Now doesn’t that sound a bit odd, people remembering, and celebrating the death of another? It would if it wasn’t for the significance of the person who was crucified. Jesus Christ, the Son of God who came to earth to live amongst us and teach us how to love one another, was that person. Because Christ died on a cross we have been forgiven of our sins. In other words,
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. (John 3:15-17)
So today is all about the cross, the blood, forgiveness and The Christ!
One of my favourite Easter songs is Written in Red. Please listen to the following audio of Olwyn Mathiesinging this beautiful song which has such power and emotional words:
Are you willing to stand out from the crowd and stand up for your beliefs, or do you just stay quiet and go along with the crowd regardless of what is being said or done?
It’s can be tough to stand-up for what you believe in sometimes, can’t it? However if you believe in God, He can give you the strength and encouragement you need stand up for Him by stating your Christian beliefs even when it means disagreeing with the majority.
So don’t be a chameleon Christian by blending into the crowd regardless of what is being said or done, stand up for Christ…after all Christ stood up for you at Calvary!
Lord we rememberHow You gave Your life on a brutal cross Lord we rememberThis is the way You’ve chosen to say This is the way You make all things new This is the way You’ve chosen to say This is the way You make all things new Broken and beautiful Extravagant love Prodigal grace Broken and beautiful God‘s perfect justiceMercies embraced
What do you think of when yu think a Jesus on a cross at Calvary?
Well the name of the above song sums it up quite well doesn’t it…Broken and Beautiful.
Broken by humanity but also providing us with beautiful peace and mercy forever.
Don’t ever forget the beauty of the cross and all it stands for!
As far as I’m concerned, the reason we celebrate Easter has never been in doubt. However I do appreciate that for those of you who have never been told all about Jesus and how much He loves each one of us, you may still doubt why Christians celebrate Easter.
Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life.[a] Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying.
Maybe I’ve read it somewhere, or someone has told me, but I seem to think I’ve heard that the resurrection of Jesus has been investigated and examined more times that many other events in history.
To me that tells me that people are either more desperate to prove Christ’s resurrection actually happened, or conversely, there are more skeptics who are willing to try to prove it all a huge hoax.
Either way, it gives the events of that first Easter more air-time and surely as Christians we should be happy for the opportunity to discuss and convince others who do not believe in Christ, that He did die at Calvary just so we could be forgiven.
A prayer for Christ‘s future following His birth…through to His death
Imagine before your child was born, you knew what was in store for them…all their greatest achievements, all their lowest moments, all their toughest decisions and all their easiest choices…
But what if you knew your child was going to perform deeds of greatness, teach thousands about God, and then while still a young man, be killed on a cross…
I’m sure if you knew the future for your child, you would do all you could to prevent the bad things from happening, however God has planned our life out for us before we were even born. If Jesus hadn’t been born in a stable lived the life He did, and then die on a cross at Calvary, my life would be so different.
It’s because Jesus came to earth to do His Father’s will that we celebrate Christmas, so please makes sure you keep Christ in Christmas this and every year.
In the last few weeks, you may be aware if you’re on Twitter, that there has been people, one in particular who has been doing all they can to turn people from the Salvation Army in the UK. While they are free to express their own opinions, many very broad generalisation and rash assumptions have been made by these folk, simply because they have had a bad experience in the Salvation Army.
My main reason for mentioning this is that one of their main gripes about the Salvation Army is that it focuses too much on music, the musical sections (both young peoples and senior sections), and the musical ability of its members. I agree that in the Salvation Army we do encourage music as a means of worship and praise, however I certainly do not agree that the Army focus is more on its music than on God.
In thinking about and praying about some of the things that have been said on Twitter, I’ve found myself drawn to the song When The Music Fades. Then in our devotions during the band practice last Thursday, our officer (minister) reminds us again of that same song…When the Music Fades.
When the music fades All is stripped away And I simply come Longing just to bring Something that’s of worth That will bless Your heart
I bring you more than a song For a song in itself Is not what you have required You search much deeper within Through the way things appear You’re looking into my heart
I’m coming back to the heart of worship And it’s all about you It’s all about you, Jesus I’m sorry Lord for the thing I’ve made it When it’s all about you It’s all about you, Jesus
King of endless worth No one could express How much you deserve Though I’m weak and poor All I have is yours Every single breath
This song really sums up what I think the Salvation Army is all about…yes we love our music, I love the music it’s how I express my love for God, however it is just a small part of what it’s all about for the majority of us. For us, you could take away the musical sections, the music, the uniforms etc, but Jesus would still be there at the centre of all we do.
Yes, I will admit that sometimes we can all get caught up in the emotions of some of the music, but if we are real Christians and not just going through the motions of the Salvation Army and all that entails, we remind ourselves of the words related to the music, remind ourselves of Jesus and remind ourselves of the cross…that should be more than enough to remind us of the reason for being a part of the Salvation Army.
Everything we have is God’s, because all He had, He gave for us at Calvary.
Yes I know there’s a wedding on today, but just to be different I don’t want to talk about that! Instead I want to conclude my series about Easter by sharing the words of the following song with you:
He could have left that cross that dayTo feed the hungry who were thereHe could have wiped the children’s’ tears awayTo show them He still caredHe could have once again reached out His handTo give sight to the blindHe could have kissed His mother one more timeBut He had to hold to CalvaryTo ever hold to meHe could not free himself and set me freeHe had to surrenderTo win my victoryHe could not save himself and save meHe could have proven to JerusalemThat He truly was God’s sonHe could have shown those who scorned HimThat He was the mighty oneHe could have grieved the crown and filled the skyWith angels to set Him freeHe could have walked away from CalvaryBut He had to hold to CalvaryTo ever hold to meHe could not free himself and set me freeHe had to surrenderTo win my victoryHe could not save himself and save meBut He had to hold to CalvaryTo ever hold to meHe could not free himself and set me freeHe had to surrenderTo win my victoryHe could not save himself and save meHe had to surrenderTo win my victoryHe could not save himselfHe could have walked away from CalvaryHe could not save himself and save me
Those are the words of the song He Had To Hold To Calvary which to me, totally sum up Easter, and the real reason we celebrate Easter.
I first came across this song a few years ago when Sydney Staff Songsters spent a weekend “specialing” at Rutherglen Salvation Army during their UK tour that year. I remember sitting in our Senior Band, at the front of the hall, right in front of the platform, and Garry Druery, one of their soloist stood at the front of the platform just a few feet away from me, and sang this song…I was mesmerised…I was deeply moved…I was there – I really felt as though as Garry was singing I was there watching Jesus being crucified on the cross…what emotions I felt that first time I heard that song.
Please listen and watch the following video as Garry Druery singing He Could Not Hold To Calvary:
Still to this day, every time I hear/watch this song it brings tears to my eyes, as it sums Easter up for me.
I hope and pray you have been reminded of the real meaning of Easter by reading some of my blog post during these last 2 weeks. If nothing else I hope you may have been made aware that Easter isn’t just about Easter eggs, chocolate etc, but it’s about just how much Jesus gave up for you and for me….His life!
I am with you always, to the end of the age – Matthew 28:20
…and it’s because Jesus died for us on the cross that He will forever live in us. Jesus might be living in us forever, but are we allowing Him to use us forever?
Have you knelt at the foot of Jesus cross? Have you knelt at the foot of His cross this Easter?
Whether it be for the first time or the thirtieth time, I’d encourage you to kneel at the foot of the cross this Easter. God can use everyone of us, some for huge tasks that thousands see or witness, others for tasks which only He ever knows about – Whatever God’s tasks for you, they are all equally important to Him.
If we really understand the heart of the Lover, being the beloved becomes a lot more natural. Let your passion for Him run as wild as His passion for you! I stand amazed in His presence, how marvellous, how wonderful is my saviours love for me!
Go kneel at the cross of Jesus this Easter as you listen to Garry Druery singing What He Was Dying To Say:
Maybe I’ve read it somewhere, or someone has told me, but I seem to think I’ve heard that the resurrection of 
