All that is left for me to say is have a wonderful Easter. While for many Easter is a day of chocolate for breakfast and egg hunts in the back garden, let's not forget the greatest miracle of Jesus, and what it means for us today. It really can bring joy, and peace to our hearts, and minds.
The Easter story explains the ascension of Jesus into heaven, when Jesus was reunited with his father and creator.
Easter Sunday comes after Good Friday, the day when Jesus was horrifically and unfairly crucified by roman cavalry under the orders of emperor Pontius Pilate.
Easter Sunday is the day Jesus Christ rose from the dead. This day is the most significant in the Church’s calendar, as it is believed that Christ rose three days after his crucifiction in 30AD, and ascended into heaven to be with God. Easter Sunday is the day we find out how much a liar death is. The lie that the final breath is the end, there is nothing more. The lie that we will always be separated from those we have loved, ultimately losing those we love forever.
Tragically we all know the finality of the death of a friend or family member. When something special happens our instinct is immediately to tell them, to call them. Then we remember. They’re not here.
Of course death matters. It is brutal, terrible and cruel. But it lies when it claims to be the final word.
Easter calls time on the lie. The women in Mark’s gospel had believed the lie – going to the tomb to anoint a dead body. Yet all their fears were based on a false assumption about the power of death and an inadequate understanding of the power of God. Instead, right there in the grave were signs of resurrection. The action of God was revealed through angels who greeted them, reassured them, and told them that Jesus of Nazareth had been raised.
Jesus, crucified and risen, and alive today, brings life and hope. The joy and purpose He gave to the disciples is exactly the same as is offered to us today. We are each and all invited to accept that new reality, welcoming the living dynamic presence of God into our lives - allowing the one who conquers the greatest lie to give us the greatest life.
The miracle is hard to comprehend - perhaps harder for adults to comprehend than children. As adults, we spend too much time focusing on the peripheral points of "How could it have happened? It's impossible?" And in difficult times we can face God with anger, asking why he doesn't stop the atrocities around the world, for example the War in Eastern Europe and Russia. At times like this we have to let go of our day-to-day thoughts, and trust that God does have a plan for each one of us, and that He is with us every step of the way of that plan.
May I wish you all a blessed, relaxed and mindful Easter, and may I leave you with a quote from one of my favourite Easter Hymns Thine be The Glory....
"For the Lord now liveth, death has lost its sting...."
