Ralph reminded us on Sunday night of an alternative verse to ‘Happy Birthday’ which goes:

‘Happy Birthday to you,

Only one will not do.

Take the gift of salvation,

And then you’ll have two!’

It was good to celebrate his birthday:

However, as he pointed out, all of us can have a second birthday: the day when we are born again! That second birthday gives us access to dual citizenship (Phil 3:20). We are no longer simply citizens of earth (and there is much discussion about nationality and identity at the moment in the UK as the debate about the EU referendum continues), but also citizens of heaven. This dual citizenship will at times create tension, but as citizens of the kingdom of heaven, our allegiance is not only to our earthly country but to our heavenly King.

Garry spoke on the power of the cross tonight. The way of the cross involves following Jesus (Mk 8:34); it involves a full commitment (since denying ourselves does not come naturally but must be a conscious choice.) A disciple cannot be half-hearted (Luke 18:28); we must be willing to give up our own interests, desires, plans and thoughts and replace these with Christ’s. Christ shows us the way to go; He leads from the front: the way of the cross is established by the One who went that way Himself.

The cost of the cross involves death (see Matt 10:37-38). We are called to a radical discipleship, to re-evaluate our lives and re-prioritise according to God’s values. During the Second World War, the allied forces came across a totally different mindset in the Japanese, who were prepared to lose their own lives for their cause; for them, the individual was not of supreme importance and this can be difficult to comprehend when we value individualism so highly. Jesus’ disciples are called to live by a different value system to the world’s and to clothe ourselves with Christ’s values (which involves putting the Father’s will before His own, as Matt 26:36-43 makes clear.)

The way of the cross will always cost us: it will cost our time, our wealth, our plans, our dreams, our comfort and our reputation. Ultimately, it costs us our lives.

The power of the cross demonstrates, however, that there is power to save (see 1 Cor 1:17-18). We are saved from death and given new life (Eph 2:1-3); we have the chance to leave behind our old way of living and embrace an endless, amazing life.

Through the cross, there is also power to liberate (Rom 6:1-7); we are set free from death, bondage and all the things that would enslave us and given new power to live as God wants us to  (Gal 2:19-20).

There is power to witness (Acts 1:6-8), to be an ambassador for Christ, with Christ living through us by the power of His Spirit.

All that we need to live is available to us by faith. So often, we live by our own resource and find, as a result, life rather monotonous and irrelevant. We need to go beyond the ordinary and live our lives wholly dependent on God, and then we will find a power that achieves for us more than we could ever do on our own!

Picture the scene: an old lady, dying in a small, darkened room, thinking back…

Born in Magdala of a well-to-do family connected with textiles, my life really was not very successful initially, despite the convenience of wealth. There was a gnawing fear inside me which led to inappropriate behaviour on more than one occasion; people shunned me, avoided me, did their best to have nothing to do with me… until I met Jesus.

He was not afraid to talk with me, to look me in the eye… and the deliverance He brought changed me forever. I became a devoted follower, like so many other women, seeking to support Him in whatever ways I could. But then, that spring so many years ago… He was killed like a common criminal and His body was laid to rest in a tomb, sealed and abandoned.

Was it all for nothing? Why had this happened? What had my Lord done? Soldiers were guarding the tomb, huddling round to ensure none of His followers would steal the body. Steal the body? We were utterly devastated. Terrified. The fear of arrest hung over the other disciples, any talk of riots and revolution gone now that our leader had been dealt with so ruthlessly.

So much hope, so many promises lay in tatters. Jesus was dead.

But that Sunday morning, very early, I went to the tomb. There were last rites to be performed, though how we were going to get past the stone blocking the tomb was anyone’s guess. I just knew I wanted to perform this last service for my Lord. No man had ever treated me with such love, respect and kindness. This was the least I could do.

When I arrived, the stone was not in place… the seal was gone… on the shelf inside, the grave clothes lay, neatly folded, but there was no sign of His body. I ran to find Peter and John and tell them what had happened… they came back to see… but I could not keep up with their pace and was too confused to know what to do now. By the time I arrived back at the tomb, they had gone and two men in bright white clothes were inside the tomb. They asked me why I was crying.

I tried to explain, to find out where His body had been taken. Then I saw the gardener. Surely he would know! But as I approached, he spoke. Just the one word. My name. ‘Mary.’

I’d heard that voice so many times before. It was Jesus! JESUS! Not dead, but alive again! How could this be?

Defying reason and nature, Jesus had been raised from the dead. His sacrifice for us was authenticated by the Father. All the things He had ever said were true; I really was forgiven and free!

As I look back, I remember Peter preaching to the crowds and thousands coming to believe in the Lord; I see that that one day changed history forever, for mortality was defeated and death no longer has the last word. I may die and leave this life, but Jesus, the Resurrection and the Life, will welcome me into His presence. Because He lives, I too will live. Hallelujah!

You may have noticed that we had photos of the food, but not many of people; I suspect that’s because we were too busy eating! Fortunately, Dave wasn’t, so here are some more photos of the community lunch:

He did also take photos of the food itself:

There was some healthy food as well!

You may well wonder (as this child did!) what was inside the goody bags we gave out:

Each bag had an assortment of mini-eggs or other form of chocolate as well as different Christian leaflets. Some of these outlined local church services; others gave explanations about Easter:

Some of the leaflets were for children and included activities to complete:

Please pray that these leaflets which all contain the Word of God will touch people’s hearts and that many people will come to know God for the first time this Easter.

After the march, we all went back to church to enjoy lunch together! People had been helping at the coffee morning and in preparing food:

As a result, we could all enjoy a lovely lunch!

The centrepiece was the cake made at the Salvation Army cake decorating class, complete with icing flowers, butterflies and bees:

This looked just as tasty on the inside!

Inside our church, we were giving out goody bags and Christian literature:

At the parish church, ladies were busy cleaning brasses and their Easter scene looked beautiful:

Thanks to all who helped in so many different ways: assembling goody bags, preparing food, washing up and tidying away, singing, playing music, giving out bags, taking photographs. It’s always good when the different churches join together and proclaim that Jesus is Lord!

Don’t forget the next ‘Churches Together’ is on Saturday 14th May at 6 p.m. at Furlong Road Methodist Church in Bolton-on-Dearne.