Week 6 The Victory of Love
The Bible says, “Like a lily among thorns, so is my love…”(Song of Solomon 2:2) The crown placed on Jesus’ head is a symbol of both suffering and honor as a king. The white lily reminds us that Jesus is innocent; He had committed no sin! The gold anthers (middles) of the lily signify the divine light of the Risen Christ. One day, because of Passion week and Resurrection Sunday, we will wear crowns of life that we will cast worshipfully at the feet of Jesus, the King of Kings. Jesus suffered extreme pain, but the end result was the most beautiful thing. He rose to a new eternal life without pain and suffering and He won it for us too!!
It is altogether amazing to consider that God invaded our world, laid claims upon us and revealed truths by which we are to live; that someone took (MY) sin upon himself and completely conquered it, triumphantly in three days is beyond comprehension! He is clearly a Person of enormous might and majesty, and the Bible assures us that one day “at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:10,11)
It is disturbing to think that some will not acknowledge this love and sacrifice until that day. John 3:16 says that God loved us so much that He gave His only begotten son, that whoever will believe in Him will have eternal life. It is my prayer that you will begin this eternal resurrection celebration now (if you have not already) by confessing that Jesus is who He said He is, that you are guilty of sin and in need of a Savior, and join the everlasting crowd of saints by crowning Him Lord of your life. That would make Easter glorious, the victory complete and the end a new beginning.
Customs:
Of all the folk symbols of Easter none is more conspicuous than the egg, and it is a familiar example of the beginning of life. It was Thomas Aquinas, a 13th century theologian, who asked the riddle, “which came first, the chicken or the egg?” Of course, the chicken probably did; however, the emergence of a living creature from such a long period of nothing is incredible. To think that the Author of Life is able to reanimate the dead!
The egg has become a symbol of both new life and the rock tomb out of which our Lord rose on resurrection morning! Many traditions have developed around the egg. Early Christians would stain eggs red in memory of the shed blood of Christ. Green was a favorite color in Europe, representing new life.
The egg is a symbol of the Trinity. There are 3 parts – the shell, the white (albumen) and the yolk – in one egg. Like wise, there are 3 persons – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – in One God. The egg is also a symbol of forgiveness. When we are angry with someone and refuse to forgive, we are trapped inside a shell. To be set free, we must forgive and sometimes we have to work at it because it is difficult, just as a chick needs to really work at breaking out of its eggshell.
A little story comes from Poland that Mary, Jesus’ mother, amused her son as a toddler with hard boiled eggs painted in bright colors. He played and made up games with these new rolling toys.
The Pennsylvania Dutch made an Easter egg bird by boring 4 holes, one for the head, 2 for the wings, and one for the tail in a blown egg and it was hung by a thread or ribbon indefinitely.
There are several popular egg games throughout the world. Egg gathering is one. Eggs are placed at certain intervals along a racetrack and children run down the track with baskets, trying to gather the most eggs and cross the finish line first. Egg devouring is a contest held every year to see who can eat the most eggs. Egg exchanges happen customarily on Holy Saturday between friends and neighbors in some countries. Egg knocking has several variations, but primarily it is a game in which players take turns hitting an opponent’s egg without breaking one’s own. The winner is the last one with an unbroken egg. Egg tosses are a messy, but fun, game played with a partner and a raw egg. The egg is tossed and caught without breaking it. The distance grows with each successful toss and players are eliminated when their egg is broken. The winning team is the last team with a whole egg.
Egg-citing Trivia about eggs:
There are many stories, poems and riddles about eggs. Have you heard any of these?
An extremely bad fall: Do you know this rhyme about a famous egg?
Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall; Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.
All the kings horses and all the kings men couldn’t put Humpty together again.
Can anyone put an egg together after it breaks?
Try this eggsperiment
Can you squeeze an egg in your fist without breaking it? Try it but do not dig your fingernails into the shell or the egg will break.
Eggs actly – Do you know the answer to this old riddle?
What has neither head nor foot, neither tail nor arms?
What is neither living nor dead? Did you guess? Why of course you did! An egg!
Eggs-amine this carefully
How can you tell a hard-boiled egg from a raw egg? Spin the egg carefully on a flat surface. Raw eggs hardly spin at all. The yolk and the egg white inside are not hard; they are soft and splash about when the egg spins quickly. When the egg is hard boiled the inside of the egg is hard and it spins at the same speed as the shell.
Devotions:
S – The crown of the Cross Matt 27:27-31
M – Life James 1:22 Rev. 2:10
T – Joy 1 Thess 2:19
W – Righteousness 2 Tim 4:3
Th – Glory 1Peter 5:4
F- Incorruptible 1 Cor. 9:25
S – Kingship and Victory Ps 103:1,4 Rev. 11-16
Taste: Jesus lived in a climate very much like ours {this was written in Scottsdale, AZ}, an arid desert, although he had the Mediterranean to make it a little cooler. He probably ate lots of figs and dates; in fact some people have referred to Palm Sunday as Fig Sunday because of the cursing of the fig tree by Jesus. Today taste a fig cookie or a date shake!
Listen: Easter is a time of rejoicing and celebrating. One night this week measure the smile of each family member. Who has the largest smile. Hear the laughter! Here are a few jokes:
What did the chicken say when she saw a plate of scrambled eggs? There’s a bunch of crazy mixed up kids!
Why did Humpty Dumpty have a great Fall? To make up for a lousy summer.
What is invisible and smells like carrots? Bunny Farts
What is a row of rabbits marching backward called? A receding hareline
How do you comb your hare? Grab him gently but firmly by the ears and brush in a downward motion
Look: Watch the Easter Parade from New York City on television. How many symbols and colors can you see?
Smell: A nut and fruit cake is baked in a wreath shape for the crown of thorns and 5 eggs are reminders of Christ’s wounds. As you bake this European treat called Italian Easter bread, smell the aroma that fills the air. Or make Easter bunny butt cookies – how do they smell?!
Touch: Jesus washed the disciples’ feet as an act of service and love. Who needs your service today? Make an effort to serve others this week by jotting a note to a missionary, feeding the homeless at a food bank, taking a basket to a shut-in, or driving a senior citizen to run errands. Be creative.
Do: Decorating Easter eggs is a custom that has been going on for hundreds of years in a variety of ways. Ukrainians decorate eggs in a special way called pysanky. The designs are very elaborate and scratched on the eggs. Some patterns have been passed down for generations. Beeswax is melted and a special pen is dipped into the wax and the designed onto the egg. After the egg is dyed, the wax is scraped off or melted in a low oven. The result is a beautiful white pattern on the dyed egg. Dye the egg from light color to dark for a multicolored egg.
Faberge eggs are special because the workmanship was extraordinary and intricate. Faberge was a Russian who made eggs covered in gold, silver and precious gems. Inside there is usually a surprise or gift or scene in miniature. The eggs were commissioned gifts from the Czar to his family every Easter. Today egg decorators follow the tradition with exotic designs. There are eggs with lights, music boxes, velvet lining sand a variety of novelty items.
In Poland it is the custom to decorate with rug yarn. It is called Binsegrass; glue is applied to both ends and yarn wrapped around the glued areas.And Pace eggs are the names given to eggs dyed with old scraps of colored cloth. The old dyes were not colorfast as they usually are today and si the eggs wrapped in pretty colored material and boiled for half an hour. The pattern from the cloth was now on the eggshell.
Invent egg decorating methods of your own. You can use anything. Always begin to decorate the egg at its waist, the widest part. Dribble glue in designs and drop glitter, sea shells, pasta, beans, sequins, paper shapes, stickers, ribbon, embroidery thread, lace, beads, yarn stamps, stars, etc. Glue on favorite pictures or comic characters. Smooth out wrinkles and shellac. Dried flowers , designs cut out from cloth, wrapping paper all will make a unique and beautiful egg. Etched eggs are made by scratching a design onto eggs with a needle or sharp knife that has been dyed in deep, vivid colors. You can use felt markers, crayons, dyes, finferpaints and melted wax to color your egg.
1. To hard boil eggs without cracking them, cover the eggs at room temperature with water and bring to a full boil. Remove from heat, cover with a lid and let stand for 30 minutes. Rinse with cool water. Dry.
2. You can also puncture one end with a needle before boiling.
3. To blow an egg first watch and dry the egg. Poke a small hole with a darning needle at each end of the egg. make one hole bigger that the other and break the yolk with the needle. Blow through the small end until the egg runs into a bowl and the shell is empty. Wash each egg again, very carefully. Prop each egg where it can air dry completely. Blown eggs can be strung on threads or ribbons and hung in windows.
4. When working on your eggs the egg carton makes a handy rack.