THREE LITTLE WORDS
Mike Cunningham
Easter Sunday April 20, 2014

The man’s high continued uninterrupted into the fourth day. It was impossible for him to adequately describe what he had been experiencing. Words like serenity and euphoria were grossly inadequate. A crystal clear clarity of mind added to the feeling of well-being. The man never imagined such an altered state was possible. But it obviously was, and he, along with the other folks at the reunion, was enjoying every second of it.

Amazingly, the wonderful feeling intensified moment-by-moment and continued like a rocket soaring into the heavens. Never in his wildest dreams could he have thought such an experience was possible. Now in the fourth day, he had every reason to believe it would continue forever. And so, it was with a sense of joyous anticipation that he looked forward to the rest of his life.

Then he suddenly heard three little words spoken by a familiar voice. He was startled started to crash. Fear gripped the man. It was as though he had been riding the crest of a giant wave and was being propelled in a direction he would give anything to avoid. The scene that greeted his bewildered eyes was one of complete amazement. It was so incredibly unexpected, that it would take a while for him to even begin to understand what was happening. Second by second the euphoria receded until it became a distant memory. And, all because of those three little words!

The two women had just experienced the greatest disappointment of their lives. The weight of their loss was so huge that they felt crushed. Furthermore, their sorrow was compounded by the belief that the grief that they had experienced didn’t have to happen. But it did, and now their lives had been changed forever.

Events of the past several days had taken its toll on the two women. They were exhausted. Each of them felt as though they had been on a roller coaster. For example, one moment they were in the depths of helplessness and the next their spirits were full of hope. Then, in a split second, they also came crashing down. Their hope was shattered as the spirit of helplessness descended upon them with a vengeance.

But then, they also heard the three little words that were immediately followed by a scene that could only be described as being awesome. Their spirits soared with a speed impossible to calculate. Their grief was immediately replaced by indescribable joy. They could never have imagined what they had just witnessed. Like the young man, the women knew their lives would never be the same. All because a familiar voice had uttered those three little words.

Most of the people in the crowd were there because they wanted to comfort and console the two women on that memorable day. These folks didn’t say much. Just being present spoke volumes. But their minds were filled with thoughts of trying to figure out the significance of recent events leading up to the reason for their presence. They empathized with the two women. And then, quiet unexpectedly, their thoughts were interrupted by the utterance of those three little words. What followed next was something they never dreamed of as they left their homes that dismal morning to visit the two women. Their lives were now also changed forever. Although they didn’t realize it, their eternal destiny had just become unalterably fixed. But at that moment in time, how could anyone expect them to understand the full implication of those three little words?

Two days previously a small group of men had just gotten the sad news. Their hearts went out to the two women who were close friends of theirs. The unexpected turn of events occurring in the woman’s lives shook each of the men. They began the two-day trip to the women’s home with mixed emotions. Although they would be happy to see them again, the men dreaded the thought of entering into the women’s sorrow.

Like the women, each of these men knew that things could have been different. From personal experience they thought that what had occurred didn’t have to. It could have been avoided. The men were as confused as the women. They were truly sorry for them and could only imagine how painful their loss must have been.

This was the state of mind of the men when they arrived at the women’s home. What happened next was something completely unexpected. They were as unprepared for it as anyone. And when they finally heard the three little words spoken and saw with their own eyes what had happened as a result, they were astonished. In a fraction of a second their spirits soared to a height they too never dreamed possible. Like the rest of the participants in the unfolding drama, their lives were also changed forever, and all because of those three little words.

There were others present on that memorable day. It seems that wherever people gather gossips are always around. These miserable busybodies are a sad fact of life. There may not have been many of them but the few that were there played a significant role that was destined to change the course of human history. As soon as the gossips heard the three little words and saw what followed, their despicable imaginations went wild. They were filled with glee and couldn’t wait to share these tasty morsels as they relished the thought of what they were about to do. Their lives were also changed that day, and, without divine intervention, the busybodies had doomed themselves to the torment of an eternity separated from God. And, all because of their response to those three little words!

Multitudes of angels, both good and evil, were also present on that day. Unseen by the people, each of them watched silently as those incredible events took place. When they heard the three little words, the good angels gave a thundering applause and sang praises to the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Next the good angels caused God’s children to recall certain passages of Scripture that had been stored up in their hearts like treasured possessions. Things were slowly beginning to make sense.

The evil angels were furious by what they had just witnessed and they cursed God vehemently. Hell bent, they sprung into action by exerting tremendous influence on the hearts and minds of the busybodies, who gleefully reported the incident to some jealous men.

Obviously, none of these events came as a surprise to the One who knows the beginning to the end. To Him, everything was moving along with clockwork precision according to the plan He had conceived before the foundation of the world. His whole objective that day was not just to bring glory to the Lamb. No, it was also to bestow a tremendous blessing upon each of His adopted children who were present (John 11:4).

It might be asked: “How could just three little words have such a huge impact on everyone that heard them? What was it about those words that had the power to change lives, and why did people respond so differently? How was it possible for some people to doom themselves to Hell by their response? What words could anyone possibly say that would have such a profound effect? Not only that, but who said them? What kind of a person could say just three little words that had such a awesome influence on people?”

A young Jewish carpenter was also there on that memorable day. This man on previous occasions had said some incredible things about Himself. Things such as, because of God’s amazing love, every one that believes in Him will live forever (John 3:16). He also insisted that the only way to Heaven was through Himself (John 14:6). Anyone hearing these assertions was compelled to form an opinion of Him. The carpenter was either stark raving mad or a unique human being. For example, a few moments before speaking those three little words He made an equally incredible claim saying, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die (John 11:25).” A short time later He broke down and cried. And then, after He composed Himself, Jesus, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world spoke those unforgettable three little words, saying in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out! (John 11:43).”

Lazarus was bewildered as his spirit immediately left Heaven (Luke 16:19-31; 23:43; 2 Corinthians 5:8; Phil. 1:21; Rev. 7:15-17; 20:4) and re-entered his dead body as the feeling of euphoria quickly dissipated. Then, unaided, he walked out of the tomb. His hands and feet were still wrapped with strips of linen, and the customary cloth was still around his face (John 11:44). His sisters, Martha and Mary, along with Jesus’ disciples, were filled with indescribable joy as they watched in amazement. Their faith, which had just been tested to the max, took a giant leap forward. The unbelieving Jews in the crowd had seen enough. They were finally convinced that Jesus was indeed the longed for Messiah, the promised deliverer of Israel. God’s holy angles rejoiced with gladness that they were privileged to witness what they alone knew was to become the beginning of the end. Satan and his demons went ballistic and immediately set upon destroying Jesus by influencing the busybodies who quickly reported the incident to certain religious leaders.

Although they didn’t personally witness these events, these insecure men were furious when the busybodies told them what had happened. To these men, the three little words and what followed was the most disturbing news possible. Unless something was done, their power, wealth and influence would vanish. Everything they had worked so hard to preserve would be irretrievably lost. Strategizing a course of action, one of them emerged with what he believed was a brilliant solution to their dilemma. Of course, he had no way of knowing that his plan, when executed, would have a life and death effect on every human being from that day forward because of his or her freely chosen response to those three little words.

These men got together and secretly conspired to murder the One who had spoken those three little words. Accompanied by Roman soldiers, they had Him arrested, and, after questioning Him, turned Jesus over to the civil authorities for a phony trial. Then Herod, Pontius Pilot, and the religious leaders did exactly what God’s power and will had decided beforehand should happen. (Acts 4:27-28). On the blackest of all Fridays in human history, of their own free will, they crucified the Prince of Peace.

As He hung on an old wooden cross in excruciating agony, Jesus once again spoke three little words, this time saying, “I am thirsty.” A jar of wine vinegar was there, so they soaked a sponge in it, put the sponge on a stalk of the hyssop plant, and lifted it to Jesus’ lips. When He had received the drink, Jesus said, (what was to be His last recorded three little words) “It is finished.” With that, He bowed His head and gave up His spirit (John 19:28-30). As promised, Jesus had freely sacrificed His own life by accepting God’s righteous punishment for the sins of all human beings who were willing to accept His love.

To Jesus’ powerless heartbroken loved ones who were crying profusely at the foot of the cross however, those final three little words said it all. It is finished. It’s all over. Jesus was dead. And with His death, their hopes and dreams died also. How could their life now have any meaning? What was there to look forward to? His terrified apostles were convinced that they would be next. It was only a matter of time before each of them would be caught and executed. How could they go on? Their spirits started to sink into a dark hole of despair. But, three days later, an amazing thing happened. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to Jesus’ tomb and discovered that He wasn’t there. Instead, an angel of the Lord greeted them with three little words followed by two more. “He’s not here, He is risen (Luke 24:6).”

The two women were ecstatic and could hardly wait to share the good news with the apostles. Later, Jesus suddenly appeared in their midst saying, “peace be with you.” Can you imagine how folks, including Lazarus, reacted when they saw Jesus alive and well? Can’t you just see them running excitedly all over the place shouting a series of three little words? He’s not dead! It’s not over! He is risen! Jesus is alive!

The fact that Christ rose from the dead, changed the attitude of Jesus’ followers, and through them impacted the entire world. It was almost as though they had become different persons. Instead of cringing in fear, they now boldly proclaimed the Good News of Christ’s resurrection from the dead after satisfying God’s justice by giving His life as a ransom for many. In murdering Jesus, those jealous men actually killed man’s greatest enemy, death. Because He lives, they knew that come what may, they could face all of their tomorrows. They were filled with a spirit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Their transformed lives captured the attention of everyone. The Lord was pleased and He added to their number daily. The early church grew by leaps and bounds. Their testimony of a string of just three little words, “He’s not dead!” “Christ is risen!” “Jesus is alive!” and “God loves sinners, coupled with their tremendous enthusiasm and love for poor lost sinners, turned the world upside down.

Everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope (Romans 15:4). These three little word sentences were each inspired by the Holy Spirit and preserved for a couple of thousand years as a means of God blessing human beings such as you and me. However, as wonderful as they are, they are not the most significant as far as you and I are concerned. In fact, we can search the New Testament from beginning to end and we won’t find the most important three little words that Jesus ever spoke. These words are as much a matter of life and death to each of you men and women, girls and boys as were those spoken to Lazarus a long ago. Your eternal destiny is contingent upon your response to those three little words, but how can you find out what they are if they’re not recorded in the Bible?

Take a moment and bow your head and visualize Jesus standing in front of the door of YOUR HEART. Look closely at the One about whom the prophet Isaiah wrote thousands of years ago saying, “there were many who were appalled at him–his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness (Isaiah 52:14).”

Imagine Jesus standing before you with open arms at this very moment. Look closely at His outstretched hands and notice the grotesque scars. Let your thoughts wander back to the scene at Calvary on the blackest of all Friday’s. Gaze at His Crown of Thorns! Imagine His precious blood splattering on the wooden cross as fierce Roman soldiers hammered huge spikes into them. Think of the excruciating agony that He felt as He took YOUR PLACE on Good Friday.

Visualize Jesus standing before you at this very moment. Look into His bloodshot eyes. Look at His tender smile and watch His lips. It may seem as though they’re not moving, but if you draw closer and listen very carefully you will hear Him softly whisper those three little words, “I LOVE YOU!”