Sunday, March 30, 1997 In Your Absence:
Have you ever wished that you could somehow magically get back a day or two from your life, as though they had never happened? This week's lesson, which came from Matthew 28:1-10, 16-20 and examined the events of the first Easter morning, focused on this very thing, first as those days pertained to the disciples and then according to how they affected the devil. At various times during that first Easter weekend, both of these entities had wished that the events of the weekend had never happened. Yet, the truth is that they did happen, and because they did, we can have victory over sin and the grave. The events of the first Easter were truly tragic and horrendous, but it has been around those very events that Jesus has built His Church. On what we now call Good Friday, our Lord was humiliated, scourged, rejected, and crucified. Because these events happened almost two thousand years ago, we sometimes minimize the agony of the ordeal, but lest we forget, let us always remember that the cat-of-nine-tails, with which He was beaten, was real. As those fragments of rock, metal, and glass dug into His skin, His pain must have been tremendous. When they nailed Him to the cross, the nails were real, and when He took His last breath, He really died! Let us never forget these things, but at the same time, let us also always rejoice that our Lord loved us enough to endure that agony for us.
I have often heard theologians comment about how the devil must have felt as he viewed Christ on the cross at Calvary. Some have said that he was probably upset because He knew that Jesus on the cross would ultimately spell his own doom. Others have said that the devil was probably dancing with joy, thinking that he had finally beaten the God of Creation. While I tend to side with the latter, we can rejoice that the weekend did not end very well for the devil, regardless of how he may or may not have felt on Good Friday. Calvary and the first Easter marked the end for Satan, and since then, he has been a defeated adversary. For the disciples, this particular weekend also had tremendous significance. They had walked with and followed Jesus for three years. He had been their spiritual Leader. They had been dependent upon Him, and suddenly, He was gone! Frightened and confused, they did what all of us, or at least most of us, would have probably done. They hid and started to ask why these horrible things were happening to them. Their weekend did not start very well, but before it would end, they would discover that they were the real victors. When the discovery of Christ's resurrection was made, what a wondrous time that must have been! Today, we do not rejoice that Jesus died, but we do rejoice that He arose from the grave, won our victory, and proved to the world that He was and is Whom He said He was.
Two thousand years later, the battle still goes on, even though the outcome was settled so long ago. Now, the devil tries to convince the "advanced" minds of our Age that the resurrection is nothing more than a hoax, that a bunch of dumb fishermen got together and tried to turn their slain leader into a bigger-than-life, world hero. If you ever look at all the facts, however, which sad to say most people never do, you will quickly discover that the devil really does not have much of a case. But none of that matters right now, because today, we celebrate Easter and the resurrection of our Lord. Let us put aside the concern that we have for our own troubles, and instead, do what our Lord would have us to do. Let us tell everyone that we see what we have, and what they can have, in Jesus, the Christ. Easter started out very sadly for those who had followed Christ, but it ended with great victory for all of those who have and will put their trust in Him. Therefore, let us rejoice because our Savior truly lives! Make it your goal to serve Him as you go through this week, and be sure to tell others what He has done for you. Thank you, and I hope to see you in class soon.
Tom of Spotswood"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (I John 5:12)
"And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13)
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