Whats your excuse? Matthew 28:6 NLT

Someone once told me they don't go to church on Easter because the pastor talks about "all that blood" and they don't want to hear about it. I know a lot of people  use the excuse " I don't have time because I have too much work to do to get the dinner ready".

Easter isn't about the dinner. It's not about the bunny. It's not about the candy.
It's not even about the blood. Its about the resurrection. It's about love. It's about renewal and hope and life. It's about expectation. It's about promises fulfilled.

It's a day of celebration. If you're celebrating Easter you must be a believer, right? What better way to start Easter then with a celebration with like minded believers? What's your excuse for not going to church today?

Matthew 28:6 NLT

"He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as He said would happen. Come, see where His body was lying. "The

Blessings, Cecilia

2 Timothy 2 Happy Resurrection Day!

2 Timothy 2
Berean Study Bible
Grace and Perseverance
(Hebrews 12:1-3)
1You therefore, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. 2And the things that you have heard me say among many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be qualified to teach others as well.
3Join me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4A soldier refrains from entangling himself in civilian affairs, in order to please the one who enlisted him. 5Likewise, a contender does not receive the crown unless he competes according to the rules. 6The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive his share of the crops. 7Consider what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all things.
8Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David, as proclaimed by my gospel, 9for which I suffer to the extent of being chained like a criminal. But the word of God cannot be chained! 10For this reason I endure all things for the sake of the elect, so that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.
11This is a trustworthy saying:
If we died with Him,
we will also live with Him;
12if we endure,
we will also reign with Him;
if we deny Him,
He will also deny us;
13if we are faithless,
He remains faithful,
for He cannot deny Himself.

Happy Resurrection Day! Today is the day we celebrate what Christ did on the cross for us. God had a plan to save man. But why the cross, why the blood? It goes all the way back to Adam and Eve. In Genesis Adam named all the animals, you could almost say they were his pets and when Adam and Eve sinned, God killed some of the animals and skinned them for clothes for Adam and Eve.
Genesis 3:21And the LORD God made clothing from animal skins for Adam and his wife.
Put yourself in Adam or Eve's place, you are living in Paradise with your animal friends. You break Gods commandment and sin, God takes your pet dog, lion, deer or whatever, kills and skins it for clothing for you. How would you feel because of your sin? Your sin has consequences! You are reminded of it every time you put on your pet for protection from the elements.

Back to the cross, Your sin has consequences! You nailed Jesus to the cross because of your sinful life! He did it out of love! So next time you think no one loves you, remember the cross, remember the pain, remember the blood, remember your sin, no more! Don't diminish the Grace Jesus gave you.

Will you join Paul? "3Join me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus."
You have a story, a testimony on how Grace saved you from death. Go out and share it
so that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

Happy Resurrection Day! David

The Dash!

Everyday we all get a little bit older and another day closer to heaven or
hell. It says in *Ecclesiastes 3:1 There is a season (a time appointed) for
everything and a time for every delight and event or purpose under heaven—2
A time to be born and a time to die...* We all have the date in which we
were born and will have a date on which we will die. There is a poem by
Linda Ellis called 'The Dash', that explains life a little bit clearer and
hopefully will help people to understand priorities.
http://www.linda-ellis.com/the-dash-the-dash-poem-by-linda-ellis-.html

As I live my life I want to be known for loving God, sharing Jesus, loving others and giving of
myself to help the lost and broken. My life is not my own, it belongs to
Jesus. He bought it at the cross. May everyone understand God's desires in
life and look at *Ecclesiastes 12:13 When all has been heard, the end of
the matter is: fear God [worship Him with awe-filled reverence, knowing
that He is almighty God] and keep His commandments, for this applies to
every person. 14 For God will bring every act to judgment, every hidden and
secret thing, whether it is good or evil.
* Maranatha! Come Quickly Lord Jesus!

Douglas 

He Did It For You. Matthew 12:38-40 NLT

I love the correlation between the Old Testament and the New Testament. Jesus points to one of those here when He speaks of Jonah being in the belly of the great fish for three days. Jesus tells the Pharisees in verse 40 "For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights."

And here we are, in the heart of the Holy season,  celebrating His death on the cross, celebrating His placement in the tomb, celebrating His sacrifice for us, celebrating His great love for us.

Today, think about that sacrifice, think about that love and accept He did it for you.

Matthew 12:38-40 NLT

38 One day some teachers of religious law and Pharisees came to Jesus and said, “Teacher, we want you to show us a miraculous sign to prove your authority.”

39 But Jesus replied, “Only an evil, adulterous generation would demand a miraculous sign; but the only sign I will give them is the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights, so will the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights.

Blessings, Cecilia

2 Timothy 1 Is there someone you can minister to?

Hold to Sound Teaching
13Hold on to the pattern of sound teaching you have heard from me, with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 14Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.
15You know that everyone in the Province of Asia has deserted me, including Phygelus and Hermogenes.
16May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, because he has often refreshed me and was unashamed of my chains. 17Indeed, when he arrived in Rome, he searched diligently until he found me.
18May the Lord grant Onesiphorus His mercy on that day. You know very well how much he ministered to me in Ephesus.

Paul was reminding Timothy to hold on to the truths that he was taught, to guard it as a treasure.
How would you like to be mentioned in the bible for desertion, like Phygelus and Hermogenes? They didn't hold on to the faith, the good treasure, and deserted Paul when he needed them most while in the Roman prison.
Guzik commentary: ii. We don't know much about Phygellus and Hermogenes; this is the only place they are mentioned in the Bible. It's a terrible thing to have your name recorded in God's word as an example of unfaithfulness.
http://biblehub.com/commentaries/guzik/2_timothy/1.htm

Several years ago a relative found a copy of my great great grandfather's civil war papers when he deserted the Confederacy towards the end of the war when things were going bad for the South. He was a courier and the Confederacy billed him for his horse and saddle. You could say my great great grandfather didn't hold on to mans promise of winning the war and his faith subsided.

Unlike man, Gods promises are true and He will never desert you. It may seem like it sometimes, when things in this world go wrong and everyone deserts you. But God doesn't desert you, like God said to Paul, He may say to you, My grace is sufficient for you.
2 Cor 12:9 But He said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is perfected in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly in my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest on me.

My prayer for you: may the Lord grant mercy on your household and may He grant mercy on you on that day.

Is there someone you can minister to?

Blessings, David

Good Friday!

Good Friday is a day of love. Not a day that we would normally think of as
such, but a day to remember the greatest gift ever given, the Lord Jesus
death upon the cross. We can look at probably the most well known Bible
verse and think about what today all is about. *John 3:16 For God so
greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even] gave up His only
begotten (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.* As I look at all the Lord Jesus went through
toward the end of His life on earth, I am in awe of the every bit of it.
The Sunday prior, the people were yelling, “Hosanna to the Son of David
(Messiah); Blessed [praised, glorified] is He who comes in the name of the
Lord; Hosanna in the highest [heaven]!” (Matt 21:9). Jesus asked, "My
Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass away from Me; nevertheless,
not what I will [not what I desire], but as You will and desire." (Matt
26:39). Then to hear probably some of the same people who praised Him the
week before when asked by Pilate, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is
called Christ?”They all said to him, “Let Him be crucified!” (Matt 27:22).
Jesus was also beaten so badly, people could barely tell that He was a man.
He went through hell, so no one else has too. May God help everyone truly
realize what Good Friday is all about, love and sacrifice. But wait,
there's more!

Douglas 

2 Timothy 1 Crowd size?

Patience in Persecution
 (Matthew 10:16-25)
6For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power, love, and self-control.
8So do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, or of me, His prisoner. Instead, join me in suffering for the gospel by the power of God. 9He has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not because of our own works, but by His own purpose and by the grace He granted us in Christ Jesus before time eternal. 10And now He has revealed this grace through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has abolished death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the gospel, 11to which I was appointed a preacher, apostle, and teacher.
12For this reason, even though I suffer as I do, I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him for that day.

Have you suffered as Paul did for your faith in Jesus Christ? Do Christians suffer at the hands of other Christians from different sects? What about Protestant verses Catholic? Do we/they show the love of Christ towards each other?

I recall when working, the facility had many doors, some coworkers would let the door close in front of me, another coworker would intentionally push the door closed if I was walking behind him. So I tried showing the love of Christ by simply holding to door open for them. At first, some refused to walk through the doorway. I would just stand there holding the door and smile. It took about six months but the gesture became reciprocal. The coworkers that allowed or forced the door closed would hold it open for me!
How do you show the power of love and self-control?
Are you ashamed of your testimony? Do you use your testimony to draw others to Christ?
No one is righteous, no not one.
As verse 10 states: "10And now He has revealed this grace through the appearing of our Savior, Christ Jesus, who has abolished death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the gospel,"....

I've heard it said that those of us in Christ, when we die, Jesus welcomes us into heaven along with those that we brought to Christ that preceded us in death.
How big of crowd will be cheering you when you enter through the Pearly Gate?

Blessings, David