I have found myself reflecting a bit over the last few weeks as a result of several events. Without a lot of detail, here is a short list:
- My Dad unexpectedly needed open heart surgery to replace a valve.
- While in the hospital one night, we heard the nurses and doctors grabbing a crash cart and running to a room. It did not go well. We later heard the wailing of a close relative when they were told the unfortunate news of their loved one, now gone.
- Driving home from the hospital one night, while going through an intersection, a car waiting to turn right got rear-ended and shoved into my lane and I needed to swerve quickly to avoid them.
There are other things as well, but these summarize the highlights.
I have reflected a bit on the Passover being celebrated right now as well. It exists as a celebration and a remembrance of the time the Jewish people were saved from their existence as slaves under a harsh ruler. It is a time to remember the God who brought them out of Egypt into their own land – no longer slaves, but free! It is a solemn remembrance of the night the angel of the Lord passed over the houses of the people who trusted in Him. Who trusted in what He told them. Who believed that they would be saved because of the blood that was shed and painted on their doorframes – saved because of the sacrifice of a pure, innocent lamb. They would not perish, but would have life.
None of us know what is coming next in our lives, and we know that tomorrow is not promised to anybody. So what do our lives mean? What is this all for? What will happen when I die? Is there a God?
Let me tell you, there is a God. And there is only one. He created everything that is, and He is still involved in the details of life. He did not create everything and leave us all alone to see if we can figure it out like some game of cosmic hide and seek. He is visible in all His creation. His attributes can be clearly seen. Even His eternal power and His divine nature. Yet so many people, though without excuse, deny they see it.
Why I am bringing all of this up now? Well, first, because of the recent events that have reminded me of my own mortality. And, second, because Easter is coming.
God has clearly told us who He is in the Bible. There are mountains of evidence to prove its validity and authenticity, and that it can be trusted in its current form. We also know what He wants from us. He loves each of us. But there is a separation that exists between us and Him because of the wrong things we do – lying, cheating, stealing, hating (real hate, not the disagreements people currently wrongly label as hate), etc. All of us have done, and continue to do, things that are wrong. It is part of who we are. That is no excuse, though. Like any other problem, the first step to recovery is admitting there is a problem. Because this separation exists (and I mean huge chasm that cannot be crossed), the God of creation seeks reconciliation with us. What does reconciliation look like?
I have reflected a bit on the Passover being celebrated right now as well. It exists as a celebration and a remembrance of the time the Jewish people were saved from their existence as slaves under a harsh ruler. It is a time to remember the God who brought them out of Egypt into their own land – no longer slaves, but free! It is a solemn remembrance of the night the angel of the Lord passed over the houses of the people who trusted in Him. Who trusted in what He told them. Who believed that they would be saved because of the blood that was shed and painted on their doorframes – saved because of the sacrifice of a pure, innocent lamb. They would not perish, but would have life.
None of us know what is coming next in our lives, and we know that tomorrow is not promised to anybody. So what do our lives mean? What is this all for? What will happen when I die? Is there a God?
Let me tell you, there is a God. And there is only one. He created everything that is, and He is still involved in the details of life. He did not create everything and leave us all alone to see if we can figure it out like some game of cosmic hide and seek. He is visible in all His creation. His attributes can be clearly seen. Even His eternal power and His divine nature. Yet so many people, though without excuse, deny they see it.
Why I am bringing all of this up now? Well, first, because of the recent events that have reminded me of my own mortality. And, second, because Easter is coming.
God has clearly told us who He is in the Bible. There are mountains of evidence to prove its validity and authenticity, and that it can be trusted in its current form. We also know what He wants from us. He loves each of us. But there is a separation that exists between us and Him because of the wrong things we do – lying, cheating, stealing, hating (real hate, not the disagreements people currently wrongly label as hate), etc. All of us have done, and continue to do, things that are wrong. It is part of who we are. That is no excuse, though. Like any other problem, the first step to recovery is admitting there is a problem. Because this separation exists (and I mean huge chasm that cannot be crossed), the God of creation seeks reconciliation with us. What does reconciliation look like?
Jesus.
So why did I bring up Passover? Because Jesus is the fulfillment of it. God does not want a single person to perish – not one. But many will…because they will choose to. Choose to perish? Yes. The Egyptians knew what the Israelites were doing when they put the blood on their doorways. Did they do it? No. Even after seeing the Nile turn to blood, frogs invade their bedrooms, locusts destroy their crops, and hail and fire rain down from the sky? Nope. They chose not to see God, and many perished as a result. Which households were the only ones that did not see death that night?
- Only those who understood that there is a God, as we can do just by looking around.
- Only those who listened to what God said, as we can do by reading the Bible.
- Only those who knew they had a problem, as we can do by reflecting on our lives.
- Only those who believed that they would be saved by trusting in the blood that was shed for them, as we can do by trusting in Jesus who is the pure, innocent lamb.
What do I mean by trusting in Jesus? He is God, in human form. He never sinned, but was killed despite his innocence. He rose from the dead, as attested by many eyewitnesses, and is still alive. He sacrificed himself for us as the only means of reconciling ourselves to God. Jesus is the only mediator between man and God. Trust in Jesus? This is not about “inviting Him into your heart” or anything so trite. This is about understanding that we can be freed from our slavery to sin by following the one who gave us life. This is about understanding that it is appointed for man to die once and then comes judgment. This is about understanding that our worship and devotion is truly only due to the Lord of lords and the King of kings. This is about understanding that there is a Lord and King of your life, and that you must bend your knees to Him and Him alone. We all will one day. For some it will be a willful movement as we rejoice. For others, it will be done with sadness, grief, and frustration, as they realize the time has passed to do it willfully.
This is about jumping from here to eternity trusting Jesus as you would a parachute. You would not jump out of an airplane without trusting the parachute would save you. Why would you jump from this life without Jesus being your mediator to reconcile you to God and grant you eternal life?
Think you’re safe? Remember that the God of all creation said:
This is about jumping from here to eternity trusting Jesus as you would a parachute. You would not jump out of an airplane without trusting the parachute would save you. Why would you jump from this life without Jesus being your mediator to reconcile you to God and grant you eternal life?
Think you’re safe? Remember that the God of all creation said:
- “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”
- “And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”
- “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.”
- “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’”
No priests needed. No other intermediaries needed (i.e. Mary, saints, etc.). No special work needed. No need to be perfect.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Got questions? Send me note.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Got questions? Send me note.
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