Easter Brings New Life!

Easter Brings New Life!
by
April 16, 2025

Palm Sunday began the greatest week of the year for Christians – Holy Week. We will have a dinner on Thursday at 5:30 PM followed by a Maundy Thursday service at 6:30 PM in the chapel. We will have a special Good Friday service at noon in the sanctuary focused on the seven last words of Christ. Mike Glenn, Rubel Shelley, and Adam Neder will be our guests this year.

Jesus’ decision to enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey fulfilled Zechariah’s prophecy and was an emphatic statement of who he was – he was the messiah. But his kingdom and his message were very different. It was one of peace and not war. One of love and not conquest. One of hope and not fear. One of faith and not despair. One of compassion and not self-interest. We can learn a lot about Jesus during his final days on earth.

Jesus entered Jerusalem in peace. His message was a message of peace. His kingdom was a kingdom of peace. His life was a life of peace. His way was and still is the way of peace. And yet we still live in a violent and hostile world with mass shootings, war, crime, anger, hate, resentment, and violence. Palm Sunday reminds us that Jesus came to save us. The crowd on the roads shouted, “Hosanna” as he passed, which literally means “Save us now!” But how does Jesus save us?

Yes, he died brutally on a cross from Roman crucifixion, and there are many different theories of the atonement debated by theologians and scholars. Many will ask, “Was his death divine necessity or human inevitability?” Put differently, did God send Jesus to die, or did God send Jesus to love, and the powers executed him because they believed he was a threat? Theology is never quite as simple as it may seem.

If we reflect upon his life and ministry, we quickly recognize specific ways that he continues to save us. If we listen and learn, he saves us from our selfishness, materialism, jealousy, lust, meaninglessness, judgment, self-righteousness, anger, addictions, arrogance, fear, and hopelessness. Many in our culture struggle mightily. Life is hard and often unfair. Addiction is real. Poverty exists. Suicides happen. Anxiety is present. Patience is short. Tempers flare. Many feel lost, lonely, and disconnected from others. Research now shows that friendships are down. People hide behind screens. What sustains us during the trying times of life is a strong sense of faith and hope: faith that we will make it through challenging times and hope that better days lie ahead. Faith and hope will always go together because they are interdependent.

Hebrews 11 says, “Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” At the heart of Christianity is a steadfast belief in resurrection and new life, and not just on the other side of death. As we look around, we can see resurrection taking place. Flowers budding. Birds singing. Forgiveness happening. Wars hopefully ending. Relationships reconciled. New beginnings.

A friend of mine once put it this way: “Resurrection is all around us. Every day there is resurrection. Daily there are moments when life breaks through. Maybe we can’t explain it or predict it or schedule it, but if we have eyes to see and hearts to feel, it is there. Awe. Wonder. Joy. It’s in the eyes of someone you love. It’s in the human stories of love triumphing over hate. It’s in the presence of God enduring with us when we go through some of our little moments of dying.” (Scott Colglazier – Finding A Faith That Makes Sense).

The author Frederick Buechner was once asked if he had been born again. His response was both brilliant and poignant: “Let me tell you something, I have been born again and again and again.” As we enter Holy Week and journey towards Easter, may we all make a conscious decision to rise above whatever holds us back, keeps us captive, and beats us down.

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