March 9, 2016
Jesus said, “Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes in the one who sent me has eternal life and will not come to condemnation, but has passed from death to life.” . . .
“Do not be amazed at this, because the hour is coming in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and will come out, those who have done good deeds to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked deeds to the resurrection of condemnation.” Jn_5:17-30
If you ever enter into the middle of a conversation or an argument, it’s not always easy to get the gist of what it’s all about. Jesus was obviously trying to make a point today. But the point is much deeper than what it seems on the surface.
You see, the religious leaders, who John simply calls “the Jews,” were in an outrage because Jesus healed a man on the sabbath, and that was strictly forbidden by the Jewish law.
Jesus’ response: that he was only following the model of His Father, then, got them even more riled. So, as He always did, Jesus used the moment of frustration and anger, as a stepping-stone to teach. And this time it was not only a revelation about who Jesus really was, the Son of God, but it ventured into miracles, the resurrection of the dead, judgment, and the end times. All of which, most of those religious leaders didn’t believe in either.
If you didn’t believe in pies. And I told you that I made one. That would make you pretty angry at me. But if I then began to explain exactly how I made that pie, you probably wouldn’t hear a word I said, but you would be getting more and more angry at me.
And maybe those ‘Jews’ didn’t hear a word Jesus said, but WE who love pies, now have the recipe for eternal life. We’ve seen Jesus raise the dead. And we believe that – in His divinity, He had that power, and even more.
We understand judgment, and the reward of being good and the punishment of evil. And we believe that one day we too will be raised, and judged, and that our merciful and loving Father will grant us salvation – because that is exactly why He sent us Jesus.
What a blessing it is to be living with such hope.
What a blessing, and not a disaster, will be our life after death.
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Whispers to the Wind 