Hope's latest newspaper article has now been published so I wanted to share with my readers. The article is a bit old so to speak since we are almost two weeks past Easter now, but still important. Hope you enjoy the article and find something that will provide you food for thought.
Words of Hope
This past Sunday was a
time when all came together to celebrate Easter, the holiday that commemorates
Jesus’ death and resurrection. Everyone tends to focus on the death of Jesus
and all that it means, but skims over the resurrection. I often times think
about Jesus’ death and the cup of God’s wrath that he drank for the rest of us.
I could talk about the death of Christ in every article I ever write and it
still wouldn’t be enough! The other day I was thinking about this while getting
ready for bed. However, my mind went to when Jesus rose from the dead and I
started thinking about what that meant. God took that moment to speak to me and
really make me realize what that event symbolized.
It started by me thinking about Satan.
Yes, most people think of Satan as a big red devil with horns and a tail. Most
people could see this Satan from a mile away, if not further. This is the image
that we are taught to fear from the time we were children until death. But is
that who Satan really is? No. Satan is a business man. He is going to make any
sin look and sound good so that we separate ourselves from God even more. His
ultimate goal is not to win our souls over to Him, but to keep them away from
God, which essentially does give them to him. How do you think Satan felt on
the day of Christ’s death? He probably felt pretty dang good! He won, God lost,
we all go to hell. I bet he threw an absolute shin-dig when Jesus died. It
probably lasted about three days, and then his jaw dropped.
Three
days after Satan thought he had won, Jesus rose from the grave. What does that
mean? God wins! We’re His! His love has broken the powers of hell and there is
NOTHING Satan can do anymore that can separate us from God! Isn’t that awesome?
It is, unless your name is Lucifer. That just made his game a lot more
difficult. It wasn’t about trying to get people to break rules anymore, it was
about convincing them to hide their hearts from God. The resurrection of Christ
was the nail to Satan’s coffin. There is NO way he can recover. It is final
that one day he will be no more and we will FOREVER be with God and live in
love and happiness. Think about the celebration in heaven!
What
this ultimately means for us is that nothing in earth or in hell could ever
separate us from God. Romans 8:37-39 says it plain as day! Satan’s hand will never touch you because God
has got you covered. By not accepting Jesus’ death and living in a manner that
reflects His life is the only thing that condemns you. You yourself are the
only thing that stands in the way of your salvation. Yes, Satan does come in
his suit and tie and try and sell you some good looking sin at a discount price,
but ultimately it is your decision if you want to take that sin and whoop it up
on Earth or have an eternal life with the God who loved you so much that He
would give his son the wrath of the world. The resurrection of Christ
symbolizes our victory and our life simply because Satan lost. How awesome. I
leave with words of a worship song, for you to rejoice with.
“Oh death, where is your sting? Oh hell, where is
your victory? Oh Church, come stand in the light. Our God is not dead, He’s
alive! He’s alive!”
Amen to that!
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