Weekly Update from the Senior Pastor
April 4 , 2007
Dear Family and Friends,
Easter is almost upon us. So think with me for a minute.
Jesus died spiked to a cross, receiving the punishment for our indifference to God’s will.
That is because indifference to God’s will is really that serious.
So He died. But He is not hanging on the Cross now.
The Cross was stained with His life-blood, but the Cross was empty by Friday night.
Jesus’ lifeless body was then placed in a new tomb, because death really is the outcome of judgment where ever there is sin. Sin really kills, so it really killed Jesus when He accepted the consequences of our sin, and His lifeless body was placed in a tomb.
But by Easter afternoon that tomb was vacant. Like the blood on the Cross, the burial cloths in the tomb spoke of Who had been there. But He was gone. Risen. Victorious! Alive, and serious about His command = Follow Me.
So here’s the ultimate point of what we honor this Easter-weekend. Jesus took our guilt, died forsaken of God, lay in a dark tomb and broke death’s hold; He did all that to offer us the freedom and capacity to do one thing—to FOLLOW Him as Lord, right into eternity.
This Friday is Good Friday—the day Christ spent six hours hanging between God and man on that Cross.
Come honor that amazing sacrifice on our land—rain or shine—at 2:40 p.m.
This Sunday is Easter-Sunday—the day Jesus Christ took death off the table as our only option for a final destination, when He stepped forth victorious from the Tomb.
Come celebrate that resurrection hope at our worship service at 10:30 a.m.
If the above words are a hoax, they are the greatest hoax in history.
But if they are true, they are the hinge of history and your story—and nothing else matters as much.
We can honor His death and celebrate His resurrection, but the real key is whether we follow His call.
Come and we will do that together until Jesus returns.
Love ya,
Richard
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