SO WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?
A professor standing before a group of students preparing for the ministry told a story of what happened to him following an Easter service where he had guest preached. “I had preached that morning on the Resurrection. I had told them that if they wanted to see where God was alive and at work today that they should go and see what is being done in Third World countries. Wonderful things are happening today in the name of our Lord.” The sermon continued along these lines, the service ended, everyone shook hands and the visiting minister (the professor) returned to his home. In class a few days later he told his students what happened next. “Shortly after returning home I received a telephone call from a very irate elderly lady. This lady told me in no uncertain terms what she thought of my Easter message and it was not complimentary. I think what she wanted to hear at Easter was the tired and familiar message that when we die we will all go to heaven and there meet up with all our long lost relatives.” The professor turned to his class and asked; “What do you think?” One student raised his hand and said, “Sir, I think I would have been the second caller and would have agreed with what the lady said.”
I am inclined to support the student. The message of Easter is not about the good work that may or may not be taking place in the world’s underdeveloped countries. The message about Easter is about the bodily resurrection of our Lord. Where once there was death (“It is finished,” and He gave up his spirit. John 19:30) there is life (“You are looking for Jesus who was crucified, He has risen.” Mark 16:6). Whenever the apostles shared the Good News of Christ they always spoke of his death but coupled it with his resurrection. The death of Jesus without the resurrection of Jesus is meaningless. The Apostle Paul declared that if the resurrection did not take place then his preaching and the faith of his listeners was all in vain. The Good News of Easter is that Christ broke through the barrier of death and through Him we can do likewise.
