2011 Easter Message from Bishop Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land (ELCJHL)
"I am the Resurrection and the Life" - Jerusalem, April 20, 2011
"In a world of suffering and death, these words of resurrection and life transcend us. Jesus first addressed these words to Martha of Bethany when Jesus stood at the tomb of his good friend Lazarus (John 11:25). This occasion is one that has profound meaning because Jesus shows clearly his emotions in the face of death, weeping openly over the death of his friend."
And so begins Bishop Munib Younan's Easter Message for 2011. It is a powerful message of hope, promise, and call in the midst of our world today, rooted in Jesus' words: "I am the Resurrection and the Life."
Go to this link for the entire message.
"Martha understood fully that God always stands on the side of life. “Lord, if you had been here our brother would not have died,” she said pleading to Jesus. The whole Bible reveals this theology of life as God meant it to be. God chooses wholeness for us. God chooses life with dignity. God chooses life abundant. As Jesus proclaimed in the previous chapter of John, “I have come that you may have life, and have it abundantly” (John 10:10).
"This is the whole reason for Jesus’ life and ministry. This is the whole reason that John has recorded these stories, including the story of Lazarus called forth from the tomb. “These signs have been written,” says John in his summary conclusion, “that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you might have life” (John 20:31). This is why every child in Sunday School is taught, “For God so loved the world that God gave God’s only begotten son, that whoever believes in him will not die, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
"Over the last few weeks we have been overwhelmed by images of devastation and despair from Japan. And I have returned often to Jesus’ sorrow over the death of Lazarus. And I feel the tears that must be flowing over the loss of life, damaged homes, and the catastrophic possibilities still emerging from the ruined nuclear reactors."
Go to this link for the entire message.
For information on the ELCJHL, click here: http://www.elcjhl.org/
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