Happy Easter

HAPPY EASTER

            Since today is Easter I thought that I would tell you what Easter means to me.  When I look at Easter in terms of why we celebrate it I think of only one thing and that is that Jesus Christ was resurrected from the dead on what we call Easter morning.  Jesus Christ has spent the last three days in the grave after His death on the cross.

            Now why is His resurrection so important to us as believers?  Well His resurrection from the grave shows us that God had accepted His payment for sin when He suffered and then died on the cross.  This was the reason that He came to earth, to die in our place, to become sin for us, and then taking that penalty for our sins in His own body on the cross so that we may have eternal life and live with Him eternally serving Him and worshiping Him.

            Easter is more than bunnies and candy and new clothes, it is much more than that.  The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most important event to happen in the history of mankind, for without it we would have no hope. We could call the book of Acts the story of the Apostles telling others about the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave.  That was their hope and that is our hope too.   

            As believers in Jesus Christ we have the same power living in us that raised Jesus Christ from the dead, for it was the Holy Spirit who raised up Jesus from the dead and it is the Holy Spirit who lives within all believers.  Sometimes I wonder if I use this power given to me very well.

            Paul though that the resurrection of Jesus Chris was so important to believers that He spent the entire fifteenth chapter of 1 Corinthians writing about it.  Let us take a look at some of the verses in this chapter and he begins this chapter by telling his readers exactly what the Gospel message is:  “1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. 3  For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4  and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (verses 1-4).”  He then moves on to question why some of these believers did not believe that Jesus rose from the dead, and this is important: “12 Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; 14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. 15 Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; 17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied. 

            20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. 21 For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. 23  But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming, 24  then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power. 25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.”  These verses tell us of the importance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Paul goes on to tell the order of the resurrection as Christ is the first to be raised from the dead and at the end of the chapter He speaks of what we call the “rapture” of the church where all believers in the Church age will be raised from the dead.  Paul writes to Titus about the return of Jesus Christ to take us in the rapture and says that it is our hope, and in this case hope means it is a sure thing, not like I hope the sun will shine tomorrow type of hope. 

            Yes the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the most important thing that has ever happened on this earth.  In order for people to take part in what the Bible teaches about the rapture of the Church one has to belong to Jesus Christ.  How do we do that?  First we have to admit that we are sinners for Paul writes “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God.”  Think about that little word “all” as it is very important.  Now that we have admitted that we have sinned we then must realize that we cannot pay for our sins without spending eternity away from God in hell.  But then we must realize that there was One who came and paid for our sins, and that one is Jesus Christ who took all of our sins upon Him while on the cross and suffered and died for them.  This is the best news ever told for not only did He die for our sins but when we confess that we are a sinner and believe in our hearts that Jesus paid for them we will receive eternal life, we will be as Jesus put it “born-again.”  Paul writes about more good news that happens to us when we become born again:  “17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.  21 He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him 2 Corinthians 5:17, 21),”  This can be called the exchange that is Christ took on our sins and then gave us His righteousness.  My prayer is that anyone who reads this and is not a believer in Jesus Christ will accept the payment that He paid for you and receives Him as your Lord and Savior.  Just confess your sins to Him and invite Him into your life and you will be born again.