I was in a store this past week and saw the greeting card display filled with hundreds of Easter cards. I noticed that there were bunches and bunches of them that proclaimed in large letters, "Happy Easter". Happy Easter, really? As I thought about that I wondered how many of those who would receive those cards, would think about the fact that they can say that because someone died. This is a time traditionally that folks dress up in their finest clothes, plan family gatherings, have special family meals, give candy and colored eggs to the children. All of this is done because of tradition. That's not a bad thing, but we need to stay focused on what is really important too.
Now I understand that Easter isn't a celebration of the death of Christ. That's not a problem for me, but then again we wouldn't have the ability to find anything happy about this particular time of the year, if it hadn't been for him first dying.
As Christians we should understand that this time which the world calls "Easter" is the culmination of the plan of God. Yes, it is a time celebration, at time of rejoicing, a time to be happy. But happy because of the promise fulfilled of the death, burial and resurrection of God's Son, Jesus Christ!
If you want to know what Easter is really about, then read what the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:1-3, "Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures." (NIV)
Then in 1 Corinthians 15:13-17, "For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless, and your faith is useless. And we apostles would all be lying about God, for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can't be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sin." (NLT)
Happy Easter? Yes, but we should be shouting Halleluiah rather than just saying we're happy! Because it is through the resurrection of Christ Jesus, that we have our hope of eternal life. It is the fulfillment of the first prophecy made in Genesis 3:15 about the hope of man and the defeat of Satan. The empty tomb cries out to the world that God has kept his promise, Christ has risen and we will be also!
