Tag: resurrection of jesus

Easter Sunday 2022 | “Go!”

Never forget the price that Jesus paid and the cost God incurred in order to bring about our salvation.

Happy Easter!

For the last 40 days we have been preparing to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The day has finally come.

I encourage you to do a couple things today. First, I encourage you to celebrate the goodness of God in making a way for our reconciliation with him. Never forget the price that Jesus paid and the cost God incurred in order to bring about our salvation. We can rejoice in all of this because God is good.

Second, I would encourage you to make an intentional effort in the coming week to share with someone why Easter matters. Not only that it matters to you as a follower of Jesus Christ, as important as that is. But how it matters to the one with whom you share the good news of the gospel.

One of the primary obligations we have as Christians is to tell the story of Jesus. I think what we often get wrong is we tell the story in a way that keeps us out of it. I believe that is a mistake.

If you have been saved by the precious blood of the Lamb of God then the story you tell IS your story as well. It is not your story because you did anything worthy of salvation. It is not your story because you have somehow impressed God with your newfound righteousness. It is your story because the one that Jesus saved was you!

So today enjoy the celebrations and the time of reflection. But tomorrow I invite you to go.

Go tell someone how grateful you are God has restored you to fellowship with him and with those whom you share fellowship with in your church.

Maybe that’s not something you’re comfortable doing. The truth is I’m not sure how many are. But if you are even a little bit thankful for God’s grace it is a discomfort worth enduring so someone else might also come to know what you know.

I am not saying be pushy or rude. Don’t try to “save” anyone. Just talk about this moment, this even, this reality that has impacted your life.

So go. Do not allow fear or doubt or uncertainty to keep you from going.

Lent 2020 | Resurrection Sunday: “Worship”

Today is Easter Sunday.

At our local congregation, we like to celebrate it as Resurrection Sunday. I find that it helps us to focus in on the reality we are remembering and celebrating.

Like so many other Christians, I celebrate this wonderful miracle at a distance. While I do not need to be in a building to remember and worship my God and my Savior, I feel a renewed appreciation for the corporeal existence of the children of God called the Church. I miss being with them.

This will be an Easter for the ages. I hope and prayer is that we do not forget the lessons learned in this difficult time.

 

I'm Alive

What would you believe if you heard this?

https://youtu.be/zvp30U-vhe0

When the movie Risen originally came out I shared my thoughts right after seeing it. I continue to think that it is one of the most compelling retellings of a Biblical event I have seen.

There is one scene in particular that was particularly poignant. It was when Clavius, portrayed by Joseph Fiennes, is interrogating one of the guards he had left to watch over the tomb. I remember watching this scene and feeling so bad for the soldier. He had witnessed the incomprehensible and then was forced to lie about what he had seen. Couple that with the probability that no one was going to or even wanted to believe what he had experienced. I just can’t imagine the torment he felt.

The thought that comes to mind is this: The truth is inescapable.

Advent Series 2012, Pt. 2 | Who Doesn’t Like Baby Jesus?

Where has 2012 gone? Another year almost in the record books, but we still have one more month to go. December is an amazingly busy time around the church. There is a lot going on, but one of the realities my mind turns to around this time of year is the fact that Jesus, our Lord and Savior, was born in the home of ordinary and humble people. I think that we take for granted that there was not anything overly remarkable about Jesus earthly parents. I don’t know if Mary and Joseph fully understood what it meant that the baby born in the stable that first Christmas night would be the Messiah. I am not fully convinced that they fully could comprehend what God was going to do through their faithful obedience. What they did know was that this little, precious bundle of joy was going to change their lives forever! I think every parent understands this even if they are not sure how.

The mystery of Advent (what us church nerds call this time of the year) is that God became like one of us. The technical term for this is “Incarnation.” When we talk about Jesus coming into the world as a baby we are saying that Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, took upon himself something that he did not have before the moment of conception! The Trinity existed as spirit. But, after Jesus descended into the womb of Mary he no longer exists in this way. The great miracle and mystery of this truth is that Jesus voluntarily confined himself to the body of a human being so that we can enter into fellowship with the Father.

Continue reading “Advent Series 2012, Pt. 2 | Who Doesn’t Like Baby Jesus?”

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