Painting by Salvador Dali.

Today begins Holy Week, the most sacred week in Christianity, the week that Christians remember the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. So what is Christianity about, what do Christians believe?

1. Christians believe that man is lost in sin. He cannot by his own merits enter heaven when he dies. (For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23)

2. God in his mercy sent his son, Jesus, to die on the cross for us and pay the penalty for our sin. (For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. John 3:16)

3. That if we come to God and confess our sins, He will forgive them. (If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9)

4. That we must be born again. (Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3)

5. We must ask God for this new life and that He will give us the gift of His Holy Spirit. (And Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins ;and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”)

6. It is a free gift for all who will ask Him. (For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast. Ephesians 2:8-9)

This week, especially, we think of Jesus and we meditate on the price He paid for our sins. We are thankful for what He did for us and that is why Friday is called Good Friday; his death on the cross was good for the world. Sunday, the day known as Easter Sunday, is the day He rose from the dead and appeared to his disciples. We can live in victory and hope because of his victory over death, hell and the grave. This is the crux of Christianity.

May you all have a blessed Holy Week!