EASTER SUNDAY: Even Better Than the Super Bowl
There is a saying that Easter Sunday is the equivalent of the “Super Bowl Sunday” of the Church. I understand the sentiment of the phrase, after all churches are full on Easter Sunday, and it is a time when even the most nominal of Christians will find a congregation with which to worship and gather as likeminded people of faith. For ministry leaders, Easter can be a day filled with extra stress and pressure to make everything perfect and beautiful. We want our songs to ring louder, we want our sanctuaries to look brighter, and we want the message to be even more inspiring than it normally would be. All of this is fine of course, understanding God always deserves our best efforts at praise.
However, there is something about the pageantry and fanfare we seek to emulate on Easter that seems to be missing from the biblical account. When the day of Resurrection happened over 2000 years ago, there were a couple of guards, a couple of women, an angel, and an empty tomb. Most, if not all, of the disciples were in hiding, afraid of what might happen to them, and those who had demanded and ordered the death of Jesus were busy making other plans. The first Easter as recorded in the gospel accounts is strikingly simple. In the Gospel of Mark, the story ends abruptly and with wonder: “they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.” Of course we know there is more to the story and the testimony of Scripture and the work of the early church tells us as much. Still, Easter at its core was powerful in its simplicity and profound mystery of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I hope as a church and people of God we can recapture some of that simplicity and profound awe in the power and mystery of the resurrection. Our faith seems to depend on it. The apostle Paul tells us plainly that if Jesus is not raised from the dead then our faith is in vain and we are, above all, people to be pitied. Paul’s words remind us as a church we need to believe in and live out the resurrection with all of its simplicity, poignancy, and profound mystery. And we need to live out the resurrection daily, not just once a year.
I hope as a church we have a great Easter celebration this year. I hope for two packed worship services. I hope our special music and choir sound amazing. I hope the message is inspiring and honoring to God. I hope lives are changed. I hope people feel the call to be the hands and feet of Christ in the world. I hope peace and joy enter hearts and minds. I hope positive change occurs in our congregation and community. I hope for all of these things on Easter Sunday. But I also hope for all of these realities every day. With the resurrection, it is not only possible, but promised in the simplicity and profound mystery of a new life with God in Jesus Christ. I’ll take that over the “super bowl” any day of the week!
Soli Deo Gloria!
