Early last Sunday evening I was speaking with our pastoral students about Easter. From their backgrounds, cultures and traditions Easter has not had the same significance in there lives as it has had here in the United States. I tried to emphasis to them how important it was for all to understand the significance of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This season is the perfect opportunity to teach and preach to help people know these truths. If we fail to teach that Christ is risen we bring about the end of a movement.
So, this week my mind is on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. When he died everyone thought that was the end of the movement. It was short lived. He had only come upon the scene some three years earlier. He had gathered around him a rag tag group of fisherman and other commoners who followed with him and listened to his sermons and lessons. They had grand ideals. Sometimes great crowds had gathered but mostly for the wrong reasons. The bread and fish had been good. But soon these crowds left when the teaching became harder. Only the most loyal remained.
Then one of his own disciples betrayed him. Jesus was arrested and taken away. In Mark 14:50 we read these truly sad words. “They all forsook him, and fled.” Another close disciple denied him. All were fearful and in hiding. When he hung his head and died. The movement was dead.
But wait! That wasn’t the end! On that first Easter morning he had gotten up. The soldiers that guarded the tomb lay around the outside as dead men. The stone that had been in front of the tomb sealed with the governmental seal was rolled away. The burial wrappings were laid aside and the linen cloth that had been upon him was folded and left. Some coming to anoint his body were startled to find the empty tomb. The message began to circulate. Go and tell! He is risen! He is risen! The movement is not dead!
“If Christ be not risen…” the movement is dead! Our preaching is vain! Our faith is vain! Because everything that we believe depends on this vital truth: a risen, living Savior! “But now IS Christ risen from the dead” (1 Corinthians 15:20). That changes everything. And so this Sunday, as we do every Sunday and especially Easter Sunday we sing about and we preach about and we worship a risen, living, saving and soon coming Jesus Christ. The movement is dead? Not at all! Celebrate Him!
