What I Learned This Easter

This Easter I realized there have been 6 major milestones in my  spiritual life.

They seem to span about a decade each - I must be a slow learner.

Here is what I learned (am learning) as part of my relationship with God:

1. The bible is the revealed and inspired Word of God - this changed everything. Reading the bible turned my life upside down. Without a reference point, you can rationalize anything...and I had been rationalizing many things wrongly for the first 25+ years of my life! 
2. Jesus is God - I had dinner with a kind business associate who was visiting from Oregon. I told him it would help me to know that the bible affirmed Jesus' as truly God and not just a 'good man.'  He pulled out a pocket new testament and showed me John 10:30, and Colossians 2:9. I was 29.
3. Grace is God's unconditional gift of forgiveness - given freely to and received by those who believe in Jesus.  I had believed in various forms of 'works,' only to learn that no one 'earns' their way to heaven. Our multi-denominational bible study broke through to me on Grace in my 30's.  It builds on #s 1 and 2. If they are not true, then Grace is meaningless.
4. Following Jesus is not just a salvation experience - throughout my 40's I asked God to grow His ways more naturally from within me, rather than me 'acting the part' of a Christian. Left to myself for forty years, I was not naturally (or otherwise) humble, compassionate, forgiving, merciful, generous or moderated. Some people probably are. I needed God to transform me, through Jesus and the Holy Spirit. With Grace, and kind mercy. If ever a Godly attribute is evident in my life, it comes from God - I was never able to 'will' them into place on my own. 40 years proved it.
5. People will leave this life having chosen not to believe in Jesus. Where they are is less important than where they are not.  Jesus and the bible make it clear that eternal life in God's presence is through the name of Jesus. I choose Jesus and eternal life in God's presence. God does not delight in the death of unbelievers - nor do I.  I pray all people will know that eternal  presence (Ezekiel 33:11,  1Thes 5:9)  Now in my 50's, I volunteer and counsel people on this eternal decision for their lives. There is great need and many people seeking this Truth.
6. Jesus' Last Supper did not complete the passover...yet.  This Easter, a dear friend of our family from Hungary shared a thoughtful podcast about Jesus, the Lamb of God. I'll leave you to do your own homework on this one, I'm still studying it! You'll read in the Gospel's that after Jesus and the disciples broke bread and drank wine as part of the passover, they departed after singing a hymn. As I now understand it, that left the 4th cup of the traditional Jewish passover unspoken for. It was not complete. The next day in Jerusalem was the day that lambs were sacrificed for the traditional passover meal. Note that Exodus 12 talks about the sacrifice being fully consumed by all participants. On the cross that day, Jesus took a sip of wine extended on a branch of hyssop. He declared, 'it is finished.'  And in the Holy Communion of the Lord's Supper, we now partake in what Jesus asked, in remembrance of him, as at the Passover. As Paul said in 1Corinthians 5:8, 'therefore, let us keep the feast.'   That is to say, complete the remembrance that Jesus requested in its fullness, by consuming the sacrificed lamb, which in biblical times was prepared whole, body and blood. Bread and wine.  Its a difficult teaching of the new testament, but makes more sense to me now, and the link to the old testament is now clearer.  I encourage you to also read the Gospel of John, Chapter 6.

I wonder what I'll learn next!

And as always...what do you believe?