What does a man who lived and died 2,000 years ago have to do with me?
The answer might surprise you.
You see, the Bible, which is a collection of books written over thousands of years by people who were directly inspired by God, tells the story of all of human history. It begins with God’s creation, which was good and whole and culminated in Him personally forming the first man and woman and giving them life. But not long after that, they turned their backs on Him and continually fell short of the good standard He had set. The good world God created grew worse and worse as even the people He had chosen, the nation of Israel, rejected Him and lived for themselves.
It was into this broken, rebellious world that Jesus, God’s one and only Son, fully God and fully man, stepped. He could have come and given everyone what they deserved for their wickedness – death and eternal separation from the wonderful presence of God. Instead, He took that punishment we deserved. He died, not because He had done wrong, but because we had. He was “forsaken” and hung on a tree and buried not because He deserved it, but because we did. He took our curse, and everything we have ever done wrong was placed on Him during that time. He was the only one who could do it, being the perfect, sinless son of God.
But that’s not where the story ends. Because on the third day, the tomb where Jesus had been buried was empty. Many theories were put forward as to how this had happened – maybe someone stole the body, maybe they went to the wrong tomb – but the truth is found in what the angels said to those women who had come to see His body that morning: “He is not here, He has risen!”
Many of His disciples saw Him over the next few weeks. He ate with them, spoke with them, walked and talked with them, and then told them it was time for Him to leave. He was going back to the presence of God the Father in what we call heaven, but before He left He promised them that He would return, and that in the meantime He was preparing a place for them to be in God’s presence forever.
And we believe that! We believe that a man, who was really God in the flesh, lived and died, was buried and rose again, then ascended into heaven and is coming again! If it sounds out of this world, that’s because it is. It is a story that transcends our world, told by the God who created it, and we find our place in that world by putting our trust in Him.
So what do you need to do? That same Bible tells us that all we need to do is confess with our mouths “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, and we will be saved. Some have broken it down into A – B – C: Admit that you have sinned against God and are in need of His forgiveness, Believe that Jesus died for that sin and rose from the dead, and Commit to Him as the ruler of your life for all of your life.
And we here at Emmanuel Church would love to talk to you about that and help you find your place in the story God is telling in this world! Get in contact with one of our pastors or visit us this Sunday at 9am or 10:45am to find out more about the incredible Jesus we worship.
The answer might surprise you.
You see, the Bible, which is a collection of books written over thousands of years by people who were directly inspired by God, tells the story of all of human history. It begins with God’s creation, which was good and whole and culminated in Him personally forming the first man and woman and giving them life. But not long after that, they turned their backs on Him and continually fell short of the good standard He had set. The good world God created grew worse and worse as even the people He had chosen, the nation of Israel, rejected Him and lived for themselves.
It was into this broken, rebellious world that Jesus, God’s one and only Son, fully God and fully man, stepped. He could have come and given everyone what they deserved for their wickedness – death and eternal separation from the wonderful presence of God. Instead, He took that punishment we deserved. He died, not because He had done wrong, but because we had. He was “forsaken” and hung on a tree and buried not because He deserved it, but because we did. He took our curse, and everything we have ever done wrong was placed on Him during that time. He was the only one who could do it, being the perfect, sinless son of God.
But that’s not where the story ends. Because on the third day, the tomb where Jesus had been buried was empty. Many theories were put forward as to how this had happened – maybe someone stole the body, maybe they went to the wrong tomb – but the truth is found in what the angels said to those women who had come to see His body that morning: “He is not here, He has risen!”
Many of His disciples saw Him over the next few weeks. He ate with them, spoke with them, walked and talked with them, and then told them it was time for Him to leave. He was going back to the presence of God the Father in what we call heaven, but before He left He promised them that He would return, and that in the meantime He was preparing a place for them to be in God’s presence forever.
And we believe that! We believe that a man, who was really God in the flesh, lived and died, was buried and rose again, then ascended into heaven and is coming again! If it sounds out of this world, that’s because it is. It is a story that transcends our world, told by the God who created it, and we find our place in that world by putting our trust in Him.
So what do you need to do? That same Bible tells us that all we need to do is confess with our mouths “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in our hearts that God raised Him from the dead, and we will be saved. Some have broken it down into A – B – C: Admit that you have sinned against God and are in need of His forgiveness, Believe that Jesus died for that sin and rose from the dead, and Commit to Him as the ruler of your life for all of your life.
And we here at Emmanuel Church would love to talk to you about that and help you find your place in the story God is telling in this world! Get in contact with one of our pastors or visit us this Sunday at 9am or 10:45am to find out more about the incredible Jesus we worship.
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We'd love to hear from you! If you have questions, comments, or want to know more about following Jesus, please contact us with the form below.
You can also contact our pastors directly above, or call the church office at 410-257-9188.
You can also contact our pastors directly above, or call the church office at 410-257-9188.