At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?” - 1 Kings 3:5

If God presented the same question to me, I would ask for a passionate, unquenchable love for Him. Don’t I already love the LORD? Well, yes, but truth be told, often I choose watching TV over reading His Word. Too often, I choose sleep over an early morning of quiet conversation with Him.

What would a passionate, unquenchable love for Him look like? Jesus said,

Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. - John 15:13

It is an awesome act of responsibility to lay one’s life down for family. It is a noble act of duty to lay down one’s life for country. However, to lay down one’s life for friends – to whom you have no obligation – is great love. God went even further:

But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. - Romans 5:8

Christ died for us when we were His enemies in our mind and in our deeds (Col. 1:21). Should I, then, lay down my life for Him? The Scripture explains,

For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. - 2 Cor. 5:14,15

May God help me to offer myself as a living sacrifice (Rom. 12:1); not with guilt nor obligation as my motivation, but with abiding love.

Three of the four gospel writers include a significant healing event during the earthly ministry of Jesus (Matt. 9:1-8; Mark 2:1-12; Luke 5:17-26). When a paralyzed man was lowered into the crowd through the roof of the house where Jesus was ministering, He forgave the man of his sins. The religious elites took offense to the proclamation, thinking “Who can forgive sins, but God alone?” To demonstrate His divine prerogative to forgive sins, Jesus set forth the challenge “Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’?” With that, He commanded the paralytic to rise up and take his bed with him, and the once-paralyzed man did just that. Certainly, having his sins forgiven was of greater consequence than being able to walk, but the latter physical demonstration of divine power authenticated the unseen reality of the divine forgiveness.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a touchstone of Christian faith. By that demonstration of divine power, we realize the truth that Christ’s brutal death made atonement for our sins. Which is easier to say - that Jesus died for your sins or that He rose from the dead? People die every day, and indeed have done so for millennia. Jesus and the Scriptures foretold Jesus’ death and the purpose of it. That claim was authenticated by His (also foretold) resurrection. The Apostle Paul wrote, “And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!” (1 Cor 15:17). Because Christ has indeed risen from the dead, you can know with certainty that if you put your trust in Him, your sins are forgiven.

Often, atheists liken Christianity to believing in Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny. Admittedly, I don’t actively search news on hate crimes against Santa or Bunny believers, but almost daily I am made aware of Christians being imprisoned, tortured, and murdered for their faith. History indicates that more Christians were martyred in the 20th century than all previous centuries combined. Why such hostility?

Many people deny the existence of Santa Claus, yet there is a whole industry built around the figure. Although many, many people don’t believe in Santa, his images, his portrayal, and stories about him are not only tolerated by non-believers, but promoted and often venerated. Meanwhile, more and more governmental policies are enacted that prohibit Christian expression of any kind. Chinese factories produce tons of Santa Claus merchandise for public consumption, while most of the Christians in that country must meet in secret for fear of imprisonment. What’s with that?

If you really believe in Santa Claus, you may be thought immature or silly, but you are welcome to publicly speak of, sing of, and venerate him in any fashion – usually without reprisal. You can certainly purchase and distribute Santa Claus literature at will.

If you sincerely believe that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, so that anyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life, you will probably not enjoy such freedoms. Acknowledgement of such is illegal in many countries – even punishable by death. Even in such circumstances, many are coming to faith in Christ – ready to not only live for Him, but to die for Him as well.

So, is believing in Christ like believing in Santa Claus? From purely objective evidence, I think that we have to conclude that they are not the same at all. For subjective evidence, I pray that you will put your trust in Christ.

For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified. – 1 Cor. 2:2

This is quite a statement coming from the Apostle Paul, whom the Holy Spirit used to give us the systematic theology of Romans and a number of prophecies concerning the “End Times.” This was a man who knew the Scriptures well, having studied under Gamaliel (Acts 22:3), a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people (Acts 5:34). Yet, when Paul was among the Corinthian church – that he had helped plant and continued to nurture – he determined only to know Christ crucified. Is the Cross of Christ all that they needed to know?

There is a reason that the Cross remains the primary symbol of Christianity. We are not enamored with that wooden instrument of death, but what took place upon it. Jesus did not tenaciously cling to His divine rights, but emptied Himself of His privileges, becoming a suffering servant all the way to the Cross (Phil. 2:5-8). God demonstrates His love for us by Christ’s death on the Cross (Rom 5:8). He made Him who knew no sin to become Sin for us so that we might become righteous in His sight (2 Cor. 5:21).

People who have not yet met Jesus often have spiritual questions: Is sin really serious? The crucifixion of Christ answers that question. Does God even care about me? Again, the Cross demonstrates that He does. Is God approachable? Jesus died on a cross to make a way to God.

Even those who are endeavoring to walk with the Lord sometimes struggle with their own questions: Does God really love me? No greater love has been expressed than on the Cross of Christ. Does God really have a plan for me? That is precisely why Jesus went to the Cross. Is God really faithful? Consider the cost of Christ’s commitment to leave His glorious realm and to die as something worse than a common criminal.

The Cross is more than enough.

Please forgive the tardiness of this last installment in this series. There are lots of valid reasons, as well as some good and poor excuses, but, in the interest of preserving the “bite-sized” endeavor of this blog, I will simply continue from where I left off…

In verses 24-27 of John 9, we see the incessant and insincere interrogation of the once-blind man. This is not unlike the many questions that Jesus Himself was often subjected to by the religious leaders - even during the kangaroo court proceedings leading up to His crucifixion. The interrogators were not interested in discovering the truth; they were hoping for reasons not to believe. Perhaps you’ve been subjected to a similar line of questioning.

Fortunately, the once-blind man was assured of the reality of the healing brought to him by Christ, and did not waiver in his conviction that Jesus had wrought in him the works of God. I enjoy the exchange that is recorded in verses 29 and 30:

“We know that God spoke to Moses; as for this fellow, we do not know where He is from.” The man answered and said to them, “Why, this is a marvelous thing, that you do not know where He is from; yet He has opened my eyes!

I am reminded of the “One Solitary Life” sermon/poem by James A. Francis - somewhat made famous by Martin Luther King in his “The Drum Major’s Instinct” speech. The sermon includes these words about Jesus:

He is the centerpiece of the human race and the leader of progress. I am far within the mark when I say that all the armies that ever marched, and all the navies that ever were built, and all the parliaments that ever sat, and all the kings that ever reigned, put together have not affected the life of man upon this earth as powerfully as that One Solitary Life.

Indeed - even nineteen centuries ago - the impact of Christ upon the culture was unmistakable. The scholars of the Scriptures of all people should have both expected and recognized the Messiah by His works, but they were so blinded by their own ambitions that they could not receive Him.

How aptly that the chapter, and this series ends with these verses:

And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.” Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, and said to Him, “Are we blind also?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.