Come on in, Jesus!

I love Passion Week. It is truly a time to reflect on who Christ is in my life and honor His sacrifice for me. Sometimes, it’s easy to get caught up in the tradition and collective celebration of Easter and forget that Christ went to the cross for you as an individual. He bore those stripes for your healing. He was pierced for your rebellion. He was beaten so you could be whole. Sometimes it’s easy to think about the world and not make it personal. But today, let’s get personal. Let’s take a minute to honor the God who sacrificed His only Son so that your dying soul could have life. You see, I’ve come to realize that there are moments when God wants me to see myself and who He is to me. The same goes for you. God wants us to get out of the routine of celebrating Easter for the sake of timing and tradition and recognize that the death and resurrection of Christ means you now have the opportunity to live. Live…not just exist. Overcome…not just make it. Stand…not just lean.

This morning the Lord showed me a vision of a door but it was zoomed into the deadbolt. I looked at it and noticed that it was in the unlocked position. Then I heard the Lord say, “You’ve unlocked the door but you haven’t invited me in.” I was shocked! ‘Of course I’ve let You in, God! How could You say that?’ Then He began to show me and it was truly a revelation. Can I be transparent with you all? It’s hard to do but I’ve found that Passion Week and Easter are about renewal, restoration and resurrection and at the heart of all of those things there must be truth. Every week, I set out to hear a word from the Lord to encourage you on this journey. It’s my assignment and my calling but I realized that I had only let Christ in halfway. Let me clarify. I said yes to Him but I didn’t want to carry the weight of it. I told Him that I would do His will but I didn’t want anyone thinking I was anointed. I promised Him I would be committed to sharing His word but I was uncomfortable with people saying it was good even though I knew it was from Him. I wanted the connection with the Lord but I didn’t necessarily want the responsibility. Can you relate to what I’m saying? Has God called you to something but because you are uncomfortable with the assignment, you’ve only partially allowed the Lord in?

Well He said to me, “Behold I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him and he with Me.” (Rev. 3:20 NKJV) And that’s what this week leading up to Easter Sunday is all about…opening up your heart and allowing the Lord to commune with you. It’s time out for allowing fear to dictate how far you can go. It’s time out for allowing other people’s expectations to keep you from stepping out in faith. It’s time out for allowing your discomfort to keep you from walking in the fullness of your gifts. Christ went to the cross so that you could be free. He took on the sins of the world so that you would have victory over sickness. He did it for you! So if He did all these things for you, don’t you think He deserves your whole effort, your whole heart? Don’t you think He deserves to hear you say, “nevertheless not my will but Your will be done”? It’s hard, saints but the release and the freedom of owning your yes is powerful. Being able to say that you welcomed Christ to fully have His way in you makes a difference. He is waiting.

This Passion Week is about watching death turn to life. If you have been bound by anything - unemployment, relationships, health issues, I challenge you to let Christ in to your situation completely. I challenge you to turn Him loose and let Him do a perfect and complete work in you. As He told the leper in Matthew 8, “I am willing, be cleansed.” He is willing, saints to come in and dine with you. You just have to open the door and welcome Him in.

Have a blessed Resurrection Day! AMEN