Stories of love and sacrifice touch my heart. I love to hear tales of unselfish sacrifices in order to help others. And stories like ones that show someone taking time out of their busy day to help their elderly neighbor or rescuing a stuck animal stir my heart. These give me a warm, fuzzy feeling inside and renew my belief in the goodness of people. They can also make me want to be a better person, and some of them even stir me to change my ways. In today’s devotional, let’s look at 3 lessons from Holy Week that can warm our hearts of faith and teach us to be better people.
Holy Week Story
We find the Easter story detailed in the pages of the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in the Bible. In this post, we will look at Jesus’ journey from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday and the last days of Christ’s life on earth. And let’s look at the lessons from the Easter week found in the church’s calendar. So, will this story inspire us to change our lives and become better people?
Lesson from Maundy Thursday of Holy Week
The venture begins on a day the church calls Maundy Thursday. According to Biblical history, this is the day our Lord ate the Last Supper with His disciples. After the meal, Jesus washed the feet of his twelve followers. And Jesus knew Judas would betray him, but he still included him. The lesson from this part of the story teaches us we are called to serve those around us, even if they hurt us or betray us.
“14. And since I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash each other’s feet. 15. I have given you an example to follow. Do as I have done to you.”
John 13:14-15 (NLT).
Lesson from Good Friday
Next, we will look at the events from the day the church calls Good Friday. A secret trial occurs and the religious leaders of the day send Jesus to Pilate, where he found Jesus guilty. Pilate condemns Jesus to death on a cross because of the prompting of the crowd. Jesus is innocent of any crime, but he submits and suffers a horrible death by crucifixion for the love of all humanity. Jesus gave his life to us without a thought of himself first. This part of the story shows us to love everyone with an unconditional love and without exception the way Christ loves us.
“16 We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us. So we also ought to give up our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?”
1 John 3:16-17 (NLT).
Lesson from the Resurrection during Holy Week
The last part of the story occurred sometime between Saturday night and Sunday morning. This part explains to us about the resurrection of Jesus after three days in the grave. It starts with Mary and several other women going to the tomb to prepare Jesus’ body in the Jewish tradition. They found the stone rolled away and the tomb empty. An angel appeared and told the women that Jesus had risen from the dead, and had defeated death itself. The empty tomb prepared us the for life after death for all who believe in Christ. This day is the foundation of our Christian faith.
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”
John 3:36 (NIV).
Applying the Lessons from Holy Week
These Biblical lessons from the Easter story might warm our hearts for what Jesus did for us, but they should also show us how to be better followers of Christ. God wants His story to do more than give us a good feeling. God calls us to take these words to heart and change how we live. He sacrificed everything to show us he is the way, the truth, and the life. And through His words, we have the bonus of eternal life. We only need to believe in him.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16 (NIV).
Prayer for Easter
“Lord, Jesus Christ, you became human and took on the realities of humanity in our world. During Your life on earth, you gave hope, perspective and salvation to many. Your words are challenging, uplifting, encouraging, and guiding. At the end of your earthly life here in our world, you took upon yourself all suffering and made the cross a sign of hope. At this time when the whole world is suffering, when people are isolated and left to themselves, when people mourn for their loved ones, where people are sacrificing their physical and psychological strength to help others, we pray in solidarity and entrust ourselves to you. Amen.” Adapted from prayers by Sister Ulrike M., SDS—Austria
Grace and Peace to you,
Yvonne M. Morgan is a Christian #author, #blogger, and #speaker. #BibleGatewayPartner
Matthew 28:19 “Therefore, GO and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”
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