What’s life all about?  The things you do?  The places you go?  The people you know?

Or is it who you are?

Or does it go even deeper than that?

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They say that the only sure things in life are death and taxes.  What a crazy thought!  You were born into this world, and all you can really count on is that the government will take your money and you will die.  Sounds pretty hopeful.  Doesn’t it?

What if I told you that you can be sure of something in life that really is hopeful?  Would you be interested?

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We all know that Jesus was brutally flogged and then nailed to a cross to die a terrible and painful death.  But the kind of suffering and death he went through was not that uncommon in his day.  Lots of people were flogged, and crucifixion was a normal tool for Roman capital punishment.

What makes Jesus death way different (besides the fact of his innocence) is that Jesus died voluntarily.  If a bunch of trained soldiers tie you up to a post and proceed to whip the flesh from your back, there’s probably not much you could do about it.  And if your limbs are connected to wooden beams by iron spikes driven through your hands and feet, what are you going to do?  But at any point, Jesus could have snapped his fingers and stopped it all.  I doubt you or I would have the strength and commitment to endure that kind of torture for more than a few minutes if we had the power to end it.  But Jesus held strong for hours of gruesome pain and suffering until his body couldn’t take any more and finally died.

Praise the Lord for his dedication, because otherwise none of us would have any hope.

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CHAPTER SIX – Dead and Buried

Did you ever wonder why it’s so hard for some people to quit doing things they know are bad for them?  It’s usually because they’ve been doing it for a long time.

If a person smokes one cigarette or drinks one beer and realizes that it’s gross and unhealthy, it’s easy for them to never drink or smoke again.  It’s even easier for people who have never even tried such things.  If they have watched other people’s lives destroyed by things like drugs or alcohol, it’s extremely easy for them to choose never to touch those things.  But for the person who has made it a habit and become addicted after months (or even years) of use it can be an extremely difficult struggle to break free of those bonds they have created.

It’s the same way with sin.  People choose to turn their backs on God, and break his commands.  And the deeper they go and farther they run from God the more they become enslaved by their own evil.  They become so used to living in sin and their minds are so darkened that they can’t even imagine what life could be like if they weren’t slaves to wickedness.

That’s why the fact that Jesus is willing to cleanse us from all sin is such Good News.  Not only does he save our lives from eternal damnation, he purifies our lives from the stain of sin and empowers us with the Holy Spirit to be able to live the way he commands us to live.  When we choose to repent and to turn away from sin and toward God, in his wonderful grace, God sets us free from that slavery to sin and death, and we are free indeed to live for Jesus and have a brand new life in relationship to him.

I don’t know about you…but I think that’s awesome!

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Do you know Jesus?  How do you know that you know?  Did somebody else tell you?  Are you just guessing?  Do you have any proof?  If you claim to know Jesus, are you sure he’d claim to know you?

Do you know why Jesus tells people to “Depart from me.  I never knew you.”?  Don’t you think that might be something important to know about?

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Do you think you’d get a better report on the Civil War from a modern historian or by spending some time with Abraham Lincoln?  Do you think you could get a better picture of what the Apollo 11 moon landing was like by checking out the NASA website or by sitting down with Neil Armstrong and having him tell you the story about when he took that small step/giant leap?

Obviously, if it were possible to talk to the people who had been a part of events in the past, you’d get some amazing stories about those events.  You could get a feeling for what it was like by talking to the people who were there when it happened.

Did your parents ever tell you about when you were born?  Did your grandparents ever tell you about what it was like to live through the Great Depression or to watch the Apollo Moon Landing on live TV?  Wasn’t it cool to hear those stories from the people who’d seen it happen?

So along those same lines, would it be better to learn about the history of the world from somebody who was never there but had made a guess about what might have happened as the world started or from Someone who was there, Someone who actually built the Earth, Someone who designed the universe as a star spangled backdrop for His favorite creation to enjoy when the sun went down?

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I’ve heard people say they think Jesus is cool–he was a nice guy, a good teacher, a miracle worker–and they say they believe in him because he was all about love and peace and helping people.  But some of those same people say they don’t like church or they don’t like Christians or they don’t like the Bible.

The sad thing is that there is only one Jesus.  In spite of all the opinions about him today.  There are cold, hard facts about who Jesus was and what he taught.  And a lot of people who are confronted with that truth don’t want to follow Jesus–just like a lot of people who heard Jesus speak blunt truth and walked away from him.

Jesus is great, but he also taught hard truths, like real love for Jesus is shown by total obedience to his commands, and you aren’t worthy to follow him unless you are willing to walk away from everything else.

Don’t get me wrong.  I think Jesus is awesome.  And the benefits of knowing him totally outweigh any sacrifice you might make to follow him.  But if you REALLY want to know Jesus, you have to accept him on his terms, not yours.

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Hey Church!  I have a bone to pick with you.  Yeah you–the whole Church–all you people who claim to be followers of Jesus Christ.  Do you remember what Jesus prayed for you before he was crucified?  He prayed that we would all be ONE–just like he and the Father are one.  And do you remember why he prayed that?  So that the world would KNOW that God sent Jesus.  Well guess what?  You have fractured the church into so many opposing groups that the world looks at you and says, “Ok, so which one of these factions should I believe in?  They all seem to disagree.  So why should I believe in Jesus, if his prayer for his church didn’t even work?  How can I be any worse off by not believing in what any of these groups say?”

Real nice job church!  You’ve made quite a mess of Christ’s prayer.

So how about working on that problem?  Why don’t you start living like Jesus did…in PERFECT unity with God.  Don’t let there be even a hint of immorality and sin in you.  Let the world see a body of believers who live pure lives from pure hearts made pure and kept pure by cooperating with the power of the Holy Spirit.  Do you remember how upset Jesus was by those who claimed to be “religious” but were really just religious hypocrites?  Don’t be anything like that.  Let your life be lived the way your Lord commands it to be lived–RIGHTEOUSLY!

I guarantee if every person who claimed to follow Jesus actually lived like Jesus, that the world would have no choice but to understand exactly who Jesus is and that God sent him into the world.  And, if the church (the whole church) lived in perfect unity with Jesus and obeyed all of his commands, she would automatically live in perfect unity as the “body” of Christ.  The church would be ONE.

Read John 17 and think about it.

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Jesus is Alive!  Do you believe it?  Do you REALLY believe it?

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Does your life celebrate Palm Sunday?  Would you like to have a new life to celebrate?  Turn to Jesus, who came to save you and the King who will be your Judge.

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