Resurrection Sunday

Most people call this Easter Sunday, but I, I call it Resurrection Sunday.  Because of what happened on this morning several thousand years ago, the fact of an empty tomb, I have faith in a God that is able to do anything. 


Jesus replied, "What is impossible with men is possible with God."   Luke 18:27 NIV
Mt 26:32


And Jesus said to his disciples:
"But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee."  Mt. 26:32  NIV


The Deity that I serve says what He means and does what He says.  He has done something that no other "deity" has done: He has risen from the dead.  On that morning, the women came looking for the body of a dead man, they met an angel: 

The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.   He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead . . . '"  Mt. 28:5-7  NIV


And this rising was not only the proof of his Deity, but the down payment for what could happen if we just believe.  He has paid the price so you and I can raise from our wrong doings and our sins and He can put us on a new plain to start anew.   This is the basis of my faith.  Spiritually, a way has been made for for me to be clean of my sins and I will always be grateful for His love and His sacrifice.  And best of all, He has paved the way for me to know Him  because He is alive!

He is risen!  He is risen, indeed! 

Dark Day

I don't say much here in this venue about my faith, but this weekend marks the most important day to those of us who call ourselves Christians. For us, it is not about Spring, bunnies nor colored eggs to hunt, although we do those things for our children's delight! It's all about the basis of our belief.

Yesterday was Good Friday, marking the day of Christ's crucifixion.  Today would be the full day that He was in the tomb.  I am reminded of a old song about that time called 'Christ Arose' by Robert Lowry.  We sang it every Easter time in church. I  miss those 'ole times of good singing in church, standing right beside my mom and dad.  Anyway, the song goes like this:

Low in the grave He lay--Jesus, my savior!
Waiting the coming day--Jesus my Lord!

Vainly they watch His bed--
Vainly they seal the dead--

Death cannot keep his prey--
He tore the bars away--

Up from the grave He arose, with a mighty triumph o'er His foes.
He arose a victor from the dark domain,
And He lives forever with His saints to reign.
He arose!  He arose!  Hallelujah! Christ arose!

This song reminds me that there is hope! 
 What seems lost, can have a different outcome.  It bolsters my faith.  

And as a post scrip, I like this quote by Joan Chittister:

“Holy Saturday is not about counting our blessings; it is about dealing with darkness and growing in hope. Without the Holy Saturdays of life, none of us may ever grow up spiritually.

Today, the church is empty. Today, the loss finally sets in . . . heavy-hearted from the reality of yesterdays, of Good Friday and its dashing our securities. Today, alone and bereft, we come face to face with the question we try so hard to avoid the rest of the year: how do we deal with the God of darkness as well as the Giver of light? Have we been abandoned? Are we left now on our own in this world? Is there nothing else? Was all the rest of it pure fairy tale?

The important thing about Easter Saturday is that it is precisely when its emptiness sets in that we begin to understand there is as much voice of God in emptiness as there is in anticipation. It is now, when we feel the absence of Jesus most keenly, that we can find ourselves listening to Him most intensely.”