Spring also brings the most beloved time of the year for the Christian; Easter!
I am so thankful that God sent His Son, Jesus, to die on a cross and then on the third day, He arose from the grave!!! That's what Easter is all about!
It's not about the "easter bunny," or coloring eggs and easter egg hunts; it's not the new dress you wear on Easter, or the yummy basket full of lots of candy (although I did love my Easter basket!!) No, none of those things have a single thing to do with Easter!
Today, I want to share with you my thoughts about this special day and the real meaning behind Easter!
Have you seen the movie “Passion of the Christ?” If not, I strongly recommend that you do. It's a powerful movie that shows the events leading up to the death of Christ. Each time I have watched this movie, I have been deeply moved and tears have flooded my eyes. It’s a sad reminder of the price Jesus paid for us.
Our Savior was tried and found guilty of being who He said He was; The Son of God. He was beaten beyond recognition, spit upon, mocked and ridiculed; a crown of thorns was placed on His head. Nails were driven into His hands and feet, and then in an upward position, He was placed on an old rugged cross to die for you and me. It's hard to think that God watched His Son be crucified at the very hands of the men He was dying for!! What love! All of this was done so that that we could be given the gift of God's Amazing Grace.
Isaiah 53 says, “He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
What’s so amazing to me is that while Jesus was on the cross, you and I were on His mind! We all were!! Even in great pain and agony, He cried out to His father and said, “Father forgive them, for they know not what they do!” He was thinking of others, even at the point of death!
When someone hurts us, our flesh wants to hurt back and get even, but not our Savior!! He never said a critical word nor did He fight back. He could have called ten thousand angels to rescue Him, but He didn’t. He could have destroyed the world and been set free, but He didn’t. His Father's will was accomplished that day on Calvary.
Jesus prayed this prayer before He was led away to face His accusers. “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” (Matt. 26:39)
It was all about God's perfect plan! From the beginning of time, God knew that there would need to be a sacrifice for mankind and that sacrifice would be His own Son!
Aren’t you thankful that the story doesn't end here? I am!!
“Up from the grave He arose” that blessed Easter morning!! Hallelujah, He arose on the third day!
I Corinthians 15:3-4 that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures
Two thousand years ago, history was changed forever! Death was swallowed up in victory! The grave could hold Him no longer!
Matthew 28 “Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.
But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay
Pastor Adrian Rogers said,
"The resurrection is not merely important to the historic Christian faith; without it, there would be no Christianity. It is the singular doctrine that elevates Christianity above all other world religions."
John MacArthur said,
“If Christ was not raised, His death was in vain, your faith in Him would be pointless, and your sins would still be counted against you with no hope of spiritual life."
Think about that for a moment… Without the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior, there would be no hope! There would be no future, but praise the Lord He came out of that tomb and He now He sits at the right hand of God making intercession for us!!
If you think that no one cares for your soul, I’m here to tell you, “You are so wrong!” Jesus died for you and loves you more than any earthly human could. How many people can you name right now that would lay down their life for you? Speaking for myself, not very many, but I'm so glad He saw the good in me and laid His life down for mine!!
John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.
Because He lives, we can face today, tomorrow, and anything that comes our way! No mountain is too big for God and no valley too low that God can't handle! We are more than conquerors through Jesus Christ!! He has paved the way for us to live a victorious Christian life through His death, burial and resurrection!
If you are reading this letter and you don’t know the Lord personally, I invite you right now to ask Him into your heart! The Bible says if you confess with your mouth, the Lord Jesus and BELIEVE in your heart that God has raised Jesus from the dead, YOU SHALL BE SAVED!!! It’s that simple! (Romans 10:9-10) I can’t think of a better time to ask Christ into your heart than right now!!
If you are a child of God, take time to reflect on what the Lord has done for you and make a commitment to share with your family and friends the good news!! Christ has risen just like He said He would do and He has gone to prepare a place for us so we can live with Him forever!!! We have the “hope” living within us so let us not keep it just for ourselves but share it with everyone we come in contact with!!
I serve a risen Savior, He’s in the world today;
I know that He is living, whatever men may say;
I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer, And just the time I need Him, He’s always near.
He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and talks with me
A-long life’s narrow way.
He lives, He lives, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives?
He lives within my heart.
With anticipation and great hope, let us look towards the Second coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! It could be any day now!!
Titus 2:13 says,
“looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ
All Because He Lives!
Jenny
II Timothy 1:12
No comments:
Post a Comment