By Russ Atmore
Around Easter every year we turn our thoughts to the death and
resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. The world has no thoughts of
Christ at this time of year. There may be a few folk, here and there, of
an older generation who might attend church because it’s Easter, but on
the whole, Easter is treated as any other time. Between Palm Sunday and
Easter Sunday, so much happened for our Lord. He had set His face to go
to Jerusalem to do the Father’s will, and that is exactly what He did
(Luke 19:28–48). Jesus celebrates the Last Supper with His disciples,
and thereafter it becomes for the believer a remembrance feast. We
remember Him, as He has asked us to do, only until He returns. Jesus
identifies Judas as His betrayer, and thereafter Judas fulfills his
destiny as the betrayer in fulfillment of Scripture (Acts 1:16-20).
Jesus faces Gethsemane, Peter denies his Lord, Jesus faces Herod and
Pilate – the scene is set for Golgotha, the place of the skull.
Lest anyone think that Jesus arrived there by accident, we should read
the Scriptures to see what they say concerning the death of Jesus. Acts
2:22–36 puts the whole event into perspective. The death, burial and
resurrection of Christ was planned by God. It’s hard to escape this
certainty as you read the Bible.
So what does this mean for us? Well, we
either accept the Biblical account or we don’t. I suppose it’s possible
to accept the account, and have it do nothing for you. You are not
changed because of it. It’s true, you say, but that’s where it ends. You
carry on after Easter as you have always done. This is not the way
Easter should be for us, for one simple reason. It was my sin that Jesus
bore in His own body on the cross. He died for me. This changes
everything, because my sin is precisely that – my sin. It’s not someone
else’s – it’s mine. It’s personal, deep-rooted and part of me. So Jesus
dies for me, a sinner, and marvel of marvels, He saves this wretched man
– me, and makes me a child of God. God accepts me because of His Son. I
am freely justified (made right with God), not because of anything I
have ever done or am, but by His sovereign grace and mercy. God now sees
me in His Son. I am free! My sins are gone, washed in the precious blood
of the Lamb (1 Peter 1:19). His death is reckoned as mine. He is my
atonement. He is my propitiation. One day, I too, will experience
resurrection – I will be like Him (1 Cor. 15:50–58; 1 John 3:1–3). It is
as certain as I breathe that Jesus will come back (John 14:3). The
incredible thing is that He is coming back for me.
So, I guess Easter can take
on a whole new meaning. Without it I have nothing. If Jesus be not
raised from the grave (1 Cor. 15:17), I am still in my sins, and this
faith that God has given me is futile. Is it futile? No, praise be to
God – it is His gift to me. So, it is real for me because I have
realized that I am a lost sinner, despised, wretched, unworthy, dirty,
guilty and destined for eternity apart from God unless He save me. I
cannot save myself or even come close. I cannot offer my good deeds to
God – he says they are filthy in His sight. The only person God will
accept is His Son. The only death for sin that God will accept is the
death of His Son. This is exactly what God has done for me – simply
because He loves me. Why does He love me? The only answer is – God is
love? So I know that my salvation is completely of God – He has done
everything to bring it about. Jesus died and rose again according to the
Scriptures for me (1 Cor. 15:3,4). This is Easter – I will praise Him
for what he has done for me. What about your Easter this year?
He is Risen! Hallelujah!
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