“Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” John 20:18a
Dearly Beloved,
Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Risen Saviour of the World!
This week’s contemplation is the very basis of our relationship with the living God.
Jesus. Is. Risen.
And He is alive today!
As Mary proclaimed the very words that marked her as an apostle to the apostles, she served to usher into the hearts of Man – a new era of faith and intimacy with God.
“I have seen the Lord!”
These five words are the very words of God’s grace upon Man.
With these five words, Mary preached the gospel of Jesus to Christ’s disciples who were living in the realms of fear, uncertainty, doubt and hopelessness.
When Mary preached the gospel of Jesus to them that day, she was really preaching Christ’s Resurrection.
Are you preaching Christ’s Resurrection to all around you today?
If this Jesus has truly conquered death, what else is there He cannot overcome?
If this Jesus has truly risen from the dead, then all that He has promised will certainly come to pass – promises of salvation, promises of grace and mercy, promises of forgiveness, the promise of a full and victorious life, which in fact, is the promise of eternal life in the kingdom of His Father.
Jesus is alive today!
Have you seen the Lord?
His death on the Cross and Resurrection from the grave is the central pivotal and most epic point in the recorded history of humanity.
No self-respecting scholar will ever dare refute the authenticity of the events following Christ’s life, death, resurrection and even ascension.
In her brokenness, grieve and hopelessness, Mary saw the Lord that day.
Her sadness was indeed turned to joy.
What is stopping you from seeing the Lord?
Brokenness? Grieve? Hopelessness? Now these didn't stop Mary from seeking the Lord. She sought the Lord, and saw Him. Thus, we seek, and shall see Him, especially in our brokenness, grieve and hopelessness. Praise God!
Or is it pride, or perhaps defiance?
Pride and defiance finds common root in Mankind’s self-centeredness, which is really the ancient sin of self-idolatry.
“Religion is not for me. I have more important things to think about, to do… …”
Do you, really?
Seriously.
For Christ to have risen from the grave, and in so doing, proving irrefutably that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life – and this has no bearing on your life today?
If your life means anything to you, this simply cannot be so!
Christ’s Resurrection must inform and inspire our lives today, as it did the lives of His disciples then.
That they sacrificed their lives for the sake of Christ’s Cross and Resurrection is testament and example of how our lives must be lived - if it were truly impacted by the power of Christ’s love.
Though we do not see Him, our supposed lack of visual capabilities must not stop us from understanding, and living in, the reality that His presence continues to be real to us, and to the world.
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” Colossians 3:1
Christ is alive today, seated at the right hand of God, and present to us this very moment through the Holy Spirit.
Yes, it takes faith. But doesn’t it take faith to maintain any intimate relationship is the event of a temporary, spatial separation?
Understand this.
Our faith is not concerned with whether or not Jesus is alive. That is an existential reality, and our certainty.
Our faith is concerned with constantly living in Christ’s Resurrection though we do not ‘see’ him today - through setting our hearts ‘on things above.’
Don’t set your hearts on your survival.
Jesus promises that He is the Bread of Life. (John 6:35) Besides, God will supply all of our needs, according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19) Hasn’t he already?
Remember, He promised to conquered death. And He did. He fulfills all of His promises – that is the God whom we love and serve.
Don’t set your hearts on prosperity in this world.
Jesus taught in Matthew 6:19-21,“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Anything you treasure becomes you.
If it is earthly, it is temporal and destroyed in time; so will your life.
Set your heart on things above. Set your heart on the heart of God.
To this, Jesus taught in Luke 6:38, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.”
Don’t think prosper. Think Gospel.
Give. Be generous – with your time, labor, finances; every resource that God bestows upon you. We can never outgive the Lord.
Live fully in the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ!
If you do not, you will lose vitality, and find that your life becomes dull and meaningless.
In Christ, we are a Resurrected people.
When we regress as Christians, it is certain that we have lost our Resurrection identity; that somehow, we have disconnected Christ’s Resurrection with our daily lives. For this distinctive is what makes us Christ’s disciples.
Pray.
Pray that the Holy Spirit will give you courage and wisdom to live your life re-connected to the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Treasure the Resurrection of Christ; and Christ’s resurrection will be yours.
For it is in this knowledge that the power of the Holy Spirit will empower you in your own resurrection.
“And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.” Romans 8:11
Start everyday seeking Christ in prayer, worship and devotion. Do so relentlessly, till you may declare as Mary did, “I have seen the Lord!”
Live everyday in the Power and Victory of Christ’s Resurrection. Do so consistently; in testifying to all around you - with your thoughts, words, and deeds - “I have seen the Lord!”
May these five words of grace be your reality, and be on your lips - now and forevermore.
Shalom.
Let us pray.
Our Heavenly Father,
Hallowed be Your Name. Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done – on earth as it is in Heaven.
I have seen the Lord!
Lord Jesus, we acknowledge Your real presence in our lives through the Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit, we ask that you inform and inspire our lives in and through Christ’s Resurrection.
We are a Resurrected people.
Help us to never lose our Resurrection identity.
We acknowledge the efficacy of Your Resurrection in our lives. Empower us in the knowledge that even death has been defeated, nothing will every separate us from the love of God!
Thank you for Your Holy Spirit in us, restoring us to the reality of Your full and eternal destiny for us.
May we live our lives fully in Your Resurrection – in considering eternity in light of our lives even today.
Because of Your Resurrection, we are assured that we stand righteous before our Father in Heaven and that eternal living begins today.
May the world see the Lord, because we, ourselves, have seen the Lord.
We thank you, and pray all these in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
Dearly Beloved,
Greetings in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Risen Saviour of the World!
This week’s contemplation is the very basis of our relationship with the living God.
Jesus. Is. Risen.
And He is alive today!
As Mary proclaimed the very words that marked her as an apostle to the apostles, she served to usher into the hearts of Man – a new era of faith and intimacy with God.
“I have seen the Lord!”
These five words are the very words of God’s grace upon Man.
With these five words, Mary preached the gospel of Jesus to Christ’s disciples who were living in the realms of fear, uncertainty, doubt and hopelessness.
When Mary preached the gospel of Jesus to them that day, she was really preaching Christ’s Resurrection.
Are you preaching Christ’s Resurrection to all around you today?
If this Jesus has truly conquered death, what else is there He cannot overcome?
If this Jesus has truly risen from the dead, then all that He has promised will certainly come to pass – promises of salvation, promises of grace and mercy, promises of forgiveness, the promise of a full and victorious life, which in fact, is the promise of eternal life in the kingdom of His Father.
Jesus is alive today!
Have you seen the Lord?
His death on the Cross and Resurrection from the grave is the central pivotal and most epic point in the recorded history of humanity.
No self-respecting scholar will ever dare refute the authenticity of the events following Christ’s life, death, resurrection and even ascension.
In her brokenness, grieve and hopelessness, Mary saw the Lord that day.
Her sadness was indeed turned to joy.
What is stopping you from seeing the Lord?
Brokenness? Grieve? Hopelessness? Now these didn't stop Mary from seeking the Lord. She sought the Lord, and saw Him. Thus, we seek, and shall see Him, especially in our brokenness, grieve and hopelessness. Praise God!
Or is it pride, or perhaps defiance?
Pride and defiance finds common root in Mankind’s self-centeredness, which is really the ancient sin of self-idolatry.
“Religion is not for me. I have more important things to think about, to do… …”
Do you, really?
Seriously.
For Christ to have risen from the grave, and in so doing, proving irrefutably that He is the Way, the Truth and the Life – and this has no bearing on your life today?
If your life means anything to you, this simply cannot be so!
Christ’s Resurrection must inform and inspire our lives today, as it did the lives of His disciples then.
That they sacrificed their lives for the sake of Christ’s Cross and Resurrection is testament and example of how our lives must be lived - if it were truly impacted by the power of Christ’s love.
Though we do not see Him, our supposed lack of visual capabilities must not stop us from understanding, and living in, the reality that His presence continues to be real to us, and to the world.
“Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” Colossians 3:1
Christ is alive today, seated at the right hand of God, and present to us this very moment through the Holy Spirit.
Yes, it takes faith. But doesn’t it take faith to maintain any intimate relationship is the event of a temporary, spatial separation?
Understand this.
Our faith is not concerned with whether or not Jesus is alive. That is an existential reality, and our certainty.
Our faith is concerned with constantly living in Christ’s Resurrection though we do not ‘see’ him today - through setting our hearts ‘on things above.’
Don’t set your hearts on your survival.
Jesus promises that He is the Bread of Life. (John 6:35) Besides, God will supply all of our needs, according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19) Hasn’t he already?
Remember, He promised to conquered death. And He did. He fulfills all of His promises – that is the God whom we love and serve.
Don’t set your hearts on prosperity in this world.
Jesus taught in Matthew 6:19-21,“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Anything you treasure becomes you.
If it is earthly, it is temporal and destroyed in time; so will your life.
Set your heart on things above. Set your heart on the heart of God.
To this, Jesus taught in Luke 6:38, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap.”
Don’t think prosper. Think Gospel.
Give. Be generous – with your time, labor, finances; every resource that God bestows upon you. We can never outgive the Lord.
Live fully in the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ!
If you do not, you will lose vitality, and find that your life becomes dull and meaningless.
In Christ, we are a Resurrected people.
When we regress as Christians, it is certain that we have lost our Resurrection identity; that somehow, we have disconnected Christ’s Resurrection with our daily lives. For this distinctive is what makes us Christ’s disciples.
Pray.
Pray that the Holy Spirit will give you courage and wisdom to live your life re-connected to the Resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Treasure the Resurrection of Christ; and Christ’s resurrection will be yours.
For it is in this knowledge that the power of the Holy Spirit will empower you in your own resurrection.
“And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.” Romans 8:11
Start everyday seeking Christ in prayer, worship and devotion. Do so relentlessly, till you may declare as Mary did, “I have seen the Lord!”
Live everyday in the Power and Victory of Christ’s Resurrection. Do so consistently; in testifying to all around you - with your thoughts, words, and deeds - “I have seen the Lord!”
May these five words of grace be your reality, and be on your lips - now and forevermore.
Shalom.
Let us pray.
Our Heavenly Father,
Hallowed be Your Name. Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done – on earth as it is in Heaven.
I have seen the Lord!
Lord Jesus, we acknowledge Your real presence in our lives through the Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit, we ask that you inform and inspire our lives in and through Christ’s Resurrection.
We are a Resurrected people.
Help us to never lose our Resurrection identity.
We acknowledge the efficacy of Your Resurrection in our lives. Empower us in the knowledge that even death has been defeated, nothing will every separate us from the love of God!
Thank you for Your Holy Spirit in us, restoring us to the reality of Your full and eternal destiny for us.
May we live our lives fully in Your Resurrection – in considering eternity in light of our lives even today.
Because of Your Resurrection, we are assured that we stand righteous before our Father in Heaven and that eternal living begins today.
May the world see the Lord, because we, ourselves, have seen the Lord.
We thank you, and pray all these in the name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.