Thought for Today

Genesis 2:7  then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being.

Psalm 36:9  For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.

John 1:3  All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being 4 in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. 5  The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

The tomb was empty. The empty tomb was not the end of the story. “The NeverEnding Story is a fantasy novel by German writer Michael Ende, published in 1979, which was later adapted into a film in 1984 directed by Wolfgang Petersen.” (Bing search) The never-ending story is the truth of the Bible, the truth of the Empty Tomb and the Risen Lord. That truth is the truth of which Jesus spoke, "John 8:31 If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”

Today, after the joy of the Empty Tomb, what does it mean for Christians? How are we to “continue in my word?” If we are to be true, honest disciples of Jesus, if we are to continue in Jesus’ word, what does that mean in the 21st century? When Jesus spoke those words the estimated world population was 170 million people. (Bing search) Today, in 2025, the estimated world population is 8.2 billion people. (Bing search) When Jesus spoke, when he said “love your neighbor,” the world’s population was 2% of what it is today. There were a lot of neighbors when Jesus spoke, There are magnitudes more today!

It is tempting in this post-Easter period to focus on the Empty Tomb. It is appealing to think about God’s shouted “AMEN!” to Jesus’ life and sacrifice. Tempting and appealing . . . and to some degree, important. Christians must never forget the real events behind that truth of which Jesus spoke. We have the Bible, especially the New Testament, to help us remember.

But part of our memory is the realization that as long as Mary Magdalene was looking into that empty tomb, she did not see or recognize the Risen Lord. Read the account in John 20, especially vss. 16 and 18. Mary had to turn her gaze from what was no longer there toward what was right behind her. Why? Like Mary, we must now begin to look forward to our task in advancing the full realization of the Kingdom of God.

I believe a part of our task has to do with life itself. The theme this week in the devotional guide These Days has been “Encountering Life.” Is the very concept of life important to Christianity? The word appears 450 – 606 times in the Bible, depending on the translation you read. Any word appearing that often must be significant in our faith.

Genesis 2:7 is a very important verse. Life is literally the ‘breath of God” given by God to God’s creatures. In 2:7, God’s breath is given to make “the man . . . a living being.” Earlier, in 1:30, God refers to “every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life.”

I often read and reference "Luke 10:27 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." How do we do that? How, in this world of 8.2 billion neighbors do we witness our love for each other? How do we advance the Kingdom of God?

Do we focus on the Empty Tomb, on the sacrifice made by Jesus on the Cross? To some degree we must, in order to understand who and what we are. Do we mirror the demands of Thomas, "John 20:25 Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe?"

Christians are called to believe. Christians are called to use every breath of our God-given ‘breath of life’ in service to our Risen Lord. Of course, that does not mean we are all to be ministers, teachers or theologians. Along with that ‘breath of life,’ God has given each of us talents and abilities. Christians are called to use our talents and abilities to advance the Kingdom of God, wherever we are, however we are able. And, that’s the truth.

Stay safe, believe and serve, trust God,

Pastor Ray