It has been a week since Christ was crucified. Tomorrow is the Sabbath. Oh, but not just any Sabbath. It is the first Sabbath since Jesus fulfilled prophecy and was raised from the dead. The celebration and worship of the Sabbath would never be the same, or would it?

Can you imagine the pure excitement, the spine tingling expectation, and the incalculable joy of going to the first service after the miraculous resurrection of our Lord and Savior? After witnessing his death and the feeling of hopelessness that surrounded it, then seeing Him alive again after three days... man, that would add a whole new dimension to the worship service!

Close your eyes and picture the people coming to worship the Living God, the Messiah! They are coming in droves, there is joy on their faces, the air is alive with the anticipation of what God has done and what He will do. The people are praising and shouting. The expectation is almost unbearable! They want to be there, they want to be early to get a good seat right down front, as close as possible to hear the word of the Lord! What a day! What a service! People linger far longer than normal. They swap stories about Jesus and what they have seen Him do. They re-tell the miracles they saw or heard about, and the times they spent with Him. They go over His teachings and how they can live their lives in a way that would bring glory and honor to Him. They stay late into the day praising and praying. They find it hard to leave the House of God. They want to hold onto this feeling as long as they can. Man, talk about a revival!

It has been 2000 years since the first Sabbath after the resurrection. Do we still look forward to it with the same excitement and anticipation? Do we arrive early and stay late? Do we sit right down front and cling to every spoken word? Or do we need to add a whole new dimension to our lives and to our worship?

The same Christ who brought a whole new dimension, a new meaning to the Sabbath 2000 years ago is the same Christ who can and will do it today! As we start a new century, let us begin it with a new commitment to Christ. Let us seek more of Him in His Word, in our prayers, and in His House! If we commit our will to His ways we will see a fresh moving of His spirit, and He will restore the joy of our salvation!

We thank you for your grace and mercy! We thank you for the gift of salvation! We thank you for the gift of the Holy Spirit who guides us and empowers us, who teaches and reveals to us more of who you are, and of who we should be! I pray Lord that you would open the floodgates of Heaven, that you would send your Holy Spirit to renew us, to refresh us, to revive us as never before! May we hunger and thirst for more of you! May we seek you in our prayers and in your Word, may we come to your house with praise on our tongues and joy in our hearts. I pray that you would refresh and revive our spirits, that you would indeed restore the joy of our salvation!
Come Lord Jesus, come!