Easter 2009

When most of us hear the word "Easter," we think of so many things. As kids we thought about egg hunts, baskets of candy, and most of all that chocolate bunny. I always wanted a solid one. The hollow ones just weren't fulfilling for me for some reason. There was always the new clothes to wear to church. Most of the time that meant a tie, of course. I'm still convinced that ties were developed by a Satan possessed woman in order to cut the oxygen supply to men's brains. That's off track though

As adults, we're getting the baskets together for our children, finding those new clothes, making sure there are plenty of eggs dyed and ready to hunt for. We make sure the family is awake in plenty of time to get to church. Of course we're all sore from mowing and cleaning up the yard after a hard winter of neglect. It is the demarcation of spring in the minds of most of us and time to get with it outside.

Even though the name of the day, "Easter," comes from a pagan holiday which celebrates and pays homage to a naked fertility goddess, what the Christian world celebrates is the resurrection of Jesus, the only Son of God. Jesus was born to a virgin, Mary. He was fully God, yet left His throne in Heaven and took on the flesh of man. Being fully man, Jesus faced every temptation we face. Yet, Jesus never fell prey to any of those temptations. He lived a perfect life. But the authorities had Jesus executed. Interesting that they could find no charges against Him, but they still went through with their plan to get Jesus out of their way, to put Him to death so that they would not have to deal with Him any longer. So, Jesus died on the cross, innocent yet He died a criminals death. The authorities thought they had Jesus where they wanted Him, in a grave. But come the first day of the week, Sunday, Jesus walked out of that grave. Not only had He paid the debt we owe because of the sin in our lives, He beat death as well. Now we not only have the promise that our sin has been forgiven, but we have a hope of life in eternity with God in Heaven when this physical life is over.

My prayer for you on this Resurrection Day is simple. May you worship the One true God, celebrate the risen Savior, Jesus, and accept what Jesus did for you on the cross. It is only when you accept the gift of life that Jesus paid for on the cross that we can have the hope of eternal life. Won't you admit that you are a sinner and that you need the forgiveness that only Jesus can give because of His death on the cross? Feel free to contact me, or any other minister in your community, if you would like to know more about what Jesus did for you.

"For God loved the world so much, that He sent His only Son, so that anyone who believes in Him would not die, but have eternal life." John 3:16

Have a great Resurrection Day and enjoy some time with your family.