44:10 Hallelujah! Christ is Risen!

Happy Easter! Christ is Risen from the Dead!

When my grandson was three, he saw Christ "being crucified" in an Easter play! He later told me he was upset because "they killed Jesus". When he was four, he asked: "Grandpa, Why did they kill Jesus? I was not quite prepared for his question so I had to take a minute to ponder: "now what can I say to a four year old that he would understand" Then I came up with a response: "Jesus took our spanking" His face lit up with recognition, spanking was something he understood!

The fact is that Jesus did take the punishment that we deserved! His punishment was much more severe than one we might receive for taking a cookie out of the cookie jar. That's because, our crime was much more severe; our crime deserved death. Since Adam and Eve's original sin, Adam, man has been "born in sin and shaped in iniquity!" Peterson puts it this way "...we've compiled this long and sorry record as sinners... and proved that we are utterly incapable of living the glorious lives God wills for us..." (Romans 3:22-24, The Message) We were already doomed to a death sentence and were on our way to hell! Then Jesus stepped in and took our punishment on our behalf. God loved the world so much that he gave his only son, so that whoever believes in Him would not die for their sins but would have everlasting life. (paraphrase of John 3:16) THANK GOD FOR JESUS!

So where does Christ's Ressurection come into the picture? Not only did Jesus die for our sins but He also rose from the dead, declaring victory over, death, hell and the grave! He now sits at the right hand of God-awaiting the time when He will come to judge the world and rule as King of Kings and Lord of Lord! Because Jesus rose from the dead and will live forever, we can have the assurance that we will rise again (even after we die) and have eternal life. Paul puts it like this in Romans, "so you see, just as death came into the world through a man(adam), now the resurrection from the dead has begun through another man (Jesus). 22 Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. 23 But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back." THANK GOD FOR JESUS SACRIFICE!

Hallelujah! Christ is Risen! Because of His sacrifice, I have escaped a death sentence. Because He arose from the dead. I too will have eternal life and live with Him forever!

Hallelujah! Christ is Risen!

HAPPY EASTER!