Christ is Risen

Dr. John Trent in Christian Parenting Today tells about a wedding video he once saw. The video was shot from the back of the church looking up the aisle toward the bride and groom. Because of the camera angle, you could see several members of the congregation.

 

Suddenly, during the vows, a man jumped up from his pew and yelled, “Yes, Yes, Yes!” as he pumped his fist.

 

Then he froze and slid down into his seat–and sheepishly took off his headphones. It turned out he had been listening to the Auburn-Alabama football game, and his favorite team had just scored. 

 

Easter is a day for Christians to pump their fists in the air and say, “Yes, Yes, Yes.” Yes is what Easter is about.

 

God’s yes to Jesus and all Jesus taught us about the meaning of life. God’s yes to the victory of life over death, love over hate, faith over fear, hope over despair. Everything about Easter says, “Yes, Yes, Yes.” 

 

If you’re into genealogy you know that visits to cemeteries are quite frequent.  One day a six-year-old boy named David was taking a walk with his grandmother.

 

They decided to detour through the local cemetery.

 

As they walked past the gravestones, they would stop every once in a while to read the engravings on the stones.

 

Grandma explained that the first date on the tombstones was the day the person was born and the second date was the day the person died. 

 

“Why do some tombstones only have one date?” little David asked. 

 

“Because those people haven’t died yet,” his grandmother explained. 

 

David was obviously stunned by his grandmother’s explanation because, that night, he couldn’t stop talking about the excursion.

 

“Mom,” he said with wide eyes, “some of the people buried there in the cemetery aren’t even dead yet!” 

 

Leave it to a six-year-old to put a different twist on things.

 

One day some women came to the cemetery, not to read dates on a gravestone, but to anoint the body of Jesus.  Their hearts were disillusioned with broken hearts and dashed dreams. 

 

When they arrived at the gravesite, they found the tomb had been opened and they began to weep.

 

Two angels saw their plight and asked them why they were weeping.  The women responded by saying, “What have you done with my Lord.” 

 

The news was earth shattering.  “The One whom you seek is not here.  He is risen, just as he said.” 

 

At Christmas, God became flesh and walked among us; at Calvary our sin was dealt with; at the Resurrection, death, the last enemy, was conquered.

 

A young Christian in the early church stood before a Roman magistrate, who said, “I sentence you to death for your faith in Jesus Christ, the Nazarene!” The man staunchly replied, “Sir! Death is dead! So you cannot frighten me!”

 

Without Easter this is a dark, dark world. With Easter, hope bursts forward with every blossom of springtime. Easter is a time to pump our fists in the air and say, “Yes!”

 

Christ is risen!  Christ is risen, indeed!

 

Dennis.