Just a Fairy Tale?

There are times we get fairy tales and faith messed up.

There is a story about a grandfather who wanted to see how much his four-year-old granddaughter knew about the Easter story. He put her on his lap and asked, “Julie, why do we celebrate Easter?” Without hesitating, she said, “Jesus was crucified. After He died, His body was put into a grave. They rolled a big stone in front of the opening. A bunch of soldiers guarded the tomb. On the third day, there was a big earthquake and the stone rolled away.”

Grandpa was pleased with how much his granddaughter knew about the Easter story but then she continued, “When the earthquake happened, the entire town came out by the grave. And if Jesus came out and saw His shadow, they knew there would be six more weeks of winter!”

There are some who think the resurrection of Jesus is just a fairy tale. Even worse, there are some who believe the resurrection of Jesus is just one of many legendary stories. For thousands of years people have tried to prove that Jesus death and resurrection is just a fairy tale. For thousands of years people have tried to prove that his death and resurrection isn’t  a fairy tale.

Those who believe it is a fairy tale will tell you that the women who came to take care of Jesus’ body killed the guards, rolled away the stone and hid the body. There are others who believe it was Judas on the cross. There are some who believe He didn’t die at all  – they claim the disciples took him down and nursed him back to health. I have also read that the disciples secretly came in the night, stole the body, and created the illusion of Jesus walking around the country side appearing to people.

I, personally, have had arguments with people on twitter about Jesus (I don’t recommend it). They said He doesn’t exist. I said he does. They say his birth is legend. I say it really happened. They say his resurrection never happened – it’s just a fairy tale that people believe because religious people need a reason to celebrate the Spring solstice. I say his resurrection did happen and it changed everything!

As important as I think words are, as much as I like to prove others wrong, as much as I want to persuade them and you to believe that his death and resurrection did happen, as much as I want to persuade them and you that without his death resurrection there would not be hope,  as much as I want to persuade them and you to believe that without his death and resurrection your faith is futile ……

• If His death and resurrection doesn’t cause you to think different
• If His death and resurrection doesn’t cause you to have a different attitude
• If His death and resurrection doesn’t affect the direction of your life
• If His death and resurrection doesn’t affect what or who you put your belief in
• If His death and resurrection doesn’t affect the way you think and feel ……..

Your faith is futile. Which means it is powerless.

Look at what Paul says in I Corinthians 15:17,

And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.

The resurrection of Jesus is not a fairy tale. There are some things many Christians believe that are the stuff of fairy tales.

There are many who believe the fairy tale that He rose from the dead to make us nice, normal, American citizens.

There are many who believe the fairy tale that He rose from the dead to help us feel better about ourselves and have a better self-esteem.

There are many who believe the fairy tale that He rose from the dead so that you and I can live a normal, All-American – church – going – Christian – life without having to pay any price for following Him.

Still, there are many who believe the fairy tale He rose from the dead so that you and I could say a little prayer and feel better about ourselves.

If you believe any of those fair tales are true …. I have to wonder ….. Do you know Him?

I have found a startling (startling to me at least) statistic given by the Barna Research group: 85% of the people who live in the U.S. believe in God or believe there is a God. Looking at our world ….. you have to wonder how many of the 85% really know Him. From my (personal) observation, the story of the death and resurrection of Jesus is just a legend like that of Paul Bunyan and Johnny Appleseed (to some of the 85%). A legend is a story from the past that is believed by many people but cannot be proven to be true. Fairy tales and legends are two types of folklore. Fairy tales and legends are powerless. They can inspire us to great things but they don’t have the power to transform the heart and will of man if you put our faith in them.

Hasn’t ever made you wonder that if 85% of Americans believe in God or believe there is God, why on earth we are not making more of a difference in our world?  There are 318 million (2014)people that live in the U.S. . This means that 270,300,000 people believe in God or believe there is a God. I have an educated Biblical guess  on why we – Christ followers and lovers of God – are so powerless in America: Our faith is futile (powerless). We really don’t believe He was raised from the dead. Those who fervently believe He was raised from the dead:

• Love their enemies
• Pray for those who persecute them
• Go the extra mile
• Look to the interest of others and serve them
• Seek first the Kingdom of God

I wonder how many of those 270 million people know Him?

I do know that these 270 million believe in something or someone. The desire to believe was knitted in us when we were put together in our mother’s womb. Even the enemies of Jesus believed Him – that is why they wanted to nail him to a cross and tried to get rid of him. They saw the affects He was having on the people. Even Satan and his demons knew Him. This is why they feared and trembled when Jesus came into a room.

He wasn’t a celebrity. There was nothing about Him that would have attracted anyone towards him. He wasn’t good looking and His one and only sermon was three lengthy chapters long – which is probably around 3 hours. Why on earth people would hang around for three hours to  listen to a guy preach is beyond me. But he was having a profound influence.  Like the Trump phenomenon (now please … some of you trump haters – I am not saying he is remotely close to Jesus – no one  has ever come close to Jesus) that is presently taking place, which really can’t be explained, no one could stop Jesus. They had to kill him to try and stop him. Jesus was truly a phenomenon –there has been no one like him before or since who has affected the course of history like He has.

All of us have a belief system. All of us believe in something and/or someone.  God knit in each of a us a desire to believe. Belief is that  intellectual pursuit of the truth. What we put our belief in effects how we spend our time, make decisions, spend our money, and how we treat our friends and enemies.

Most of us reading this have probably made Jesus a part of that belief system. Do you “hear” the problem. Many have only made Jesus a PART of their belief system. This explains why many Christ-followers are so powerless.  On a daily basis, there are many gods competing for your attention. Jesus is not one of those many gods. He’s not going to compete for your attention. He’s paid the price. He’s rose from the dead literally, physically, bodily, and visibly. Like the father in the story of the prodigal son – He’s just waiting. Waiting for you to come home.

• He doesn’t want to be part of your belief system 
  
• He doesn’t want to be a Facebook post (you know the ones, “click ‘like’ if you love Jesus”
• He doesn’t want to be a part of your life’s story
• He doesn’t even want to be a belief system

He wants to be you and I’s first love.

• He wants us to love him more than we love our spouse
• He wants us to love him more than we love our pets
• He wants us to love him more than we love our stuff
• He wants us to love him more than we love our kids
• He wants us to love him more than we love our phones
• He wants to love him more than we love our sports teams.

He’s not going to compete for your attention. He wants you and I to seek first the kingdom of God. He’ll take care the other the other things (above) that are competing for your attention.

Of the 270 million people who believe, I wonder how many of them put their faith in Him? What I am saying is that not everyone who believes in him actually puts their faith him.

Believing in him affects your head. Faithing (yes this is a made up word)  in Him is a heart issue. Faithing is when  you put what you believe to the test. Faithing happens when your head and your heart are on the same page. Anyone  can say they believe what Jesus says is true. All of the major religions in the world believe that Jesus was a great prophet and a profound teacher but they don’t put their faith into His teachings. They put their faith in someone else.

When Jesus was crucified and pronounced dead everything the disciples believed was crushed. He had told them a couple of times that He was going to die and would be resurrected. Once it actually happened, what they believed was put to the test.  It now went from a head issue to a heart issue. After Jesus’ death and resurrection, the disciples were almost immediately transformed from men and women who were hopeless and fearful after the crucifixion into men and women who were confident and bold witnesses of the resurrection.  These men and women were faithing. They risked their lives for what they believed even though the people around them found it hard to believe that this man Jesus really did rise from the dead. It started with the 12, then to 144, then to thousands, which morphed into millions, which morphed to even billions and trillions  of people lives being transformed. They kept telling people and telling people and telling people until finally you and I heard it for the first time.

To them who witnessed His death and resurrection, it was not some fairy tale or a story from the past that is believed by many people but cannot be proved true.

We are to hang our whole belief system on this one story. Because if we don’t, our faith will be powerless (futile). Faithing in His death and resurrection changes the direction of your life:

• His death and resurrection transformed the criminal that was hanging on the tree hanging next to him into a committed follower.
• His death and resurrection transformed some hopeless and fearful men and women into bold witnesses of the resurrection.
• His death and resurrection transformed a pagan holiday which worshiped the god of fertility and the god of weather into a Christian holiday that now celebrates His death and resurrection.
• It turned this weak little boy who was shy and timid and physically walked on in jr. hi school, ignored in high school, and didn’t have a clue to what he was going to do with his life in college, into a man who now boldly proclaims to you that His death and resurrection did happen and putting your faith in him and giving your heart to him will change your life.

Fairy tales are nice and they make us feel good and they always have a happy ending but they can’t change your life. This story is not some fairy tale. Nor is Jesus’ death and resurrection a legend. Faithing in a man who loved you so much he was willing to lay down his life to convince you that is this He is not a fairy tale or legend. He is simply wanting us to love Him back …..  that’s why he came back to life.  Thousands of people saw him die. Thousands of people saw him walking around after he rose on the 3rd day. And billions upon billions of people have given their life to and for Him. Millions of people still today are being martyred because of their faith and belief in his death and resurrection.

I wonder. Do you know Him? (click here to watch “That’s My King.”)