John 3:14-17 (AMPC)
- 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert [on a pole], so must [so it is necessary that] the Son of Man be lifted up [on the cross],
- 15 In order that everyone who believes in Him [who cleaves to Him, trusts Him, and relies on Him] may [a]not perish, but have eternal life and [actually] live forever!
- 16 For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only begotten ([b]unique) Son, so that whoever believes in (trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.
- 17 For God did not send the Son into the world in order to judge (to reject, to condemn, to pass sentence on) the world, but that the world might find salvation and be made safe and sound through Him.
This Good Friday, searching Google or other mainstream search engines for ‘Easter 2023’ should cause sadness and righteous indignation for true Christians. Such a search returns no images of the Cross, no mentions of Jesus, most certainly nothing about the Blood Christ shed for humanity due to the love of God wanting to offer redemption to His Creation.
Instead, lots of bunnies and eggs that have absolutely nothing to do with what Easter is about: The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ:
Colossians 1:13-17 (AMPC)
- 13 [The Father] has delivered and [d]drawn us to Himself out of the control and the dominion of darkness and has transferred us into the kingdom of the Son [e]of His love,
- 14 In Whom we have our redemption through His blood, [which means] the forgiveness of our sins.
- 15 [Now] He is the [f]exact likeness of the unseen God [the visible representation of the invisible]; He is the Firstborn of all creation.
- 16 For it was in Him that all things were created, in heaven and on earth, things seen and things unseen, whether thrones, dominions, rulers, or authorities; all things were created and exist through Him [by His service, intervention] and in and for Him.
- 17 And He Himself existed before all things, and in Him all things consist (cohere, are held together).
Easter is about remembering the tremendous and undeserved sacrifice Jesus had to endure. This included the persecution and disfiguring of His body, at the whipping post (Isaiah 53:5) and at the Cross at Calvary.
This was to create the opportunity for you and I to make a decision — to be rescued from our fallen fragmented state of being and feeling lost because we departed from God’s path; our decision to sin and to continue to do so having separated us from a relationship with God.
Jesus paid for everything to be fixed that we broke.
- Romans 3:23 (AMPC) – Since all have sinned and are falling short of the honor and glory [a]which God bestows and receives.
- Romans 6:23 (AMPC) – For the wages which sin pays is death, but the [bountiful] free gift of God is eternal life through (in union with) Jesus Christ our Lord.
We simply have to make our own self-willed decision to accept the free gift of eternal life that Jesus has provided you without your deserving of it. Since you are not a robot, you don’t have to choose Jesus. But, like Eve, by making a choice to not obey God at the Tree (Genesis 3:6), she and Adam made a choice to obey Satan. And no, you don’t need black cats or witches and broomsticks to serve Satan, although he’ll hate you just a little less if you do his will in deeper ways.
The pure untainted Blood of Jesus was the only form of payment that would suffice to wash the sinner white as snow, should he or she make the decision for Christ, lest the person continues on their path to eternal torment beyond their last breath and then realizes they made the biggest mistake of their life when they were on the earth.
- Romans 10:9 (AMPC) – Because if you acknowledge and confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and in your heart believe (adhere to, trust in, and rely on the truth) that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
Otherwise tragically the precious soul continues on in darkness, rejecting the Light that came into the world. Such is the state of fallen humanity. It has been blinded by the lies and deception by Satan and his chaotic kingdom of darkness.
- 2 Corinthians 4:4 (AMPC) For the god of this world has blinded the unbelievers’ minds [that they should not discern the truth], preventing them from seeing the illuminating light of the Gospel of the glory of Christ (the Messiah), Who is the Image and Likeness of God.
Satan (the god, small ‘g’, of this world) and his demons do not want you to find out the Truth, and hiding the true reason for Easter is one way of you not finding out.
Humans carry out evil acts upon the earth because they have not yet been saved from their own fallen state, stemming from the decision of Eve and Adam to obey Satan instead of God at the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil at the beginning of Creation. (Genesis 3:6). Their evil acts are prompted by demonic influences. Some evil acts such as a simple lie is “normal” for the person to carry out because it is “second nature” to them. Based on Jesus’ statement in John 8:44 we know that those who are not born again by receiving Jesus as Lord and obeying His commandments, remain where they have been since birth – a child of the devil. No wonder why it is second nature in our pre-redeemed state to lie with little concern.
In John 8:40-44 (AMPC), it is recorded Jesus saying:
- 40 But now [instead] you are wanting and seeking to kill Me, a Man Who has told you the truth which I have heard from God. This is not the way Abraham acted.
- 41 You are doing the works of your [own] father. They said to Him, We are not illegitimate children and born out of fornication; we have one Father, even God.
- 42 Jesus said to them, If God were your Father, you would love Me and respect Me and welcome Me gladly, for I proceeded (came forth) from God [out of His very presence]. I did not even come on My own authority or of My own accord (as self-appointed); but He sent Me.
- 43 Why do you misunderstand what I say? It is because you are unable to hear what I am saying. [You cannot bear to listen to My message; your ears are shut to My teaching.]
- 44 You are of your father, the devil, and it is your will to practice the lusts and gratify the desires [which are characteristic] of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a falsehood, he speaks what is natural to him, for he is a liar [himself] and the father of lies and of all that is false.
What do we have to lose by not finding out the Truth and asking Jesus to reveal Himself to us in ways we will understand Him?
The answer is, our soul to eternal destruction in hell, sheol, hades. The place of torment with weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Jesus spoke this about hell:
Luke 16:19-31 (AMPC)
- 19 There was a certain rich man who [habitually] clothed himself in purple and fine linen and [a]reveled and feasted and made merry in splendor every day.
- 20 And at his gate there [b]was [carelessly] dropped down and left a certain [c]utterly destitute man named Lazarus, [reduced to begging alms and] covered with [[d]ulcerated] sores.
- 21 He [eagerly] desired to be satisfied with what fell from the rich man’s table; moreover, the dogs even came and licked his sores.
- 22 And it occurred that the man [reduced to] begging died and was carried by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. The rich man also died and was buried.
- 23 And in Hades (the realm of the dead), being in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far away, and Lazarus in his bosom.
- 24 And he cried out and said, Father Abraham, have pity and mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.
- 25 But Abraham said, Child, remember that you in your lifetime fully received [what is due you in] comforts and delights, and Lazarus in like manner the discomforts and distresses; but now he is comforted here and you are in anguish.
- 26 And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who want to pass from this [place] to you may not be able, and no one may pass from there to us.
- 27 And [the man] said, Then, father, I beseech you to send him to my father’s house—
- 28 For I have five brothers—so that he may give [solemn] testimony and warn them, lest they too come into this place of torment.
- 29 But Abraham said, They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear and listen to them.
- 30 But he answered, No, father Abraham, but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent ([e]change their minds for the better and heartily amend their ways, with abhorrence of their past sins).
- 31 He said to him, If they do not hear and listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded and convinced and believe [even] if someone should rise from the dead.
You have everything to gain and nothing to lose by repenting of your wicked ways, those that were inherent in you when you were born. This is a message of love, not hate. If I didn’t care about you, I wouldn’t tell you. Does this sound familiar? The devil will never tell you that you need Jesus because he would lose you and you would become a threat to his kingdom. God on the other hand wants to tell you the truth for you to make an informed decision. It will be the most important one you will ever make. Yes, even more than where to live, who to marry, what job to take.
This is about your soul. You never ceast to exist, because energy cannot be snuffed out. You WILL live somewhere after your last breath. Your decision dictates whether you will decide to take the next exit off of this broad-way to destruction, and onward to Heaven.
Matthew 7:13-14 (AMPC)
- 13 Enter through the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and spacious and broad is the way that leads away to destruction, and many are those who are entering through it.
- 14 But the gate is narrow (contracted [a]by pressure) and the way is straitened and compressed that leads away to life, and few are those who find it.
Reach out to us using our Prayer form so that we can pray for you and tell you about Jesus and the critical importance of your salvation.
Humanity’s Best Gift – Free Gift – Restoration in a Relationship with Jesus, producing Eternal Life, freedom from captivity in sin and destruction.
Today is Good Friday, and every other day now is Good because the Gospel is the Good News of Jesus Christ to the human race.
What will you decide?
