“In Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting the message of reconciliation to us.” - II Corinthians 5:19
The headlines over the past weeks have been dominated with acts of terror. In particular, the acts of terror in Brussels. Those acts are intended to divide, tear down, and create fear. What is to be our response as God’s people? We struggle with that question. Standing in the good news of Easter, what we are called to do becomes clearer. As Paul writes in his letter to the Corinthians, in the cross, Christ reconciled the world with God. The gulf was bridged and the wall came down. In love, we were reclaimed. All the barriers we erect, sin, fear, doubt, were removed. This extraordinary act of sacrifice and love was the very opposite of an act of terror. The cross was the ultimate act of grace. Easter, with the proclamation that Jesus is risen, is God’s affirmation of the power and victory of that act of love. As Easter people, we are called into the world to be ambassadors of reconciliation. In other words, to be about the business of acts of grace. Acts that are intended to unite, build up, and create love. We are truly to be anti-terrorists.
This coming month, we will be in the anti-terrorism business. We will be involved in acts of grace. On April 1-2, we will be participating in Feed My Starving Children, putting together thousands of individual meal packets to be distributed to hungry people around the world. On April 17, we will be joining with the Islamic Center of Hunterdon County and Living Waters for an interfaith meeting at Central High School, to get to know each other and learn about each other’s community and faith. On April 30, we will be hosting a Tag Sale for the community to raise money for our local food banks. Each of these acts of grace are designed to build bridges, bring people together, and make a difference in the world. What can we do in response to acts of terror? We can be Easter people. We can be ambassadors of reconciliation. We can be involved in acts of grace.
Peace,
Pastor Summer
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