EASTER: DAY 47

SCRIPTURE READING - DAY 47 (Easter Sunday)
WHY DO YOU LOOK FOR THE LIVING AMONG THE DEAD? HE IS NOT HERE; HE HAS RISEN!

Colossians 2:13-15

You were dead because of your sins and
because your sinful nature was not yet
cut away. Then God made you alive with
Christ, for he forgave all our sins.

He canceled the record of the charges
against us and took it away by nailing
it to the cross. In this way, he disarmed
the spiritual rulers and authorities.
He shamed them publicly by his victory
over them on the cross. (NLT)


MEDITATION by Connie Kennemer


A stunning poem, Jesus of the Scars, written by Edward Shillito, has both haunted me and helped me. As the Lenten Season reaches its climax today, two lines of this fine work capture the mystery and the marvel of the resurrection:

The other gods were strong, but Thou wast weak; They rode, but Thou didst stumble to a throne... (emphasis added)

And stumble, he did. This was anything but a coronation scene.

As a child raised in church, I was uncomfortable with the crucifixion and all the gore it entailed. Ashamed to say it, I just didn’t have the stomach for it. The resurrection represented God’s victory over sin through the death of his Son and I believed that. But for years, I struggled to embrace the cruel period between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

If we were privy to the conversations of those who walked with Jesus—disciples, friends, family, his mother—might we not hear strained emotions that match our own? I think so. If this was the greatest spiritual victory in the history of the world, few saw it coming. Good Friday was coronation covered and victory veiled.

Four years ago, my husband and I lost our only son, Todd, to suicide after his brave and belittling battle with bipolar disorder. Rex and I were shocked and confused. I wonder if Jesus’ followers found themselves in a similar state of shock following the crucifixion. I get their panic reaction. I wanted to bolt—to run—as well. And I, too, detected no immediate evidence of God at work. I saw what everyone else saw: defeat and despair.

But three days in the grave changed everything! God lives beyond time and calendars. Three days were enough to shame Satan and remind him that he is no match and no threat to Almighty God.

Todd’s death is still our greatest and deepest wound…but we are inching past the “three days.” Our current reality painfully speaks of new life and weaves threads of redemption. We continue to see traces of Todd’s legacy in the lives of those we influence, grieve with, and mentor in this peculiar place full of broken minds and broken hearts. Few here see hope on the horizon. Fewer still know that victory has already been secured and the enemy defeated.

As followers of Christ we all live with the wounds, the thorns, and the stripes of sin’s curse. But we are also living on the other side of Good Friday.

Today is Resurrection Sunday and we are compelled to proclaim publicly—it is finished. He is risen! He is risen, indeed!


REFLECTION


Where in your experience have God’s ways been shrouded?


How has the Holy Spirit revealed his presence in life’s chaos?


Take time today to celebrate and commemorate Jesus’ conquest over sin’s curse.