Taking the Next Step

This weekend we will celebrate Easter, an incredibly and profoundly important holiday.  But the temptation by the current culture is to narrow down the truth of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection to a historical timeline of facts.  Yes, we can believe that Jesus lived, died for our sins, and rose from the grave, but somehow these facts never make their way to our hearts.  We keep the facts at a distance, acknowledging that they are true, but never taking that next step to experiencing the life-changing power of Jesus Christ.  Instead we place our full confidence in the things of this world.  But as Steven Curtis Chapman sang, there is “more to this life than living and dying, more than just trying to make it through the day.”  Today, let’s truly experience what Jesus did for us this Easter week.

He is risen.  “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.  We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:5-6).  Good Friday reminds us about the gruesome death Jesus endured on our behalf.  Knowing the state of our souls, Jesus died under intense scrutiny, ridicule, and torture.  But the story does not end there.  Three days later, He rose again.  That Easter morning, an angel said those beautiful words, “He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay” (Matthew 28:6).

We are redeemed.  The plan of redemption has been set and carried out.  The word “redeem” literally means to “buy out of.”  Jesus bought us out of slavery to sin and we can be set free when we accept this gift of grace.  This has been done for us, because of God’s great love, not due to any works of our own.  And it is purely by faith that we receive it.  But so many times, we negate His act of mercy and grace by narrowing it down to rules and works.  Galatians 2:21 says that this is “to repudiate God’s grace” (MSG).  Let us always remember that what Christ did on the cross for us and His offer of eternal life is not anything that we can earn.

Will we receive?  Let us resolve today to not so easily dismiss Jesus as just a historical figure.  As we celebrate this weekend with food, family, and friends, let us also remember that there is more to this life—there is a spiritual dimension to our lives and the Lord Jesus wants us to experience and worship Him in His entire splendor.  J.P. Moreland, Ph.D. says in Lee Strobel’s The Case for Christ,

“The experiential test is, ‘He’s still alive, and I can find out by relating to him.’  If you were on a jury and heard enough evidence to convince you of someone’s guilt, it wouldn’t make sense to stop short of the final step of convicting him.  And for people to accept the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus and not take the final step of testing it experientially would be to miss where the evidence is ultimately pointing.”

Do you experience the power of the resurrection of Jesus in your life?  Have you taken that next step, beyond acknowledging the facts of Jesus act of love for us, to making it personal and truly experiencing Him in your everyday life?

Lord, thank you for your love, mercy, and sacrifice on that cross.  Thank you for dying for my sins.  I believe you established victory over death when you rose from the grave.  In this Easter season, I ask you to come into my heart and into my life.  Fill me with your peace and change me.  Make my life a testimony of your grace.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.