Lent marks the 40 days before Easter. It is a time when Christians focus intensely on the suffering and death of Jesus. And it is precisely the cross which turns so many people off to Christ. They are willing to accept his teachings such as, “Love your neighbor as yourself”, but to believe with all one’s heart that we are so alienated from God because of our sin that only the death of the Son of God could forgive that sin – well, such a concept is just too much for them to accept.
Two thousand years ago the apostle Paul openly admitted, “The cross is offensive.” It is offensive to our pride, to our independence, to our “can-do” spirit. The cross tells us we are helpless, totally dependent on divine mercy. The cross of Christ is the greatest of insults to the human heart.
But to those who have experienced life and looked at it with realistic eyes, for those who have come to grips with the certainty of death and the loss of everything dear – the cross, the old rugged cross becomes the most precious truth in the world. For it is in the cross that we have hope, we have comfort, we have life no matter the circumstances in which we may find ourselves!
Jesus challenges us to see human life for what it is, to honestly evaluate our capabilities to resolve our problems – especially the problems of evil and death. But he also offers us the ultimate solution – a solution that is free and full.
Join us for one of our weekend services. Let’s walk together the journey of Lent.
Saturday night service: 6:00 pm
Sunday morning service: 10:00 am
Hawaii Lutheran Church (WELS)
- Community Lutheran Church
- Honolulu, HI
- Community Lutheran Church holds protestant chapel services in Honolulu, Hawaii near Pearl Harbor, HI. We are next to the USS Arizona Memorial, Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hickam Air Force Base, and Fort Shafter Hawaii. Look for us directly behind the Salt Lake, Hawaii, Target.