Two thousand eighteen years ago, a man died a horrible death, the most important man in history, a man who's death we celebrate this weekend, rather than mourn. Usually, when we look back on the life of one of the great people who has passed into history, we do so with a sense of sadness and loss. But this man was different, as his death didn't mean the end, but a beginning. So important was this man, that our modern day calendars are the means of accurately marking time both before his death and after it. Time before his life is recognized as being B.C., and the time that came after his death as A.D.
I am speaking of course about of the God-man Jesus Christ. Though the haters of God look to do what haters of all types look to do and are doing still, and that is, to remove statues, and chiseled rock monuments of any kind, many of which have stood for thousands of years, that do not agree with their narrow and wrongful point of view. but enough about hate. Haters hate, thats just what they do. They have zero tolerance for anything or anyone who challenges what they have been taught to believe. Haters are taught, as it is not their nature, and frankly, beyond their ability, to think for themselves. They are always the product of group think, and soon become a mob rather than a rational group of people. Just some friendly advice, Stay away from the type who insists on you believing and thinking as they do, as slaves are made in such ways.
Today is Good Friday, the day we mark as a most important day. A day not for mourning, but a day where though a terrible one to endure for the man Jesus, was the beginning of the plan as decided by God the Father as the only way to take away the sins of us all. Most all of the religions throughout history required the spilling of innocent blood as a way to atone for the sins and wrong doing of the group. We have all heard the stories of virgins being sacrificed by heathens by slaughtering them or pushing them into a volcano. There is nothing new in some kind of blood sacrifice as a way to appease a god of any kind. Indeed, the ancient Jews were instructed by men through God, to spill the blood of an innocent animal, usually the purest lamb available. Those who couldn't afford a lamb, would buy and offer small animals like birds to be killed and sacrificed for their families. It was by design a gruesome event, as the blood of the sacrificed had to be spilled on the alters of the Synagogue and Temples to impress upon the people of how grievous God saw sin.
But God the Father in his wisdom looked because of the love he had for his created people, for a way for the sinful to attain eternity with Him. A way that once done for all was the way of forgiveness for all that had happened and all that was yet to come. So He took a part of Himself, and sent His son Jesus to be born of a virgin, to grow up among us, and to die for us as the perfect and pure sacrifice for all who acknowledged His son as the only way to Himself. (see John 3:16) He, Jesus, came to earth knowing full well that he was to be scorned and ridiculed, beaten and spat upon, scourged till the flesh on his body was torn away, and to finally die nailed to a cross. No greater love could any man have for another, to not only die for them, but to suffer so until death would finally end his suffering. Jesus came into this world to teach the way of God, yes, but he was to be offered up as a living sacrifice, innocent of wrong, a pure sacrifice, done once, and done for all, forever. He came the first time as the Lamb of God, given as a living sacrifice, given as the only way to attain eternal life with God as one in God, as is our Lord and savior, Jesus Christ.
Therefore, today is the day we recognize as the day that the man Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice for us all, a sad day yes, but not a day for mourning, but rather of thankfulness. As it was on this day that we are reminded of how great a sacrifice was made for us. How great was this sacrifice? Worse than the beatings and the spitting and all forms of disrespect that He had to endure, was the fact that for what must have seemed an eternity for the Son, he was separated from his Father in Heaven, as God the Father turned His gaze away from his son, as at that moment, Jesus became the worst of what we were, and the worst of all we would be. Jesus became for that brief moment, a murderer, a rapist, a pedophile, and all of the murderous tyrants who were and who was to come. He became at that moment the epitome of the filth of sin, and his Father could not bear to look upon him. Jesus sensing this cried out, Father, my God, why have you forsaken me? Surely, this moment of separation must have been worse than evan the atrocities he had endured.
The great news? On the third day he rose from the grave in which they had placed his body, and for a short time joined again with his followers who loved him, teaching them about what had happened so that they fully understood the significance. He also taught them some of the many secret things of God, and then, before rising up in their sight into the heavens, commanded them to, Go out into all the world and spread the good news of the gospel.
Keep in mind, that even though some years later, the followers of Jesus's teachings were called Christians, and that from this original group of followers were to give berth to many religions. True Christianity is not a religion of any name, but rather, calls to the individual to a personal relationship and a steadfast belief in who Jesus was and is. Read and study the bible, and as scripture tells us, meditate on it day and night, for there is no religion of men that can save you. As Jesus himself said, I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, and no one comes to the Father except through me. Happy Easter!
There is no power on earth more powerful than words. It is words that are the greatest influence on mankind, and there is none greater than that of language and the use of words. For it is the use of words that inspire men and women to the greatness and honor of good, and also to the evil that men do. Men do not pick up the weapons of war and go about killing each other, and commit incredible acts of violence and cruelty against one and other without being inspired by the words and thoughts of their leaders. Their words being the source of the peoples willingness to engage in war and the atrocities that comes from war. The incredible acts of violence and hatred toward another people must first come from the people who the people look to as their leaders. Throughout all of human history, it is the well crafted words of evil people that ultimately lead to unspeakable acts of depraved violence between one people against another. Madmen like Adolph Hitler and so many other historical tyrants were gifted orators, with the ability to use soaring rhetoric to inspire their people to violence, and left unchecked, will ultimately lead to the atrocities committed against a people like we saw against the Jewish people in the second World War, and the beheadings and atrocities committed by the modern day Islamic extremists today. Conversely, it is also the use of words and the crafting of language that can stir the hearts of people to rise above the teachings of hatred and the violence taught by those who are evil. Sadly, because of the human condition, that was first shown when Cain killed his brother Abel, it is far easier to use people's natural tendencies to fear people who are different from them, than it is to inspire the best of humankind. People in general, all of us, left to our natural urges and fears, are selfish and self indulged, to the point that we see ourselves and those who think as we do, as being more important than those who we see as different. Thankfully there are others who are much different than the tyrants who care only about their selfish ambitions, and look always to divide the people against one and other to accomplish their evil goals. Strangely, for whatever reason, history recalls the lives and actions of these evil people more so than the few who stand with honor against such tyranny. Most probably because the tyrants of the world look to impose a group think mentality, as did Hitler with the German people, rather than those who look to embolden people to be individuals and think freely and for themselves. Evil thinking people always look to use our natural state of being social beings as the way to introduce a group think mentality, where free thinking people look to champion individuality and free thought, and allow the individual to choose others who are of like mind on their our own volition. By nature, not only are we a social type people, as we think ourselves to be safer in groups and that there is strength in numbers, but it is by this very nature that those who are evil exploit that desire as a weakness. Indeed, individuality and free thought is the enemy of centralized forms of government such as socialism and communism, which can only survive in a group think mentality. Where in our form of government, a Democratic Republic, individuality and entrepreneurship is encouraged along with the growth that such a form of government encourages, namely capitalism that is so despised by the left.
Our forefathers who looked to free us from the tyranny that a central government, in our case being a king, also knew, that absolute power corrupts absolutely. And so in their wisdom, looked to form a government where the people had the power, and instilled the only real leader that such a free people could have, that being God. All of our most precious national documents, set in motion on the founding of this great nation, reference God as the only real authority over the people, assuring that we were a free people under God, with certain inalienable rights, such as life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, and that though we were free individuals and equal by law, that we were one people, under God. So then, what is the power of words? Perhaps it was best said by the apostle John (chapter1, vs. one), in his accounting of the beginning from the book of Genesis. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God". Our founding fathers knew this, as did Abraham Lincoln later on, and as did in modern times, men like Dr. Martin Luther King, and the most recent great American leader to leave us, Billy Graham. And if we are to continue to be that beacon of freedom to all the world, we must return to our roots, we must return to God.
