Saturday, March 31, 2018

Easter Is for Everyone

"I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live."

—John 11:25

Easter is for everyone!

It is about Jesus, and it is specifically about Jesus crucified and risen again from the dead.

I don’t know how you might describe your life this Easter. Maybe you are full of faith and looking forward to joining your family and friends at church and perhaps a special meal later in the day. If everything is going well for you, then praise God for that.

For others, it might be a different story. For some, Easter may even be a bittersweet day.

Death can seem so brutal, so ruthless, and so final. And that is exactly how the disciples felt when they saw the beaten, bloodied body of their Lord hanging on a Roman cross. Then, in addition to the Crucifixion, a Roman soldier took his spear, thrust it into Jesus’ side, and out of it came blood and water.

There was no question about it. Christ had died. If the Crucifixion hadn’t killed him, certainly the spear of the Roman soldier would have. The disciples thought it was over. They thought death had finished it.

So the disciples were shocked to find an angel waiting for them with the good news:

“Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him” (Mark 16:6).
They thought He was dead. But He was alive again.

Because Jesus has died and has risen again, it means that we as believers do not have to be afraid of death. As 1 Corinthians 15:20 tells us,

“But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.”

Jesus has gone to the other side, He has returned, and He has the keys to death and hell (see Revelation 1:18).

He is the resurrection and the life, and if we believe in Him, though we were dead, yet shall we live.