Sunday Sabbath March 20 2016  SPRING HAS SPRUNG

Depending upon who you talk to, spring is either officially here, or it will be here tomorrow.  There is always a debate as to what date is official.  So I vote for today.  Today it is sunny with a high of 43 degrees.  Usually 43 degrees feels quite nice, but today, unless you are in the sunshine it feels quite biting.  If you live in cold country you’ll know what “biting” means.  As far as I am concerned…SPRING HAS SPRUNG.  

And today, as is every Sunday, is my special SUNDAY SABBATH!  It is also the last Sunday Sabbath before Easter, referred to as Palm Sunday.  This is a sacred Sunday and it is commemorated by those who believe in the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ.  It always falls on the last Sunday before Easter.  It is a sacred holiday which Christians celebrate so as to remember when Jesus entered into Jerusalem riding on a donkey.  He was welcomed joyfully and the crowd spread out palm branches in His path.  Little did they realize that by week’s end, this same Jesus would lie in a tomb following His crucifixion.

This entire week is considered a Holy Week.  Thursday is Maundy Thursday which is in remembrance of the last supper before Jesus was crucified.

Good Friday commemorates the day that Jesus was crucified upon the cross to die as a sacrifice  for man’s sins.  What evil meant for harm, God meant for good.  Christ’s death had to take place in order to fulfill the plan of God.  God’s plan was to offer eternal life to those who would follow His teachings.

And then we come to Easter Sunday.  Easter is the day that changed the course of the world.  No greater miracle and no greater news could ever be told, than that of the Resurrection of Christ.  There is irrefutable evidence of his resurrection in the annals of history.  He was a fulfillment of the ancient prophecies.  He even told his disciples of His death before it came to pass, promising that He would again arise in three days.  Even the calendar we use today depicts the time when Christ was born.  B.C. is used as the label of time before the birth of Christ and A.D. depicts the time after His birth.  “The term anno Domini is Medieval Latin, which means the year of the Lord but it is often translated as in the year of our Lord.”

Reference to the last sentence above in quotes taken from the webpage below:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anno_Domini

Easter is the most Holy Day of all days for the Christian believer.  It is the day that marks the surety of living with God in heaven for eternity, through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ.  God offered a way of salvation when with faith you believe, confess your sins, accept Jesus as your personal Savior, and “Love your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”  AND THUS WE CELEBRATE EASTER, A DAY ABOVE ALL DAYS.  And oh…there is so much more when you discover the unconditional love that God pours over you.

JESUS CAME WILLINGLY

By Kathleen Martens

March 20, 2016

God in His mercy

Extended His hand

So that by His side

Someday you’ll stand.

Part of Himself,

He sacrificed His Son,

That man’s salvation

Would be won.

Jesus came willingly

To a world strangled by sin,

To open heaven’s gate

So man could come in.

He overcame death

That caused great pain.

Gave His life.

Yours to gain.

And that is what this week is all about. 

Jesus, thank You for a love so great that You gave Your life for mine.

Jesus, thank You that You gave me life that I would know You.

Thank You Lord for this special day, this special week, to commemorate your love sacrifice for me.

7 Daily Steps to Trust in the Lord with All Your Heart

www.biblestudytools.com

Part 3:

We handed the keys of our lives to Him, and we know that He’s able to lead us. But in order for that to work, we have to…

3. Run from Evil

So much in this world can clutter up our relationship with God. John, the writer of the fourth gospel, describes them as the desires of the flesh, the lusts of the eyes, and the pride in our lives (1 John 2:16). In other words, our blessings can easily become our stumbling blocks when we think of them as what we deserve or what we need to be happy.

Instead, life works best when we remember the true source of our blessings—God—and focus on the things that please Him:

“Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.” (Proverbs 3:7)

Sometimes, the only way to live the life God wants us to live is by separating ourselves from the bad influences that keep dragging us down. That works the best when we start pursuing something else in their place:

“Flee the evil desires of youth, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.” (2 Timothy 2:22)

Is that easy? Not at all. Fleeing from the evil desires that pull at us means spending a lot of time crying out to God and leaning on Him. But our Creator promises to honor our commitment to Him when we shun evil:

“This will bring health to your body and nourishment to your bones.” (Proverbs 3:8)

When we pursue Him, we find life—abundant life. Running from evil and pursuing God doesn’t come naturally to most of us. Instead, it means we have to make a serious change:

GOOD NIGHT AND GOD BLESS  YOU!