Welcome to Jesus. An Invitation.

CONSECRATE Wake up, sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.  Jesus, I belong to you. I lift up my heart to you. I set my mind on you. I fix my eyes on you. I offer my body to you as a living sacrifice. Jesus, we belong to you.  Praying in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, amen.  HEAR John 3:16 NIV 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. CONSIDER This is an invitation to life's deepest meaning and purpose. It is an invitation to meet, behold, and, ultimately, befriend the God of heaven and earth. It may sound far-fetched and even absurd to you,  but I ask you to hear me out.  This is an invitation to follow Jesus.  In case you are unaware, Jesus was born in the first century BC into a poor family from Nazareth, a small village located in what is modern-day Israel. While his birth was associated with extraordinary phenomena, we know little about his childhood. At approximately thirty years of age, Jesus began a public mission of preaching, teaching, and healing throughout the region known as Galilee. His mission was characterized by miraculous signs and wonders; extravagant care of the poor and marginalized; and multiple unconventional claims about his own identity and purpose. In short, he claimed to be the incarnate Son of God with the mission and power to save people from sin, deliver them from death, and bring them into the now and eternal kingdom of God—on earth as it is in heaven. In the spring of his thirty-third year, during the Jewish Passover celebration, Jesus was arrested by the religious authorities, put on trial in the middle of the night, and at their urging, sentenced to death by a Roman governor. On the day known to history as Good Friday, Jesus was crucified on a Roman cross. He was buried in a borrowed tomb. On the following Sunday, according to multiple eyewitness accounts, he was physically raised from the dead. He appeared to hundreds of people, taught his disciples, and prepared for what was to come. Forty days after the resurrection, Jesus ascended bodily into the heavens where, according to the Bible, he sits at the right hand of God, as the Lord of heaven and earth. Ten days after his ascension, in a large gathering of people on the day of Pentecost, a Jewish day of celebration, something truly extraordinary happened. A loud and powerful wind swept over the people gathered. Pillars of what appeared to be fire descended upon the followers of Jesus. The Holy Spirit, the presence and power of God, filled the people, and the church was born. After this, the followers of Jesus went forth and began to do the very things Jesus did—preaching, teaching, and healing—planting churches and making disciples all over the world. Today, more than two thousand years later, the movement has reached us. Yes, two thousand years hence and more than two billion followers of Jesus later, this movement of Jesus Christ and his church stands stronger than ever. Billions of ordinary people the world over have discovered in the Christian faith a transformed life they never imagined possible. They have overcome problems, defeated addictions, endured untenable hardships and suffering with unexplainable joy, and stared death in the face with the joyful confidence of eternal life. They have healed the sick, gathered the outcasts, embraced the oppressed, and, yes, even raised the dead. We all have many challenges and problems in life. All of them trace to two problems—sin and death. Sin, far beyond mere moral failure, describes the fundamental broken condition of every human being. Sin separates us from God and others, distorting and destroying our deepest identity as the image-bearers of God. Sin is a fatal problem from which we cannot save ourselves. It ultimately results in eternal death. Because Jesus lived a life of sinless perfection, he is able to save us from sin and restore us to a right relationship with God, others, and ourselves. He did this through his sacrificial death on the cross on our behalf. Because Jesus rose from the dead, he is able to deliver us from death and bring us into a quality of life both eternal and unending. This is the gospel of Jesus Christ: freedom from the penalty and power of sin and deliverance from the grip of death. He asks us only to acknowledge our broken selves as failed sinners, trust him as our Savior, and follow him as our Lord. Following Jesus does not mean an easy life; however, it does lead to a life of power and purpose, joy in the face of suffering, and profound, even world-changing, love for God and people. All of this is admittedly a lot to take in. Remember, this is an invitation. Will you follow Jesus? Don’t let the failings of his followers deter you. Come and see for yourself. Here’s a prayer to get you started. PRAY Our Father in heaven, it’s me (say your name). I have known of you and some things about you, but I want to actually know you. I confess I am a sinner. I have failed myself, others, and you in many ways. I know you made me for a purpose and I want to fulfill that purpose with my one life. I want to follow Jesus Christ. Jesus, thank you for the gift of your life and death and resurrection on my behalf. I want to walk in relationship with you. Would you lead me into the life I was made for? I am ready to follow you. I invite the Holy Spirit to fill me with the power and love of God. I pray these things by faith in Jesus’s name, amen.