I woke up one morning with these words running through my mind, “My word does not return to me void”. Over and over and over I kept hearing those words. These words come from the Old Testament in Isaiah 55:11, “So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me void but shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”

Let’s review some background that will help us connect some Biblical dots. Because man sinned (specifically, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden), the authority God had given them was relinquished to the Devil. Since mankind couldn’t save themselves and because God loves us so very much, He put into motion by His words in the Garden of Eden the coming of a Savior. Genesis 3:15 reveals that God is sending “a seed of a woman” to bruise Satan’s heel.

God then gives a hint or sign in Isaiah 7:14 as to how this word will come when He said, “behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.”  Now jump forward a few generations and we find in Luke 1:26-31 where the angel Gabriel is sent by God to a virgin named Mary announcing that she will bring forth a son and she’s to call His name Jesus. The “seed” that God spoke of in Genesis 3:15 was about to come to pass with the birth of Jesus. God was calling into existence what He wanted do and accomplish in and through His Son.

By His words spoken in the Garden of Eden we connect the dots; God was sending His Son to the world to redeem the world – not to condemn the world – but to save us – all because He loves us so very much. (John 3:16-17) Then we read in John 12:32 what Jesus said about himself: “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” This came to pass when Jesus was lifted up and died on the Cross for the sins of the world, redeeming mankind back to God.

The next dot to connect is the fact that God raised Jesus up from death to life – and that my friend – is why we celebrate Easter! Some prefer to say Resurrection Day rather than Easter, but the point is that we are to celebrate Jesus being raised from death to life.

This last dot to connect is regarding those first words I kept hearing that morning: God’s Word returning to Him. The Bible tells us in Mark 16:19 that Jesus was received up into heaven and sat on the right hand of God. The words God spoke in Isaiah had come to pass; Jesus did not return to heaven void, He accomplished what He was sent to do, completing his assignment to redeem mankind back to God, and then returned back to His Father in heaven.  Hallelujah!

Jesus paid the price for our Salvation; therefore, Salvation is a gift from God to you and me. Have you accepted His gift? It is simple. Romans 10:9-10 states that a person must believe in their heart that God raised Jesus from the dead, and confess with their mouth Jesus as Savior and Lord. Romans 10:13 tells us, that whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved; God will not refuse you.

Can you see the connection between the word God spoke in the Garden of Eden, the sign of a baby being born to a virgin, the birth of Jesus, His death, burial, and resurrection, and His returning to heaven? John 1:14 tells us that the Word was made flesh – Jesus is that Word – and He returned to His Father in heaven after fully completing His assignment to redeem mankind back to God.

My prayer for you this Easter it that you will connect the dots and choose to accept for yourself God’s gift of Salvation given in Jesus as Savior. For those of us who have been saved, I pray that we again make a renewed commitment to live our lives to bring glory to God. May the love of Jesus in you be seen by others and draw them into a closer relationship with Jesus.