The Living Word

In just a few weeks, we will somberly remember the last days of Jesus: His betrayal, His arrest, His trial and His crucifixion. And then, we will joyously celebrate Jesus’ triumph over death by His resurrection.

But these events are not merely events. To be certain, they are as historically true as Abraham Lincoln’s birthday or Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation. But they also represent the choices of a real, living Person. Unlike the biographies of men and women who were born, lived, and died, the Easter Story is the account of One who existed before He was born, and then was born, lived, died, and lives again. The written Jesus cannot be separated from the living Jesus:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God…And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-2, 14)

This Easter-time, as you recall Christ’s upper room communion with His disciples, His agonizing prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, His devastating separation from His Father at Calvary, His total sacrifice for our sins on the cross, and His total victory over darkness by His resurrection at the empty tomb, remember that this same Jesus lives today. The Living Word is speaking through His written Word.

Are you listening to Him?

Photo credit by Ted in creative commons.