Monday, March 21, 2016
488 - Seriously?
Spirituality Column #488
March 22, 2016
Common Christianity / Uncommon Commentary
If Jesus wasn’t “really” dead on the cross, didn’t arise from a real grave, and isn’t alive and real today, then there’s no point going to church this Sunday.
Never mind what the Bible says, the church says, your pastor/priest/minister says, your family says, the media says, or popular culture says. Either Easter is exactly what it is purported to be – a celebration of the resurrected Jesus Christ, God’s own son revealing the truth of salvation not only and importantly for mankind but for the entire created cosmos – or it’s a big waste of time and the world’s greatest lie to boot.
Thing is … I don’t know exactly who’s time it would be that we are wasting. Without a loving God, a redeeming Savior and a Holy Spirit informing and animating our hearts, minds and strength, it doesn’t matter much what we do with our time, intellect, industry or efforts. It’d be simply every man, woman and child uselessly for themselves.
The guy who titled the rock ‘n roll album, “Nothin’ Matters and What if it Did?” would actually be entirely right instead of entirely wrong.
It takes Godly – and God-inspired – courage to trust without reservation the truth that life matters only because God matters. That’s the only reason why our time in this life is precious. Get any of that wrong – God, time, truth, life, precious – and existence is diminished quickly, dreadfully, toward self-serving survivalism and hopelessness. Years, minutes and seconds are reduced to irreconcilable dead-ends; our enthusiasms stripped of purpose. Joy is vaporous and thin; life is restricted, short and just ends.
Include God in the equation – not because we’ve made Him up out of desperation but because He’s already there and it’s our job not to ignore Him – time becomes something that suddenly and ironically both stretches into eternity and makes this particular moment something not to waste. God has given us much more than a story; He has bestowed upon us an aggregate, eternal gift in Jesus Christ – life, truth, hope, forgiveness, time, purpose and love.
That’s why it doesn’t matter so much what any one person or any one thing says about Easter; what matters is who Jesus really is, what His death and resurrection really accomplished, and how this unprecedented and unique act of God’s faithfulness to mankind really changed everything about humanity, history and hope.
Every Easter, and every day, my prayer is that the faint, flickering faith of hopeful doubters who have heard the Easter story would grow from wishful, wondering wistfulness into confident, compassionate Christian witness.
Easter, God, Jesus, resurrection, salvation, faith, hope, love … all true.
Seriously? Really.
Walters (rlwcom@aol.com) appreciates John Mellencamp’s music if not his album titles.
March 22, 2016
Common Christianity / Uncommon Commentary
Seriously?
By Bob WaltersIf Jesus wasn’t “really” dead on the cross, didn’t arise from a real grave, and isn’t alive and real today, then there’s no point going to church this Sunday.
Never mind what the Bible says, the church says, your pastor/priest/minister says, your family says, the media says, or popular culture says. Either Easter is exactly what it is purported to be – a celebration of the resurrected Jesus Christ, God’s own son revealing the truth of salvation not only and importantly for mankind but for the entire created cosmos – or it’s a big waste of time and the world’s greatest lie to boot.
Thing is … I don’t know exactly who’s time it would be that we are wasting. Without a loving God, a redeeming Savior and a Holy Spirit informing and animating our hearts, minds and strength, it doesn’t matter much what we do with our time, intellect, industry or efforts. It’d be simply every man, woman and child uselessly for themselves.
The guy who titled the rock ‘n roll album, “Nothin’ Matters and What if it Did?” would actually be entirely right instead of entirely wrong.
It takes Godly – and God-inspired – courage to trust without reservation the truth that life matters only because God matters. That’s the only reason why our time in this life is precious. Get any of that wrong – God, time, truth, life, precious – and existence is diminished quickly, dreadfully, toward self-serving survivalism and hopelessness. Years, minutes and seconds are reduced to irreconcilable dead-ends; our enthusiasms stripped of purpose. Joy is vaporous and thin; life is restricted, short and just ends.
Include God in the equation – not because we’ve made Him up out of desperation but because He’s already there and it’s our job not to ignore Him – time becomes something that suddenly and ironically both stretches into eternity and makes this particular moment something not to waste. God has given us much more than a story; He has bestowed upon us an aggregate, eternal gift in Jesus Christ – life, truth, hope, forgiveness, time, purpose and love.
That’s why it doesn’t matter so much what any one person or any one thing says about Easter; what matters is who Jesus really is, what His death and resurrection really accomplished, and how this unprecedented and unique act of God’s faithfulness to mankind really changed everything about humanity, history and hope.
Every Easter, and every day, my prayer is that the faint, flickering faith of hopeful doubters who have heard the Easter story would grow from wishful, wondering wistfulness into confident, compassionate Christian witness.
Easter, God, Jesus, resurrection, salvation, faith, hope, love … all true.
Seriously? Really.
Walters (rlwcom@aol.com) appreciates John Mellencamp’s music if not his album titles.
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