⁴⁷ Remember how fleeting is my life.
For what futility you have created all humanity!
⁴⁸ Who can live and not see death,
or who can escape the power of the grave?

–Psalm 89.47-48 (NIV)

The above comes from a psalm which laments, in part, God’s anger and seeming withdrawal from his people. The psalmist wonders how long they will be subject to God’s terrible wrath. How many times in our own lives have we wondered what life is all about and where God is in it all. It is the great existential question that confronts each one of us.

As this Easter season winds to a close this week, it is important for us to remember the Christian hope and promise that is available to all who are willing to humble themselves and accept it by faith through grace because it provides a powerful antidote to the despair that is inherent in the passage above.

Yes, our life is fleeting. It is fleeting because we are a sinful and rebellious people and this has caused death to enter God’s good creation and caused us to suffer exile and alienation from God, the Source and Author of all life. That’s the bad news.

But the Good News is that God does not want that for his Image bearing creatures. He wants us to live so that we might love and enjoy him, both in the living of our mortal days and forever. That is why God became human and bore the punishment of his wrath himself. In the cross of Jesus God has offered us a way out of our exile and alienation from him. He has done the impossible for us so that we have a chance to live.

The Good News does not end with the cross, however. We also have the hope and promise of the Resurrection, which points to God’s New Creation. When God raised Jesus from the dead, God validated who Jesus was–his game-changing Messiah. But the Resurrection also points to a more wondrous promise. It points to New Creation, the time when God’s dimension (what we call heaven) and our dimension (what we call earth but which basically refers to the cosmos) will be fused into one great dimension. The curse of humanity’s sin will be ended forever and we will be beneficiaries of God’s complete and healing transformation. Our dead bodies will be raised and transformed into new resurrection bodies, the kind that Jesus now has, and we will get to live directly in God’s presence forever.

Our destiny is not some disembodied state. It is New Creation, the new heavens and earth. Whatever that looks like it will be glorious and wonderful beyond our wildest imaginations because God is a wonderfully generous and kind God. And in the interim, the time between Jesus’ resurrection and the New Creation that will be ushered in when he returns again in great power and glory, we have the promise of his Holy Spirit to help us see our way through this sometimes difficult life.

Jesus has gone into God’s dimension (what we call the Ascension) and is now the rightful ruler of this universe. He hasn’t checked out on us. To the contrary, he still loves us and still wants us to find the life he came to give us. He still prays for us and still sends us his Spirit to help us become the people he created us to be. And he bids us not to be afraid because of this great reality. He is with us to the end of the Age and we will get to live in his direct Presence forever in the New Creation.

Here, then, is a total package for hope. We have the assurance of Jesus’ abiding Presence with us here and now to help us navigate through this life and live it with meaning and purpose. And when our mortal bodies die we have the hope and promise that not even death itself will be able to separate us from Jesus and his great love for us. And in the final analysis, we have the hope of New Creation in which we will never be afflicted by any of the nastiness that this life offers us. God has promised to wipe away all our tears and there will never again be afflicted with sorrow or sickness or fear or separation or alienation or any of the other ugliness that besets us.

If this does not give you real hope, I don’t know what can. This is our Easter hope. It is a real antidote to despair and existential loneliness. It is available to anyone who is humble enough to admit that he or she does not have what it takes to conquer all of life and/or who seeks more out of life than just self-aggrandizement. If you have not yet accepted God’s gracious invitation in Christ to you, what are you waiting for?

Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!

In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

This morning is the Sunday after the Ascension, which we celebrated on Thursday. A little background. Earlier in Acts 1, Luke reports that the risen Jesus appeared to his disciples for forty days from the time of his Resurrection and then was taken up into heaven as described in today’s NT lesson from Acts. Thursday marked the fortieth day from Easter and thus we celebrated it as Ascension Day since Easter is a movable feast.

To modern ears, the story of Jesus’ Ascension can sound a bit strange. What is going on here? Is Luke trying to tell us that Jesus has become some kind of cosmic spaceman who has basically checked out on us and gone away to be with his distant Father and God who is not particularly interested in us, or is there something else going on? As you might guess, there is indeed something else going on in Luke’s Ascension story and today I want to look briefly at what it might possibly mean for us today.

We humans have an unfortunate tendency to want to know the future, especially the end times, and can often obsess about it to the point where it distracts us from paying attention to the here and now. Harold Camping’s failed prediction that the Parousia would occur on May 21st is a notable example of this sad fixation over the eschaton, a fancy word that refers to the end of the world (undeterred, Camping has now revised his calculations and predicts October 21st to be the real date). We also see this unfortunate tendency illustrated in today’s lesson from Acts. Jesus’ disciples are apparently getting the sense that something else big is going to happen, that he is about to be taken from them, and they want to know about what the future holds in store for them and their beloved Israel. But Jesus will have none of it. He reminds them that the time and date for the eschaton is not for them (or us) to know.

That is precisely the point of the angels’ question to the disciples. “Why are looking heavenward when there is work for you to do here on earth right now?” While the angels do not say the latter explicitly, it is quite clear from the context that this is their intention. Before he ascended Jesus told his disciples that they are to be his witnesses to the ends of the earth. In Matthew’s account of the Ascension (28.16-20), which omits the actual ascension narrative, Jesus tells his disciples that he has been given all authority in heaven and on earth, and that the disciples are to make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

It is clear, therefore, that Jesus does not want his followers to be engaged in some kind of introspective and otherworldly navel-gazing. No, there is quite a lot to do right here and now and we who claim to follow Jesus had better be ready to roll up our sleeves and get busy because it will be both immensely satisfying and terribly hard work. As today’s Epistle and Gospel lessons make clear, we will meet massive opposition in our work, both from the systems of this world and from the powers and principalities themselves, of whom Satan is the ringleader, and we dare not take that lightly.

When we understand that there is work for Christians to do right here and now in God’s broken and hurting world, we are ready to look at why the Ascension is important for us today. When Luke tells us that Jesus was lifted up in a cloud and taken to heaven, he is simply using language to tell us that Jesus has gone into God’s dimension or space, which is separate from our human or earthly dimension or space. Clouds in Scripture always indicate God’s Presence and we think immediately of God leading his people through the wilderness by a pillar of cloud and the cloud that enveloped Jesus and his disciples on the mount of Transfiguration.

What Luke and the other NT writers are therefore trying to tell us is that the Ascension points us to a bigger truth. Jesus had to ascend to the Father so that he could assume his rightful place as ruler of the universe because God’s space is the control room for our space. That’s what the NT writers mean when they say that Jesus has sat down at the right hand of the Father. They do not mean that Jesus has left us to our own devices by going away to hang out with some distant and uninvolved God. Rather, the NT writers are telling us that Jesus is now in charge and he’s actively and intimately involved with us. He’s assumed his rightful place and he has sent his Spirit to help us do the work he calls us to do.

When Jesus returns in great power and glory to establish God’s New Creation, the new heavens and earth, God’s dimension and our dimension will be fused into one and all things will be transformed into New Creation. Our mortal bodies will be raised and transformed, never again to die or be afflicted with all the nasties that can beset our mortal bodies, and we will get to live directly in God’s presence forever in the new heavens and the new earth. This is our Easter hope and this is what the Resurrection and Ascension point to.

In the interim between now and then, what the NT calls the “end times” or “the last days,” we have work to do here on earth. Because we know that God loves his creation and intends to fully redeem it (and us), we are called to help Jesus in his work of New Creation. We do that by denying ourselves, taking up our cross each day, and obeying Jesus’ call to us, both as individuals and collectively as his body, the Church. We cannot do that on our own, however, and that’s why we need the Spirit’s power and Presence living in us. Neither can we be agents of God’s New Creation if Jesus really isn’t in control of all things or has checked out on us. That’s why the Ascension is so important because it reminds us that Jesus, while currently out of our dimension and out of our sight, really is in control and really is providing us with much needed help, both through his prayers for us and in the person of his Spirit.

So why is there still so much sin and brokenness in this world if Jesus really is the sovereign ruler of the universe? Because God has not yet finished the task of redemption, a task that only he can complete. Until that time, God in Christ has chosen to exert his sovereign rule during these last times through his people. He is sending us out to be his advance guard, so to speak, and because we are mortal and finite our work will necessarily be painfully slow and incomplete.

We see this illustrated plainly in today’s lesson from Acts and in the ending of Matthew’s Gospel. Those who follow Christ are to baptize new believers and then teach them, with the Spirit’s help, to obey their Lord. This is not unlike how yeast works in dough. The more disciples of Christ there are, disciples who truly love the Lord and are obedient to his commands, the more he can bring his healing touch to bear on his hurting and broken world.

If we think about this for a minute, we cannot help but have our breath taken away. God intends to use his human creatures to be the agents of his healing and redemption. What an awesome responsibility and opportunity for us! Talk about the potential to find real meaning and purpose in your life. This surely is it! None of us can say why God has chosen to restore his broken creation in this way but all of us can be thankful that God thinks enough of his human creatures to give us the opportunity to be his agents of New Creation until he returns again in great power and glory to finish the work he started.

And as our Lord reminds us in today’s lesson, we do not have to do this work alone. He promises to be with us always–even to the end of the age–in and through his Spirit. It is by his Spirit that we become his Kingdom workers. This is not of our own doing because left to our own devices we are part of the problem rather than becoming part of the solution. But when we are empowered by the Spirit, the sky’s the limit in what we can do for our Lord. We can also be assured that he will help us overcome anything the powers and principalities can throw at us and to empower us to be his Kingdom workers, to bring his healing love, mercy, and grace to a broken and hurting world that desperately needs it.

This is the promise of the Ascension. This is worthy of our time, our reflection, and more importantly, our obedience with the help of the Spirit. Are you ready for this kind of action? You simply cannot be an armchair quarterback if you are. The very God of this universe has work for you to do and he loves and respects you enough to give you the opportunity to do your part in his redemptive plan for this tired and broken old world. What a grand opportunity!

What is it that Jesus is calling you to do? If you don’t know, take your cue from the disciples in today’s lesson and start praying about it, both privately and in the fellowship of other believers. Whatever it is Jesus is calling you to do, when you understand that he is calling you to be his Kingdom worker, and when say yes to God’s gracious invitation to you in Jesus, you will discover that you are really have and are living the Good News, now and for all eternity.

In the name of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

An interesting and thoughtful piece on the practices of burial and cremation.

Anytime we consider how our behavior communicates we need to be careful. On the one hand we don’t want to be Gnostic enough to suggest that our bodies, and how we treat them are meaningless and communicate nothing. On the other hand this does not mean that anyone who ever approved or requested a cremation has self-consciously denied the gospel and affirmed Gnosticism.

Read it all.

¹ [The LORD] said to me, “Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.” ² As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard him speaking to me. ³ He said: “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to this very day. ⁴ The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says.’ ⁵ And whether they listen or fail to listen—for they are a rebellious people—they will know that a prophet has been among them. ⁶ And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people. ⁷ You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious. ⁸ But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel like that rebellious people; open your mouth and eat what I give you.” ⁹ Then I looked, and I saw a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll, ¹⁰ which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe.

–Ezekiel 2 (NIV)

Have you ever had to have a difficult conversation with another person where you know that what you must say to the other person will cause him or her to be hurt and/or angry with you? Typically a conversation like this is necessary when someone we love or care about has done us wrong that threatens to destroy our relationship with that person or who we see is headed for certain destruction if the behavior continues. How did you feel about needing to have that conversation? If you are like me, you probably dreaded needing to say hard things to the person you love precisely because you love the person and don’t want to hurt him or her. In fact, depending on who the person is, you might actually be afraid to speak the truth in love to that person because you fear that person’s ire or wrath that will surely come as a result of what you must say. This can lead many of us to not have the hard conversation with the person. We whistle through the graveyard and wish the problem would magically disappear. But if we really love the person, we will go ahead and speak the truth in love to that person because it is the right thing to do

This, of course, is the context for today’s Scripture lesson from Ezekiel. God has called Ezekiel to be God’s prophet to his people Israel in exile. Ezekiel must speak hard things to God’s stubborn and rebellious people and it is going to tick them off royally. Ezekiel is going to have to tell God’s people the unimaginable, that their beloved city of Jerusalem and its Temple is going to be destroyed because of their stubborn rebelliousness toward God. Judgment is coming, unimaginable judgment, and God’s people will not be pleased when they hear it. It’s that old shoot the messenger when we don’t like the message thingy. What then does God do in his call to Ezekiel to be his mouthpiece (i.e., his prophet)? God repeatedly tells Ezekiel not to be afraid because God will equip him for his prophetic task, hard as it may be.

So what can we learn from this poignant and gripping scene from today’s lesson? First, we learn that the God who calls us to do his work equips us for the task. We will not be called to be God’s prophets but God may call us to do some things that will make us terribly unpopular and incur the wrath of others. This can paralyze us with fear and cause us not to obey God’s calling to us. It is precisely when we are confronted with paralyzing fear that we need to remember that the God who calls also equips. He did this for Ezekiel in today’s passage when he sent his Spirit to fill the prophet and help him stand on his own two feet so that he could do the work. Likewise, God sends his Spirit on us to help us do the work he calls us to do.

This is especially important to think about during the current Easter season because as we have seen over the past several weeks, a big part of the Easter hope is the privilege of being God’s Kingdom workers, agents of his New Creation. As we saw yesterday, Christ has ascending into God’s dimension (heaven) and has been given all authority in heaven and on earth. He has chosen to exercise that authority, in part, by using common folks like you and me to help him bring to bear his love, mercy, and healing power to his broken and hurting world. This can be a daunting task and if we are honest with ourselves, we understand instinctively that we will fail in this call if left to our own devices. But it is the glorious good news of Scripture that God does not work like that. He never calls us without equipping us and this knowledge makes all the difference for us in the way we seek to be obedient to God’s call.

A second lesson we can learn from today’s passage is about the nature and heart of God. At first blush, this story can read like another doom and gloom passage. There’s that nasty old God again, seemingly always mad at his people, eager to smack them down at the first opportunity. But that is a terribly shallow reading of what’s going on in the story (and in Scripture in general). Yes, God has pronounced judgment on his people Israel, but not because he is some mean old ogre. God has called his people Israel to be agents of his redemption and they have failed miserably in doing that, mainly because of their persistent and stubborn pattern of rebellion. They ignore their call and seek out other gods to worship and obey, and God is about to hold them accountable for their actions, not unlike how parents can hold their stubborn and rebellious children to account or society holds criminals to account. We would be wise not to press these analogies too far, but you get the point.

But this isn’t the end of the story. After having Ezekiel pronounce God’s judgment on Israel and after Israel learns that the unthinkable has happened–Jerusalem and its Temple destroyed–God will direct his prophet to offer God’s people comfort and hope. Their rebellion has brought God’s judgment on them but God has not given up on them. Had God given up on his people, he likely never would have had his prophet warn his people about God’s impending judgment on them, especially when God knew that most of them would simply ignore his warnings. Despite that, God continues to reach out to his people to offer them hope and a chance to be reconciled to him, not because they deserve it but because of who God is.

Does that sound like an angry and spiteful God to you? It doesn’t to me, either.

And of course the Good News is that God in Jesus has acted decisively in our history to forever put an end to the intractable problem of human sin and the alienation and exile it causes. The same God who offered his people a chance to escape his judgment and who comforted his rebellious people in their darkest hour continues to reach out to us so that we can find real life and so that God can equip us to be his called out (holy) people.

If you are dealing with paralyzing fear in your life, take heart and hope. God is a God who can take away your fear and equip you for the work he calls you to do. It may be arduous and difficult work, but you will find great satisfaction in doing it because you will have his Spirit to equip you and in so having, you will come to know the Source and Author of all life. In so knowing, you will be reminded that nothing in all creation can separate you for God’s great love for you in Jesus. Nothing. Not your warts and flaws, not sickness or suffering or anything else. You will have a chance to find real meaning and purpose in this life and you will have the sure and certain hope that not even your physical death will separate you from the God of life. Knowing this, what could possibly make you afraid?

Alleluia! Christ is risen (and ascended)! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!

The Christian hope, however, is more than the expectation that the King is coming; it is also the belief that when he comes, the Christian dead will come with him, and the Christian living will join them.

—Dr. John R.W. Stott, The Message of Thessalonians, 97

It is not clear how literally we are to understand our being caught up … in the clouds (1 Thes. 4:17).  We know from Jesus himself that his coming will be personal, visible and glorious, but we also know from him that it will not be local (‘There he is!’ ‘Here he is!’) but universal (‘like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other’; Lk. 17:23-24).  Presumably, therefore, our going to meet him will also transcend space. As for the clouds, they are to every Bible reader a familiar and easily recognized symbol of the immediate presence of God — at the Exodus, on Mount Sinai, filling the tabernacle, during the wilderness wanderings, at the transfiguration of Jesus, at his ascension, and at his glorious appearing.

—Dr. John R.W. Stott, The Message of Thessalonians, 104

Two aspects of the return of Jesus are really beyond question. His advent will involve the personal presence of one now absent, the visible presence of one now unseen.  Beyond this we shall be wise to exercise caution. The actual manner of his personal, visible return will no doubt transcend both the categories in which the prophecy has been made and the measure of our own understanding. It will be a dramatic, cataclysmic event terminating the whole process of history. But, although we may not wish to dogmatize beyond this point, we cannot stop short of it if we would be true to the New Testament revelation. The return of Jesus may indeed be more glorious, but it cannot be less than fully personal and visible.

—Dr. John R.W. Stott, He Shall Come to Judge, Episcopal Series

Grant, O Lord, we pray, that we who keep the feast of the holy martyrs Blandina and her companions may be rooted and grounded in love of you, and may endure the sufferings of this life for the glory that shall be revealed in us; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

A fascinating read from Christian Classics Ethereal Library.

Sooner or later all of us must face up to death. Energetic adolescents ignore it, and their middle-aged parents often pursue illusions of perpetual youth. But the elderly and terminally ill know better. Nothing in life is as certain as death. And we all wonder what happens when our friends and loved ones die.

Most Christians believe that our souls are taken immediately to be with Christ until we are reunited with our bodies at his second coming (cf. Heidelberg Catechism, Q&A 58). This view of life after death has two phases—being with Christ until the resurrection, and then everlasting life in his kingdom. It also involves two modes of existing. Body and soul are unified during this life and after the resurrection. But we exist without earthly bodies between death and resurrection. Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and most Protestant churches teach this two-phase doctrine.

Check it out. What do you think?

What I wish apologists like Cooper would emphasize is this. If Jesus really is who he claimed to be (God’s Messiah) and who the NT claims him to be (God become human), is there not an inherent authority in him and the NT that no other religion or teaching can claim about this subject of life after death? After all, if Jesus is God, then why are so many reticent in accepting his claims and what the NT has to say about life and death? I don’t get it.

²² Then Jesus said to his disciples: “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. ²³ Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. ²⁴ Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds! ²⁵ Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? ²⁶ Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? ²⁷ “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ²⁸ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith! ²⁹ And do not set your heart on what you will eat or drink; do not worry about it. ³⁰ For the pagan world runs after all such things, and your Father knows that you need them. ³¹ But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well. ³² “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.

–Luke 12.22-32 (NIV)

How much of a worrier are you? The answer you give will also give you a good indication of how much faith you possess. The more you worry, the less faith in God’s good will and providence you likely have.

Now don’t misunderstand. Jesus is not telling us in today’s lesson to sit idly by and expect God to do all the work for us in terms of providing for our material needs. That is just not how things work. We have to take responsibility and get to work to earn our keep. What Jesus is telling us is that when we do our part, we should trust God to provide for us and to know better than we do regarding what it is that we really need. When we worry that he won’t (or can’t), it is a telltale sign that either we do not trust him or that we are trying to take his place. Neither option is a good one.

For you see, worry almost always stems from a lack of trust. We may think that God really doesn’t love us or has removed himself from the course of our daily lives. But Jesus reminds us differently. He reminds us that God cares for even the tiniest of his creatures, creatures who are not even his Image bearers. How much more then will God care for us, his Image bearers. Elsewhere Jesus reminds us that not even a sparrow falls to the ground without the Father’s knowledge and that even the hairs of our head are numbered. Does that sound like a God who has withdrawn from the affairs of the world or your life? I don’t think so either.

Moreover, during this Easter season we remember that in Jesus’ crucifixion and mighty resurrection God has forever defeated death. If God can raise us from the dead the way he raised Jesus, why should we sweat the small stuff regarding the living of our days? And of course we remember that tomorrow is Ascension Day, the day when Jesus ascended into heaven to take his rightful place as ruler of this universe. This reminds us that God is firmly in control, despite appearances to the contrary. The powers and principalities have been decisively defeated, even if they have not yet been forever vanquished. That will happen when Jesus returns again in great power and glory to fully establish God’s New Creation. All this reminds us not to worry or be afraid because God is in control. But that takes a leap of faith and we are back to that worrying thing again.

When, by the help of the Spirit, we are blessed with real faith, we are given the power to conquer our fears and worries because we know that God does love us, that God is for us, and that he works for good for those who love him. It doesn’t matter if we enjoy success or suffer setbacks or failures. We know God loves us and will provide for us. We trust his good will over ours and so we concentrate on doing what we must do in this world and trust that God will use our efforts to get us to where he wants us to be. And yes, that even (or perhaps especially) includes our failures, suffering, and hurts.

But if we don’t really trust God to provide or don’t really believe that he cares for us, then everything changes. We are left to our own devices. We are left to provide for ourselves. And more worrisome, we are left to the changes and chances of this life. If that really is the case, we would be foolish not to worry because we live in a broken and fallen world in which things don’t always (or even often) go right.

If, therefore, you want to live your life with real power, the power of a worry-free life, then you had better start by looking at your faith and your attitudes about God. Jesus tells us that it is the Father’s good pleasure to give us the Kingdom. Do you believe that? Do you have an intimate and first-hand knowledge of God or do you simply rely on what others tell you or the disinformation and lies that the various enemies of the cross disseminate? You cannot possibly come to trust God if you do not know him and you cannot possibly get to know him if you do not take the time and make the effort to do so. This is Relationships 101, folks. It is not rocket science.

This means you read your Bible systematically and regularly so that you can learn to recognize the ways of God and how he interacts with his people. It means you pray regularly and spend as much time listening in prayer as you do talking. It means that you surround yourself with other faithful souls to help you keep on track in your thinking about God and for you to do likewise for them.

If you do not already know God, you should not expect to get to know him overnight. Any relationship worth its weight in salt does not happen that way. It takes time and you must give God a chance to demonstrate his trustworthiness. He will certainly do that but he will not impose himself on you because that is not how healthy relationships work.

You must also resolve to stop trying to take God’s place and to do this requires a healthy dose of humility. Again, you will be less likely to do this the less you know God adequately because you will likely be dealing with a god of your own making rather than the one true and living God.

But when you resolve to grow in your knowledge and love of God–with the Spirit’s help of course–you are on the path to a worry-free life because you will learn that God is the God who raises the dead and who will never let you go or lack any good thing that you really need. When you finally are blessed with the right orientation about life, a God-orientation by the help of the Spirit, you will also learn what it means to have real freedom. Freedom from fear and worry. Freedom to love and serve. Freedom from the weight of your sin and the alienation it causes. Freedom to live your life as God intends for you to live.

What are you waiting for? Remember that it is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. Ask for the grace and good sense to be able to accept God’s free gift to you in Jesus and begin to live life with joyful abandon, with real meaning and purpose.

Alleluia! Christ is risen! The Lord is risen indeed! Alleluia!

The symbolic statement that Jesus is ‘at God’s right hand’ comprises the two great gospel affirmations that he is Saviour (with authority to bestow salvation) and that he is Lord (with authority to demand submission).

—Dr. John R.W. Stott,  Christian Mission in the Modern World, 50