Newness in Christ
“Forget about what’s happened;
don’t keep going over old history.
Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new.
It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it?
Isaiah 43:19 The Message
With a very creative mother, Easter was as busy as every liturgical season in the church calendar. Endless rehearsals for a cappella cantatas, skits, plays, and going shopping for new clothes that we would wear on Easter Sunday. Though we didn’t have a say in what we would wear to church on Easter, we looked forward to wearing our best on that Sunday.
My stepdad and my brother would suit up, vest included, and be so handsome! My mother and grandmother looked stunning, wearing matching shoes and purses, oh, and matching lipstick! My sisters and I would dress up in bright-colored or flowered dresses, carry little square purses wrapped in white lace, wear white “bobby socks” in white shoes with straps, Easter hats, and white gloves to complete the outfit. One by one, we would head out the door with the Bible in hand, in our spring coats, to celebrate Jesus’ rising from the dead.
As fun as it was then to look so nice, I look back and remember the long rehearsals, memorizing our parts for the skits and plays, and learning the hymns by heart. All the preparation left us with no time for play or rest, unlike most, if not all, of our classmates, who enjoyed their free time during Holy Week riding their bikes or traveling to visit family and friends. However, unbeknownst to us at the time, we told the story of new life in Christ Jesus, unaware of the impact it would have on us and those listening to the message. As I reflect, I realize that looking our best and wearing something new would be anticipating the newness that comes from coming out on the other side of the Lenten wilderness journey, “I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth; do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:19).
Like Paul said to the Church in Rome, “Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? Therefore, we were buried with him by baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we also might walk in newness of life…Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal bodies, so that you obey their desires. No longer present your members to sin as instruments of unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and present your members to God as instrumentsof righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace” (Romans 6:1-12).
Grace, a free and unmerited gift from God, transforms the heart, mind, soul, and life of the believer, reflecting God’s gifts of love, hope, peace, joy, and purpose in our everyday lives; freeing us from the weight of sin through faith, obedience, and trust in God, empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Beloved, it is my prayer and hope that during this Lenten wilderness season, you have experienced some transformation, in thought, a change of heart, a wholistic healing experience, or all of the above. Know that the Risen Christ loves you in ways that you will never comprehend or begin to imagine. The past is in the past and serves to measure how far you have come, and to show that, in the journey, Jesus was by your side the entire time. Now take the time to find the newness Jesus has gifted you to experience, live, and share with others.
You may not realize that you have seen the risen Christ in your life more times than you can count. If you haven’t noticed, I invite you to join us for Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday of Love, Good Friday (it’s really a Good Friday), and Easter Sunday. During this week, experience the resurrection that leads to living resurrected lives. Oh, and wear your New Creation garments on Easter Sunday, for God continues to do a new thing in you. It’s bursting out! Don’t you see it?
May you live this Easter season in the belovedness and assurance of the New Creation in Christ that you are!
In Christ’s love and grace,
Pastor Iraida