|
However, that afternoon was
payback time. All of the girls would pour buckets of water on us, or spray
us with a hose. We were drawn to their traps as moths to a flame;
especially to the traps of the girls who attracted us most. Boys will be
boys....
When Tony first got his driver’s license, he drove through the town like a maniac. Soon, he was arrested and brought before the judge. Once in the courtroom, Tony was relieved to see that his case was given to a judge that he knew quite well – his father. “Your reckless conduct behind
the steering wheel has endangered lives in our town,” thundered the voice
from behind the bench. “Justice must be served and thus, you are sentenced
to a $1000 fine or one year in jail!” “But, Dad, you know I don’t have a penny to my name,” responded the shaken youth. “Young man,” thundered the judge again, “behind this bench, I am not your father, but your judge!” He concluded the trial with a slam of his gavel. As the policeman approached
Tony to take him to jail, the judge stood up and exclaimed: “Wait!” He
took off the robe and started walking toward the young offender. “I was
your judge behind the bench, but here, standing beside you, I am your
father.” Then he wrote the check and paid his son’s fine. The fact that Christ rose from
dead is not a desperate belief. It has been historically proven that no
one has ever produced Jesus’ dead body to disprove His resurrection. If
his enemies could, they would! Christ appeared to his disciples and many
others for 40 days after His resurrection (Acts1:3). Someone may object, “But I
am a good person! Why should I be judged?” “There is none righteous, no, not one; all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." (Romans 3) “The wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord.” (Romans 6:23) Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out (Acts 3:19) “And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.” (Revelation 20:15) Tony could have said: “Get out of here dad, why did you sentence me? I’d rather rot in jail than take something from you!” Would someone feel sorry for someone so ungrateful? I hardly think so.
“For
God so loved the world that He gave His only son, that whoever believes in
Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)
No other religious leader ever truly rose from the dead! How can one have eternal life instead of spending eternity in Hell? (See Romans 6:23, 10:9-10; Ephesians 2:8-9; Matthew 7:21, 11:28; 1 John 5; and Revelation 19 and 20.) God sees and hears everything and won’t reject an honest prayer, such as, “God, I realize that I can’t earn my way to Your Heaven. Please, forgive my sin - I turn away from my sin. I believe Jesus died for my sin and that You raised Him from the dead. I accept Him as my Savior and Lord. Thank you for eternal life, in Jesus’ precious name, Amen.” Good works can’t save us, but a genuine salvation produces the desire to do good works and to learn to live by His Book, God’s love-letter to His children, the Bible. We wish you joyful Easter, not only with pomlazka and painted eggs, but with Jesus in your hearts.
2004 Milan Tacheci |
Painted
eggs, “pomlazky,” spring, and Easter Lamb cake ushered in the most
adventurous holiday during my childhood in Czechoslovakia. While the girls
skillfully
painted eggs and plotted their Easter hideouts, we guys cut young willow
rods and competed in skillfully weaving them into the best pomlazka in
town. For even more fun, we spied on the girls to discover where they
planned to hide. Of course, they cleverly allowed us to overhear all the
wrong information! It was a wonderful game.
My
buddies and I would get up early and excited on Easter Sunday morning, but
the girls were usually already hidden in their sophisticated hideouts.
Some girls hid in barns under the straw; others hid in stalls with
chickens, geese, or pigs; and some hid in cellars or attics. We looked for
the girls and when we found them, we chased them to ‘whip’ them with our
pomlazka until they surrendered their Easter eggs. The chase eventually
included the girls’ moms; until we had collected all the eggs we could,
especially those chocolate ones!
I
have fond memories of our childhood Easter celebrations but I also
remember there was one thing I could never figure out: the meaning of the
yummy Easter Lamb cake. What was up with the Lamb? Years later I
heard a story that helped me understand:
Dear
people, we ALL stand sentenced before the judgment seat of our Maker,
because we ALL have chosen to sin, one way or another! But God is offering
us salvation through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. He sacrificed
his life for us, rose from dead, returned to Heaven and soon will come
back to execute the sentence over our sinful world. Millions of rebels
will attempt
to fight against him, but no human weapon can stop God, because we are
only a creation, designed by Him. How can we be so proud to reject His
Grace and Mercy while there is still time? 
banished Lucifer from heaven, along with angels who had sided with him.
Lucifer became the evil Satan and he is exploiting our pride, to
cause us to rebel against our Creator. God has not destroyed Satan and his
demons yet, so that people have a choice between good and evil. 
If
there were any other way to get to Heaven than through faith in Jesus
Christ, God’s sacrifice -His Son- would have been made in vain, but …
“there is no other name under heaven given to men by
which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
Come
to me, you who are weary, and I will give you rest… Jesus Christ