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| “Good Friday” is what we call the day that you and I nailed Jesus to the
Cross. It IS good for that was His purpose, His plan from all eternity past,
His decree to save mankind. Thank Him and praise Him, it still brings tears
of gratitude to my eyes when I think that He died for _ME_. Joe (and now Reggie has taken up the call) speaks often of studying God’s Word in depth. I am not so foolish as to think that any of us are as far along as Paul, but hear his words in 1 Corinthians chapter 15 1Co 15:1-10 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, (2) by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. (3) ¶ For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, (4) and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, (5) and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. (6) After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; (7) then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; (8) and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. (9) For I am the least of the apostles, and not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. (10) But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. “…to me also.” It has always amazed me that Jesus Christ, God of the Universe, cares about the individual, about me. About you. What amazing Grace. We have hope of eternal life by His example, the He was raised according to the Scriptures. Praise God! Lee |
| What does Good Friday mean to me? Hmmm it means that after being anointed
by Mary the week before with expensive spikenard (gr. "pure nard") a rather
expensive perfume, with the possible cost of a year's wages. (Mark 14:4-9,
Matt 26:6-13, and John 12:28) MacArthur Study Bible NKJ. It didn't matter
to Mary, how much the perfume was worth, she wanted to anoint her savior,
she spent a large amount of time at his feet. She didn't think about the perfume
or the expensive alabaster flask, she thought about how she could serve Him.
This makes me wonder, this Easter season how much time we spend at the feet
of our Lord? Just basking in his presence. He took that cross that was ours
and bore all of our sin, because he loved us. I don't know how many people
would give his or her live for me to live, but I know someone who did, why
because he loved me… I Corinthians 13:4-8 "Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up, does not behave rudely, does not seek it's own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails." NKJ Melissa |
| Resurrection Reflections... One of my favorite passages in the Bible is 1 Timothy 3:16: "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory." I love this verse because it encapsulates the entire gospel message into one verse. Yet the message in the verse is as only as powerful as I let it be in my life. What I'm saying is that if I do not take the time to reflect on what God is saying to me personally; that he loved me enough to die for and redeem me; how can I convince someone else if I'm not believing and living it myself? As Believers, we are all now embassadors for Christ (1 Cor. 5:20). As such, let us rejoice for what He has done in our lives and who we represent. He didn't have to die in our place, but he loved us each to the utmost, so we would not have to spend eternity separated from him. For me, this powerful truth is both sobering and joyous at the same time. Indeed He has risen, so now, let us rise to the occasion and be a light in a dark world for him. Reggie |
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