Jesus saves us from separation from God, he reconciles us with others through love, peace, mercy, grace, and hope. This then brings us life in abundance. Yes, the Divine wants us to live God’s life, not to be “dead in life.”
Jesus then saves us from living a life full of hatred, resentment, and revenge. Jesus saves us from spending our days destroying society while we are looking for the evil of the one who did us harm.
The Apostle Paul, in his first letter to the Corinthians, in chapter 13, makes a wonderful description of the one thing which is part either of the fruit of the spirit, and is a gift from God as well. However, one of the author’s most wonderful statements in this regard is that he recognizes that love remains, along with faith and hope. Nevertheless, Paul makes it clear that of these three, the greatest is love.
Jesus on the cross experiences what millions of people have experienced throughout hundreds of thousands of generations. God did not intervene, because the Divine sometimes does not do so.
The Bible is full of new beginnings. Stories that have ended and that allow others to make their way with hopeful possibilities. Actually, the very life of human beings is full of endings and beginnings, cycles; joys that are interrupted by sadness, which, likewise, are dissipated by new dawns. During this time, Trinity UMC in Ewing is one example of this, and I feel honored to be part of this new season for our congregation.
