I love April Fools Day. I just love pulling off scandalous pranks when the receiver is least expecting it. Early on in our marriage, I told my husband that I found this beautiful Labrador on the street and brought him home while he was at work. He couldn’t believe I would do such a thing without asking! It wasn’t until he got home with a sour face that he heard “April Fools!”
The custom of setting aside a day for playing harmless pranks on others has been a common practice for centuries. As fun as it is coming up with April Fool’s jokes, we know they are not true in the end.
We just celebrated Easter, something very true that changed everything. Jesus rose again from the dead and defeated death. Jesus came to this earth for 33 years, lived a perfect life, went to the cross, and rose again from the dead three days later. That is no April Fools.
I can’t imagine what it would have been like to have walked through this horrific time with Jesus. He was mocked repeatedly, slapped, and punched as an imposter. The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns for him to wear. The soldiers repeatedly struck Jesus on the head with a staff and spit on him. He is flogged, condemned to death, and led to the place of the crucifixion, carrying his cross. Jesus never fought back, although He had the power to do so.
Jesus offers you the ultimate hope. Real hope. No April Fools. Because three days after He was crucified and buried, He was raised from the dead. (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) Jesus went through the worst possible suffering to pay the price of your sin and mine on the cross. When we receive Jesus by faith, we receive eternal life, both now and forever.
We live in a world where we can never quite trust what’s real. It’s like we live in an April Fools world. We don’t know who to believe. What is real hope? Can we place our hope in politics? Our relationships? Our possessions? Our health? Our success? Our careers? Our finances? All things we can hope for, but our ultimate hope remains in eternity where Jesus reigns forever.
C. S. Lewis once wrote, “If we find a desire within ourselves that cannot be satisfied by anything in this world, it is likely that we were made for another world.” Unlike the April Fools and the hopes of this world, we can place our hope in Jesus, a living hope, who conquered the grave.
We just celebrated Easter, something very true that changed everything. Jesus rose again from the dead and defeated death. Jesus came to this earth for 33 years, lived a perfect life, went to the cross, and rose again from the dead three days later. That is no April Fools.
I can’t imagine what it would have been like to have walked through this horrific time with Jesus. He was mocked repeatedly, slapped, and punched as an imposter. The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns for him to wear. The soldiers repeatedly struck Jesus on the head with a staff and spit on him. He is flogged, condemned to death, and led to the place of the crucifixion, carrying his cross. Jesus never fought back, although He had the power to do so.
Jesus offers you the ultimate hope. Real hope. No April Fools. Because three days after He was crucified and buried, He was raised from the dead. (1 Corinthians 15:3-4) Jesus went through the worst possible suffering to pay the price of your sin and mine on the cross. When we receive Jesus by faith, we receive eternal life, both now and forever.
We live in a world where we can never quite trust what’s real. It’s like we live in an April Fools world. We don’t know who to believe. What is real hope? Can we place our hope in politics? Our relationships? Our possessions? Our health? Our success? Our careers? Our finances? All things we can hope for, but our ultimate hope remains in eternity where Jesus reigns forever.
C. S. Lewis once wrote, “If we find a desire within ourselves that cannot be satisfied by anything in this world, it is likely that we were made for another world.” Unlike the April Fools and the hopes of this world, we can place our hope in Jesus, a living hope, who conquered the grave.
Easter changed everything! Jesus is alive!
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4
We have much to celebrate! This song makes me so happy! God’s Not Dead! https://www.youtube.com/
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4
We have much to celebrate! This song makes me so happy! God’s Not Dead! https://www.youtube.com/
Nancy Abbott is the Chaplain of the YMCA of Greater San Antonio.
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