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April has come, and Easter is coming…. This is the ideal time to consider, again, the magnitude of what Christ has done, and done for us. Christ’s death and resurrection means that by faith, we are freed from our old life of sin and death and walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4). Our celebration of Easter is a reminder to us that our loving Lord died for us so that we may live with Him in eternity; and it is a proclamation to the world that Christianity is not merely out of the ordinary, it is extraordinary. God taking on flesh to live among us, dying to pay for our sins, and then being resurrected to return to heaven to await the arrival of the saints.
There are limitless aspects to the events commemorated on Easter weekend. There are two, though, that I find particularly compelling. The first is the unfathomable power of the resurrection. Death is unavoidable, irrevocable, and irreversible in this fallen world. But the Bible tells us that God—and God alone—has the power to overcome death, to reverse it. There are a few instances in the Old Testament where we see prophets raise someone who has died by the power of the LORD. Christ, when He walked on earth as God Incarnate, raised some victims of death back to life. And then. Christ Himself—the Creator and Sustainer of the universe—died on behalf of mankind and then was raised in power and glory. The plot of the story is so familiar that we often do not give it much attention. But we would do well to take time to consider the absolutely incomprehensible power represented by the resurrection.
The second aspect of Easter weekend that I find helpful to ponder is that the death and resurrection of Christ signifies and signals that He has made a way for newness of life for those who would believe in Him. And the newness of life that He offers is characterized by the same resurrecting power that raised Jesus (and others) from the dead. Believers have an abiding relationship with the indwelling Holy Spirit. We have resurrection power within us, to strengthen us (Ephesians 3:16-20), and to equip and empower us to minister in the name of Christ (Colossians 1:28-29)!
There is a common denominator of these two aspects of Easter weekend: both demonstrate conclusively that God is God and we are not! Only God has resurrection power. Christ died and rose to do for us what we could not do for ourselves—restore our relationship with holy and glorious Godhead. We now have resurrection power, by the Holy Spirit, to minister in the name of Christ. And we look forward to our own resurrection, again by the power and grace of God. Christ has done—and is doing—what we cannot do for ourselves.
But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves. II Corinthians 4:7.
