Easter IS the Best Day of the Year

Probably you don’t have time to read this. Maybe it’s the kids who need to go to some activity or you have an appointment or maybe you are just dog tired from an exhausting day and the best thing you can do is relax. You’ve got a lot on your plate – too much at times.

But is Easter the best day of the year? Isn’t Christmas better? Well, consider all the stuff that is stressing you out. If Jesus did physically rise from the dead, how important is it all? Now I’m not trying to minimize your issues, but think about it.

What are all the bills you have to pay going to mean the day Jesus raises you to eternal life with him? How important, as you enter heaven, will it be that the kids got to all their sports practices? Your job with all the responsibilities you have, will it still be stressing you out as Jesus says, “Welcome home!” Even the real tough stuff like cancer is no match for Easter. Jesus rising from the dead overwhelms any disease because he says that his resurrection guarantees us that in heaven there will be no more pain or disease. And the hole in your heart that’s there because the one you so dearly love is no longer with you, Easter Sunday means the separation is only temporary, very temporary.

Easter is the best day of the year because it changes everything. It turns human life on its ear. Human beings go from meaningless chemical containers who lead empty, unimportant lives to people made to love and be loved for eternity, whose every day has eternal significance no matter how insignificant it may seem. May you experience all the best of the best day of the year!

Saturday evening worship: 6:00 pm
Sunday morning worship: 10:00 am

Who Needs a King in 2016?

To be honest, for most of us the idea of serving a king would be a step backward. After having enjoyed democracy for so many years in a country where everyone has a voice and a vote, it would be hard to swallow to have one person call all the shots for everyone else. The sense of equality does a lot for our sense of self-worth!

So, when we talk about Palm Sunday and Jesus coming as a king, the concept doesn’t have much appeal. That is, unless we think about what kind of king he is.

While we may not want a king to rule us politically, it is a whole different matter when it comes to death. No election, no human consensus no matter how intelligent the people involved may be will ever be able to resolve our problem with death. And that is exactly where Jesus comes in. When he lived on this earth, he pretty much ignored the topic of politics. It just wasn’t important to him. His focus was on death. And his message was pretty simple. People live a relatively short time on this earth and an enormously long time after physical death. The purpose of this earthly life is to get ready for the next life in eternity.

It is in the preparations for the next life that Jesus as our King comes into play. When he rode into Jerusalem that first Palm Sunday on a rather inconspicuous donkey no one understood what he would accomplish in the next several days. And yet, by the following Sunday Jesus of Nazareth would demonstrate that he is the King over Satan, sin and death. His crucifixion would satisfy divine justice for human sin. His physical resurrection would make eternal life for human beings a reality.

When it comes to death, democracy is not the answer. There is only one solution – King Jesus. Come worship him with us this weekend as your King!

Saturday evening worship: 6:00 pm
Sunday morning worship: 10:00 am