Romans 6:4 ESV – We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
Yesterday was the remembrance of the wondrous resurrection of our Lord and Savior and his victory over death. Through this astonishing miracle our great hope is founded. We, who believe in Him, will be with him for all eternity. Around the world Christians commemorated the most important day of the year; and many gathered with family and friends. Sadly, many will not think about the resurrection of Christ for another year as if it is an annual event to be celebrated and then forgotten; like Memorial Day and Labor Day. Many take too casually their own new life given by the power of the Holy Spirit. A life forever impacted by the events of Easter (a resurrected life) will have unique qualities about it. It will be a life marked by love. Jesus went to the cross because of his love for us. Love is the defining mark of a resurrected life. Remember Jesus’s words found in John 13:35, “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” It will be a life marked by joy. Joy is another defining mark of a resurrected life. In John 15:11 we read, “These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” It will be a life marked by service. Serving others is an expression of love and very often the act of serving brings joy to the server. Serving others was exemplified by Christ. In Matthew 20:28, Jesus said, “even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” We, as followers of Christ, need to recall the resurrection of Jesus daily and to express the changes in our lives (our resurrected spiritual lives) as Jesus would through love, joy and service.
John 13:34-35 – “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”
Holy week is the week which begins with Palm Sunday and continues through the Saturday preceding Easter. It is a week celebrated by Christians around the world and in some countries the entire week is a national holiday.
On Holy Monday Jesus cursed the fig tree, chased the merchants out of the temple and responded to Jewish leaders who questioned His authority.
On Holy Tuesday Jesus foretold of his own death.
On Holy Wednesday Judas Iscariot arranged for the betrayal of Jesus with the chief priest.
Holy Thursday, also called Maundy Thursday, Jesus shared the Last Supper with his disciples. Maundy is a shortened form of the Latin word ‘mandatum’ which means ‘command’. During the Last Supper Jesus commanded his disciples to love one another (John 13:34-35).
Also on Maundy Thursday, Jesus washed his disciple’s feet, was betrayed by Judas Iscariot and was arrested in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Holy Friday, known as Good Friday, was the day that Jesus stood before Pontius Pilate, was sentenced to death, tortured, crucified, died and was placed in the tomb. Jesus redeemed mankind through his self-sacrifice and saved those who believe in him from eternal separation from God.
Isaiah 52:14b esv – his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind.
Have we ever considered what it cost God, Jesus’ father, to bear through the sufferings of Jesus? Certainly, we cannot comprehend what God experienced at that time; we are merely human. Still, if our nature as human parents having watched our own children hurt are any indication of how God must have suffered, how much more wonderful the gift of mercy and grace upon us is.
God, the father, watched as Jesus was struck for answering the high priest’s questions. An unjust striking for Jesus spoke the truth that was misunderstood.
God, the father, witnessed as Pilate found no wrongdoing on Jesus’ behalf yet turned over to be crucified under pressure by the Hebrew priest.
God, the father, looked on as the Roman guards twisted long thorny vines into a ring and pushed them into Jesus’ scalp; viciously flogged him and hit him repeatedly.
God, the father, restrained himself as he watched his Son being forced to carry the heavy cross-beam of the cross to the hill of Golgotha where he was nailed to the beam and hung upon the cross.
God, the father, witnessed Jesus’ earthly death upon the cross; an unjust ending to a life of serving his father here on earth.
God, the father, endured all this as his Son rescued mankind.
Matthew 28:18:20 – “Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
Last year, Meridian Avenue Baptist Church adopted new bylaws that were structured to guide our church to Make Disciples by helping people to (1) Experience God, to (2) Grow in Faith and to (3) Serve Others. Recently I learned that our American Baptist Churches – International Ministries has resolved that there are three Focused Impact Areas for their outreach. The areas that they are focusing on are (1) inviting people to be disciples of Jesus Christ, (2) proclaiming God’s reign of justice, peace, and abundant life, and (3) equipping the body of Christ to engage in God’s mission.
I am encouraged that both Meridian Avenue and ABC-IM place bringing people to Christ as their primary responsibility. All Christians share the responsibility of speaking about Christ and providing an opportunity for all to hear the Gospel message. I am further encouraged that Meridian Avenue and ABC-IM place emphasis on sending new Christians forth and to serve others; engaging in God’s mission.
Matthew 23:18-20 – “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.”
The following was posted on February 12, 2009 by baptistpress.com and was written by Erin Roach.
It tells of an atheist who respects Christians who proselytize (witness). This article can be viewed at this web address
LAS VEGAS (BP)–Penn Jillette, the verbal half of the magician duo Penn and Teller, and an outspoken atheist, has posted a YouTube video exhorting Christians to share their faith.
Penn and Teller are headliners in Las Vegas, and their shows generally are marked by foul language and shock appeal. Penn Jillette, though, used no coarse language in telling about an audience member who gave him a New Testament.
Jillette was signing autographs after a show last fall when he noticed the man standing over to the side of the crowd.
“And he had been the guy who picks the joke during our psychic comedian section of the show. He had the props from that in his hand because we give those away. He had the joke book and the envelope and paper and stuff,” Jillette said in the Dec. 8 YouTube video.
The man walked over to Jillette, complimented him on the show and handed him a Gideons New Testament.
“And he said, ‘I wrote in the front of it, and I wanted you to have this. I’m kind of proselytizing,’” Jillette said. “And then he said, ‘I’m a businessman. I’m sane. I’m not crazy.’ And he looked me right in the eyes.
“It was really wonderful. I believe he knew that I was an atheist. But he was not defensive, and he looked me right in the eyes,” Jillette said. “And he was truly complimentary. It didn’t seem like empty flattery. He was really kind and nice and sane and looked me in the eyes and talked to me and then gave me this Bible.”
Jillette then stated he doesn’t respect people who don’t proselytize.
“I don’t respect that at all. If you believe that there’s a heaven and hell and people could be going to hell or not getting eternal life or whatever, and you think that it’s not really worth telling them this because it would make it socially awkward, and atheists who think that people shouldn’t proselytize — ‘Just leave me alone, keep your religion to yourself.’
“How much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize?” Jillette asked. “How much do you have to hate somebody to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that? If I believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that a truck was coming at you and you didn’t believe it, and that truck was bearing down on you, there’s a certain point where I tackle you. And this is more important than that.”
Jillette reiterated his impression of the man’s demeanor.
“This guy was a really good guy. He was polite and honest and sane, and he cared enough about me to proselytize and give me a Bible, which had written in it a little note to me — not very personal, but just ‘Liked your show,’ and then listed five phone numbers for him and an e-mail address if I wanted to get in touch,” Jillette said.
“Now I know there’s no God, and one polite person living his life right doesn’t change that. But I’ll tell you, he was a very, very, very good man, and that’s really important. And with that kind of goodness, it’s OK to have that deep of a disagreement. I still think that religion does a lot of bad stuff, but that was a good man who gave me that book. That’s all I wanted to say,” Jillette said at the end of the short video.
John Mark Simmons, pastor of the Las Vegas-area Highland Hills Baptist Church in Henderson and a member of the Southern Baptist Convention Executive Committee, told Baptist Press that Jillette’s video should inspire believers to share their faith even when they think people won’t be responsive.
“That episode is a wonderful encouragement for all of us to be salt and light,” Simmons said. “If you know anything at all about Penn or his shows, you know he pretty much represents the decayed and dark world we live in, yet someone’s obedience got his attention.”
Matthew 24:35 – “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.”
I had set my alarm to wake me at 5:00 AM, November 18th, 1966. The local newspaper said that the Leonid Meteor Shower would be exceptional that year and I was eager to view it. A good meteor shower is one where 10 to 15 meteors enter Earth’s atmosphere over the period of one minute. On that incredible morning thousands of meteors fell every minute creating bountiful luminous trails to mark their paths.
I had taken a few steps outside the rear door of my childhood home before I looked skyward. Having looked up I froze in place in astonishment; completely unprepared for the stunning display overhead.
Moving further into our backyard; I craned my neck in an effort to look straight up. The streaks of light appeared to be falling in a circle around me. As rivulets of light began to fade others would appear to take their place. Words like phenomenal and breathtaking fail to convey the beauty in the skies that morning and all too soon the pageant ended as our planet’s movement took us out of the comet’s tail.
I consider myself blessed for having the opportunity to witness this remarkable event; an event unlikely to occur again.
It was an incredible few minutes looking into the sky, but like many other events, very brief. So many things in our lives are fleeting moments, moments that only continue to exist in our memories. Christ’s words are eternal, as are those of the most High God. Let us fondly remember special fleeting moments in our lives but always cling closely to the eternal Word.
