A Message for Easter

RON HAMILTON, CONFERENCE MINISTER

There are many stories of the resurrection of our Lord Jesus in the Bible. One of my favorites is found in the Book of Luke when the women went to the tomb to anoint the dead body of Jesus.

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” Then they remembered his words. (Luke 24:1-8)

The question that the angels asked the women is profound, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” The journey to the tomb seemed logical. They witnessed Jesus dying on the cross. They followed Joseph of Arimathea to the tomb where Jesus was laid. But what they discovered was beyond reason or imagination. The stone was rolled away, and the tomb was empty. They were looking for answers in the wrong place. This is a typical human response that characterizes our generation. People are looking for answers in the wrong places. The problems that we face are
difficult and complex. But the answers are not found in the recycled solutions of human reasoning. God has provided an eternal answer in the resurrected Lord. Jesus broke the cycle of death and despair and lives forever at the right hand of God. Easter is a season for us to share this with a broken world in search of hope and help. “Turn your eyes upon Jesus!”