- All time is God’s time. When we embrace that Christ is Risen, everything changes. Who we are at every moment is in light of the Resurrection. Every step follows God. Every word praises God. Every choice glorifies God. Spiritual life is all of the time, not some of the time. At any point in time, you are either living in the spirit or you’re not. When all time is God’s time, everything is sacred and everyone is served. If Christ is Risen, then every moment is lived in the light of the empty tomb.
- Every person is God’s. Jesus walked the earth and walked to the Cross to accomplish His Father’s will. He gave His life to open the door to the Kingdom for every person. There is not one person excluded from the Lord’s voluntary offering. How can we justify excluding each other? Or casting each other out of our communities? The Lord took the suffering of all persons to the Cross with Him and reconciled us ALL to God. In this ultimate act of love, we are also reconciled to each other. It is now up to us to live into God’s ideal for the world by welcoming every person we encounter. Embracing that Christ is Risen means embracing others without condition.
- Belief in God looks like something. If I proclaim that Christ is Risen, then I proclaim it beyond my words. What I believe isn’t something I simply state to myself in my mind. For example, if i trust you when you say you’re cooking me dinner, then I won’t eat before I come to your home. Trust in God looks the same way. If I trust God, my life demonstrates that I believe Him. Believing isn’t an intellectual choice. Your “religion” isn’t one part of your life that defines you on forms that ask you to check a box. Living a life of belief isn’t situational or conditional. It is here and now.
- Recognize where God is…not where He isn’t. In light of the resurrection, how we do everything is transformed. It’s not just what comes from us in word and deed that matters, but also how we see the world. Often, our eyes become fixated on opportunities to judge, divide, and criticize. We can become wrapped up in pointing out the wrongdoing of others and looking for where God isn’t. We should instead seek to recognize where God is and be open to seeing Him in unexpected places. If God is truly “everywhere present and filling all things,” then all things are His. Those who are close to the heart of God will see Him anywhere and everywhere. Let us have open eyes and open hearts to love the world He died for, rather than to condemn it.
- God chose you. The agape love of the Lord on the Cross is unconditional. He died for each person without expecting anything in return. He chose both those who love Him back and those who don’t. Choosing to love Him back means living into who He is designing you to be. Every person has been chosen by Him, so I should do my very best to honor this truth by honoring every person. Loving Him back means loving others as He did, without condition. It means responding to His call and not desiring any credit. Our faith isn’t something to take pride in or wear on our sleeves. To have faith is to accept the love of the Lord and choose to share it. Christ is Risen, so it is “no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.”
