Fix your eyes on Jesus
by Dianne Eckermann
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Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest (Hebrews 3:1).
I remember one sermon from when I was a small child. We had a guest preacher – an older, retired man who had grown up in Germany. I was fascinated by his German accent as well as the story he told. He spoke about his childhood where, even as a young boy, he had helped on his family’s small farm. It was such a small farm that there was very little machinery. He had learnt to plough a field with a horse and plough, not a tractor. In the distance, he could see his local village and the spire of the church. His father had taught him to keep his eyes on the church spire so that the furrow behind him would be straight and true. He used this story to explain the importance of fixing our thoughts on Jesus.
Today’s verse from Hebrews not only urges us to fix our thoughts on Jesus but also acknowledges Jesus as our apostle and high priest. I don’t often think about Jesus as an apostle. It is a title given to the original 12 disciples and also to Paul after he became a Christian. The word comes from a Greek word meaning ‘a person sent out’. This perfectly describes the ministry of Jesus in this world. He came with a message of good news, a message of salvation for all people, which is certainly something we can meditate on as we fix our thoughts on Jesus.
We can also fix our thoughts on Jesus as our high priest. One part of the role of the high priest was to offer sacrifices to God. Jesus offered the ultimate sacrifice: himself. During the Lenten season, this sacrifice is uppermost in our minds. We know that through this sacrifice, we are offered grace, mercy and forgiveness. So, we can lift our eyes to Jesus, the apostle, the high priest and the sacrifice, a guide like the church spire, but so much more.
Dear Jesus, we ask you to help us to fix our thoughts on you so we may understand your sacrifice and what it means for us. Help us also to understand the enormity of your grace and mercy that we do not deserve but you offer to us anyway. Amen.
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