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Easter And The Cross: Relationship, Not Religion · WholeHeart Conversations

• 0:00
  Constance Lavonice: It is almost Easter, and Easter is a Christian holiday that's celebrated all over the world.
• 0:09
  Constance Lavonice: Here in the United States, people celebrate with the Easter bunny, Easter eggs, Easter candy, Easter baskets, new outfits, and it's a time where people who normally don't attend church will attend church that one time of the year.
• 0:33
  Constance Lavonice: For Christians, it's a time to remember and to reflect on Jesus' death, burial, and specifically his resurrection.
• 0:45
  Constance Lavonice: And for me, it's a time to reflect on my salvation through a personal relationship with Christ.
• 0:55
  Constance Lavonice: You're listening to Whole Heart Conversations, a podcast for women that provides biblical encouragement to foster whole heart, spirit, soul, and body resilience.
• 1:12
  Constance Lavonice: I'm your host, Constance Lavonice.
• 1:16
  Constance Lavonice: I grew up in the southern part of the United States.
• 1:20
  Constance Lavonice: And in the South, many people identify as Christian.
• 1:25
  Constance Lavonice: I grew up going to church.
• 1:27
  Constance Lavonice: My mother loved the Lord.
• 1:30
  Constance Lavonice: We had family prayer every Sunday.
• 1:33
  Constance Lavonice: We memorized Bible verses.
• 1:35
  Constance Lavonice: We attended church each Sunday.
• 1:38
  Constance Lavonice: I volunteered.
• 1:39
  Constance Lavonice: I attended all of the programs.
• 1:41
  Constance Lavonice: I taught Sunday school and I loved Jesus.
• 1:45
  Constance Lavonice: I identified myself as a Christian, but I realized as an adult, I didn't have a saving relationship with Jesus.
• 1:56
  Constance Lavonice: I was trusting in my own good works, going to church, trying to live a moral life, praying, reading my Bible sometimes, and just trying to be a good moral person.
• 2:16
  Constance Lavonice: There was no noticeable difference between me as a Christian and a person who was not a Christian.
• 2:26
  Constance Lavonice: I thought that just because I grew up in the church and my parents went to church, and my mother's father was a pastor, and my daddy's father was a pastor, and I read my Bible, and I said my prayers, and I volunteered, and I did the things that I thought would be pleasing to God, that I was saved, and that I had a relationship with Jesus Christ, a saving relationship with Jesus Christ.
• 2:59
  Constance Lavonice: But I didn't.
• 3:00
  Constance Lavonice: And because, oh, my parents love the Lord, oh, and my grandparents loved the Lord, and they actually served you, Lord, as pastors.
• 3:52
  Constance Lavonice: It's not about that.
• 3:55
  Constance Lavonice: The Bible says that all have sinned and fall short of God's glory.
• 4:02
  Constance Lavonice: Romans 3 23.
• 4:04
  Constance Lavonice: We have a sin nature since the beginning when Adam and Eve sinned.
• 4:12
  Constance Lavonice: We have been separated spiritually from God.
• 4:17
  Constance Lavonice: And because of our sin, and sin is anything that's contrary to God's word, we can sin in our thoughts, in our words, and in our deeds.
• 4:28
  Constance Lavonice: We can sin by commission, the things that we do, and by omission, the things that we know to do, but we fail to do it.
• 4:40
  Constance Lavonice: And because we have a sin nature, and God is a holy God who requires perfection, and being a holy God, he doesn't dwell in or around sin.
• 4:58
  Constance Lavonice: And because he's a holy God, he must punish sin.
• 5:03
  Constance Lavonice: Romans 6 23 says, For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
• 5:16
  Constance Lavonice: God sent his Son Jesus, the infinite God man, the visible manifestation of the invisible God, to die for our sins, past, present, and future, and to reconcile us with God.
• 5:39
  Constance Lavonice: So it wasn't about me and what I can do, but about what Jesus had already done for me on the cross.
• 5:54
  Constance Lavonice: And when I came to that knowledge, that it's not my perfection because I can't be perfect.
• 6:03
  Constance Lavonice: And the Bible tells us that salvation is a gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast.
• 6:14
  Constance Lavonice: There was nothing that I could do to make myself more favorable in God's eyes.
• 6:23
  Constance Lavonice: It is all about what God through Jesus Christ has done for us on the cross, that we can come into fellowship with God through a personal relationship with Jesus.
• 6:41
  Constance Lavonice: And when we have a personal relationship with Jesus for myself, when I entered into a personal relationship with Jesus, everything changed.
• 6:54
  Constance Lavonice: The way I talked, the way I behaved, how I interacted with people, I was kinder, I was nicer, I had more love for people because God is love.
• 7:11
  Constance Lavonice: And when God loves you, and when you have a relationship with Jesus Christ, you can express that love and consideration to others.
• 7:23
  Constance Lavonice: You're a different person.
• 7:25
  Constance Lavonice: It's no longer about religion and trying to win approval through good works, but it's about a relationship with Jesus Christ, a trusting relationship, trusting Jesus as our Lord and Savior.
• 7:45
  Constance Lavonice: For me, trusting Jesus as my Lord and Savior, and allowing His Holy Spirit that I receive the moment I began to trust Jesus to guide and lead my life so that I'm able to fulfill all of the good works that God has prepared for me to fulfill before I was even born.
• 8:16
  Constance Lavonice: Jesus said that I have come to give you life and to give you life more abundantly.
• 8:25
  Constance Lavonice: And true Christianity is accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior through his sacrifice on the cross.
• 8:37
  Constance Lavonice: Easter reminds us of this.
• 8:41
  Constance Lavonice: Resurrection Sunday is a day that we celebrate the resurrected life of Jesus Christ.
• 8:50
  Constance Lavonice: And if you've been curious about Jesus or having a relationship or you thought that you were saved, but you are walking in rules and regulations and trying to be good enough, submit to what Christ has already done for you and allow Him to transform your heart and your behaviors and your life.
• 9:22
  Constance Lavonice: Today is a good day if you haven't already to come into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ by repenting, believing, and receiving.
• 9:41
  Constance Lavonice: Repent of your sins, believe that Christ died for you on the cross for your sins, the past, the present, and the future, and receive Him as your Lord and Savior of your life.
• 10:04
  Constance Lavonice: And if this message resonated with you, or if it fits your life, let me know.
• 10:16
  Constance Lavonice: Subscribe, share, and text the show and let me know what's on your heart.