He is ALIVE!
ENCOURAGEMENTS: April 7, 2023
What is Easter? Frankly, it's the greatest love story. That's what the Bible tells us:
"Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends." - John 15:13
Jesus Christ was sent to this earth to die for our sins. He loved us SO much that He died the most excruciating death anyone on this earth has ever endured. At any moment, He could have stopped the pain. He could have called on the angels to come and rip Him off that cross and strike every single person mocking and spitting on Him dead. But no, He endured the cross and right before He died, He said, "It is finished."
The Bible tells us that in this moment of His death, it became dark in the middle of the day, the earth trembled and the veil at the temple was torn in two. Why is that last part important? The veil tearing symbolized that through Jesus' death, we now could go before God and ask for forgiveness of our sins and salvation would be given freely.
As his lifeless body was pulled off the cross and placed inside a tomb, His followers mourned Him deeply, because all seemed hopeless. Jesus had come to this earth giving a message of deliverance from sin and eternal life in Heaven, but now He was gone. What had it all been for? Three days after His death, a few of His female followers went to His tomb, only to find the stone guarding the entrance rolled away. When they looked inside, this is what happened:
"And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him." - Mark 16:5-6
In Luke 24, we read that Jesus then appeared before His disciples, saying, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.”
Y'all, Jesus is ALIVE today. How do I know that? Well, first off, I believe what the Bible says. The Bible tells us that it is the Word of God, and I believe it all to be truth. But I also I have Jesus in my heart. I feel His presence. I have faith that my Lord is alive, because though I have never seen His face, I see evidence of His movement here on this earth and feel His joy and living hope in my heart.
Jesus' death and resurrection wasn't in vain -- it was for YOU! Because of his death and resurrection, we have the free gift of salvation from our sins and can have eternity spent with the Lord. The reality is that when we die, we are going one of two places: Heaven or Hell. They are real places. Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." Will you accept that free gift today? Will you believe in Jesus? Better yet, will you decide to follow Jesus? There's no greater love on this earth that is superior to the love between you and Jesus.
This week, I encourage you to read John 18-21 to really focus on what Easter is about and just how loved you are by Jesus!
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