I recently attended a memorial service.

Pastor Ed officiated. The deceased person had known Ed his entire life. He and Ed’s father were best friends.

The simple service started with a song. Then the Pastor spoke. He grew up formally addressing the deceased as “Mr. Smith” and was only allowed to call the man by his first name when he was about 30 years old.

Ed never went to church as a child. When he grew up and married, he started attending because of his wife.

He accepted Jesus Christ and eventually felt called into ministry. He became a Pastor at the same church he attended. The power of the cross has become a way of life for him as he preaches and teaches about the choice we must make to become Christians.

Ed told a sobering story of when he tried to talk to the deceased about Christ. “Mr. Smith” didn’t want to hear it. He said that he had gone to church at a young age and knew all there was to know. That was the end of the conversation.

The sacrifice Jesus Christ made on the cross applies to everyone. But everyone does not choose to follow Him. Once the choice is made, the power of the cross becomes obvious: it changes our lives.