I am the way
Easter Sunday my pastor, Mike Ashcraft, shared a message called Saved From What? The message featured interactions Jesus had with the thieves on either side of him at Calvary.
One thief said to Jesus "Remember me when you come into your kingdom". And Jesus replied to him "Today you will be with me in paradise".
During the Easter message a question was posed: what part of Jesus' reply matters most to us? With me? Or paradise? Do we come to Jesus to have our problems solved; to arrange our lives just the way we want them? Or do we come to Jesus just to be with him?
Before Jesus' death, a few came to Jesus just to be with him; most came for healing, for food, and to see him perform signs and wonders.
Like those early 'fans', when Jesus says "I am the way", we hear him say "I am the way to". But Jesus is the Way—path, trail, road. We need to be people of the Way (Acts 9:2), not people on the way to.
