Jesus - Our Savior

This past week one of the news stories which stood out to me was the teacher who had students write the name of Jesus on a piece of paper, then told them to put it on the floor and stomp on it. Our world has lost the understanding of who Jesus is and what his purpose is. He is the Savior of all mankind.

What or who do you trust to save you? I for one have never understood the mentality of the folks who want to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel or some other way. It just makes no sense to me to put your life at risk for no good reason.

After reading about a number of those people who have gone over Niagara Falls I noticed one thing they all had in common. None of them expected to die! All of them had some idea of protecting themselves from the dangers of going over that powerful water fall.

One of these dare devils was Robert Overacted, a 39 year old man challenged the mighty Horseshoe Falls on October 1st 1995. He planed this stunt for months, he checked and rechecked all of he figures and plans. He planned on riding on a single jet ski until he reached the brink of the Falls. There he would deploy a rocket propelled parachute, which would help him land in the River below the Falls to allow for a rescue.

Overacker launched himself into the Niagara River upstream of the falls. At the brink of the falls, Overacker ignited the rocket which deployed the parachute as planned. Unfortunately, as the parachute deployed it did him no good at all, because Overacker, he had forgotten to attach the parachute to his body.

To me that was a perfect, howbeit sad, example of what will happen if we trust in men or man made things to save us rather than Jesus. One of the most powerful testimonies about Jesus is found in Matthew 1:21 where the angel says of the coming birth of the Savior, "And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

Many today live dangerous lives, going through life with nothing to protect them or save them from what really counts. Until they (and we) join ourselves to Jesus, we are just as near death as Robert Overacker. You may think you have it all together and are safe, but are you really?

This week our world celebrates Easter, which traditionally is a remembrance of the Death, Burial and Resurrection of Jesus. It's not about Easter Bunnies or colored eggs, it's about remembering the one who can save us from our sins.

Russ Lawson

Leaving Sin Behind

Getting away from sin and temptation is probably one of the most difficult things we have to do as Christians. Through the years people have tried many ways. They have tried starting private communities where only believers are allowed. Some have joined monasteries, in hopes of escaping sin, but the results are always somewhat mixed, because Satan is not easily foiled. He fights for our souls and far too often makes himself look attractive to us.

We often handle sin like the children in a story reported in the news paper awhile back. It seems that a mother of eight in Darlington, Maryland had been visiting next door. When she came home and went into the living room, she saw her 5 youngest children huddled in the center of the floor, on her new carpet, very much involved with something wiggly and squirmy. As she got closer she saw, to her horror, that the children were gathered around a family of skunks. She screamed, "Run, children, run!"  Hearing their mother's frantic scream, each child grabbed a skunk and ran.

Sadly this story is often a reflection of our lives. We may have some very troubling things in our lives, yet, try as we may, we can't seem to run away from them, we just take them along with us.

I Peter 5:8-9a tells us, "Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith."

This passage tells us, rather than running off and carrying Satan or temptation with us we should stand firm against him! Another translation says to "resist" him. Being able to succeed in staying away from temptation is not accomplished by walling ourselves up in a monastery, but is taking the fight to Satan that keep us free. Matthew 16:18 tells us that when we fight with the knowledge of God in us, the gates of hell itself will not be able to stand against us.

So, you have a choice, grab you skunk and run or stand up and be counted as you join with your brothers and sisters in Christ in the army of God to overcome Satan.

Increasing Security

We have had a problem at our church building for the past few years, which seems to be getting worse instead of better. Folks are leaving doors to different parts of the facility unlocked. It varies by days of the week and times of the day. We speculate that folks just don't remember to lock up after themselves when they leave, but it makes you wonder if there is something more sinister going on. Could someone outside of our members have gotten a key?

There is no denying that security has become a major concern in our world today. Each of us tends to be a little more cautious with our personal security. We make sure we lock our cars and our homes; we install alarms (and try to remember to set them). We are told that in our community, crime has risen by 14% in the past few months, (mainly breaking into homes).

I understand, from those who are suppose to know, that no matter how hard you try and secure your stuff, there are always weaknesses in your preparations. Someone who is an experienced thief will find those weaknesses and exploit them to get you stuff if they really want it.

What are we to do? What can you do, when you've done everything you can to secure your stuff or even your own safety and it's not enough? Who do you trust in then?

As a Christian you know the answer already, you trust in God.

I love the story about Thomas Edison when a fire completely destroyed his research facility. His son found him watching the blaze destroy everything he had created. Rather than dwelling upon the destruction he told his son, "Go and get your mother, she'll never see another fire like this as long as she lives." 

He of course picked up the pieces of his life and laboratories and went on to invent even more wonderful things.

In Matthew 6:19-21 we read: "Don't store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be." (NLT)

Maybe we need to stop and ask ourselves, "Just what is it in this world in which I really trust?" In Matthew 28:20, after giving directions as to what he expects his followers to do, he makes this promise: "And be sure of this: I am with you always". (NLT) I will continue to trust in the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth (Ephesians 3:15).