For me Easter isn’t just an event or a date I have circled on my calendar. It represents so much more than a basket of chocolate covered bunnies and egg hunts. It is first the mourning of our Savior as HE took upon Himself the sins of the world, and then the celebration of our risen King.
The resurrection isn’t just an event, it is something that happened in history, and it is a person!
“Jesus told her, “I am the one who raises the dead and gives them life again. Anyone who believes in me, even though he dies like anyone else, shall live again.”(John 11:25)
Do you believe this? Jesus doesn’t just say, He will cause the resurrection, but rather that HE is it!
In the verse above you notice Jesus said “whoever believes IN me“, the Greek word “in” translates to “eis”, which ordinarily means “into” ,which says that genuine faith in Christ in a sense brings people “into” Christ; they rest in and become united with Him.
Isn’t that awesome……
Now, I’m not that insightful nor do I know Greek, but my study bible is pretty awesome! When I think of the word united I think of a military band. When they take each step they mirror each other’s movements, their knees bend at the same time, they pick up their foot at the exact same distance from the ground; it’s pretty cool to watch. As I think and picture this, I wonder what it would look like if I could mirror the behavior and character of Christ in my daily life. FREEDOM is what it would look like, JOY, PEACE, HOPE, LOVE, UNDERSTANDING, KINDNESS, SELF CONTROL, and the positive list goes on and on, but as much as I want to mirror Him, I fall short every day.
In fact just minutes before writing this, I was frustrated and anxiety was consuming me; I was rude to my daughter, and impatient with myself. I was anything but mirroring the behavior of my Lord, instead I was asking where He was because I needed Him. But as I read these words “united” and “into” I was calmed and excited because for me the resurrection represents my eternity, my future, my joy, and hope! I don’t have to wonder where He is, because He is here and He is there!
I get to spend my eternity with HIM, and that eternity doesn’t just start after my body has died, that eternity starts now, right now! And even though it means I must daily die to myself so that my movements closely mirror HIS; it also means my struggles, and short comings are not ultimate. Eternity with my King however is and because of the cross eternity is my reality!
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Let’s take a moment to pray!
Romans 10:9 states: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved”. If you haven’t made this decision to let Jesus be the Lord of your life, we invite you to do this by saying this simply prayer with us.
Heavenly Father, I know I’m a sinner, I know I am not where I need to be, and ask for your forgiveness! I believe that Jesus died on the cross to pay the price for my sins. Please cleanse me from all my sin, guilt and shame. Come into my life Jesus to be my Lord and Savior. I ask this all is your precious name Jesus.
Amen!
Building strong marriages together,
Ashley Ladd
Thank you, Ashley for this insightful reminder. We are united with Christ, with our husbands, and with each other. We are one in the Spirit. That same Spirit that rose Christ from the dead dwells in us if we are in Christ! There is no greater power than that!
Amen 😉
Amen! Beautiful thoughts,Ashley! Thank you for sharing!