Easter: a three-dimensional meaning
History buffs, especially of naval battles, will recall that one of the most decisive battles of the Napoleonic Wars, Waterloo, was fought in a small area on the main road leading south from Brussels. It was the first clash of the Titans, Napoleon Bonaparte versus the Duke of Wellington. It was a winall/lose-all scenario.
As the battle played out, the British forces, aided by the Prussians, were successful in driving back and defeating Napoleon’s forces.
As can be imagined, England anxiously awaited word of the outcome of the war. One story tells of a sailor on a sailing ship crossing the English Channel and approaching England’s southern coast picking up his coloured semaphore flags and sending a message “WELLINGTON DEFEATED.”
Suddenly dense fog swirled across the deck, engulfing the ship. The sad, heart-wrenching news of the incomplete message was sent to London and swept the nation with gloom and despair; but after long hours of waiting, the thick fog lifted.
Again the sailor on deck picked up the semaphore flags and signalled. He then began spelling out the complete message of the battle: “WELLINGTON DEFEATED THE ENEMY.” British hearts were lifted with joy.
Making a quick flashback to a Judean hill where Jesus dangled in death on the executioner’s cross, we note that the despair of that gloomy day dashed the hopes of the world. The disciples despaired at the incomplete message, JESUS DEFEATED.
With shattered hopes, broken dreams and empty-handed faith, the followers of Jesus despairingly cried, “but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel” (Luke 24:21).
As we pick up the Easter narrative, we see that Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome walked to Jesus’ tomb on the following Sunday morning. Their walk was shrouded in a fog of despondency, and they asked each other who would roll away the stone from the entrance to the tomb.
They were living the incomplete message — JESUS DEFEATED — but to their surprise the morning mists and fog had lifted.
An angel stood at the empty tomb and signalled the complete message: JESUS DEFEATED DEATH. The angel spoke words that have echoed down through the years, giving hope and meaning: “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene who was crucified. He is risen!” (Mark 16:6).
Yet there are those who still live in the fog and mists of despair, not realizing that Jesus is indeed alive. So often the “Triple F” slogan — “fraud, fantasy or fact” — comes into play as we reflect on the awesomeness of the resurrection, yet as Paul tells us, “If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith, and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins” (I Corinthians 15:14, 17).
The resurrection is the foundational bedrock of the Christian faith and brings with it a three-dimensional meaning: peace with our past, joy in the present and hope for the future.
Peace with our past is accomplished through not only the death of Christ on the cross, but his subsequent resurrection, as we note from Paul’s writings: “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification” (Romans 4:25).
Justification is the theological term signifying that we are given a new start in life through Christ.
Joy in the present is accomplished through having new life and purpose, a result of having a personal relationship with Christ. Many have difficulty distinguishing between joy and happiness: happiness resulting from happenings, but joy being the inner peace and resourcefulness because of the living Christ within.
Joy in the present is accomplished through having new life and purpose, a result of having a personal relationship with Christ. Many have difficulty distinguishing between joy and happiness: happiness resulting from happenings, but joy being the inner peace and resourcefulness because of the living Christ within.
On the evening before he went to the cross, Jesus said to his followers, “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete” ( John 15:11).
Hope for the future results from knowing that Jesus is alive, providing the strength, courage and guidance that we desperately need in a world with so much chaos and despair. Cer- tainly our hope grows as we reflect on the promise of the resurrection, for the resurrection not only provides us with the resources for this life, but for the life after death.
Speaking of himself, and the implications of his resurrection, Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die” ( John 11:25).
Paul speaks of the hope the resurrection brings: “We do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope” (I Thessalonians 4:13) — a hope that provides a reason to keep going despite the conspiracy of circumstances we often face.
The bottom line, however, is that we have to personally experience the resurrection through an encounter with the living Christ. To have peace with our past, joy in the present and hope for the future, we must accept the offer of a relationship with the Christ of Easter, a living saviour who offers life abundant. There is no need to live in the fog and mists of despair. Jesus is alive. Jesus defeated death.
Why not attend a church of your choice this Easter and worship the living Christ?