Why Did You Come to Church on Easter?

"So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed.” – Matthew 28:15

A week ago Sunday, most Christian churches saw their biggest attendance day of the year. People who rarely, if ever, attend showed up in droves. And we might ask ourselves … why?

Let’s take a look who came to Jesus’ grave that first Easter morning. Most of us think first of the group of women who went to Jesus’ tomb. They came to anoint Jesus’ grave cloths with spices and oils as a sign of respect and love.

But those devoted women were beaten to the tomb by about 24 hours – by Roman guards. Governor Pilate had ordered the tomb guarded to make sure Jesus’ disciples couldn’t steal the body and claim that he’d risen from the dead. So, when the women arrived, the guards were already there.

None of them knew yet that the tomb was empty – until an angel appeared, rolled back the stone and sat on it. The guards were so terrified that they were frozen in place—so scared they couldn’t even run away.

While the women left to share the good news with the disciples, the guards finally got moving as well. Some of them went to the city and told the Jewish leaders what had happened. The leaders hastily devised a plan. They gave the soldiers “a large sum of money”—likely a year’s wages—and ordered them to keep their mouths shut (v. 12). So, the soldiers took the money and obeyed their orders. That was their story, and they were paid well to stick to it.

But the soldiers knew the truth. And so did the women. And later that day, so did Jesus’ apostles. Within a few short years, Christianity swept across three continents, because the fact of the resurrection was plain to see.

Now, I want to ask you two very important questions:

Question #1: Did you go to an Easter service because you were somehow PAID to be there … or because you WANTED to be there? The soldiers were at the tomb because they were PAID to be there. The women were at the tomb because they WANTED to be there. Last week, many Americans came to church because a family member pretty much made them come. Others might have come because they were serving lunch afterward. Still others came for an Easter Egg Hunt, prize giveaways or free entertainment.

Question #2: Are you walking past a goldmine of eternal treasure for a few quick bucks? As the Roman guards left the temple with a bag of cash, they thought they’d struck it rich. They ran past a goldmine to pick up a few pennies. That’s how it is when we choose money over Jesus, when we choose goods over God, when we choose the temporary things of earth over the eternal things of heaven. We don’t go to church with our families each week because we don’t feel like it. We’ve got more important things to do.

Are you more like a paid soldier who was at the tomb for the money, or are you like one of Jesus’ followers who came because they truly loved Jesus? I pray that when you come to church, it’s because you WANT to be there. I pray that instead of toying with Jesus Christ, you come to trust in Him and follow Him.

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Join us for Sunday services in person or online at 9 a.m. on Facebook Live or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

A Savior for the Nobodies

“It is true! The Lord has risen.” – Luke 24:32

Tomorrow we celebrate Easter – the day when those first followers of Jesus Christ witnessed the greatest event in human history.

 

Jesus was dead … or so everyone thought. But the women who came to anoint Jesus’ body that first Easter found an empty tomb – and a living Jesus. Soon afterward, Jesus appeared to His disciples. Most of us remember those stories. But today, let’s look at one of Jesus’ less-talked-about appearances following His resurrection: His appearance to two men on the road to Emmaus.

 

We know almost nothing about these men, except that they were followers of Jesus, and that they were walking from Jerusalem to the village of Emmaus (Luke 24:13). Why spend so much time on Jesus’ appearance to these two nobodies?

 

Only two verses in Matthew are dedicated to Jesus’ appearance to the women at the tomb. Just seven verses in John are spent on Jesus’ appearance to 10 disciples in the upper room that evening. But a whopping 23 verses are devoted to Jesus’ appearance to two unknown Christians on the road to Emmaus. Why?

 

Scripture doesn’t really tell us, but here are three several life lessons that I believe help us get closer understanding the reason.

 

Life Lesson #1: Jesus doesn’t only care about celebrities. He’s a living Savior for nobodies as well. I’m no Apostle Peter, Martin Luther or Billy Graham. And I am SO grateful that Jesus wasn’t born just for the great saints. He was also born for you and me. He died for you, and He conquered death on Easter morning … for YOU. “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

 

Life Lesson #2: Jesus is drawn to those who are humble and teachable. In verse 25, Jesus told the two men, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!” That is NOT a compliment. But these two Christians didn’t get offended. They remained humble and teachable. And as a result, their lives were forever changed.

 

Life Lesson #3: Jesus is looking for dedicated followers who will go and tell others the Good News. During his three-year ministry, Jesus often told the people he healed not to blab about it to anyone. But after His resurrection, Jesus urged His followers to tell everyone about Him. And that’s just what these two men from Emmaus did. They rushed to tell the others that Jesus is risen, just as He said.

 

These two men knew the Good News was worth sharing right away. Because Jesus Christ conquered sin on Good Friday and conquered death on Easter Sunday, you and I can live forever. You can’t keep that good news to yourself. Tell a family member. Tell a friend. Tell EVERYONE! And bring them with you to church tomorrow to find out more.

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church in Victorville. Join us for  our Easter service tomorrow at 9 a.m. with an Easter Egg Hunt afterward for the kids. Impact meets at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Or, join us online at 9 a.m. on Facebook Live or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.

5 More Ways to Show God’s Love

“[Love] is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.”

– 1 Corinthians 13:5-6 

God’s kind of love – “agape” – isn’t easy. It’s hard … REALLY hard.

 

But Jesus Christ has called us to love as He loves: with an unconditional, others-centered, agape love. It’s far and away the best kind of love. So, as Christians, we must stay determined to love God and people with agape.

 

Picking up from last week’s article, I’d like to share five more ways that God’s love behaves:

 

Love is not self-seeking (v. 5). It’s impossible for agape love to be self-absorbed and self-seeking, because agape is all about putting the needs of others above itself. The online BibleRef.com commentary on 1 Corinthians 13:5 makes this excellent point: “Much of the Corinthian church’s problems would have disappeared if they focused on looking for ways to meet each other’s needs before satisfying their own.” If you want to squander your life and be quickly forgotten after you die, here’s the secret: Just live for yourself.

 

Love is not easily angered (v. 5). The CSB and ESV translate Paul’s words this way: Love “is not irritable.” Love does not lose its cool over small irritants. We all know that Jesus got angry at times. When his 12 disciples were chasing off the children who were coming to Jesus, Jesus got angry. When Jesus drove out the money changers and venders from the temple courts, He was really angry. But Jesus never got angry for selfish reasons. He got angry for righteous reasons. He got angry for the glory of God and the good of those around Him.

 

Love keeps no record of wrongs (v. 5). Paul uses an interesting Greek word here: “logizesthai.” In Paul’s day, this was a word accountants used to describe writing down a transaction on a ledger and reckoning it to someone. So, Paul is saying that agape doesn’t keep a mental note of everything someone did that was mean or hurtful. Agape doesn’t hold grudges, and it “keeps no record of wrongs.”

 

Love does not delight in evil (v. 6). Sadly, our culture finds sin entertaining. Horror movies make hundreds of millions of dollars every year, and we have a $15 billion pornography industry in America. Why? Because we find bloody murder and illicit sex entertaining. Now, many Christians would say, “That doesn’t apply to ME!” But what about gossip? One of the most common ways that Christians delight in evil is by listening to gossip. Do you realize that gossips wouldn’t do much harm if you weren’t so eagerly listening to them? Agape love never delights in evil. Agape love never rejoices in wrongdoing or in gossip.

Love rejoices with the truth (v. 5). Remember that in John 14:6, Jesus told His disciples, “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Therefore, agape love rejoices in Jesus. Jesus Christ IS love’s delight. 

Dane Davis is the pastor of Impact Christian Church in Victorville. Join us for Good Friday tomorrow night at 6pm, and for our Easter service this Sunday at 9 a.m. with an Easter Egg Hunt afterward for the kids. Impact meets at 17746 George Blvd. in Victorville. Or, join us online at 9 a.m. on Facebook Live or YouTube. For more information, visit www.GreaterImpact.cc.