The Wonders Of Christianity

Uplook – April 2009 – Grace & Truth Magazine

AN EASTER MESSAGE

The Wonders Of
CHRISITIANITY

“They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but ... they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus ... Suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning ... said to them, ‘Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen!’” Luke 24:2-6 NIV

Can you name the seven wonders of the world, and the purpose of each?

1. The pyramids of Egypt, tombs to honor the great pharaohs.
2. The hanging gardens of Babylon, built by Nebuchadnezzar to honor his wife.
3. The Olympian statue to honor Zeus, the supreme god of Greek mythology.
4. The Ephesian statue to honor Diana, the fertility goddess of Greek mythology.
5. The tomb to honor King Mausolos, whose name means “mausoleum.”
6. The Colossus at Rhodes, a huge statue to honor Apollos, the sun god.
7. The Pharos, a lighthouse in Alexandria, built to honor Ptolemy II.

Some people can name these wonders, but almost no one can identify those whom they were built to honor. This is not the case with the two wonders of Christianity, the cross and the tomb.

While the cross was used to put the King of the Jews to death (Lk. 23:38), all Christians remember it as the place where Christ paid for our sins with His own blood (Eph. 1:7), thereby gaining forgiveness and eternal life for all who believe. While the tomb was supposed to contain the dead body of Jesus, all Christians remember it as the place where Christ rose from the dead and accomplished His victory over sin and death (1 Cor. 15:55).

The two wonders of Christianity cause us to remember the Savior who used them to win for us a new and eternal life with Him. For the Christian, the significance is never placed on the wonders themselves, but always on the wonderful Savior of whom it was said, “He is not here; He has risen!”

By Larry Ondrejack