Easter

 

       No religious institution in history has ever risked all of its credibility and right to be taken seriously as has the Christian church on the matter of the resurrection of a single person on a given day some two thousand years ago. Early Christians had no weapons, no political strategies, no ethnic allies, and certainly no Utopian fantasies. They simply believed that Jesus of Nazareth had died for their sins and been resurrected from death. That whatever else might happen to them, Jesus lived and was providing the power to free human beings to experience the Grace of God and fullness of life, and of course, that the rest of the world ought to know about this.

       At first, it seemed that every sermon started as an Easter sermon: “Because Jesus of Nazareth, whom you crucified, has been raised from the dead…” Whatever followed was based on the presence of a living Christ, the Kingdom of God, the effect of Christ’s presence in this life, and the inevitable future encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ.

       The whole vast gospel enterprise of the Christian church rests on the solid foundation that Jesus has indeed been raised from the dead and has become the “guarantee that those who sleep in death will also be raised.” (1 COR 15) Little wonder then, that St. Paul wrote, “If there is no resurrection. Then we (Christians) are of all humankind most to be pitied.” We have staked everything on the Easter event, the resurrection of Christ. Of course, he wrote in the next phrase, “But the truth is that Christ has been raised and the last enemy to be defeated is death.”

       We are very close to celebrating Easter for this year. There will be more than a billion of us who will celebrate. We have kept the festival for almost two millennia, and during that long history of celebrating Easter many varied customs and traditions have come forth. Yet, at whatever time and place Christians gather for Easter, a remarkable, singular truth is lifted high: Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! And, yes, our world still needs to hear it as much as ever.

Go with God!

Pastor Jansen