It is about one week post Easter. I loved the worship space when we entered on Sunday--the flowers up front, the butterflies that signal new life, the people! Mostly I loved saying and singing Alleluia.
As we come into the second week of Easter, I am just as excited. New life is here and now.
When I was growing up, I think I believed Jesus died so I would go to heaven. What I did and said probably was my way of ensuring I would go to heaven. I was taught, whether intentionally or not that faith is something we have here to go to heaven in the future. We focused on "Jesus died for our sins." I don't really remember when that changed. Yes, Jesus died for our sins, but the dramatic, hopefilled, eternal truth is Jesus is risen!
I am rarely concerned about heaven. I trust the words of Jesus and believe that Jesus will come and take me to the place where he has led the way when my time comes. I have all the faith in the world that my parents, my brother, grandparents, friends, colleague and parishioners are with Jesus in heaven. It isn't up to me--for we are made right with God by grace, a free gift--and I can not earn it, not even if I believe hard enough.
Resurrection faith is important here and now. It is the promise of forgiveness and the strength to forgive. It is the promise that in the midst of everything in the world that is tragic, there is still hope because of Jesus. It is the promise that failure does not have the last word, death does not have the last word.
May we not forget as we live day by day, Alleluia! Christ is Risen.
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