The resurrection

A friend of mine said, "To leave a mark on this world you must not only refuse to conform to the status quo but you must also upset it." My mind raced to Jesus Christ who refused to bow down to the dictates of his times and literally turned the world upside down! 

As a young boy He sneaked away from his parents to attend to matters of more importance in church where He debated with elders and left them in awe of His knowledge and reasoning. As a minister He beat people up for turning a church into a marketplace. Those capitalists thought it was okay to conduct business anywhere but Jesus whipped them and overturned their merchandise for turning His Father's house into a den of thieves. 

Much, much later the Pharasees thought they had finished Jesus off by nailing Him on the cross but He bounced back with swag when He rose three days later after singlehandedly rolling away the gigantic stone they had covered the mouth of His grave with. "Why are you looking for the living among the dead," the angel of the Lord rhetorically asked those who were still believing death had finished Jesus. 

For me that's the most beautiful, the most significant line ever written: why are you looking for the living among the dead? It's a line that perfectly captures the resurrection life that ought to be the portion of every person. Life can sometimes pummel us; we are cast down, our families may abandon us in the hour of need and our best friends may deny and betray us as Peter and Judas Iscariot denied and betrayed Jesus. But listen; that's not the end. Being cast down is not tantamount to being destroyed, it is not being out! Jesus triumphed so that we could triumph too. As He told His disciples, in this world we shall suffer many tribulations, but when we hold on to courage; when we don't give up, when we keep pushing we shall not only overcome but we will as well leave a mark that will never be wiped away.