Good Friday -- Janet Sketchley

“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!” Philippians 2:5-8, NIV*

I have a friend who resists accepting God because of the Cross. How could a loving Father send His own Son to such a cruel death? Why would He arrange it that way?

Short answer: because there was no other way. A loving Father would have chosen any other way, grasped at any straw. But nothing else had the power to break the power of sin and restore humanity to a God both loving and holy. As long as we stood steeped in evil, we couldn’t stand with Him.

And let’s admit it, there’s not one of us who has never sinned. One sin is all it takes. That’s not hardline legalism, that’s a fact of life. Purity and filth can’t coexist.

That doesn’t mean we’re all dirty, rotten scoundrels, just that we’re not pure. What a love, Who would endure torture and death to restore us!

Let’s be very clear: Jesus was not a victim. He knew what was coming, knew the cost before He stepped out of Heaven. Theologians debate whether He understood it from the Nativity, but we can be sure He knew it that night in the garden. But He chose to go ahead because there was no other way.

Thank You, Jesus, for laying aside Heaven’s splendour to walk in human flesh and show us the Father. And to suffer and die so that we could have eternal life with Father, Son and Spirit.

One of the ways I’ll observe His sacrifice for me is to listen to Todd Agnew’s “Blood is on My Hands” (Reflections of Something, 2007). I invite you to take 5 minutes to visit (Click here or go to YouTube and search by title). The visuals are difficult in places, but you can close your eyes and listen.

Because of Jesus,

Joanna Mallory

PS: If you feel inclined, please lift a prayer for K. God is a patient suitor.

*(New International Version Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. To read this passage in context, see www.biblegateway.com)

© Janet Sketchley, 2008
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For devotionals, reviews and conversation, stop by Janet Sketchley's blog, God with Us: Finding Joy.

Better Questions - Janet Sketchley

It’s great to find an excellent book or CD and discover it’s by a Canadian. Inside, I give a little cheer for my fellow citizen and bask in a bit of shared pride. We have some amazing, God-given talent in this country, and too often we don’t hear about it.

I feel the same way when I find a book or CD by a Christian. Little cheer for my fellow believer, and a bit of shared pride: “hey, that’s my brother or sister in the LORD.”

Although I’ve read some great writing by Canadian Christians, and worshiped to some great Canadian music, today I want to tell you about the new CD from my favourite Christian musician, who happens to be American: Todd Agnew.

Better Questions (Ardent Music LLC, 2007)

Artist: Todd Agnew

http://www.toddagnew.com/

Todd Agnew is the gifted songwriter who brought us the life-changing “Grace Like Rain” and “My Jesus.” The title of his new CD comes from the first track: “I’ve got better questions than I have answers….”

Better Questions’ music ranges from the rocky, driving “Least of These” and “War Inside” to the pensive “If You Wanted Me” and “Can I Be With You?” to the playful and catchy “Funny.” 

“Martyr’s Song,” co-written with novelist Ted Dekker, gives a poignant view of God’s longing to welcome His children into Heaven.

The songs are Agnew’s own, except for “Our Great God” (a duet with Rebecca St. James), “Can I Be With You?,” and the bonus track “Glorious Day,” which continues his tradition of reprising a public domain hymn in his own unique style.

Todd Agnew sings as everyman/woman, exploring Christians’ struggle to live right and challenging us to see past the labels we put on others into their hearts and needs. His lyrics leave no room for plastic Christianity.

The songs remind me of the group Casting Crowns, who also call Christians to authentic living, although Agnew’s music is heavier. His straightforward lyrics remind me of contemporary Christian music pioneer Keith Green, but they don’t have the harshness I sometimes felt in Keith’s delivery. There’s no judgement here, just an awareness of our common need for grace and a heartfelt “We have His heart, what is keeping us from being His hands?”

Better Questions packs a challenging message, but it’s no sermon set to music. Todd Agnew delivers vibrant music with raw, honest lyrics that could have come from our own souls—or our neighbours’. Like the old man in “A Corner in Memphis,” “he’s telling us our story, or at least his side.” It’s worth a listen.

Grace and peace,

© Janet Sketchley, 2007
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For devotionals, reviews and conversation, stop by Janet Sketchley's blog, God with Us: Finding Joy.