He is risen, and that is glorious to behold

He is Risen. He is Risen indeed! The traditional call and response on easter is a wonderful declaration, one that always fires me up. He is Risen, He is Risen indeed! THis is the message that the gospel writers proclaimed, that the early church proclaimed, and that we still proclaim even to this day. He is RISEN! He is Risen indeed!

 

As we come to Easter, the declaration that He is Risen is a glorious, wonderful, awesome, overpowering thing to behold. It is an amazing truth that should grip our heart and warm us from the inside out because it says with a grand pronouncement, He has accomplished everything, because we could accomplish nothing, and we have to accomplish nothing, because he accomplished everything. It says, grace has been poured out on us, and declares that, as John Bunyan wrote “He wrestled with justice, that thou mightest have rest; He wept and mourned, that thou mightest laugh and rejoice; He was betrayed, that thou mightest go free; was apprehended, that thou mightest escape; He was condemned, that thou mightest be justified; and was killed, that thou mightest live; He wore a crown of thorns, that thou mightest wear a crown of glory; and was nailed to the cross, with His arms wide open, to show with what freeness all His merits shall be bestowed on the coming soul; and how heartily He will receive it into His bosom?”. Easter is glorious, because it is news that he accomplished everything he said he would , and while we may face pain, and tragedy, and suffering in this life, our sufferings are but for a time, our illnesses aren’t final, and in the end, as the apostle Paul wrote some 20years after the resurrection “we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed-- in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory." "Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?"The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:50-57).

 

As we gather together this easter season for worship on, lets celebrate Chrsit’s glorious work with Joy, and lets come preparerd to worship our risen savior, because he has shown great love for us. Lets invite our friends, and our families to gather and celebrate the joy that this brings, because it is finished! Christ, the resurrection and the life, is risen, and the result is that “He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die (John 11:25-26).