Risen

“The angel said to the women, 'Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.'"
Matthew 28:5-6

Jesus’ death on a Roman cross, paid in full the debt of all of our sins – but it is the resurrection, His victory over the grave that brings us life.

Because of the resurrection we can know for certain that we will never be alone in this world and that we, who believe will live for all eternity in the presence of God.

So live victoriously today no matter what you are facing because Jesus is alive and by the power of His Holy Spirit He lives in You. Stand on His promises and live by His power.

He is risen indeed!

A prayer
Father –thank you that because Your Son still lives, we can live powerful and victorious lives no matter what circumstances we are facing in this world. May we be a reflection of that power, and of His mercy and grace. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

 

Together

“On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’”
John 20:19

It had been a horrible few days. On Friday they had watched their friend and teacher, the one they thought was the Messiah brutally beaten and crucified. Some of them had fled and those that remained were together. Hold up together out of fear and grief. Jesus had told them but they didn’t get it. Then all of a sudden He is there with them, the locked doors hadn’t stopped Him, the Romans hadn’t stopped Him, death hadn’t stopped Him. He was with them giving them peace.

Humans were never meant to be alone - when Adam was alone God said it wasn’t good (Genesis 2:18). The church was built on people being together in the name of Jesus the Christ. Acts 2:1 says: “When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place.” Later in the same chapter we read that the believers were together - the met together, ate together, prayed together, and worshipped together… “And the Lord added to their number daily” (Acts 2:47). The apostles never traveled alone they were always together with someone.

When we stand together in life and prayer - faint hearts are strengthened, burdens are shared, blessings are celebrated and when we fall, someone is there to help us up. In the book of Hebrews we read “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit if doing, but let us encourage one another…” (v. 25).

We were made for relationship, we need each other. Whether you are in the midst of a storm or on the mountain top make sure you are not on the journey alone. As followers of Christ we need to be together often… it one of the ways His kingdom grows.

Jesus was in their midst when they were together. Jesus told them they would have power when they were together. He said, “For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them” (Matt. 18:20).

A prayer
Father – Thank you for putting people in our lives who help us grow, who help and encourage us when we are down. Who celebrate with us when things are good. Thank for Your promise of being with us when we are together in Your Son’s name. May we be together more than just on Sunday mornings. Help us in the busy world we live in make time to be together and to invite You to join us. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

 

Love Is A Choice

"My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."
John 15:12-13”

At a wedding my husband and I attended once, the pastor used this scripture as the starting point for his message about the commitment of marriage. It is a great verse.

It starts out with a command from Jesus telling us, we must love one another the way He has loved us. Now stop and think about what He is saying.

Jesus is the incarnation of the One True God – He loved us so much that He made the choice to leave the glory of heaven and come be with us. While on this planet Jesus was both fully God and fully man – He showed us love is a choice, he asked His Father to remove the cup, and yet HE ultimately made the choice of obedience, stretched out His arms and laid down His life us.

Today as we consider the cross, really think about how much God loves you. He made the choice to love you so much that He willingly went to the cross for you and me so that we who believe can spend eternity with Him.

Then think about how our own relationships might be strengthened if we make the choice to love sacrificially. If we place others before our selves, if we would love and respect others the way Jesus loved us – can you imagine how much better our families and communities would be?

If that newly married couple heed the words spoken to them at their wedding and build their marriage on a foundation of Jesus – they will have a long and happy life together.

And if we treat everyone in our lives with the love of Jesus, we will bring positive change to our world.

What we call Good Friday was a dark day some 2000 years ago brought about by the choice Jesus made to love. Think about that today as you take time to come to the cross.

A prayer
Father –thank you for loving us so much that You came to be with us and to show us much you loved us by paying the cost of our sin. By the power of Your Spirit may we fulfill the command to love one another the way the You love us. In the might name of Jesus we pray, Amen.

I Died For You

“…just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Matthew 20:28

As I write this two things are on my mind - the hit television show Once Upon A Time and the cross of Christ. I know, I can hear some of you thinking - how do those two things fit together? Let me try to explain.

Snow White under the influence of a magic potion has forgotten what true love is, her heart has grown dark and she is bent on murderous revenge - she plans on killing her stepmother, the evil queen. True love’s kiss had failed to break the spell, so Prince Charming had to find another way to break the spell and save his beloved Snow White. He takes the arrow intended for the Queen and when Snow asks him why - he looks her in the eye and says: “I love you, I would die for you.” Now it isn’t the prince’s willingness to sacrifice his life, after all that’s what fairy tale princes do. Instead, it is Snow’s response that got me thinking. As his words sunk in to her heart the spell was broken, her heart was softened and filled will love again. Her whole countenance changed.

We have a prince too, a real prince. Isaiah calls Him the Prince of Peace (Isa. 9:6). John 3:16 says “For God so loved the world…” God speaking through the prophet Ezekiel says: “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” (Eze. 36:26). Jesus, hanging on the crossing asked His Father to “forgive them for they know not what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34). This is God’s true love for us. He died for me and you, so that our hearts would not become black and hard - so that we would know what true love is really like.

Can you see him? Beaten and near death as he stumbles down the road carrying His cross on the way to Calvary. Did He see you in crowds that lined that ancient street? Did He look you in the eye and say “I love you - I will die for you”. Can you hear Him even now whispering to your heart “I love you, I died for you.” Allow those words to sink in and chase the darkness away. Allow His light of true love to fill your whole being and then let it shine for the world around you to see.

A prayer
Father – Thank you for being the source of true love. Thank you for loving us so much that you laid down Your life to heal our world wounded hearts, souls and minds. May we hear often Your words of love as we travel on this journey home. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

He Told Them...They Told Us

“The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.’”
Matthew 28:5-6

Have you ever wished that you had been there? Drinking the water that had been turned to wine, witnessing Lazarus walking from his tomb, in the crowd fed with a few loaves and some fish, on the mountain where Jesus met with Moses and Elijah, at the empty tomb on the first day of the week. Have you ever wondered about how they – the apostles and other disciples – were there and didn’t get it? The angel had to remind them that Jesus had told them what was going to happen. I have wished and wondered those things and then this thought occurred to me.

I wonder if the apostles and all the other heroes of faith are in heaven watching us and thinking. They – us that is – they have all our stories; they know what happened and what will happen. They have experienced their own miracles, why don’t they get it? Why do they still doubt? Why do they have to be reminded that Jesus told them?

I began to think what is it that links us with them? Why even when we know the truth do we doubt, do we have to be reminded? From Noah to now we are all human, even when we know the plan we still have to make the journey one step at a time without being able to see the end. Our minds cannot truly comprehend the greatness of God and so we often suffer from a kind of spiritual Alzheimer’s. Noah knew the plan… but had never experienced rain, Abraham moved to a new land without knowing where he was really going. The disciples followed not clearly understanding what was happening and the Apostles helped to change the world not truly comprehending the effect they would have. We do our best to remember the stories but we too must walk by faith and not sight. We – like those who have gone before do not really understand all that we will do in the name of Jesus and we cannot see where we are going. So we like them doubt and need to be reminded.

Here is the best part – Jesus doesn’t mind sending us reminders because when the light goes on we worship authentically with our whole lives and the people around us are changed as well.

He is not here. He has risen – just as He said. HE is Risen indeed.

A prayer
Father – Thank you for the daily reminders that you have a plan, that You desire good things for Your people. Thank you for being patient with us when we doubt and grumble. Forgive our unbelief. Grant us the faith we need to take the next step – to stay the course, so that like those who have gone before we too will one day see Your face and fully understand. In the name of Jesus Amen.

How Big is Big?

“Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance?”
Isaiah 40:12

At some time or other we have all seen an image of the mythological Atlas holding the world on his shoulders, but how big is God really? How big is your God? What I am learning as I walk this journey we call life is that GOD is bigger than anything we can possibly comprehend.

Take for instance the words in our passage today “Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand…” Have you ever taken a drink from a mountain stream? It can take a few handfuls to satisfy your thirst. Yet this scripture tells us God measured the waters in the hollow of his hand – one hand mind you. I did a little research to find out how much water that might actually be, the total amount of water in all its forms on, in and around the planet amounts to 332.5 million cubic miles. A single cubic mile equals more than 1.1 trillion gallons – that would fill 1.6 million Olympic sized swimming pools. I think you are getting the picture. If God’s hand is that big how big is the rest of him? How big is his heart?

His heart is so big, that He became human size and then poured out His blood to restore the relationship between us and Him. If He is big enough to do that – He is big enough to provide everything we need – like water.

Another thing about the size of God is that He is so big that He cannot and will not fail at anything He has determined to do. He has determined to love us and to bless those who walk in His ways, those who uphold His command to love God and love others.

Today, as you go about your life, spend some time really trying to understand just how big God really is. I think you will find that everything about this planet and the trials we face will fit in His hand and be overwhelmed by the love in his heart.

A prayer
Father, forgive us for placing human limits on you and your plan for us. Our minds cannot truly comprehend Your unlimited size but help us to catch a glimpse of it as walk the path you have laid out for us. Thank you for the amazing things You have done, are doing and will be doing for us. In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Signs

“From the sixth hour until the ninth hour darkness came over all the land. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook and the rocks split. There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.”
Matthew 27: 45, 51 and 28:2

No matter whether you think the world is millions of years old or considerably younger, the planet has seen the beginning and end of many ages. It would seem that each age comes and goes in an environment of great turmoil.

Jesus had denied the religious leaders of His day any additional signs to prove He was who He claimed to be. In the days following His triumphal entrance into Jerusalem, Jesus spent much of his time trying to prepare His disciples for what was coming. He tried to answer their questions about the end of the age. He warned them about imposters, about war, natural disasters - He warned them of the turmoil, pain and suffering that would come with the end of the age. They did not understand that they would witness some of these things in just a few days.

On Friday the sky went black and the ground shook. The war was won with a rugged Roman cross and an empty tomb - an age ended and another began. Yet, battles still rage for the hearts and souls of mankind.

We will battle on; we will continue to witness the sorts of things Jesus warned His disciples about. In the midst of all the turmoil of this life, if we dare to keep our focus on our conquering servant King and Savior - we can live the abundant, victorious life He intends for us today and every day.

A Prayer
Father, help us to be mindful of the signs of times, so we can respond with grace and mercy to the circumstances around us. Above all else help us to focus on the One who has gained the eternal victory for us, using a cross and empty tomb. In the name of Jesus, our Servant King and Savior - Amen.