At the time this article is being published, it is the day after Easter. Easter is my favorite day of the year, and arguably should be so for all followers of Jesus. Certainly Christmas is important. If Christ had never been born, He could never have died, and therefore never have risen again to defeat death and save us all. But the last part – rising again and defeating death – is the entire reason we follow Him. Plenty of important and influential men have been born throughout history. Some have even died standing up for that which they believed. But only one ever rose from the dead.
This is why Easter is such an amazing day. “Once in a lifetime” is a phrase that is overused these days, but not only was the resurrection of Jesus a true “once in a lifetime” experience, it was also a “once in all of history” experience! We were destined to spend eternity separated from our Creator, destined to never realize our potential, and destined to suffer untold agony. But the resurrection of Jesus changed all of that. When He conquered death, He provided an alternative to our once dismal destiny.
The love of Jesus is overwhelming, so much so that most of us cannot manage to contemplate it for an extended period of time. No one else has ever died for me. No one else has ever willingly allowed themselves to be tortured just so I would not have to endure the same. No one has ever loved me while unequivocally overlooking every ridiculously wicked thing I have done in my life. No matter what I do, Jesus just keeps on loving me. He won’t let me go, and He won’t send me away.
Without Easter morning, there would be no hope. None. Think about that. What if you had to wake up every morning realizing there was no meaning or purpose to your life. What if we were indeed just a higher class of animal destined to live our lives simply for survival, and then vanish into nothingness? What a devastatingly depressing picture! Eat, sleep, die; what a life! But Jesus came that we might have an abundant and joyous life (John 10:10). His resurrection means death has no power over us (1 Corinthians 15:55-57). We were created for a purpose (Ephesians 2:10), so by God’s amazing grace, we have a reason to live!
Easter isn’t just about the resurrection of Christ; it’s about His gift of life to all who choose to follow Him. No one else can offer eternal meaning, purpose, and life. Only Jesus can provide these for you. No one else has ever defeated death. Some may momentarily cheat death, but only Christ has permanently defeated it. We celebrate Easter once each year, but it should really be both the culmination of celebrating for the past year, and the kick off for celebrating in the year to come. Don’t let the excitement and wonder of Easter fade simply because the calendar has changed. Celebrate the love, purpose, and message of Jesus every day of your life!