Consider your moment of renewal

AT this time of the year, millions of Christians throughout the world remember and celebrate the death and resurrection of their Saviour.
He came, according to His own words, so that mankind shall not perish, but have everlasting life.
Through His death and resurrection, He dealt a decisive victory over sin and death.
Easter is also connected to Passover, a rite which acknowledges God’s sparing of the Jews from His wrath when He sent the Angel of Death to visit a plague upon Egypt.
In fact, Jesus Christ is perceived by Christians as the “Pascal Lamb”, His blood sparing human sinners from God’s wrath as the lamb’s blood marked the doors of the Israelites so that they might be spared.
For millions of Jews, Passover represents the celebration of the release of the Israelites from Egyptian servitude.
During this Easter period, we as believers ought to pause and ponder upon the reason for the death of Jesus Christ.
It is the greatest demonstration of selfless love, something which is tragically lacking even among professed adherents of the Christian faith.
What we lack is the simple living of that love.
Easter is, therefore, a time to reflect the central message of the gospel – selfless love.
What a difference it would make if we became less concerned about ourselves and more about our neighbours.
The Gospel has been preached throughout the length and breadth of Papua New Guinea.
What is incumbent upon believers is a simple believing of the gospel message.
Archbishop Cardinal Sir John Ribat in his Easter message, said today, people faced the uncertainty of the Covid-19 pandemic which deprived them of doing business and economy and they were taken away from their family and church gatherings.
Many were affected and yet were united with Christ to overcome all these should be the source of our strength.
He reminds us that the Lord never abandons those who trust Him in times of severe sufferings, doubt and uncertainty.
The Lord is the giver of life and promised His people to be with them always until the end of time.
Some say Easter is a time for family gatherings and a time to recognise the renewal of something new.
Renewal is a funny thing; sometimes, like the seasons, it is an unchallengeable law, part of nature’s cycle.
Other times, there is no renewal at all. Things happen, either good or bad and there’s no reset.
It is a hard fact.
Easter, for many people, is to merely contemplate the moment, whether it is religious in nature or not.
Maybe you go to church every Sunday or maybe you only go to church on Easter Sunday.
Maybe you don’t go to church at all, or maybe you don’t belong to a Judeo-Christian religion.
It does not matter.
The contemplation of renewal is a useful exercise.
In nature, renewal is mostly automatic.
For humanity, renewal requires sacrifice, or hard work, or at a promise to do so.
In some ways, humanity can renew itself, at least temporarily.
In this Easter and Passover moment, consider your own moment of renewal, whatever it may be.