Eastertide
April 25, 2014

Read Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:1-11

For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. — 1 Corinthians 15:3-5 

Paul’s message was short and to the point. He proclaimed Christ crucified. In our scripture today he described it as being of first importance. Christ’s crucifixion was necessary for his resurrection and his resurrection marked the initiation of Christ’s followers becoming tools for the continuation of his quest here on earth. As followers of Christ we are charged with being fully engaged in Christ’s mission. Jesus said our purpose was to love God and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Such a simple statement, it includes two very formidable tasks. 

Putting God first or as the Hebrew Bible states, You shall have no other Gods before me.—Exodus 20:3, has been a challenge for God’s followers throughout history.  The Hebrew Bible is filled with the waxing and waning of God’s people trusting God. Idol worship included God’s people putting more faith in actual graven images then in God but, like today, they, too, worshipped and sought out power and money. The New Testament echoes similar themes as the new church struggles to make sense of cultures and governments. Being consistent lovers of God through the good times as well as the bad is difficult, but for the Christ’s purpose to flourish, consistency in loving and trusting God must be our ultimate purpose. 

It is only through fully loving God that we are enabled to love ourselves and to love our neighbors. Our wholeness and our oneness are bound together through the love of God. Our wholeness and oneness are precursors to God’s justice ruling the earth.  

This week after Easter, let us each take on the challenge of loving God, ourselves, and our neighbors with consistency. 

Prayer: O God who first loved us, enable us to love as Christ loves. Amen. 

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.