We are now approaching the Easter season, what many would consider a Holy time. And in the Christian calendar, I really think every day is Holy. But Easter is a special time where we celebrate the crucifixion and the resurrection of Jesus. I put myself back into the time when Jesus walked and the reaction from the Jews is this: He's presenting Himself as the Messiah and the Jews had certain expectations of what Jesus would do.
They believed He was going to kick out the Romans, because they could not stand the Romans there; He was going to set up the throne in the kingdom of David and He was going to rule there. And boy, this was going to be a great time for them. Here comes the Messiah. The week before His crucifixion, they were singing to Him, “Hosanna to the son of David.”
This guy, He's the Messiah. He's coming. Wow, this is going to be great.
So really, they focused on their circumstances. They focused on all that Jesus was going to do for them. “He's going to change our circumstances. He's going to make us great again like the kingdom of David was.” And then one week later they crucify Him because He didn't change their circumstances.
I think we sometimes expect Jesus to also focus on our circumstances. If He can just change my spouse, if He can give me a spouse, if He can give me children, or change my children. If He can give me the job and the position and the raise that I wanted. If He can take away my pain and untangle my life, man, if He could just do those things… And we focus on our circumstances and we think that's what Jesus the Messiah, that's what Jesus the Savior is about.
But really, our circumstances are not the real issue. Jesus came to deal with a much bigger issue.
Not only did He come to die for our sins, pay for our sins, but He came to save us from ourselves and to give us Life, to give us something brand new, to give us peace regardless of our circumstances. And so as it approaches, let’s remember Easter is not about God fixing our circumstances.
It's about God fixing us and untangling our lives.
So I hope as you celebrate Easter that you don’t focus on what Jesus can do for you by changing your circumstances. But instead focus on what Jesus has done in you and to you, changing you. Have a great Easter!
If you have questions about today’s message, are tangled up in the circumstances of life, or just need to talk, please reach out to the Life Untangled team here: www.lifeuntangled.com/contact-us. You are not alone!