Do You Believe?

It's a simple question with an everlasting answer.  Do you believe Jesus Christ was the son of God, came to live on earth, died on a cross, and rose to life again - all for one simple reason?  Do you believe that the one reason was to provide a pathway for you to live with Him in heaven?

On Easter, my pastor presented a fabulous message.  He appointed us the jury for a trial of The People vs. Jesus of Nazareth on the claim that Jesus actually died and rose again.  He presented the case of the prosecution with various theories that Jesus did not really die, that He died but His body was kidnapped by His enemies or perhaps by His disciples.  He presented the defense with eyewitness accounts from  Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Mary Magdelene, Roman centurions and other guards, Nicodemus,  and Joseph of Arimathea.

Matthew 27:54 So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, "Truly this was the Son of God."

As the prosecution and defence rested, we the Jury were asked for our individual verdict in evidence presented in the case.  Do You Believe?  

If you question that Jesus actually lived and died for you, I encourage you to listen to the facts and theories presented in the March 31, 2013 sermon at www.bpbc.com.

Happy Easter!

Why do that?

I am a Dawg, that is a Georgia Bulldog.  UGA is my alma mater and the Dawgs have always been my team to follow.  We have strong state rivalries in the South and for UGA that would be Georgia Tech.  I have worn clothes and decorated rooms in red and black.  And until this weekend I have never made anything sporting the black and gold of GA Tech.  However, I made a black rug and marred it with a gold and black GT.

Why on earth would I do that?  Love.

I have a wonderful friend with a 12 year old son.  I had already made a baseball rug for his younger brother, so I asked his mom what her older son liked.  She said GA Tech.  I cringed.  No, not that!  I put it off for months, but I knew I was going to do it.  It was the best way to make that young man happy.

So as I was finishing off the gold GT, I began thinking about the fact that today was Palm Sunday.  On this day Jesus was riding a colt and being welcomed into Jerusalem, with worshipers placing palm leaves over the road for the colt to walk upon.  But in less than a week, Jesus would face horrific injury, humiliation and death.  Jesus knew these things would happen, but he accepted the task and became a living sacrifice for us.

John 12:27 Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? 'Father, save Me from this hour'? But for this purpose I came to this hour. 

Why on earth would He do that?  Love. 

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

The Big Bang

This week I have been surrounded by the Big Bang.  Depending on your age, this phrase might make you think of a TV show or a scientific theory explaining how the universe wasn't, then it was.   For me and a few dozen other people at work, the Big Bang was the nickname of the event last week when two very large databases were merged together.

Even when I tried to escape the impending work week, I saw a quilt at a sewing show entitled "The Big Bang" by Karla Dee from Houston, TX.  The quilt was a sign of the week that was to come.  It was in your face, bold, psychedelic, a little off and a slightly agitating.  

I was really on the periphery of the project, but I still felt the stress and pressure of making it work.  I can't imagine being the leader of something so massive, nor can I comprehend the intricacies of such a project. It's taking dozens of people an extraordinary amount of time in the attempt to make this work, but it only took one mighty God a few days to create all that we know, have and are. 

John 1:1-4 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. ⁴ In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.

Up in Smoke

Spring is on the way and I decided to get the yard prepped for the upcoming job of cutting the grass.  We spent a large part of Saturday in the yard, picking up tree limbs that had fallen during the winter then burning them in a huge bonfire.  As we worked on getting these unwanted limbs and leaves reduced to ashes, I thought about a phrase that I often heard preached when I was younger: "burning the chaff".  John the Baptist said the following.

Matthew 3:11-12  "I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, be He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

The words "winnowing" and "chaff" are not terms that I use in everyday conversation.  And unless you grow wheat, you probably don't either.  Here are their meanings. 
winnowing: freeing grain from the lighter particles of chaff, dirt, etc, especially by throwing it into the air and allowing the wind or a forced current of air to blow away impurities.

chaff: the husks of grains and grasses that are separated during threshing; worthless matter; refuse.

Wheat is heavier and more substantial than the chaff surrounding it.  When the wheat is gathered, the chaff that grew around it is removed.  In these verses Christians are the wheat that Jesus will one day gather.  And like the wheat, we are surrounded by worthless matter and dirt that He will remove completely as He takes us to heaven.  Our chaff could be things like anxiety, anger, insecurity, fear, pain, sickness, pride, stress, jealousy, and many others. Won't we feel great when all our chaff goes up in smoke!

The Interview

We don't have a lot of turnover of employees in my office, but occasionally we are left with a vacancy that needs to be filled.  I know it's hard for the person being interviewed (I can still remember the tension I felt), but it's also hard for those who are conducting the interviews.  We ask the typical questions: why are you interested in this job; what are your strengths; what are your weaknesses; give us examples of how you deal with interruptions, of how you deal with upset students or parents, of how you interact with coworkers, etc. 

Each candidate does their best to show that they are the right person for the job.  They polish their resume, dress well, speak carefully and generally attempt to sell themselves as the perfect person for the job.  As the one conducting the interview, I tend to put a great deal of thought into our final choice.  It's so hard!  Which one will work?  Which one will interact well with the rest of the staff, the students and parents?  Which one will best handle the stress and excel at the training needed for the job?  But, mostly I think, what if I use bad judgment and make a poor decision? 

This is when I am truly glad that God is omniscient.  I could never sell myself to God as being 'Good Enough' for eternal life.  He doesn't have to wonder which of us would be a good fit in heaven.  He knows if we believe that Jesus Christ is God's one and only Son, who died for us that we might be saved.  He sees us through the lens of Jesus.  There is no doubt as to those who will have everlasting life, because as soon as we trust in Jesus, our names are written in the Lamb's Book of Life (Rev 21:27).  

In Jesus' own words: 
John 6:37-40 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.  This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day.  And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.