The Best Way

There was a moral crisis in the Church at Corinth, and Paul warned the church members in 1st Corinthians 5 that a solution would emerge through sacrifice. He wrote:
6 Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?
7 Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us.
8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

The Church had not been watchful for sin in its midst, apparently, and was chided by Paul for being prideful. Jesus is our example - He humbled Himself to the point of death so that the power of sin and the power of death might be defeated and that we could walk in His victory. What He did for us on the cross communicates to our society that we should humble ourselves before God, follow His principles, and walk in sacrificial love toward one another.  There is hope because Jesus died and lives again.

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Jesus celebrated the Passover meal with His disciples, just before He would be offered up as the perfect Passover Lamb, to be offered as a sacrifice for the sins of humanity. We can read in Luke 22:
15 Then He said to them, "With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer;
16 for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God."
17 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, "Take this and divide it among yourselves;
18 for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes."
19 And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."
20 Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.

This is a very important season of the year, as we reflect on the meaning of Jesus coming to earth, giving His life, and rising from the dead.  It is also noteworthy that the celebration of Passover is taking place, as well - it begins tomorrow, as a matter of fact.

The two are tied together, because Passover is the commemoration of how God saved the lives of the Israelites who would make a sacrifice and be spared from death because they placed the blood on their doorposts.  Jesus is our perfect sacrifice, our Passover Lamb, who has made it possible to triumph over the power of death.

These observances, according to a new poll, offer some lessons for our nation.  The Christian Post reports on a poll by the Trafalgar Group, which you may know as one of the most accurate polling organizations in past elections.  The poll was commissioned by Convention of States Action.  The Post article says:

According to the survey, 72.6% of respondents said they believe the “moral lessons found in the holidays of Easter and Passover” are either “somewhat important” or “very important” to guaranteeing a strong U.S. in the future.

In total, 52.6% of respondents said the moral lessons were “very important,” while 20% said they were “somewhat important." Another 11% said they were “not very important” and 16.4% said they were “not important at all.”

Mark Meckler, who heads Convention of States Action, a sister organization to Convention of States, who has been a Meeting House guest in the future and talked with me at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention recently, is quoted in a press release; he said:

“Every day, we’re told that Americans place less and less value on faith, and yet when asked about the two most significant holidays in the Judeo and Christian traditions, over 70% of voters say the moral lessons they teach us are vital to a free and strong America in the future. Parents want our children to be taught to know and respect God, value freedom, observe the golden rule, and to achieve a good and great society through hard work and sacrifice. These are some of the fundamental values taught to us through our Judeo-Christian heritage. This is the foundation of all that is exceptional about the United States of America..."

Meckler added: “Don’t believe the headlines, we are still one nation under God.”

This is encouraging and it speaks to the issue of Biblical application.  Because we need to do more than just give lipservice to religious heritage.  It really sounds nice, but are the principles we find in Scripture really guiding our decisions?  That includes on a macro level, with government and corporate decision-making, as well as the choices we make in our individual lives. 

But, I think Meckler makes a good point - the Bible provides principles that can help to build a strong nation, and I believe our founding on those principles has served us well throughout the years.  But, there are strong influences that could serve to jettison those principles and turn to other sources that do not reflect Scripture's moral teachings.  We see outright rejection of God among leaders in various sectors, including among political leaders and our media gatekeepers.  

On this Maundy Thursday, we remember the hostility that Jesus faced. He was prepared to turn Himself over to those who wished to take His life, recognizing the plan of God beyond His death.  We can be prepared ourselves to be willing to die to self and live unto Him, so that we might experience and reflect His new life and allow His Spirit to govern our direction.