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The SON . .
 Devotional: . "For God so loved the world that He gave His only
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life". ~ John 3: 16 . "And the angel answered and said unto the women, Fear not ye: for I
know that ye seek Jesus, which was crucified. He is not here: for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place
where the Lord lay." ~ Matt. 28: 5-6. . . . .
Commentary: .. Easter is a special time of year when most people think of the arrival of the
Easter bunny, decorating eggs, and dressing up in your best Sunday outfit to attend church. For the Christian though, Easter should be more than just another holiday. It is a
special Sunday above all others, set aside to recognize the death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
GOD sent His only Begotten Son in the form of a child, to be born of the Virgin Mary. Jesus lived the
first several years of His life on earth as a carpenter, then devoted the last three years to being God's
messenger on earth. Jesus was a messenger of peace and good-will, a messenger of His Father's love, but some of
the people at that time didn't trust Him and were frightened of His teachings. They did not believe He was the
Son of God and consequently He was arrested, made to stand trial, and was sentenced to death by crucifiction. . Jesus was made to bear his own cross, travel to Golgotha, where they then placed a crown of thorns upon His head and proclaimed Him "THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS!". He was placed between two thieves, hanging on a cross, where nails were driven through his hands and feet. And, as if that were not enough, later, the Roman soldiers even pierced His side, just to make sure He was dead. Afterwards, they took Him from the cross, claimed His garments and drew lots to see who would get them. . His body was placed in a borrowed tomb and a stone was placed in front of it. But, on the third day when Mary Magdalene and others went to visit the place where He was buried, they found the stone had been rolled away, and Jesus was not there. He was RISEN! just like He promised. When He ascended into Heaven, He promised He would never leave nor forsake us, and that He would send His comforter to be with us. But most of all, He promised if we believe upon His Name and accept His free gift of salvation, then we, too, will one day see him in Heaven and reign with Him in glory. . When Christ was crucified on Calvary, all our sins were nailed to that cross and covered by His precious blood that spilled out upon them. He gave His physical life that we might have eternal life. "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life". ~ John 3: 16. . AMAZING LOVE !!! There has never been NONE greater, and all He asks is that we love HIM in return. . . . THE U IN JESUS Before U were thought of or time had begun, God stuck U in the name of His Son. And each time U pray, you'll see it's true, You can't spell out JesUs and not include U. You're a pretty big part of His wonderful name, For U, He was born; that's why He came. And His great love for U is the reason He died. It even takes U to spell crUcified Isn't it thrilling and splendidly grand He rose from the dead, with U in His plan? The stones split away, the gold trUmpet blew, And this word resUrrection is spelled with a U. When JesUs left earth at His upward ascension, He felt there was one thing He just had to mention. "Go into the world and tell them it's true That I love them all - Just like I love U." So many great people are spelled with a U, Don't they have a right to know JesUs too? It all depends now on what U will do, He'd like them to know, But it all starts with U. When Jesus died on the cross He was thinking of you! ~ Author Unknown
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Meditation: . Father, we thank You for Your goodness and we thank You for Your love. But most of all God,
we thank You for the gift of Your Son and for the awesome privilege You have given us to come before You and to call
upon Your name in prayer. Father, You have given us so many blessings that we can not begin to count them. I
have heard so many people say, "Lord, I would know you love me if....". But Father, You showed us the undeniable
depth of Your love when you gave the ultimate sacrifice through Your Son's death and resurrection on
Calvary. There is NO greater love, and Lord, when I think that You did that for ME, I am truly humbled
and can not help but love You in return. As we approach this Easter season, I pray that you will fill our hearts with
gratitude and humility for Your precious gift and for the promise of salvation that is ours because of it.
Because He lives, we don't have to worry about tomorrow or the things that confront us in our day to day lives. And
because He lives, we have the promise of everlasting life through You, if we only trust and believe in the promise of Your
Word. Thank you for Your Holy Spirit that comforts and guides us, and thank You for Your Son, the Christ Lord Jesus,
who walks beside us every step of the way. Thank You Lord for your ever-presence in our lives, and for
being such a loving Father. We love You, Lord. In Jesus Name. Amen. . .
Stories to Touch the Heart and Warm the Soul:
. . THE SON ~Special Thanks to Pam Groggs for Submitting This Story~ . . A wealthy man and his son loved to collect rare works of art. They had everything in their collection, from Picasso to Raphael. They would often sit together and admire the great works of art. When the Vietnam conflict broke out, the son went to war. He was very courageous and died in battle while rescuing another soldier. The father was notified and grieved deeply for his only son. .About a month later, just before Christmas, there was a knock at the door. A young man stood at the door with a large package in his hands. .He said, 'Sir, you don't know me, but I am the soldier for whom your son gave his life. He saved many lives that day, and he was carrying me to safety when a bullet struck him in the heart and he died instantly. He often talked about you, and your love for art.' The young man held out this package. 'I know this isn't much. I'm not really a great artist, but I think your son would have wanted you to have this.' .The father opened the package. It was a portrait of his son, painted by the young man. He stared in awe at the way the soldier had captured the personality of his son in the painting. The father was so drawn to the eyes that his own eyes welled up with tears. He thanked the young man and offered to pay him for the picture. 'Oh, no sir, I could never repay what your son did for me. It's a gift.' .The father hung the portrait over his mantle. Every time visitors came to his home he took them to see the portrait of his son before he showed them any of the other great works he had collected. .The man died a few months later. There was to be a great auction of his paintings. Many influential people gathered, excited over seeing the great paintings and having an opportunity to purchase one for their collection. .On the platform sat the painting of the son. The auctioneer pounded his gavel. 'We will start the bidding with this picture of the son. Who will bid for this picture?' .There was silence. .Then a voice in the back of the room shouted, 'We want to see the famous paintings. Skip this one.' .But the auctioneer persisted. 'Will somebody bid for this painting? Who will start the bidding? $100, $200?' .Another voice angrily said 'We didn't come to see this painting. We came to see the Van Gogh's, the Rembrandts. Get on with the real bids!' .But still the auctioneer continued. 'The son! The son! Who'll take the son?' .Finally, a voice came from the very back of the room. It was the longtime gardener of the man and his son. 'I'll give $10 for the painting..' Being a poor man, it was all he could afford. .'We have $10, who will bid $20?' .'Give it to him for $10. Let's see the masters.' .The crowd was becoming angry. They didn't want the picture of the son. .They wanted the more worthy investments for their collections. .The auctioneer pounded the gavel. 'Going once, twice, SOLD for $10!' .A man sitting on the second row shouted, 'Now let's get on with the collection!' .The auctioneer laid down his gavel. 'I'm sorry, the auction is over.' .'What about the paintings?' .'I am sorry. When I was called to conduct this auction, I was told of a secret stipulation in the will. I was not allowed to reveal that stipulation until this time. Only the painting of the son would be auctioned. Whoever bought that painting would inherit the entire estate, including the paintings. .The man who took the son gets everything!' .God gave His son 2,000 years ago to die on the cross. Much like the auctioneer, His message today is: 'The son, the son, who'll take the son?' .Because, you see, whoever takes the Son gets everything. .FOR GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD HE GAVE HIS ONLY BEGOTTEN SON, WHO SO EVER BELIEVETH, SHALL HAVE ETERNAL LIFE....THAT'S LOVE. . ~ Author Unknown
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