The Story Continues...

The excitement is all over. The ears have been eaten off the bunny. The jellybeans are all gone. Dinner has been cooked, the dishes are done, the eggs hidden and found (at least most of them!), and now its back to the reality of the workweek.

Did you stop for a minute? Did you think about the joy that is yours because of Easter?

A professor of mine asked the question, “What would be different if Jesus had not risen from the dead?” The answer is that nothing would be different. We would still be lost in sin. We would still be trying to work our way into God’s favor. We would still be trying to figure out what exactly God wants from us, and how on earth we could ever do what he wants. We would still be striving vainly. And we would still be condemned.

The real question is, “What is different because Jesus rose from the dead?” And the answer there is, “EVERYTHING!” Because Jesus rose from the dead, I am not a slave to sin. Because Jesus rose from the dead, I have hope, and the assurance that he has secured my salvation. I have a relationship with a real, living person. I can know God, and know exactly what he wants from me. He wants everything, and through his power I can give it to him.

Praise be to the God and

Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!

In his great mercy he has given us new birth

into a living hope

through the resurrection of

Jesus Christ from the dead. I Peter 1:3

Because Jesus rose from the dead, we have a living hope, not a dead dread of what’s to come. Because Jesus rose from the dead, I am saved. I am.

But what does my life reflect? Do I live like the tomb is empty, or do I live as if its still Saturday, and Jesus and all my dreams are dead?

After the resurrection, there is a new excitement among the disciples. Jesus appears to them, eats with them, lets them stick their fingers into his hands and side, walks with them, cooks them breakfast. There is a new intimacy as a result of the resurrection that lasts even after he is gone from their sight. The Holy Spirit comes, and they are FILLED with him. Peter can’t keep it in; he goes out into the middle of the 5,000 plus people and proclaims Jesus risen from the dead.

My life doesn’t always reflect this excitement. Sometimes I am grumpy. Sometimes I seem to dread the day ahead. Instead of seeing my life filled with possibility, instead of living in expectation of what God can do next, I keep my head down and just sludge through the day.

How different would my life be if I lived into the reality of the resurrection? How attractive to others would it be if I lived the joy that only comes from my risen Savior? Peter couldn’t not share. I am so content to live as if my faith were a private thing. While Jesus would have died just for me, he died for everyone. Why aren’t I sharing that more freely?

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

John 3:16-17

Go! Live in joy and hope! Always be prepared to share the hope that lives in you, because of the certainty of the resurrection. Let the way you live reflect your newness of life!