{"id":12180,"date":"2020-04-08T05:46:49","date_gmt":"2020-04-08T10:46:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/?p=12180"},"modified":"2020-04-08T05:46:49","modified_gmt":"2020-04-08T10:46:49","slug":"spy-wednesday-of-holy-week","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/?p=12180","title":{"rendered":"Spy Wednesday of Holy Week"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Here in my community, it only slightly looks like Easter is near. There are a few cardboard signs and metal crosses in lawns. What I prominently see are white ribbons on neighbors\u2019 trees. The word spread for us to tie white ribbons on our trees to show our appreciation to those who are front-liners in this pandemic. I\u2019ve also seen red ribbons around the doorposts of many homes that represent the blood of Jesus\u2019 protecting them. This is definitely not like any Easter we\u2019ve ever known. But, lest we think it\u2019s cancelled or even long for the \u201cgood ole days\u201d \u2013 Easter has NOT changed. And, neither has the reason for the season. Christ lived, healed, saved, was brutally murdered, buried and came back to life and lives forevermore. Those are the facts that remain. He lives and is here with us right now!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But let\u2019s get it straight. It does seem strange, surreal \u2013 in fact, almost unbelievable that we are experiencing this Holy Week like this. But, no less unbelievable in what Jesus experienced this week. On this day, things started really amping up for His final days. His short 33 years of life on this earth were expeditiously coming to a close.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Easter symbols are a little sparce this year — but nevertheless EASTER
is a really, really big deal! It’s everything! <\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Imagine Jesus\u2019 thoughts on this day. Wednesday meant one day closer to His suffering and crucifixion. This day was called \u201cSpy Wednesday\u201d because it was on this Wednesday before the crucifixion that Judas conspired to hand Jesus over to the chief priests. \u201cWhat will you give me if I betray Jesus to you?\u201d They counted out thirty silver coins and gave them to him. From then on Judas watched for a good chance to hand Jesus over to them. (Matthew 26:14)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jesus spent this day in Bethany. It had been two exhausting days in Jerusalem and tomorrow would be the Passover. Bethany is where Lazarus and his two sisters, Mary and Martha lived. They were close friends of Jesus. and probably hosted Jesus and the disciples. John 12:1-9 tells us that it was on this day that Mary anointed Jesus with costly perfumed oil. Judas (same guy plotting to betray Jesus) remarks to Jesus: \u201cWhy this waste? This perfume could have been sold at a high price and the money given to the poor.\u201d We know Judas was the money keeper for Jesus and the disciples and he sure wasn\u2019t thinking about the poor, but about His own schemes. Jesus rebuked him and said Mary anointed Him for his burial<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
White ribbons around trees to express gratitude for the medical and
essential services people who are on the frontlines for us!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I’m literally walking with Jesus this week. And, hopefully you’ve joined hands with me and we’re walking this journey together.
Somehow I think this week is just what the doctor (rather, God) ordered. We need a rescuer. And, His name is Jesus Christ. I’m thinking that God is loudly declaring: “STOP! This is My beloved Son in Whom I am well pleased! And You should be pleased right along with Me! Pay attention to Him. Pay attention to what He did for you. This is the answer to EVERYTHING that you need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This week I went to a doctor’s appointment. I thought to myself that it feels like a Sunday — a Sabbath day because there were so fewer cars out and about. Just maybe God called this time of “essential” services — a Sabbath for us to slow down and think about He Who is the MOST ESSENTIAL in our lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are walking with Jesus on His journey to Calvary. With great gratitude, we remember Jesus because of Who He was and what He did for us. All of humanity \u2013 ALL OF US — were cursed and doomed to death, but Jesus assumed the guilt of humanity. Imagine that heavy load He carried on this Holy Wednesday. He must have been mustering up every fiber of His strength to go the distance to the cross that awaited Him. The cross \u2013 that would symbolize an emergency rescue \u2013 it would forever represent rescuing humanity for all time. How could we not stop, listen, and express so much gratitude for our rescue? Yes, He is our “Rescue Story”!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thank you, Zach Williams, for putting our “Rescue Story” to words and song! May it bless you today! https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=9Yr48Berkqc<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Here in my community, it only slightly looks like Easter is near. There are a few cardboard signs and metal crosses in lawns. What I prominently see are white ribbons on neighbors\u2019 trees. The word spread for us to tie white ribbons on our trees to show our appreciation to those who are front-liners in…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12181,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[12850,12849,17010,17009],"tags":[17008,1210,3351,1417,3281,873,3335,3336,16567,17007,7761,3338,3339,7518,16994,17006],"class_list":["post-12180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-easter","category-holy-week","category-silent-wednesday","category-spy-wednesday","tag-30-coins","tag-blog","tag-calvary","tag-cross","tag-crucifixion","tag-easter","tag-holy-week","tag-judas","tag-rabbit","tag-red-ribbons","tag-rescuer","tag-silent-wednesday","tag-spy-wednesday","tag-suffering","tag-surreal","tag-white-ribbons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=12180"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12186,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12180\/revisions\/12186"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/12181"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=12180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=12180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mypeacezone.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=12180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}