By Darcy Mohr ...
Easter Sunday is the most important date on the Christian calendar; celebrating the resurrection of Jesus and the hope that we will live eternally with him. To put the icing on the cake, Pastor Alan reminds us that this relationship we each have with Jesus is one of friendship, for all time. Incredible that Jesus, the Creator of the universe, wants to be my friend.
Friendships have many benefits, but are not without their challenges. I am a Toronto transplant; I grew up in small town, southern Ontario and first moved to Toronto around the age of 25, leaving behind many close friends and my family. Building my own life in Toronto and raising my daughter have kept me on my toes these last 25 years, leaving little time to nurture the relationships that once were so near and dear to me. With regards to family, as my parents age and are less keen on travelling into Toronto through the gnarly traffic we face here, the onus more and more is on me travelling to maintain those relationships. Distance can be a real challenge to friendships and to family bonds. Fortunately, my friendship with Jesus isn’t restricted by distance – He’s with me all the time; with each of us all the time if we’re willing to open our hearts to let Him into our lives. And not just for the rest of this life but for eternity. The problem is my human nature tends to take for granted someone who’s always there and at times for me, it can be that way with Jesus. Sometimes I ignore Him, wishing that I could do some things that I didn’t have to share with Him. I think those are the times when Jesus undertakes some pruning in my life; correcting me and guiding me back to the path He has laid before me.
Pastor Alan also mentioned that being part of a community of believers allows us to help each other grow stronger in our walk with Jesus and by working together we can grow the presence of the church in our world. Once again, my human nature sometimes would prefer to live in isolation and focus just on self. After all, working with others takes effort and we don’t always agree on how things should be done so in that respect, isolation would be easier. However, Jesus wants to be in friendship with each of us, and if we’re willing to make the effort required to be part of a community of believers, then we can become a better friend to Jesus, a fact that will be illustrated to others by the fruit we bear.
I pray that each of us will realize that Jesus is beside us every step of the way wanting nothing more than to be in relationship with us as friends. I also pray that He will guide each of us to work together in community with other believers to build His Kingdom and bring His light into this world.
Listen to this sermon here!
* Graphic by Daniell Bonnell - "Road to Emmaus #2" - www.bonnellart.com