Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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Cleansing Christ

Zechariah 13:1-9

“In that day a fountain shall be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for uncleanness.”(V.1)

We are finding ourselves upon the 2nd Sunday of Great Lent, hopefully we are continuing on with the rich fasting tradition that was created by our holy fathers long ago. It has been sung by Mar Ephrem the Syrian in a hymn, “This is the fast of the First Born, the first of His victories. Let us rejoice in His coming; for in fasting He has overcome. Though He could have overcome by any means, He revealed for us, the strength, hidden in fasting, Oh Blessed is the First-Born who encompassed our weakness with the wall of His great fasting. Blessed is the King who adorned the Holy Church with Fasting, Prayer and Vigil.” .  Today's meditation is from Zachariah chapter 13:1-9.  The two points that highlighted here are Cleansing Through Christ and Refining Our Lives Through Christ.
 We have been cleansed through Christ Jesus.
In this passage we see Zechariah's prophesy about a day when God will cleanse the sin from the earth. Through his use of imagery, we see that day would come with a strong price of death from the sinless One. Where he would be pierced because of his people’s rejection.  And so, just like Zechariah prophesied, Christ’s crucifixion, allowed for the blood to flow from His side to become the cleansing fountain of grace and mercy.  There is a great hymn that was written by William Cowper that explains this prophecy very well it reads…“There is a fountain filled with blood
Drawn from Emmanuel’s Veins
And sinners, plunged beneath that flood
Lose all their guilty.”
Refining our lives through Christ
Sin has an inherent power over us. Every day we are being defeated, surrounded, and smothered by the personal idols that we have created in replacing God.  Should this be the way for us to live, knowing that we have been cleansed by the passion of Christ? Absolutely not, we should be able to turn away from of our idols and become fully dedicated towards the spiritual communion that we have with God. Our Lenten season should not be seen as a chore, or a means to make one holier than another. God clearly makes a statement to those who do thing of that nature in the book of Mathew (Mathew 6:1), but this fast should be used as spiritual tool used to dedicate and aligning us spiritually with Christ.
Prayer: O Lord, help us to shine with your divine light, and help us to lead everyone to your cleansing fountain that has already been opened to us through your passion, from whence your precious blood flowed. All these things we ask in your mighty name. Amen
Thought of the day: We are cleansed from the power of sin through Christ’s Blood, and we are purified through the fire of Holy Spirit.
 Jason Varghese


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