WE BECOME WHAT WE WORSHIP: A HOLY WEEK REFLECTION

Easter Sunday stands before us this weekend, and with it comes a decision: Will we be drawn into the moral vortex of vindication and punishment? Or will we rise to the resurrection vision of Jesus?

---

In the home of Lazarus, Mary cracked open costly perfume, anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped them with her hair. This act foreshadowed his coming burial—an unknowing preparation for the Easter miracle. Judas complained about the expense, claiming concern for the poor, but missed seeing his own greed and failed to recognize Christ's presence before the crucifixion.

The apostle Paul had every reason to boast of his status: "circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to righteousness under the law, blameless."

Yet like Mary, Paul encountered the risen Christ, and everything afterward was transformed. Christ became his example, model, and redemption. Paul discovered "righteousness from God based on faith" and his desire became "to know Christ and the power of his resurrection"—the Easter power that conquers death itself.

His Easter motto: "forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus." In finding the resurrected Lord, Paul abandoned his former life, considering everything in his past as "rubbish."

Too many today are driven not by resurrection hope but by winning the next confrontation. The Easter message of reconciliation, where Christ bridged the ultimate divide between humanity and God, is forgotten.

We become what we worship.

If we worship power, we become instruments of vindictiveness. If we worship success, we become instruments of competition. If we worship ourselves, we become instruments of division.

What we worship becomes obvious in how we live. This Holy Week reveals where our hearts truly are.

We don't worship our comforts or traditions, but the One who defeated death.

We worship the risen Christ, and when we do, we turn from the tomb of vindictiveness to embrace resurrection life:

Worshiping the risen Christ leads to grace amid judgment. Worshiping the risen Christ leads to forgiveness amid hurt. Worshiping the risen Christ leads to love amid hatred. Worshiping the risen Christ leads to peace amid conflict. Worshiping the risen Christ leads to justice amid oppression.

This Easter, as we contemplate the empty tomb, remember: We become what we worship. Will we worship the God who transforms death into life, or lesser gods that lead only to tombs?

We become what we worship. Choose resurrection.

In Christ,
Pastor Travis