Luke 18:1-8

Being physically fit is very important. I have got to exercise more. I’m making a promise this morning. By the end of May, I am going to commit to an exercise program. I have been doing this song for fifteen years and back when I started, it felt really vibrant to do it with the kids. Now, when I do it, I wonder if some of my pieces are going to fall off when I jump.

 I have visited an awful lot of sick people in the last fifteen years. And many people could have prevented their own diseases. I do some of it myself. We eat things like French fries. With cigarettes, you smoke a coffin nail and with French fries, you eat a coffin nail.

 Of course, not all illness can be prevented. But think of your own medical treatments and how much of it could have been avoided with proper exercise and nutrition. And once we get into the problem, then we look back and wonder why we didn’t live smarter when we had the chance.

 We’re going to think this Easter morning about also being spiritually fit. Just like being physically fit, we need to be spiritually fit. And a lot of people don’t even think about that until a depression happens. Maybe some awful thing has happened in your life. 89 people have signed up for the God Help Me series this month on the church homepage. And people are writing to me and sharing some of their life stories. And a lot of young people are caught in drugs. A lot of older people have retreated and live without friends. And suddenly they type into the computer – God Help Me, and our church responded. That’s when you look back and realize, I wish I had made a plan to be spiritually fit.

 We’re going to look today at the Easter story and why it all happened. I want you to go home with two things, a simple understanding of why Jesus died and rose again, and a commitment to start a spiritual fitness plan for yourself today.

 Being spiritually fit does not start with something that I do, it starts with something God does. The first part of being spiritually fit is to follow the plan of God. We don’t do that. We like our own plan with some of God’s. We want a little of God’s help. Let’s say you go to church a little. You pray a little. You mostly go to work, try to relax in your time off and hope it all works out.

 Being spiritually fit is accepting a substitution – Jesus’ perfect life for our problems. We have already messed up our spiritual fitness, so God sent Jesus as a perfect spiritual person. His death is accepted by God as a punishment for our evil. We live in a lot of destruction. Our country does always do the right thing. Terrorists want to do bad things to us. And even young people can be trapped in destruction. The death of Jesus is accepted by God so that we can be free of all of this. Just like suddenly getting your cholesterol down to 100 or having terrific abs that you’ve been longing for.

 So we do that and then Jesus suddenly is raised from the dead. Not only are our problems gone because we accept Jesus’ perfect spiritually fit life, but Jesus proves that he has power over death. That is the worst enemy of all for fitness. That is what we are all trying to avoid.

 Your challenge is to accept this plan instead of creating your own. A lot of people will say that they admire Jesus, but that they also believe all good people will go to heaven. That’s like saying that Jesus is a wonderful person, but confused. He died when he didn’t have to die.

 The truth is that our plans for spiritual fitness aren’t all that great. It is when we trust God alone and shown our commitment to follow the Lord that we get spiritually fit in life.

 Suppose that you were trying to cross from one cliff to another one which is a hundred feet away. It is five thousand feet down to the rocks below. You have, however, a one inch thick piece of rope which is capable of holding up several tons. There is a difficulty though, for you have only fifty feet of rope. I say, “Do not worry! I have fifty feet of thread. We can tie my thread to your rope and then tie that to trees on either cliff and then you can go across.” You decline my offer and I respond, “What is the matter? Do you not trust the rope?” “Yes,” you say, “I trust the rope but I do not trust the thread.” Then let’s change the story and make it ninety feet of rope and only ten feet of thread. You’re still not comfortable. Then suppose we make it ninety-nine feet of rope and only one foot of thread. One inch of thread? You see, if you have one inch of thread, you will be just as dead on the rocks below as if you tried to cross on a hundred feet of thread. The rope obviously represents what Christ has done and the thread represents what we have done. We must trust in Christ alone.

 If this makes sense to you, then this is the time to act. It all starts with a simple prayer like the one you see on the screens. Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner and need Your forgiveness. I believe that You died for my sins. I want to turn from my sins. I now invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as Lord and Savior. In Jesus' name. Amen.