Isaiah 53:2-6, The Message

The servant grew up before God—a scrawny seedling,
a scrubby plant in a parched field.
There was nothing attractive about him,
nothing to cause us to take a second look.
He was looked down on and passed over,
a man who suffered, who knew pain firsthand.
One look at him and people turned away.
We looked down on him, thought he was scum.
But the fact is, it was our pains he carried—
our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us.
We thought he brought it on himself,
that God was punishing him for his own failures.
But it was our sins that did that to him,
that ripped and tore and crushed him—our sins!
He took the punishment, and that made us whole.
Through his bruises we get healed.
We're all like sheep who've wandered off and gotten lost.
We've all done our own thing, gone our own way.
And God has piled all our sins, everything we've done wrong,
on him, on him.

It's not Good Friday yet, but tonight I was aware of my complaining and my "pity party" more than ever as I read these verses about Christ's suffering. I've given two of my vices up for Lent. Two meager sacrifices that I've given up in order to make more of an effort to understand and appreciate what Jesus went through for me. It's been just over a month and I'm already moving towards the "diet" explanation rather than sharing why I'm fasting. I'm already caught up with my trivial day-to-day unimportantances (I just made up that word) instead of trying to keep an eternal perspective. And now, I read these verses above, and I'm ashamed. This is what Good Friday is about, this is what every day should be about -- realizing how unworthy we are and just how worthy God thinks we are.

Acts 26:9, NIV

"I too was convinced that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth."

Tonight my pastor spoke about counterfeits and how it's hard to recognize a counterfeit when you aren't familiar with the real thing. I think Paul's above statement is verification of this truth. He was convinced and obsessed with something that ended up being counterfeit, and it was what Paul believed at that time because he hadn't yet been faced with the truth, with the real deal.

So seek the truth and you will find it, be wise and weigh the scales to ensure what is real and what is fake, be shrewd and a good steward of your mind and heart. Be aware of the cunning tricks of the enemy and his attempts to confuse and disillusion us.

Acts 24:27, New Living Translation

After two years went by in this way, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And because Felix wanted to gain favor with the Jewish people, he left Paul in prison.

What a lousy thing to do. I honestly don't know how Paul went as a prisoner for two years. I realize he had some freedoms, he could have guests, etc, but he was still basically being held because of the fear of a leader. I cannot imagine the frustration of knowing that you were basically being screwed with and that your life was a game for someone to play. Thankfully, Paul used that time to speak truth to anyone willing to listen and to disciple and encourage all his friends in other places.

Acts 23:6-10, The Message

Paul, knowing some of the council was made up of Sadducees and others of Pharisees and how they hated each other, decided to exploit their antagonism: "Friends, I am a stalwart Pharisee from a long line of Pharisees. It's because of my Pharisee convictions—the hope and resurrection of the dead—that I've been hauled into this court."

The moment he said this, the council split right down the middle, Pharisees and Sadducees going at each other in heated argument. Sadducees have nothing to do with a resurrection or angels or even a spirit. If they can't see it, they don't believe it. Pharisees believe it all. And so a huge and noisy quarrel broke out. Then some of the religion scholars on the Pharisee side shouted down the others: "We don't find anything wrong with this man! And what if a spirit has spoken to him? Or maybe an angel? What if it turns out we're fighting against God?"

That was fuel on the fire. The quarrel flamed up and became so violent the captain was afraid they would tear Paul apart, limb from limb. He ordered the soldiers to get him out of there and escort him back to the safety of the barracks.

I keep thinking as I read this, "what if we look this way to unbelievers?" And I can't help but think that sometimes we do. There are more important places to be than in a room full of other believers arguing. We should be loving each other as we serve alongside each other in order to pursue living more and more like Christ.

Acts 22:23-29, The Message

By now the captain was thoroughly exasperated. He decided to interrogate Paul under torture in order to get to the bottom of this, to find out what he had done that provoked this outraged violence. As they spread-eagled him with thongs, getting him ready for the whip, Paul said to the centurion standing there, "Is this legal: torturing a Roman citizen without a fair trial?" When the centurion heard that, he went directly to the captain. "Do you realize what you've done? This man is a Roman citizen!" The captain came back and took charge. "Is what I hear right? You're a Roman citizen?" Paul said, "I certainly am." The captain was impressed. "I paid a huge sum for my citizenship. How much did it cost you?" "Nothing," said Paul. "It cost me nothing. I was free from the day of my birth." That put a stop to the interrogation. And it put the fear of God into the captain. He had put a Roman citizen in chains and come within a whisker of putting him under torture!

God can rescue us from these situations. He can use human law and He can use His own power. But then again, sometimes the situation doesn't go that way and God uses our suffering to show His power at another time and through our suffering. No matter what - the outcome is that God's plan is worked out.