BY: Sir Godfrey Gregg

Romans 6: 3-11

                    Bishop Friday 

³ Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

⁴ Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so, we also should walk in newness of life.

⁵ For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

⁶ Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

⁷ For he that is dead is freed from sin.

⁸ Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

⁹ Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.

¹⁰ For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

¹¹ Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

What has Christ saved us from?  The fear that we are alone to figure out what life is to be about until we die.  The end of the story changes the whole story: we will rise with him.  Therefore we must take on the great work of love, the terrible and suffering work of love in the face of injustice and fear and hatred and all another manner of sin.  For Christ has conquered sin: he has shown us that there is to be living in the face of the suffering we take on because of sin.  Why act with love when all around us there is grasping, anger, competition, selfishness, corruption, and the temptations of false and skewed desires?  Why act with integrity, with justice, with fairness, with hope, instead of with self-interest, with laziness, with cynicism?  Because Christ has risen: he has shown us that the doorway of death opens to resurrection.  He has shown us that our hope is not in vain.  He accepted the consequence of living with love: he lived among us–we who kill those who do not compete to win.  He went to court, he carried his cross, and he died.  Smiling.  For at that moment (and perhaps even earlier) he knew that the next chapter was about to unfold, and it was going to be good.

Are you part of that story?

Today in Bequia Christians and well-wishers will lay aside everything to celebrate the resurrection for the first part of the day. Giving reverence to Almighty God for the memorial of that day when the tomb was found empty and the stone rolled away. I believe Christians all over the world will have the same hope to cheer the tomb. Is this part of your story that Jesus is alive for evermore. Many Christians and visitors to the Island will visit St. Mary’s Anglican church in Bequia and share in the Eucharist.

There will be other activities on the Island to commemorate the great day.