Resurrection Day

But there are some days that are special, and we look forward to them.

Let me mention four days on our calendar that I personally consider special.

• Mother’s Day

• Father’s Day

• Christmas

• Easter

Christmas and Easter are the only two religious holiday’s days we have on our calendars.

The popular belief is that Christ was crucified on a Friday and rose on a Sunday. But neither of these suppositions is supported by the biblical record.

BUT LET ME ASK YOU A QUESTION…why are today's Christian holidays observed with so many rituals and customs that are not mentioned or sanctioned anywhere in the SCRIPTURES?

For example:

• What does a Christmas trees and Christmas lights on our homes have anything to do with the Lord’s birth. NOT A THING!

It is just a custom in how we celebrate Christmas.

• What does colored eggs and have to do with the resurrection? NOT A THING!

It is just a custom in how we celebrate Easter.

We need to ask ourselves why today’s Christian holidays are observed with so many rituals and customs that are not mentioned or sanctioned anywhere in the Bible.

I THINK I KNOW WHY!

I believe it is because the RESURRECTION OF CHRIST is so important to us that the devil wants us to get so caught up in RITUTALS AND CUSTOMS that we will not concentrate on THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.

Can we find any historical or biblical record of His disciples keeping Easter as a special day we are to celebrate?

No!

Instead of celebrating Easter, they kept the Passover, instituted by God centuries earlier at the time of the Exodus when God’s people were in bondage and the blood on the door post saved every first born. (Exodus 12:13-14; Leviticus 23:5)

These two Christian holidays the devil has been successful in taking the spotlight off of Christ.

(1) In Christmas Christ has been replaced by Santa Claus and Rudolph the red nose reindeer being in the spotlight. WHAT A SHAME!

(2) In Easter Christ has been replaced by the ritual of Easter eggs and Easter clothes. WHAT A SHAME!

And we wonder why our boys and girls do not know anything about the Lord Jesus!

HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

By replacing the Word of God that tells us of HIS BIRTH and HIS RESURRECTION!

There is a real DANGER we Christians need

to beware of!

WHAT IS THE DANGER?

The danger is that anytime we are constantly exposed to something, THE EXCITEMENT WEARS OFF!

Illus: When I was a child I could hardly wait for Christmas to come. But after eighty-two years of celebrating Christmas, I am no longer excited about Christmas like I use to be as a child.

THE EXCITEMENT WEARS OFF!

Illus: For example, most of us like ice cream. In fact, some of us love ice cream.

However, as much as we all enjoy ice cream, did you know that if we ate ice cream every day, three times a day, seven days a week, three hundred sixty-five days a year, the thrill of eating ice cream would soon wear off eventually?

When we are constantly exposed to something, the EXCITEMENT WEARS OFF EVENTUALLY!

Illus: That is the reason playing sports and GOING HUNTING, FISHING AND GOLFING is so much fun. We do these things every now and then not every day.

But if we were exposed to these things every day of our lives, the EXCITEMENT WOULD EVENTUALLY WEAR OFF.

I am glad that we have such a day as this set aside every twelve months that we can celebrate the RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.

Let us forget about all the CUSTOMS and RITUALS of mankind for Easter and look into the word of God that talks about the RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.

Let me show you several things in Psalm 22, so that the gospel of the Lord Jesus might become fresh to us again.

Psalm 22 is a wonderful chapter about the crucifixion and the RESURRCTION.

When you examine this chapter closely, you will see that Christ, as He goes through this very dark time in His life, He sees the resurrection hope at the end of this chapter.

Illus: My wife and I have two Chihuahua puppies, and they are very entertaining. The other day one of them gave my wife a very strange look and my wife said to me, WONDER WHAT SHE IS THINKING. I told her I had no Idea.

I am certainly not a MIND READER, and I certainly cannot read the mind of dogs.

But let me ask you something, when Christ was hanging on the cross paying the price for our sins what do you reckon was on His mind.

Illus: There is a song that states, WHEN HE WAS ON THE CROSS WE WERE ON HIS MIND.