“You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised.”
Today we celebrate Easter, the resurrection of the Messiah, which many consider the greatest event in our history.
It changed the world; it’s one of the main reasons Christianity, a religion younger than Hinduism, Buddhism and others, has become the world’s dominant faith, with nearly a third of the global population as adherents.
Other prophets came before Jesus, and others have come since. Others have had eloquent and inspirational messages. The story of Jesus Christ is more than that, and the reason for that is celebrated today.
Christ’s resurrection from the dead is unique, and it’s inspirational on many levels.
Traditional religions present a divine godhead that essentially acts as a supervisor. Followers are given instructions to follow if they seek to win the gods’ favor or reach a paradise in the afterlife. Those who failed often were condemned to a lesser fate.
The story of Jesus, of God become Man, at once showed the people that the godhead was attentive to their plight, and came both to reassure them and set an example.
“For God so loved the world that he sent his only son, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. For God did not send his son to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.”
Scholars have substantiated biblical translations in which Jesus alternately referred to himself both as the son of God, affirming his divinity, and as the son of man, affirming his humanity.
And although he was without sin, he suffered condemnation and execution, to share the trials of the people, “to give his life as a ransom for many.”
That sacrifice is made stronger through the resurrection, a victory over death that both proves Christ’s divinity and offers his followers hope that like him, they can achieve ultimate redemption, even after falling into sin.
“You will see the son of man seated at the right hand of the power and coming on the clouds of heaven,” he told the high priest during his trial.
The promise that something better awaits, that we might share in the Savior’s own divinity, can provide hope and solace at a time when angst and unrest seem to dominate the current social fabric. Recent public opinion polls reveal widespread feelings of anger, frustration and even depression. Increasing numbers of people express pessimism about the future — not only their own, but fears that future generations won’t live better, or even as well, as previous generations did. That lack of hope is both unusual and alarming.
The message of Easter can renew that hope, a hope that we can achieve our own redemption and overcome even the worst tribulations. Like he Messiah overcame death itself, we are told we can overcome our own troubles and achieve ultimate happiness that can last for eternity.
Easter is said to validate the Messiah’s story, giving all sons and daughters of men reason to hope that we might join him among those clouds.
What a wonderful message for these troubled times!
We wish everyone a blessed, and hopeful, Easter.
