Who is your true god?

Source: The Journeys Project

"Jesus looked at him and said, 'How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.'" - Luke 18:24-25 (NIV)

Today's verses do not imply any problems with wealth, nor does it reference the discussions about the rich people in the world as brought up by groups such as Occupy Wall Street. Rather, it is part of a passage from the Gospels (Luke 18:15:-30) in which Jesus first rebukes his disciples for rejecting children coming to him, then probes the heart of a rich ruler who questioned him.

In this passage, Jesus gets the ruler, his disciples and the reader to probe their own hearts on what is their god. Is it God himself, as revealed through Jesus Christ? Or is it something else, whether it is money, possessions, career, sex, or anything else?

Pastor Brooks Simpson of Grace Community Church in North Liberty, Iowa, discussed this recently.

What is Hell?

Source: OpusDeiAlert.com

"In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. So he called to him, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue, because I am in agony in this fire.’" - Luke 16:23-24 (NIV)

The Gospels (the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) record that Jesus talked about Hell 70 times in 58 verses. This is almost as many times as he talked about love, which is what He is truly known for. This means that despite the wishes of some people, Hell is a very real place, and a topic that should be taken seriously.

Rather than explain it more here, check out this talk recorded yesterday, Sunday, April 15, by Pastor Brooks Simpson at Grace Community Church in North Liberty, Iowa, as he explains what Hell is all about.

The 14th Station of the Cross: Taking Care

Courtesy: Vatican Museum

"As evening approached, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who had himself become a disciple of Jesus. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body, and Pilate ordered that it be given to him. Joseph took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away." - Matthew 27:57-60 (NIV)

Jesus was dead. As He was taken down from the cross, a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea was allowed to take the body and place in a new tomb.

Whether Joseph believed or understood Jesus' words that He would be raised again in three days is never specified in the Gospels. Yet, Joseph knew he had to do something to honor the man who had done so much for people and had been wrongly convicted and executed by the Roman authorities and Jewish religious leaders.

In the celebration of the Stations of the Cross by Pope John Paul II in 1991, the minister prayed this prayer:

"Lord, grant us your compassion that we may always provide for those in need."

In the same way, we need to have the compassion of Christ to help others. Repeatedly in the Gospels, Jesus came across different groups of people and had compassion on them (see Matthew 9:35-37, Matthew 14:13-15,and Mark 1:40-42, among others).

The great thing to come out of this is Jesus was true to His word: He did rise from the dead. After His resurrection, it is recorded that He appeared before several hundred people before He was taken into Heaven (see Acts 1:1-10). He also will come back again.

I've said it once and several times before, but we can be ready for Jesus' return. Romans 10:9-10 says this:

"That if you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved."

With the world celebrating Easter and the resurrection this weekend, this is as good a time as any to have your own rebirth through Jesus Christ.

Just ask Him. He is compassionate and willing.

(Editor's note: This is part of a series of the Stations of the Cross.)