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I was sitting here eating my ham sandwich because it's lunch time and that is what is in the fridge. I wanted to read the chapter from our Bible study last night that I didn't get a chance to read beforehand. So, I did. And then I got really excited about the next chapter, so I started reading that too...and I came across some phrases that just got me PUMPED. I mean, really, I was talking to God aloud as I read this because I felt like it resonated perfectly with some of the things God has been teaching me lately. So, here are some bits and pieces of what I got excited about, with my thoughts intermingled:
"The great majority of the Christian world is still weeping at the foot of the cross. The consciousness of mankind remains fixed on the Christ who died, not on the Christ who lives. People are looking back to the Redeemer who was, not the Redeemer who is."
I used to get so frustrated when I heard certain people preach the Gospel message. And I felt guilty for feeling cranky about the Gospel. I mean, really, I thought something was wrong with me! But, this shines a new light on what DROVE ME NUTS about their interpretation of the Gospel. In certain churches, the Gospel is all about how dirty and icky and disgusting you are without Jesus. It's about how Jesus found you in the muck and the mire and loved you anyway. But the thing is, they spend so much time on talking about the gross, sinful humans that they fail to talk enough about the brilliance of the resurrected Christ. I mean, he was transformed! He was resurrected and now "As He is, so are we in the world!" Sin is gross. I concur. But Jesus' glory should be the focus of the RESURRECTION story because without that, it's just not the whole Gospel. And to be quite frank, without the resurrection, the Gospel (or lack-thereof) would be utterly depressing.
"Jesus became poor so that I could become rich...Why then should I try to become as He was, when He suffered so I could become as He is? At some point, the reality of the resurrection must come into play in our lives - we must discover the power of the resurrection for all who believe."
Jesus didn't go to the cross so that I could spend all my spiritual energy weeping at the foot of the cross or trying to figuratively nail myself to it. Don't get me wrong, repentance is meaningful and sorrow for sin is worthy of time and attention. BUT it can't end there. It shouldn't end there. Jesus wants more. He died so we could repent and then embrace the power of the resurrected Christ inside of us.
There is a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance (Eccl. 3:4). I don't know about you...but today I feel like dancing.
(Quotes are from: When Heave Invades Earth: a Practical Guide to a Life of Miracles by Bill Johnson, page 146.)
1 comment:
Amen and Amen! This is so fun b/c it is what we were focusing on at church Easter Sunday, also how the reality of the resurrection should full our spirits with joy and power, since Christ has shared that power with us, we just don't tap into it.
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