Won through Your selfless love.

Our Eternal Father, Jesus Christ is risen! They tried to kill Him, but they couldn't.
With enough power in His hands to heal the wounded, the dead, the blind,
He submitted to the punishment we deserved and took each step with love and selflessness.
"Father forgive them," he pleaded with God of the men that had spat and cursed at Him, of those who had wanted Him killed, "for they know not what they do." The love of our Savior was endless and true.

Jesus was not intimidated or scared by death, and neither should we because we know that he defeated death; He walked out of the grave, and because of this, we will as well!
Jesus came for us, not in righteous anger or in judgment, but He came for us in love.
And if we are to be like Him, if we are to walk like Him, we are to walk every step of every day in love. Even when we are being persecuted against, we are to be patient and kind because we know the will of God and we know that their eyes have not been opened.
So when we remember that Jesus came as a servant, without being recognized as the Son of God, when we remember that he was crucified with murderers and thefts, and rose, as He claimed He would, and yet was still doubted and called a liar, we should grasp how little we are on this earth and that the way of our Father does not result in worldly praise or acceptance; but Eternal. His love made a way for us into eternity, it touched the poor, the lonely, and those that had defied and persecuted His followers.

And here we are on this Easter Sunday, remembering the stories and searching for our eggs. After reflecting on the life of Jesus today, I really grasped that Jesus is pressing on our hearts and asking us to imitate the way that He lived. Because it's not just about the cross, about an empty tomb; it is about a Savior that is all-powerful in authority and in love. He overcame death and for that we should praise His name, but we must also remember that He loved the unlovable. Those that cursed against Him and those that betrayed Him. Jesus did not tremble at death and neither should we; Jesus loved his enemies and so should we. And so, we should urgently and fervently love and spread the hope of Jesus Christ as though our time is fleeting, because it is. He proclaims, "I am coming soon!" How numb we have grown to this saying we hear every Easter. But each day that passes, He is closer to returning and our time to spread His love is running out. It shouldn't be a chore, something we feel we need to do in return for His crucifixion; every cell in our body should desire to love those around us, both the lovable and the unlovable, because we should want to be like our Father. We are able to preach the words of our Savior with our actions, through love because that was every fiber of Jesus' being. He was love. He came and He left in love. He is the only way that we can hope all things, endure all things.

"Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things." 

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

This verse is used all too often to describe spouses or boyfriends and girlfriends while it so clearly matches every aspect of Jesus. He is each of these things! He is patient and He is kind, He doesn't envy or boast- even after He defeated the grave. He is not arrogant or rude, insisting on His own way, He gave us free will so that we have the ability to choose. He is not irritable or resentful; He grieves at wrongdoing and rejoices with the truth because He is the truth. Our Jesus definitely hoped in the truth and endured and bore our many sins upon this earth. This passage is clearly describing our Savior; the definition of love. So we, too, should be immovable in love because our Father is trustworthy and credibile! His love made a way for us and our mistakes are overlooked by His authority. He is calling us home, but it would be selfish not to share this with those who have hurt us, those that persecute us. Because I have hurt and persecuted Jesus with my actions one too many times, and His forgiveness is always faithful. So we should be patient and kind with even those who hurt us. We should not envy or boast in anything but our Savior. Everything we do should point back to Jesus, rather than insisting on our own way. We shouldn't be irritable or resentful, rejoicing when our enemies do wrong because we should remember the grace that Has been given to us. We should rejoice in the truth and in Jesus. We should bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things as Jesus endured our sins.

"Oh, to see my name

Written in the wounds,

For through your suffering I am free.

Death is crushed to death,

Life is mine to live,

            Won through Your selfless love."