Easter People

He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay.
(Matthew 28:6)

"Christ is Risen, He is Risen Indeed!" This well-known Christian saying celebrates the restoration of Jesus from the grave. After His crucifixion and burial, Christ rose from the dead in three days just as He foretold. Even so, His disciples were amazed by the miracle of Jesus's resurrection to fulfill His prophecy of defeating death and assuring our salvation through faith in Him. "He Is Risen" is the declaration that while Jesus sacrificed Himself for our sins, He lives now and forever as the Son of God.

As Lutherans we describe ourselves as “Easter people” What this means is that we live as true and sincere Christians, living like Easter makes a difference in our lives.  Our faith in Jesus Crucified and Risen is be lived by imitating Jesus in daily life by the way we speak, think and act. Living in Jesus means we dare to live in defiance of what death may yet do to us. Death is not the end; instead, the end is the beginning with the one who bears the marks of his death on his risen, living body. 

 Throughout the calendar year of the church we read from the birth story of Jesus through his death and resurrection.  These stories are like “book ends” to the Christian life.  From our early lives we hear about the acts and actions of Jesus and the apostles and throughout our lives we are reminded of the death and resurrection of Jesus in a passion we cannot forget.  Even though Lent is over and  “new life”  in the resurrection is in front of our minds let us not forget the costs of this new life. 

Now we dwell in the weeks prior to Pentecost. Yes, we keep looking forward to the next event in the Christian year. Jesus has risen from the dead; in the coming weeks, as we hear in the Gospel stories, he will appear to many people. Those who believe in him will understand that he has conquered death. Jesus will tell them that he’s leaving again but will send the Advocate, the Holy Spirit. So those who love and follow him live in tension still; of course, they want him to stay, forever.

Let us prepare for the next season of the church by watching the Holy Spirit work in our lives during this Easter Season.  We are the Body of Christ. This is not merely a nice metaphor; it speaks a reality by which we live as Easter people. Jesus now is with us, within us. He is also outside us, in others—we meet him especially in those who need our love, those we can feed, clothe, visit, heal, forgive, and love.

Jesus is not somewhere else. Christ is everywhere—through him all creation holds together. He lives and breathes through his body, the Church.  Let us live as a people, all parts of Christ’s Body working together toward a single purpose: love.  He is Risen…. He is risen indeed!  AMEN !