Our Certainty and Our Hope

Yo tengo un Cristo vivo; Su nombre es Jesús
Yo tengo un Cristo vivo; Su nombre es Jesús
Qué bueno es amarle, también glorificarle
Qué bueno es tener un Cristo de poder

"I have a living Christ; His name is Jesus
I have a living Christ; His name is Jesus
How good it is to love Him, and to glorify Him
How good it is to have a Powerful Christ."

That's an old chorus, a favorite. We sang it recently as we buried one of our own. It is our certainty and our hope.

This weekend, all over Peru, processions filled the streets as people devoutly, mournfully followed images of a dead body. In Ayacucho, on what they call Jueves de dolores ("Painful Thursday"), the parents flogged their children with whips to remind them that their sins sent Christ to the cross.

How tragically sad. For it's true that He died...but He didn't die that we should be eternally punished for our sins; He died that our sins might be forever taken away! What is more: He didn't stay dead long; just long enough to prove that He was really and truly dead. Then, after three days...no grave could hold Him.

We are certain, beyond the shadow of any doubt, that our Lord Jesus the Messiah rose again. We don't just believe this – we know this, for we know Him! He lives within our hearts through the power of His Holy Spirit – the Spirit of Christ.

But we don't just have the certainty that He is risen: we have the Blessed Hope that He is coming again to receive us unto Himself, that where He is, we may be also. That Hope encourages us; that Hope sustains us; that Hope should guide our every move and decision. That hope – that even the grave cannot keep us from Him, that even if we die, it's not forever – is the anchor of our souls.

Yes, indeed: How good it is to have a powerful Christ!

He is alive. He will remain so. And He's coming again.

We MUST proclaim it to our world!