Easter is such a huge event in the lives of Christians that we prepare for it for 40 days and now we celebrate it for 40 days. The meaning of resurrection really needs this much intentional reflection time. It is so unbelievably amazing and profoundly wonderful! But, most of all, it is life-changing!

It’s resurrection, resurrection, always resurrection, that undergirds what I do and say, the way I live. If there’s no resurrection, “We eat, we drink, the next day we die,” and that’s all there is to it. But don’t fool yourselves. Don’t let yourselves be poisoned by this anti-resurrection loose talk. “Bad company ruins good manners.”

It seems that the Christian message is, more and more so, found so controversial that it is silenced. Like this pre-movie Easter commercial of a California church that was banned just because it included the name of Jesus Christ.

Are you filled with those same questions? Did it really happen? Was the body of Jesus stolen? What if Jesus did not really die on the cross? What if it’s just a big practical joke? Get those questions out.  Don’t suppress your questions but diligently seek for answers. Ask, knock, seek and you will find the truth. God will answer. But know that we don’t find answers by digging the dirt of doubts, we find answers by digging in the grace of God. Faith is always a gift from God. Faith is always a mystery. Lift your gaze from doubts to Jesus! Read the Bible and sit with Jesus as long as it takes to be filled with the joy of resurrection.

Think straight. Awaken to the holiness of life. No more playing fast and loose with resurrection facts. Ignorance of God is a luxury you can’t afford in times like these. Aren’t you embarrassed that you’ve let this kind of thing go on as long as you have?

There is no point of being a Christian if you don’t believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ and therefore in the resurrection of the dead. There is no way we can deal with the doubts and harassing of the world if we are not filled with the Holy Spirit. There is no way we can serve our neighbors if we are not filled with the love of God.

Some skeptic is sure to ask, “Show me how resurrection works. Give me a diagram; draw me a picture. What does this ‘resurrection body’ look like?” If you look at this question closely, you realize how absurd it is. There are no diagrams for this kind of thing. We do have a parallel experience in gardening. You plant a “dead” seed; soon there is a flourishing plant. There is no visual likeness between seed and plant. You could never guess what a tomato would look like by looking at a tomato seed. What we plant in the soil and what grows out of it don’t look anything alike. The dead body that we bury in the ground and the resurrection body that comes from it will be dramatically different. (1 Cor. 15:35-38, MSG)

Paul gives a wonderful parallel to understand what it is to be resurrected one day. Our buried bodies are like seeds that will bring forth a flourishing plant on the day of resurrection. It’s all possible because of Jesus. All this is so astonishing! It is hard to believe. But God is much bigger than our capabilities. God has been at work for our salvation from the beginning. Read the entire Bible and you will be so amazed. Sit with Jesus and let the Holy Spirit teach you. Embrace the wild grace of God and let it change you inside out.

With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort. (1 Cor. 15:58, MSG)

 

Gracious God,
We bring you all our doubts and questions.
We empty ourselves for you.
Forgive us our sins.
Fill us with your truth.
Fill us with your Spirit.
Fill us with the joy of resurrection.
In Jesus’ name,
Amen

Q4U: Do you have any doubts/questions? Let’s seek for answers together!

Be blessed, my fellow pilgrim, as you seek for the truth, embrace the grace of God and share the life-changing message of Jesus Christ!

Photo courtesy of Marian Trinidad