The Easter Message

 First off, I am so sorry I have not written here in a while, and I am still not at a regular posting schedule. While I know there is no excuse that makes up for the way I have been acting, I have been fairly busy with school and work. I am getting details worked out about my summer plans, which I would love to talk about in a later post. Also, I am working on scheduling my life better, and sticking to it so I should be able to have more free time and more productive study time and work time. 

But, let' get back to the focus of the blog post. As you can tell by the title, my goal is to talk about Easter. The message that the easter story brings always makes me feel so blessed and thankful for all that the Lord has done for me. One of the many problems with Easter is, though, that this holiday only happens once a year, and the focus does not seem to be completely on Christ. 

Here is what I mean by that: When Easter Week comes, it starts on Palm Sunday morning. If a Christian chooses to attend church that morning (which if there is a healthy church nearby, they should) then they will likely hear a message talking about when Jesus came to Jerusalem riding on a donkey. They could choose to have the sermon focus on how Christ was coming to be King and this was the last act before that happened. Or, they could talk about how the Pharisees were just about to overflow with the rage they found from this man. In fact, if the pastor chose to do something different or out of the ordinary, he could speak on the raising of Lazurus from the dead, which brought Him back to Jerusalem where He knew there would be no more escape, or the ransacking of the Temple, where He had a final act to show that He was the King and the temple should not have been treated like that. Yet, the message would come to an end. The Christian would go home, possibly pondering the message or possibly thinking about what was for lunch. 

As the rest of Easter week comes along, there could be something on the Christian's calendar, or they could be reading a devotional plan that focuses on the last week before Jesus's crucifixion, but they would likely not spend much more time than the devotional thinking about it. They would leave their bible sitting on the counter or dresser where they keep it and move on with their day throughout the week as if everything was normal. Then, either Maundy Thursday or Good Friday would likely be celebrated in the church home of the Christian. There would likely be communion remembering the Last Supper where the event first took place. In fact, in some places, a Christian might be able to participate in a re-creation of a Passover meal with a Jewish friend or acquaintance. But yet again, not much thought would go into it after the event is over. 

Finally, Easter Sunday would come. He/she would get into a fancy suit or a beautiful Easter dress and head to church again. The Pastor would preach on the Easter message, reminding everyone of the gift of eternal life that God gave us through His Son and His death on the cross. But, as the Pastor would remind us, Jesus did not stay dead. Through God's power, Jesus came back three days later. Then, the Christian would go home and eat a big Easter meal. They would celebrate by talking with family and enjoying a feast. 

Yet, days later or weeks later, the Easter week would feel like a blur. They made memories around the table talking with family and friends. For the girls, they would have a cute spring dress that they could wear a few more times that year before it gets cold again and before it is outgrown. But would the message of the Savior stick with them? I have found that the Easter message, while not always sticking with me, has popped up in my thoughts multiple times throughout the past year. I am reminded of how much Jesus had to love me and care for me to go through all He did just to save me. 

I am reminded of how loving of a God I serve. I am reminded of how fallen of a world I live in. I am reminded of how many times I am wronged God and messed up. But, I am reminded of how loving of a God I serve enough that He is willing to accept me back after I mess up. Yet, I understand that his love is not a privilege that I should ever dare to abuse, because then I am not really accepting it (Romans 6). I am reminded that I can have fellowship with others who have the same hope as I do because I know that I will spend eternity with them now. And, one of the most important things I am reminded of that I still need to do, now that I am part of God's family, is to tell others about this great news as well. The shepherds did so right away after they saw the Baby Jesus, the disciples and apostles did after they saw the resurrected Lord. We, His followers, are all commanded to do the same (Matthew 28:18). 

Yet, there is another message that I think is really important to remember around this Easter message. One way that I learn is through music (which is another note that I mentioned a few posts ago, but I think I will need to address it again soon). Specifically, in 'Don't Waste Your Life' by Lecrae, right at the beginning of the song he says: "Paul said if Christ ain't resurrected/ we waistin' our lives built around/ Jesus bein' the life". This message comes from 1 Corinthians 15:14 that says "And if Christ has not been rained, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain." If Christ had stayed in the grave, then that would be the end of the story. In fact, there have been multiple people who claimed that they were the Christ, or the second Christ, or something along the lines of being a Savior and told people that they would be raised from the dead. Yet, they were not. They stayed dead. Just like in the Old Testament where if a Prophet was wrong once it was off with their heads if Jesus did not fulfill every prophecy made about Him, then he was not really the Christ. Passages in the Old Testament such as Isaiah 53 and Psalms gave specific details to how Christ was to die. And Christ met every specific detail. 

So, Christ met all the requirements. Christ came back to life after three days. Our faith is not in vain. Jesus is alive. We still have hope in Him.