Easter Sunday Hallelujah – Christ Is risen, He is risen indeed!

12 April 2020

Now let us pray together

Now we listen to the Easter Story as recorded in Mark’s gospel.

He has risen! Since the creation of the world, there has never been another event as important as the rising of Christ from the dead. If Christ had not risen from the dead, there would be no Christians, no Christianity, our faith would be futile. Because by rising from the dead Jesus gave final and absolute proof that he really was God’s One and Only Son. No one else has claimed and then achieved rising from the dead. God himself came to earth and overcame the last enemy, death, and showed us the way to heaven.

Some may try and say that Christ rising from the death is a myth. However they are wrong. Jesus resurrection is a fact of history. We see this from a number of proofs.
Isaiah prophesied hundreds of years before, that the Messiah, Jesus, would die on a cross and for good reason. Not for his own wrongdoing “But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.”

• First, the tomb was empty. No one denies this, if Jesus did not rise from the dead, where was his body. The disciples had run off and were now hiding in fear, they were hardly bold enough to steal the body. Guards were in place to stop any one interfering with the tomb. The Jewish leaders could easily have put a stop to any rumours of Jesus rising from the dead, by simply producing the body. But they could not, because he had risen.
• Second, he appeared to many after his resurrection, first to Mary at the tomb, to two disciples on the road to Emmaus, then to a large group cowering in the Upper Room, and finally to about five hundred at the same time.
• Third, we note the remarkable change brought about in the disciples, from fear and keeping themselves locked away from everyone else in the Upper Room, to a group that would speak with boldness on the day of Pentecost.

Consider, Gods love for us is so great that, if there was only me that had done wrong, Jesus would have still gone through the same suffering to achieve my forgiveness.

The equation puts it simply, but is true : 1 cross + 3 nails = 4given

Through Jesus death on the cross, and his sacrifice alone, can we know forgiveness.

Through Jesus over coming death, and his rising to life, can we know eternal life.

We can never be good enough, no matter how hard we try; no matter what we do, to deserve God’s forgiveness and eternal life. As Paul wrote to the Ephesians ‘For it is by grace that you have been saved, through faith - and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God - not by works, so that no-one can boast.’

We note Jesus’ salutary words to his disciples in verse 14 of today’s passage where we read that ‘he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.’ and pray that he can not say that of us.

Grace, described as Peter has already put at the beginning of our Holy Week devotions, Gods Riches At Christ’s Expense.

What an amazing God we serve! What else can we do but fall on our knees and worship, and give him our full unlimited devotion!

Please take a few moments in silence to meditate on these words.

An Easter Blessing

May the God who raised Jesus from the dead grant you peace, purpose and his presence this Easter tide.

In Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen