Last Supper
“For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine
until the kingdom of God comes.”
Luke 22:18
Was Jesus Christ trying to share with us that he would give up the Passover until he would be transformed, changed, and resurrected? He was willing to sacrifice until he had completely changed. Is this why we give up something during Lent? We give something up until the Kingdom of God comes on Easter Day. Do we do this to transform our lives, for complete conversion? We are asked to sacrifice not just for the sake of sacrifice but for the sake of conversion, but why? Why should we would have a conversion, a change of heart?
It’s like when the rich man asked Jesus what I must do to inherit the kingdom of God. Jesus said give up all you have and follow me. The rich man walked away sad because he owned so much. It wasn’t that he owned so much, it was that he was so attached to what he owned, that he could not give it up, change his life, identity, and create a new life by following Jesus.
Are any of us ready to do this? Are we ready to sacrifice our comfort to bring the kingdom of God to our lives? Conversion, who really wants it? We are so stuck in our ways, ideas, and identity. Why would we really want to change? Change is scary, “if it ain’t broke why fix it”? Do we have to be broken to fix ourselves? Or should we constantly be in the state of growth? In a secular way we attempt conversion at the beginning of each year with a New Year’s Resolution. Who has already broken that resolution? We are only 19 days into January.
We each have a desire to better ourselves but how many of us will dedicate or commit ourselves to the work it takes to make the change? How many of us are open to changing into someone we may not know? This is why the rich man walked away sad.
Today, think about what you could sacrifice for a lifetime, not just temporarily, that would make you a better person. Pray about it and consider what your life would be like without it. If we transformed our lives in this way would it help us to bring the kingdom to God here in this place to our loved ones? Then decide will you be like the rich man and walk away or like Jesus Christ and sacrifice it all to be resurrected into a new life?
