Resurrected

I started to write this entry over two years ago, to be posted in time for Easter Sunday 2012. Around that same time, my grandpa fell ill and I put it aside. Last year, there was some other setback that delayed my writing again. This Easter, I got it done. This message is too important to put off another year. After Mike passed, I felt as though I was in the center of a spiritual tornado. It was too unbelievable to think God would actually take Mike from this earth. Mike was always going to get better. He was always going to be healed. I felt we had the promise from God and I demanded to know why it didn’t happen. Anger filled me. In the privacy of my own home, I would cry in anguish and scream at God until my throat was sore. I called God every name in the book – things I would never repeat to anyone. I even marked the date and dared Him to call me on it one day in Heaven. I didn’t hold back. However, there were two things that prevented me from turning my back on God completely – 1. Deep down I knew Jesus came to redeem me and anyone else who wanted redemption; 2. The only way I’d ever see Mike again was to get to Heaven, where I had no doubt he was. Even in my anger, I became obsessed with Heaven. I had to know all about it. I watched shows, read stories and listened to testimonies of Christians talking about the afterlife. I needed to know where Mike was, what he was doing, what he was feeling and thinking, and what it would be like when we are reunited. Did he remember me? Did he miss me? Was he really happier than he ever was on earth? It all blew my mind. I couldn’t make sense of any of it. All I knew was I wanted to be where Mike was. It almost didn’t matter that my purpose for going to Heaven in the first place was to live with the Lord and worship him for eternity. All I wanted was Mike, and I didn’t care if I had to use the “living for the Lord” loophole to get to him. That said, I was still incredibly angry. In fact, I still have a lot of anger. I can barely pray without feeling my mouth contort into a scowl, and my body becoming tense. There is no joy in my prayer. When I do pray, it’s usually to ask for the health or safety of someone else. That is all. Despite my anger and pain, when push comes to shove, I can’t deny one simple truth – Jesus came to save us. He is the real deal, and He is it. Jesus is the reason I will see Mike again. Jesus is the reason any of us will live in joy beyond this world. All we have to do is put our faith in Him and repent. Mike had the most practical, yet Biblically sound, approach to faith. The message, he always said, was simple, but at the same time difficult to grasp its enormity. Despite his straightforward approach to the faith, Mike was also a wealth of knowledge. He knew so much about the Bible, and I loved to listen to him explain things to me. He always had a way of breaking things down and putting it all in an easy-to-grasp message. Mike lived the gospel in his gentleness and kindness. He made me a better Christian (though I am far from perfect), and helped me to see God and church in a whole new way. Christianity wasn’t this boring, ancient, hard-to-understand concept. Church could be modern and fun. And Jesus was rebel. Who wouldn’t love all that? Today, as I live without Mike’s physical presence, I still hold dear to his influence and continue to follow his lead. Why? Because I know in my heart that Christianity is the truth. I once asked Mike why he was a Christian. He simply replied, “Because I believe Jesus is who he said he was.” Wow. That says it. If He is who He said He is, the message is simple: God knew the world was in shambles. He knew humans were messing up. He knew they couldn’t earn their way to Heaven on their own, so He sent His son to create that pathway. Anyone who wanted salvation could have it, simply by turning away from their sin and accepting the free gift Jesus came to offer. It’s that simple. And, it’s that complex. So many people assume they can earn their way to Heaven. That’s a huge and deadly misconception. Nobody, not even our greatest heroes, our finest leaders and our most loving neighbors can get into Heaven of their own accord. This is not because they haven’t done enough “good deeds,” but because a single sin is one sin too many. But that’s the glory of Christ – he took on every single sin, from the smallest to the largest, and allowed himself to die a horrific death so we aren’t eternally separated from God. Does that mean good works don’t count, or that you shouldn’t do good things? Of course not. But these things are supposed to be a reflection of having Jesus living inside you, rather than a lofty resume you show God at the end of your life in order to be worthy of Heaven. That’s the difference, and that’s what sets Christ apart from all the other religious figures of the world. We accept Christ because we realize there is nothing we can do to earn our way to Heaven. A person doesn’t go to Heaven simply because they die. That’s why it’s important to share the gospel with our friends and family. But there’s a caveat – people need to understand why they need Christ in the first place, and that means accepting that all people are sinners. Unfortunately, many people are uncomfortable hearing that. People get turned off by the word “sin,” but sin simply means to miss the mark. The mark is perfection, and we all fall short. I think we are all so afraid of making someone feel uncomfortable, or saying something that insults someone else’s beliefs, that instead we live with a sense of, “Well, whatever someone believes or makes them happy is OK and none of my business.” But that line of thinking is flawed because truth is by definition exclusive. By something being true, something else must be untrue. If someone doesn’t believe in the law of gravity, and I know it’s true, do I insult them by trying to stop them from stepping off a ledge, or do I reach out in love and concern for their life by sharing the truth? We have to look at our faith the same way. Sharing the gospel of Christ, which I absolutely believe to be true, isn’t an attempt to stomp on anyone else’s beliefs. It’s an attempt to share something that will change a person’s life, and bring them to a full and complete life after they leave this world. And there’s nothing wrong with taking that conversation to a debate – Jesus debated the Pharisees all the time. God saw His own son die. He understands pain and anguish, which is why we need to recognize how precious the gift of Christ really is. Considering what He was sent to do, and how He suffered and died, do you really want to reject that? Couldn’t you see how much that hurts God? We must try looking at this through the eyes of a parent. If a mother or father made such a sacrifice with their own beloved child, how would they feel about people who rejected it? If you passed on today and God said, “What did you do with my son? Did you accept Him? Did you love Him?” what would you say? And can you see why, if you rejected that precious gift, He wouldn’t force you to worship and spend eternity with Him? If someone doesn’t want to serve the Lord in this life, why would they want to do it for all eternity? The same questions occur to me every time I hear someone flippantly and carelessly utter a “Jesus Christ!” or a “Goddamn this/that.” Are you going to want to spend your life with someone whose name you so casually throw around in anger? I don’t want anyone to miss out on Heaven, and in Heaven I don’t want to miss out on anyone I love. What scares me – what truly scares me – is the thought that the last time Mike saw certain people here on earth may have been the last time he will ever see them. That’s a heart-breaking thought to wrap my head around, but sadly, it could also be very true. The Bible says there is rejoicing in Heaven when someone repents, accepts Christ and gains salvation. I love to think of Mike rejoicing every time someone he loves accepts Christ, and when he knows for sure he will get to spend eternity with them. I feel a calling to bridge that gap. If I was sitting here today unsure of Mike’s salvation and eternal destination, I would be in more mental anguish than I could ever imagine – more than I’ve already experienced. What keeps me going is knowing I will see him again, and I have assurance in that because I know Mike and I both accepted Christ and asked for God’s forgiveness. If you have yet to ask Jesus into your heart, if you haven’t yet asked for forgiveness of your sins, if you haven’t made a commitment to accept Christ and live for Him, if you haven’t accepted that He died so you can live forever with Him and your saved loved ones, please do that today. Don’t put it off. If you have questions, ask them. If you’re not sure, search your heart. But don’t wait. Don’t wait. Don’t assume you will always have another chance to accept this free gift. Don’t be fooled by thinking you are entitled to Heaven because you’re a “good person.” Being a “good person” is highly subjective. Furthermore, how can you ever know you’re good enough? The thief on the cross, who was crucified right beside Jesus, was a sinner. He was a “bad person.” But while hanging on his cross, with arms outstretched and nails in his bloody hands, he accepted Jesus as the messiah right then and there. Jesus’ reply? The thief would be with Him in paradise that night. It was that simple. The thief didn’t have time to go out and do good deeds. He didn’t have time to be baptized, take communion or get last rites. He didn’t even deserve saving – but he got it, simply because he asked for it. I can’t think of a more amazing path to God. Some years ago, during one of his relapses, Mike befriended a young woman who was going through an almost identical experience with leukemia. They compared notes on their treatments and recoveries, and encouraged each other. One day, shortly after returning home following her own bone-marrow transplant, Mike learned that she died due to complications from the procedure. He was devastated, not only because of her tragic passing, but because he wasn’t sure if she had accepted Christ and gone to Heaven. He lamented the fact that he never shared the gospel with her, and never asked her where she stood with the Lord. He said to me, “I will never let that happen again.” Tonight, Mike is enjoying all the peace and joy that resulted from Jesus’ resurrection, the event we mark today on Easter Sunday. I will enjoy that one day also. I hope and pray everyone will experience it. Salvation is free and yours, as long as you want it. Happy Easter to all.