Every year we celebrate the Easter long weekend and for most of us, this time of year is little more than a long weekend. The truth is, Easter entails so much more than merely a public holiday or sharing a Hot Cross Bun - nice as those things might be.

The TRUTH ABOUT EASTER is that God, who is holy and perfect, cannot tolerate sin, which is rebellion against God. That rebellion against God is found in the heart of every human being - from the minute we are born we are born with a nature that is at enmity against God. And the Bible clearly tells us that those that sin - those that break the laws of God - deserve hell. For more on SIN and God's response, please click here.

But thanks be to God, He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, into the world in the form of a human being. He was fully God and fully man, so even though He came as a man He was not a prisoner to SIN. He was born without a nature at odds with God. He was perfect. About 2000 years ago, Jesus came into the world, and He gave His own life for the sake of every man, woman and child. He was beaten, whipped and nailed onto a cross to die like a criminal. In fact there was a criminal who was meant to be on that cross, but Jesus took his place on that cross.

The truth is, He took ALL of our place - His death on that cross was the only way that the SIN problem could be dealt with. The Bible says that because of the death of Jesus CHrist in our place, His sacrifice has made us right with God - HE and He alone took the punishment that we deserved, for our sin so that we might escape eternal hell, which is our just dessert. Because God loves us, He gave the ultimate gift - the life and death of Jesus.

And of course, three days later, Jesus was miraculously raised from death! He had been bled and died on that cross but three days later the Bible says that Jesus was alive again, and seen by all of His disciples and by over 500 witnesses, before being taken back into Heaven. So now Jesus not only died to take our punishment, but He was raised from death - never to die again! Once we die, we can share in His eternal life. For more information about the power of Jesus death and resurrection, please click here.

And THIS is why we as Christians take time to reflect on the Cross - not just at Easter but all year around. However at Easter time when people think of Easter eggs and holidays, we'd like to remind people that the Easter season is far more significant - it's a time we remember the love of God, coming to us in the form of Jesus, and reflect on the greatness of His sacrifice, and the power that still holds today!

Why not join us at one of our Easter services? We would love to join you!

GOOD FRIDAY, MARCH 21 @ 9AM

EASTER SUNDAY, MARCH 23 @ 10AM and 6PM