Upper room moments
Luke 22:10-12 (NIV)
10 He replied, “As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, 11 and say to the owner of the house, “The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?” 12 He will show you a large upper room, all furnished. Make preparations there.”
Good morning!
This is final week at Lindenwood University, where I attend school. For the last three months, twelve of us have gathered on the third floor in a corner room of Romer Hall to discuss matters of faith. It is a struggle climbing those stairs each week. By the time I get to the top floor, I’m out of breath. Obviously, I need more exercise and less time in front of the computer. Of all the classes I’ve taken, this class in particular reminds me of what the Upper Room must have been like.
Our instructor is a United Methodist pastor serving a local church in O’Fallon, Missouri. He has a heart for lost people and a desire to reach them for Jesus Christ. Through his teaching ministry, he has guided our class in the area of personal evangelism and witnessing our faith to others. We have spent hours studying the Word and seeking greater understanding of the work God has for each of us to do. We gather together in the large upper room to prepare.
Our upper room is drafty, and it’s a stretch to get there each week. The Holy Spirit is ever present in our Upper Room. Every person there has been touched in an amazing way by the Lord. They come each week to explore how God can use their life to reach others for Christ. Some of the people in this room will become pastors; others will be teachers. Some will continue to work outside the walls of the church, sharing their faith with the people they meet each day. Gathering together in the Upper Room to study, pray and share our hearts has been time well spent and a precious moment that will not be forgotten.
When Jesus gathered His disciples together in the Upper Room to celebrate what would be His last Passover on earth, they did not realize how their lives would be forever changed. This would be the last time they would gather with Jesus Christ, Son of God, in human flesh. He would be taken from them, tortured and crucified on a wooden cross, and He would die. His death would bring confusion, grief and loss to each heart gathered in the Upper Room that night. His resurrection would reunite them as one body and ignite a ministry that would transcend all time. Alpha and Omega, the fulfillment of prophecy, and the indescribable love of our Heavenly Father would be born from the suffering and death of our sacrificial lamb. Jesus sought a place, a guest room, where He could spend one more night with His people. He was counting on them to carry the Word into the world. He knew they would be faithful in the end. And He loved them more than life itself.
Upper Room moments can occur in the walls of our sanctuaries and Sunday school classrooms, at home in our prayer closets, and even at school. Whenever we take time to sit at the Master’s feet, study His Word and pray, we can experience the Upper Room in our life.
As we prepare for the coming of the Christ child this Advent season, may we find ourselves experiencing Upper Room moments, reveling in the joy of our salvation. It would be easier to stay in that room and never leave. God calls each of us to come out of the Upper Room and share what we know to be true with others.
Will you join me in spreading the news? Jesus Christ, the only Son of our Heavenly Father, came to earth in human flesh. He took our sin upon Himself and gave up His life so that we could live in relationship with the Father. He died, and rose again, and reigns forevermore. He will save you, when you call on His name, confess Jesus is Lord of all, and seek forgiveness for your sin.
Come to the Upper Room with me today. Jesus Christ is waiting there, just to be with you.
Grace and peace,
Deb Spaulding
www.songofdeborah.com
Pray for: your salvation. If you ask Him to, Jesus will come into your heart today. He will change your life, and you will spend an eternity worshipping Him in the Upper Room.
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© Copyright 2006, Deb Spaulding
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