1 John 4:9 “This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.” When I think of religion I feel a heaviness. I feel a sigh coming on. The load of rules, restrictions and actions I don’t want to do feels burdensome. I had a legalistic phase of my christian experience. It lasted several years. God was with me, I didn’t understand how I was to live out my faith. I took the WWJD practice too far. I had trouble enjoying things. Would Jesus really go mountain biking? Guilt clouded much of my life. Christianity does ask some difficult things. Loving our enemies, allowing others to the higher place, submitting to His lordship, avoiding sinful thoughts and actions and so on. Without His Spirit, this is unnatural, drudgery, and very difficult. Paul shares this frustration in Romans 7:14,15, “For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate.” He says a few verses later, “Wretched man that I am. Who will deliver me from this body of death?” This is the frustration of trying to practice a religion. Paul answers his question. It’s Jesus. Today’s passage is on that topic, God shows His love for us by living the christian life through us. What wonderful news. Paul rejoiced in it. Peter said that keeping the law was too great a burden (Acts 15:10). This is why Christmas and Easter are such wonderful days. The church bells ring throughout the town heralding the good news. Like the witnesses that saw Lazarus rise from the dead, so we should share this great news. We will still feel the struggles of trying to love difficult people. But when we bring it to Him, He helps us and changes hearts. The living God is in us and works through us. Thank You, Lord, for Your great love that does this. Help us to share it.