Easter Everyday (Republish) - Because He Lives!

28. March 2010 by Annette Colon-Alvarenga.

¹When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. ²Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb ³and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”  ⁴But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. ⁵As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. ⁶“Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. ⁷But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’ “  Mark 16:1-8

I started a study on the resurrection and I will tell you that even though I am not even half way through my study, there are some things that are laying heavy on my heart today.

In my study I read the story of the renowned Methodist preacher named W.E. Sangster. On Easter Sunday 1960 he lay unable to speak and helpless. His daughter was with him that day and because he could not speak, he wrote her a note:  Margaret: ‘It is terrible to wake up on Easter morning and have no voice with which to shout, “He is risen!”  But it would be still more terrible to have a voice and not want to shout.’  A little convicting.

While the message of the resurrection is heard throughout every Christian church throughout the world on Easter Sunday, it should not be limited to that day. Rather the message of our risen Lord is a message that cannot be left out of our witness to others. Think about this for a minute. If the Easter story ended with the cross, what would have happened to Jesus disciples? Would there even be a church today? The answer to the second question is “no.”  The Easter story is the gospel, the good news because it proclaims Jesus lives! Without the resurrection there is no gospel.  The resurrection of Jesus is at the heart of our Christian faith.

Of course we already know this, but it seems to be missing from our witness, from our message. When we tell others about salvation through Christ Jesus, about the forgiveness of our sins through His sacrifice on the Cross of Calvary and our restored relationship with God, we generally stop there. However, the resurrection is the climax of the gospel message. We must not leave it out. Peter tells us that me must “[a]lways be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” (1 Peter 3:15).  The resurrection of Jesus, the fact that He is risen, that He lives today, is the reason for the hope.

Everything from Jesus being arrested through His being placed in the tomb had his disciples believing that all had finished.The passage above in Mark of the women going to anoint Jesus’ body at the tomb shows that they also believed all was done. There was no hope until the angel proclaimed, “He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. ⁷But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’ This is the reason for the hope in each and every Christian, that He lives and that He goes before us.  Jesus’ victory over death means that death need not be the end of those who follow Jesus. The resurrection completes the work of Christ on the cross. Only through the resurrection of Jesus are we able to become “a new creation.”

What have I learned from this? I must be intentional to be a witness of the whole gospel. When we preach Christ crucified we must also shout, “He is risen!” The Easter story is not to be preached one day each year. We need to tell the Easter story everyday because all of our hope is in that He lives!

Lyrics from the song Because He Lives:

God sent his son, they called him Jesus;
He came to love, heal and forgive.
He lived and died to buy my pardon;
An empty grave is there to prove my Savior lives.

Because He lives I can face tomorrow
Because He lives All fear is gone
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living
Just because He lives!

How sweet to hold a newborn baby,
And feel the pride and joy he gives;
But greater still the calm assurance
This child can face uncertain days because He lives.

Because He lives I can face tomorrow
Because He lives All fear is gone
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living
Just because He lives!

And then one day I’ll cross the river;
I’ll fight life’s final war with pain.
And then, as death gives way to vict’ry,
I’ll see the lights of glory and I’ll know He reigns.

Because He lives I can face tomorrow
Because He lives All fear is gone
Because I know He holds the future
And life is worth the living
Just because He lives!

(Song by Bill Gaither)

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