Today is the final day of the Easter season. Tomorrow is the Day of Pentecost. I can think of nothing more appropriate on this day than to remember these words of Jesus, “This is eternal life!”
Today is the women’s final of the French Open. Meijer is having a sale. The weather is beautiful. My lawn need’s mowing. I want to get my tomato plants into the ground. And there is so much more to do. It is very easy to be overcome with the here and now that I forget about eternal life.
While this is easy to do as an individual, it is particularly sad when it happens to a church. It is just too easy to succumb to the marketing world and design a church with the goal of attracting people for the here and the now. What are the benefits that this church offers? Padded pews? Music with a beat? Social activities? Organizations for youth? Child care? Faithfulness to the Word of God?
On this final day of the Easter season let us pause and consider for a moment that Jesus came into the world for one reason: That you may have eternal life through faith in Him. This is why He was born. This is why He suffered and died. This is why He rose from the dead. This is why He taught and performed miracles. This is why He sends the Holy Spirit.
Prayer: Dear Father in heaven, thank you for sending Your only-begotten Son into my world. Grant that I may always believe in Him and receive His gifts of forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. Amen.
Luther Preaching Christ Crucified
the Weimar Altarpiece
Lucas Cranach
http://lutheranconfessions.blogspot.com/2012/03/visual-reformation-lucas-cranach.html
God’s richest blessings in Christ,
Pastor
Philip Quardokus
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