CHECKING YOUR CALENDAR AND YOUR SOUL
The calendar year has undergone an evolution over time. There is some historical support for the early Roman calendar containing only ten months (March-December). Before 150 BC, the Roman calendar built its calendar around the lunar cycles. December, the tenth month, was so named because it was the tenth (deca) month, September the seventh month (septa) and October the eighth month (octa). What happened to January and February? Hard to say. Guess the Romans decided to forget those cold winter months.
But then comes the wonderful month of March and the coming of spring. For the Romans it meant the coming of better weather and springtime sunshine. Of course, we like March too. For basketball fans, its “March Madness.” For baseball fans, it means spring training and opening day of a new baseball season right around the corner. For the Irish, it means St. Patrick’s Day, corned beef and cabbage, and green milk shakes at McDonalds—or something stronger at the local pub. For Julius Caesar, it meant the Ides of March and that wasn’t so good.
An old saying states, “If March comes in like a lion, it will go out like a lamb.” This year, we could use the lion’s share of our rain this month. In most years Easter comes in April. But in some years, Easter week comes at the end of March with Palm Sunday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday (April 1), falling in the final week. In the truest sense, Easter would then be about March going out like a lamb– the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29)–and April coming in like a lion—the Lion of Judah, Jesus Christ (Rev 5:5).
I’m told March was named for the Roman god Mars, the god of war. March is also about God’s war on sin and the hopelessness of humanity. The Lamb of God came to Jerusalem one week before the end of March and then exited the tomb with a roar the day March was over. March is a reminder that the winter of my soul has been turned to the Sonshine of God’s love and grace by the Lamb slain before the foundation of the world (Rev. 5:6; 13:8) and who, with the roar of a lion, defeated sin and death (1 Cor 15:55-57) and now sits upon the throne of my life. To that you and I can sing Hallelujah. Pastor Mike
