Where did Easter find us? At a church convention, maybe? Or visiting families in our hometown?
Perhaps at the Kwahu Business Forum, paragliding at Atibie, and sampling every pleasure on the mountain?
Possibly Easter found us checking out at the up-and-coming Gomoa festivities, swimming in the Atlantic Ocean, and chilling out on the sandy beaches.
Or maybe we whiled away the long holiday at home watching TV and being carried away on TikTok.
Probably, we had no choice but to be at work in order to rake in some Cedis.
Be that as it may, Easter found us somewhere.
So, now that it is all over, what do we remember?
What memories did we come away with?
If Easter was like a holiday to us, then most likely, we returned with holiday hangovers.
Love for humanity
But Easter is not a holiday; it is a special commemoration of God’s most gracious demonstration of love toward humanity.
Consequently, Easter, being a daily, lifelong walk with the Lord, will forever remain special due to the marvellous and delightful nature of the events.
We describe the happenings as “delightful” because of the outcomes, but the actions leading to Easter were not delightful at all.
Starting from the Passion Week, the Lord Jesus underwent humiliating trials, betrayal, denial, and severe hardships that culminated in his brutal crucifixion.
Personally, ever since I encountered Easter, I’ve known it to be a never-ending lifestyle, not just an event to celebrate and then forgotten about until next year.
As a lifestyle, therefore, Easter is a daily experience never to be overlooked.
So, what memories of Easter did I come away with?
For me, two occurrences and two statements surrounding Christ engaged my thoughts throughout the season, and I emerged from Easter carrying them in my heart.
Temple curtain torn
Let me start with what happened in the temple the moment Jesus died on the cross.
Matthew, Mark, and Luke report that the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom.
This information was delivered in just one short sentence, yet its significance is immeasurable: “The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom,” reports Mark (15:38). “From top” means God himself did the tearing!
Here is how one theologian captured the significance: “The heavy curtain separated the Holy of Holies, which only the High Priest could enter once a year. Its tearing meant all people could now access God.”
Amazing! Because Christ died for us, we can approach God unhindered.
That is why, from your bedroom, under a tree, on a hill somewhere, kneeling or standing, in reverence, we can reach God and he can reach out to us.
This is awesome.
Empty tomb
The Jewish leaders who had Christ crucified feared what might happen on the third day, so they got permission from Governor Pilate to secure the tomb with the Roman seal and post soldiers there.
But that could not stop the resurrection from happening.
“God raised Jesus from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him” (Acts 2:24).
By the time the angel rolled away the stone and sat on it, Jesus had already risen and left the tomb.
The angel rolled away the stone to allow the women and the disciples to enter and verify.
So, an empty tomb is there to prove that our Saviour lives.
Father, forgive them!
Of all the seven statements Jesus made while suffering on the cross, I want to acknowledge two.
First, Jesus forgave his killers, saying: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).
If we were to learn to forgive one another wherever we are, there would be peace in our own hearts and in society.
True, it is painful when people hurt us, making it difficult to forgive them; but when Jesus forgave those who were crucifying him, he was hurting and bleeding to death.
Hence, he taught us to pray, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.”
‘It is finished’
Just before he bowed in death, Jesus proclaimed, “It is finished!” I think that this declaration was the most potent because it signified mission accomplished.
The work of salvation was completed.
There is no more condemnation for those who are in Christ.
The purpose for which the Son of God was revealed was to destroy the work of Satan, and this was accomplished.
We can rejoice that our Saviour went all the way to Calvary and secured for us the gift of eternal life.
Now, we have a new birth into a living hope because Christ accomplished his mission.
If we brought these truths from Easter, we can celebrate them all year round as a lifestyle, not as an event to be forgotten.
