days, who was raised up, and yet they did
not believe. In a few more days they would see the one who did
the resurrecting dying on a cross. The parable is a lens to understand
Lazarus at Bethany, Bethany is a lens to understand Calvary, and Calvary
is a lens to understand eternity and now.
Jesus'
triumph may take some time, but it will surely come, for he is ruling with a
care, with an intricacy, with an intimacy for his people that defies our full
ability to comprehend. After all, he will pass this way again. In just a few
days he will go through Bethany again on his way to Jerusalem while the crowds
take off their cloaks and put palm branches before him. They will say,
"Hosanna! His time has come!" But his time has not yet come, though
it will surely come.
In
another day or two they will say, ""Crucify him!" because his
time has not yet come. But though it has not yet come, it will surely come. And
when they hang him on a cross, they will chide him, "Tell your angels to
come." They do not come, but they will surely come.
The
promise of God will be fulfilled. Though it tarries, wait for it. For it will
surely come, and it will not be late. God speaks to his people in such a way
that we in a fallen world might trust that he is love. Unless we miss the
point, he puts tears on the face of the Savior, each tear a lens so we will
focus in, look closely, and through the microcosm of that tear begin to
recognize what God has done. He has shown us in real form how he is in charge
of the world in its intricacy as well as its grand scale. He is at work, and
his illustration is not stick figures drawn in the sand. It is dealing with the
realities, the harshness, the terribleness of this life.
Lazarus was
dead. And to show us that Jesus has power over even death, the
harshest of this world's realities, Jesus comes to make it right. He will raise
this one to show he has the power over sin, even to the extent of death. We see
it in this microscopic vision of Lazarus's life. And we see it in a grander
scale when Christ himself rises again.
In
Christ.
Brown
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