Why does Christ's resurrection matter anyway?

For most people, Easter is primarily a day of egg hunting, nice clothes, and your grandmother's casseroles. For others--namely Christians--it is a day of joyful celebration as we look back to the resurrection of Jesus. However, I am convinced that the majority of churchgoers are like I was most of my life. Easter Sunday was just another day of wondering why what Jesus did mattered. I mean, my whole life I was told that Jesus' life, death, and resurrection was important, but this news didn't create a joyful celebration in my heart and soul. So, I did what most people do; I concentrated instead on my outfit and on getting presents from a scary bunny, hoping a good basketball game would be on after an over-proportioned lunch with my family.

I am thankful to say that this Easter I "get it." As Paul would say, what used to be foolish to me is now wisdom (2 Corinthians 2). So, I want to take just a small amount of time to tell any readers of this blog why this day is about something so much more exciting than baskets full of freaky chocolate bunnies. This day is about who Jesus Christ is and what He has done. The good news of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection is what is known as "the gospel." The gospel is the message that Christians are called to take to all of the world (Matthew 28:18-20). I believe the reason that most Christians don't share this "good news" is because they are not really all that sure what makes it "good news." So let's do it. Let's look at why Jesus matters.

1. Why does His life matter?

The life of Jesus Christ matters because He lived it without an ounce of sin, earning Him the right to die in the place of sinners like me...and you. Whether you want to admit it or not, you are a sinner. Yeah, I said it, a sinner. The Bible teaches that, ever since the Fall of man, (Genesis 3) sin has been passed down through the seed of Adam. This means that we all have a sinful nature. This isn't good news for us because the Bible also teaches that the penalty for our sin is death. If the penalty is death, God must give us death because He is a perfect and just God. He would cease to be perfect and just if He passed over our sins. So what does this have to do with Jesus?

The reason why Jesus' life matters is because He was not born with the same nature as we were. Remember, Jesus was born of a virgin...He was born of God, not of Adam. Jesus was born without sin, as Adam was created without sin. The difference is that, when tempted, Adam sinned and Jesus didn't. Don't you see, the Bible shows us that Jesus Christ was tempted in every way, yet He did not sin. Jesus lived a perfectly righteous life everyday on this earth. That means that He always perfectly loved God and mankind. This earned Him the right to become the perfect sacrifice and substitute for our sin. His life matters!

2. Why does His death matter?

Jesus' death matters because on the cross Jesus absorbed the full wrath of God that sinners like myself deserve. See, on the cross Jesus didn't just die, He was punished. He hadn't done anything wrong--He was willingly punished for the sins of all who will ever believe on Him. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says, "For our sake he made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God." What? How could that be? The Bible is saying that, at the cross, God the Father literally looked on Christ as if He were my sin and punished Him for it. The Bible also says that God now looks on me as if I lived Christ's perfect life. This exchange is only made possible through Christ's death on the cross. His death matters!

3. Why does His resurrection matter?

So, we are finally to the question of the day. Why does Jesus rising from the dead matter? It matters because at the moment of Christ's death all evil had began to celebrate and Satan thought he was victorious. The disciples mourned, Jesus' family was distraught, and all the people who had looked to Jesus for hope now sunk into despair as He was placed in a tomb. But three days later, just as Jesus had said, He rose from the dead! He is alive! Don't you get it? That means that everything that the Bible says about Jesus is true. The resurrection proves that Jesus really was and is God. It proves that He really has made the way to God for us! If Christ didn't raise from the dead, then his death was a failure and we are still stuck in our sin. But in fact, "Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father." (Romans 6:4) The success of his suffering and death was truly vindicated. If we put our trust in Christ, we are no longer under the penalty of sin. We are able, for the first time, to know the One who created us in His image. We can know that, as Christ raised, we will be raised to live forever with Him. Praise God for what He has done! Jesus' resurrection truly matters! That, my friends, is a brief and incomplete breakdown of why the gospel of Christ truly is "good news."

Colby's Call: Alabama vs Florida International

Okay, so last week I was a little off on the score but I still covered the spread. This week is all about numbers, and boy do we have them. Whether you believe it or not, five-star athletes and depth does matter. If you are Florida International you want to strike quickly and early, but let me tell you--it's not going to happen tonight. Expect a 35-point-or-more blowout under the lights at Bryany Denny. I am going with a score of Alabama, 41; Florida International, 6. Key players to look for tonight will be freshmen sensation Trent Richardson #3, Mark Ingram #22, and of course the infamous Julio Jones #8.

Other games to look for will be Auburn vs Mississippi State and USC vs Ohio State. Here is what you can expect from those games:

AU vs MSU

Look for Auburn to wear down MSU in the second half to win by a score of 28-17.

USC-OSU

Forget about the Buckeyes in this one, they are as overrated as a team can be. I am calling a beatdown at the Horseshoe on national television. My final call will be USC dismantling OSU by a score of 48-24.

Colby's Call

Every Friday I am going to post my prediction for the Alabama game. Here is my call for Saturday's matchup: Tomorrow night around 10:30 you will see a score of (or at least closely resembling) Alabama 38; Virginia Tech 10. This will involve two touchdowns from outside of Alabama’s offense--I believe there will be one by the defense and one by special teams. Any difference in score will be minimal. Get ready Hokies, I am feeling a beat down in Atlanta this weekend. Roll Tide!

My First Father's Day

On June 21st of this year I celebrated my first Father’s Day. It was not the way I expected to spend my first Father's Day, but it was my first nonetheless. If you don’t know, Kathryn's and my first child, Lucas, was stillborn in December of last year. This was obviously a difficult time for us, and has only gotten harder as the days pass. Life is different when part of your family is absent. I read a quote that summed it up like this, “If your parent dies, you lose a part of your past, but if your child dies, you lose part of your future.”

Though my first Father’s Day was a day of sorrow, it was also a day of great joy. For one, I was so proud to be the father of Lucas Brooks Mouchette and the proud husband of his mother. Another reason it was a day of joy is because I found out that, on my very first Father’s Day, I was actually a father of two! Yeah, I know, how gracious is God to bless me with news like that on a day that had been so mixed with emotions? I will never forget it. I had just arrived at a family gathering at Kathryn’s grandparents' house when Kathryn pulled me outside, sat me down, and pulled a pregnancy test out of her tiny clutch. With excitement and fear in her eyes she gave me the news of our second child. What a great Father’s Day!

Today at fifteen weeks, we are still excited and scared. Pregnancy is so difficult after loss, so please pray for my wife and my baby. Pray for the protection of our child and pray that Kathryn would be protected from all the sicknesses that are going around. (Keep in mind that she works in an elementary school.) Thank you for your prayers.

Thinking back on our first four years

Last Wednesday, Kathryn and I celebrated our fourth year of marriage. A part of me is saying 'I can't believe four years has already gone by,' yet another part of me is saying, 'It feels like we have always been.' I mean, I can hardly remember a time when there was a Colby without the Kathryn. I am the biggest fan of my wife of four years.

Over the last couple of days I have been reflecting on our years of marriage and have come to realize just how much we need God's grace in our lives. Something that I have learned and want to pass on to others is the primary purpose of marriage. I wish that I would have known this before I asked Kathryn to marry me but remember, God's grace has been evident in our lives. Well, what is the primary purpose of marriage?

The primary and beautiful purpose of marriage is to showcase the gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul tells us in Ephesians 5 that wives are to submit to their husbands as the church submits to Jesus. He also teaches that, as the wives are to submit, husbands are to love their wives as Jesus loves His church. What a calling we have been given! What that means is that when people look at my marriage they should be able to see a picture of Jesus Christ and His Church. I am to love Kathryn as Jesus Himself loved the church and gave Himself for her. It is my prayer that I will love my wife in that way.

Thank you Father for your overflowing grace in my marriage and thank you Kathryn for loving me.

Charleston: Day 2

Meet Sam, our horse. He took us around town.

Sam took us to the church house...

Sam took us to the graveyard...

Sam took us to eat shrimp and ham stuffed collards....

Sam took us to eat Jelly Belly Beans...

Sam took us to get a throwback pack of Big League Chew...

Sam, thanks for the memories. We love you.

Destination #3: Charleston, SC

Tuesday afternoon we arrived in the city of Charleston, SC, a place full of rich history and beauty. I love this place! 

After we arrived and checked into our third B & B of the week, we headed out the door to explore Charleston and find us something to eat. Here is a shot of us as we enjoy each other as well as the beautiful landscape.

  

After searching for a restaurant we landed here at S.N.O.B. My beautiful bride got the crab cakes and I went with the fresh swordfish. 

Here is my swordfish...........

Someone stole my swordfish! Okay, I really ate it.

After we devoured our meals we took a stroll to this romantic venue. I was totally feeling the swings on the pier. It was so relaxing here and the people were oddly friendly. Guess a nice pier will do that to you? 

Here are some friendly pier people. 

Check out rule #5. Pooping or Puking in fountains is bad. Remember this if you ever feel a rumbly tummy in Charleston.

This morning I got up and went for a jog and, as you can imagine, it was amazing. Here are a couple of early morning shots.

Well, it is almost time for lunch and we are about to head out to do some touring. I will post more from Charleston later.