He Is Risen! Validates The New Covenant (Easter)

Easter is a celebration of the Good News of the possibility of eternal spiritual life for believers. It was an epiphany moment for Mary and it is a personal epiphany moment for each of us. After Easter human life became incredibly richer. Easter Sunday was like a hinge in history. Before the Resurrection there was only uncertain hope of having a right relationship with God through the Covenant of Moses. After the Resurrection there was certainty that God was doing a new thing and that believers who died spiritually with Jesus would also be raised to a new form of life with Him after their physical death. He is risen was a cry of joy, love and amazement that still makes our hair stand on end over 2,000 years later. The Resurrection validates the new Covenant of Jesus.

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1. Jesus Resurrection was  God's approval of the Covenant of Jesus

How Can You Have Life Through Death? (Lent 5)

Life through death is the paradox of Christianity. Jesus gives us the example of a grain of wheat. If you plant it in the ground it dies -- then grows into a plant with more seeds. He is explaining the great mystery of Faith. If you just focus on your own life you will lose that life. If you love God and your neighbor more than your own life you will gain a richer and eternal life. The Readings, beginning with the prophecy of a new covenant relationship by Jeremiah, explain how this happens.

1. Jesus teaches that by holding on to our life we will lose it (John 12.20-33)