Greetings in the name of Jesus Christ,
Easter, the proclamation of Resurrection life in Jesus Christ stirs our souls and lives as the riotous explosion of new life surrounds us in Spring-time. The persistent progression of the season leads me to reflect on my witness to the Resurrection life we have in Jesus Christ.
How clear and compelling is my witness to the love of God in Christ Jesus? Jesus’ love and forgiveness are wondrous and inviting, so how am I making him known? Our culture increasingly questions the authenticity of Jesus Christ and challenges the Gospel as “Good News” if it casts a call for change over the hearts and lives of the hearers.
Demands are made for the Church to approve and affirm anything folks choose to believe and practice. Yet, not everything is good, right, healthy, or true.
Jesus then said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham, and have never been in bondage to any one. How is it that you say, ‘You will be made free’?”
Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, every one who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not continue in the house for ever; the son continues for ever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are descendants of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me, because my word finds no place in you. I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.” John 8:31-38
We live in the midst of a culture of death. “Zombies,” the walking dead, are a popular form of entertainment. We do not see the real walking dead all around us. We are called to engage in conversation as much as possible; not accommodating our witness to be less offensive and more acceptable to unbelievers. We should be intentional in asking: where are they headed? What are the “gods” of this world going to give them at the end of their life? What good are all the passions and pursuits when they will disappear like dust in the wind? Folks all around us are living a walking death, lost, without hope for this life and the future!
For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. He who believes in him is not condemned; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one who does evil hates the light, and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does what is true comes to the light, that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been wrought in God. John 3:17-21
We are sent to share the truth of God’s love with this world. Sin and death resists the light, life, and truth of Jesus Christ; but cannot overcome. Allow Jesus to birth anew a desire to share truth with the “walking dead.” Make new friends, loving them with Jesus’ love. Jesus has conquered sin and death, and we are empowered to shine his light and dispel darkness.
We have been born again in Jesus; let us bring forth new life in this time!
Grace be with all who love our Lord Jesus Christ,
In Jesus, Paul and Nancy Wier