CELEBRATE THE RISEN LORD

I searched for the word pair (fear not) before I started typing. I have been praying about this word pair for about a week now. I watched the news tonight and listened to a mother “teach her child” to find “five places to hide” as an exercise to prepare for a (shooter). The kid was less than 10 years old? I can not put in words the damage this does to the little guy’s thinking about “us unbelieving adults?” It was time to write the next BLOG.

Because the mother fears for her life, she teaches her child to be prepared to (hide) and die?  THIS is the tragedy of the 2019 (snow plow) parents. AKA plow everything and every one out of the way to protect the child? I see this behavior with other young parents I meet in the public square. Everything and everybody is a threat. The news does not help in this regard. The news print quotes a bad guy as it headlines “I came to kill someone.” The street signs urge me to “see and say.” Well here goes.

All of this? It is NOT Biblical. So what is the difference between caution and fear (not)?

Do not go and reach the conclusion before reading this BLOG. Do not expect any real good answers for total protection outside the faithful witness of the Lord and Savior Jesus, the Christ. Resist the notion that I have any greater opinion than anyone else living on the planet. But know this…the Bible says “perfect love drives out fear.” And being afraid can work itself all the way to sinful habits. Performed daily, sin becomes a habit of fear.

Walk with me to the Upper Room. The men were gathered after the death of the Savior. They knew something was up? They feared for their lives. They would not go and hide in a room that takes special permission from the owner to enter if there was no fear. Or at least, the Roman guard would need to break the door down to get to them now. Then Christ appears in the room and “orders” them to fear NOT and a few more words about the mission ahead. I am thinking “the eleven” were still in shock. After all, think for a moment the feelings of fear?

Ok? When Jesus showed up (in the flesh) and perfected by the Father in body and Spirit the men were terrified He was a ghost. So there you have it. Fear is a ghost. Some refer to this (thing) as a spirit. But? Answer me this. Why did the first act of real life refer to His hands and feet and a request to touch him? There is another level of fear in here. Reasoning goes out the window when a ghost asks me to feel His flesh and bones.

After a short snack, Jesus the Christ opened their minds. Then? The hard part was spoken. “You are my witnesses of these thing.” And? “I send you forth.” Nothing about a system of worship. Nothing about great big buildings with lots of maintenance bills. And certainly no mention about fear.

The Christ is risen…and sits at the right hand of the God of the Universe. I remember this one truth during the fuss of a holiday…it’s just another day of joy and peace for me.