He Is Not Here. He Is Risen!

He is not Here. He is Risen

Luke 24:1-11

It’s Easter time again. And again we are challenged with what Easter is all about. In some circles, robed choirs, priests and congregations go through the prescribed Easter ritual, some of which goes back nearly two thousand years. I have found Easter services such at that held at Westminster Abbey to be inspiring. the great hymns of the faith are sung. there is the sound of royal trumpeters, and the thunder of the pipe organ is heard. The canonical Easter texts are read. there seems to be a sense of joy on people’s faces. It is a splendid show. If you want great theater, you will find it among the Brits. Yet, under the surface, something is terribly wrong. British society is badly fractured. One rank of society is set against another. Inflation is rampant. there is war mongering going on. One wonders is the Empire of which was said the sun never is setting for good. is the day coming that the sun will no longer rise on the British Empire anywhere again.

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Now, I don’t want to single out the British here. there are many other places in this world where a good Easter show will be had, including here in America. America, like the UK, once called itself a “”Christian nation.” One can argue from the past how “Christian” Christian” is, but the rejection of the Christian faith is becoming rampant in this country. Christians here face the true prospects today of severe persecution. So it behooves the remnant here to understand what the message of Easter.

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The first thing we must come to grips is that Easter is really a poor name for this Sunday, The name itself comes after the goddess Astarte (Asherah) which is a pagan fertility goddess. The pagan roots of Easter go far before the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Some of the “innocent” tokens of this holiday represented the fertility of the earth by rabbits and colored eggs. Parts of these rites of spring were R and even X rated. The Bible does not look favorably upon the rites of Baal and Asherah. Yet when the Roman Empire became “Christian,” the more innocent practices of the ancient Pagan Easter practices were incorporated into the Church. There was some degree of good intention by those in the church who tried to incorporate these practice as a means of analogy to teach the newly “converted” Christians to understand what the Christian Easter was all about. the idea of new life from the old festival is compared to the new life of the Christian. But the message “He is Risen” is much more profound than this.

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Along with the good theater of the Easter service, the churches often have Easter egg hunts for the children. The good intention is to attract the young people to come to church with their parents. It is hoped that these would be drawn into the life of the Church and the profession of faith in Jesus Christ. I can’t say that this does not happen on occasion, but in my career as a pastor, I cannot name a single person who came to Christ and the Church because of an Easter egg hunt. The message of “He is risen” does not penetrate the surface of our rituals.

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It’s Easter time again. It is time for the “Chreaster” Christians to make their semi-annual pilgrimage to church. Christmas and Easter are often the only two days that they come to church at all. Even this is dwindling rapidly. More will come to the Christmas play or the Christmas Eve service. It is easier to deal with a baby in a manger than with the risen Christ who will judge the living and the dead. There is a big difference between Jesus as an infant, God in the hands and care of people than people in the hands of the judge of all. The audience which Paul preached to at Mars Hill listened until he told them that Anastasia was not the female consort of Jesus but a historical event in which Jesus rose from the dead. the fact that this resurrection qualified Jesus to be their judge was more than they could stand.

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Our pageant of our Easter service rightly proclaims that Jesus rose from the dead, but soft pedals His right to judge the living and the dead. There is certain hope for the Christian because of the resurrection of Jesus. But there is certain condemnation of those who are not, unless they repent. It should make everyone more serious about the Resurrection. It is no casual holiday.

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It’s Easter time again. And if our theater is insufficient without faith to save us, even though the Gospel accounts of the Resurrection of Jesus are read, theologically appropriate hymns sung, and artistically beautiful worship are not sufficient, then where do other views about Easter stand? First of all, one must believe in the historical and bodily resurrection of Jesus. There are some who hold to some “spiritual” resurrection of Jesus such as “Jesus lives in my heart.” But while there is symbolic value to the resurrection, we must also remember that Mary Magdalene grasped the feet of the bodily resurrected Jesus. Jesus invited the eleven to grope Him and even ate food in their presence. He was not a phantom.