Death Before Resurrection

Some time during Holy Week--maybe it was Sunday afternoon when the crowd was still cheering their Messiah--Jesus warned his disciples of his coming death. 

“The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life" (John 12:23-25).

This week I ran across a blank book where I have written poems and scripture passages that I found encouraging. In it was this  hymn by Yale professor Thomas Troeger:

Before the fruit is ripened by the sun,
Before the petals or the leaves uncoil,
Before the first fine silken root is spun,
A seed is dropped and buried in the soil.

Before the Easter Alleluia's ring,
Before the massive rock is rolled aside,
Before the fear of death has lost its sting,
A just and loving Man is crucified.

I tend to want to skip over Good Friday and get to Easter like I would like to skip the pain of life and go straight to being a mature Christian woman. It doesn't work that way. The cross was necessary to solve my sin problem and give me a fresh start. The resurrection is necessary if that fresh start is going to be any different than the one I already wasted. May Christ's death and resurrection make all the difference in your life.