Easter
While we may not need a “lesson” on Easter morning, we probably always need a reflection. Phil Wickham is one of the hottest praise and worship singer/songwriters in the world today. With songs like “Living Hope,” “This is Amazing Grace,” and “The Battle Belongs to You,” his music has probably been influencing your worship singing for years. His latest release is breath-taking.
The melody is called “Sunday is Coming” and the lyrics begin
A great light dawns in Galilee
Some say madman, some say King
Wonder-workin’ rebel priest
Jesus Christ the Nazarene
“Sunday is Coming” is the second single off of Phil’s ninth studio album. The song, as you might guess, describes the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. You know the story so you know the verses to this song, but in between the verses resounds this chorus:
Friday’s good ’cause Sunday is comin’
Don’t lose hope, ’cause Sunday is comin’
Devil, you’re done, you better start runnin’
Friday’s good ’cause Sunday is comin’
In typical praise and worship fashion, the song changes tempo and rhythm toward the end of the song as it slips into a repetitive and crescendo-ing refrain:
He’s alive, He’s alive
Hallelujah, He’s alive
Give Him praise, lift Him high
Hallelujah, He’s alive
He’s alive, He’s alive
Hallelujah, He’s alive
Give Him praise, lift Him high
Hallelujah, He’s alive
Hallelujah, hallelujah
Don’t lose hope ’cause Sunday is comin’
Hallelujah, hallelujah
Is there a better way to start your Sunday morning than with that reminder? Christ is risen. He is risen, indeed!
Often at Easter, you will hear people talking about “What Easter Means to Me.” To be honest, a part of me cringes when I hear the question. “What does Noah’s ark mean to you?” “What does David and Goliath mean to you?” Although we all read the Scripture through the lens of our own experiences, the meaning of Scripture is based in objective truth, the historical accuracy of circumstances and events that are over 2000 years old. Often when we ask, “What does this passage mean to you?” people imply there is little objective reality.
Most of the time, we don’t question reality when we talk about events of American history. We operate under the assumption that the events actually happened. “What does 9-11 mean to you?” asks how an event of history affected your life. What has changed because of it?
For the record, here is what Easter means to me. Understand that I am not questioning the historical accuracy of the story. Here is how an event in history affects and changes my life. Perhaps you will have similar reflections.
- First, Easter provides me with a context and heritage for my faith. It starts with a silly lesson involving Easter baskets and candy. Even as a preschooler, I can remember waking up and hunting for the baskets that the Easter bunny had hidden. When found, there was always one simple rule. You could eat only one piece of candy from the basket. If you chose one of the jelly beans that adorned the grass, you could only eat one. It was better to choose a chocolate egg or bunny – at least you had more than one bite. Easter wasn’t about candy. Easter was about church.
This was a special day in the church year. Mom and Grandma had already taken us shopping for new clothes that would be worn first on that day. The church was always more crowded that day. Usually our church had two services, one at 8:00 and another at 10:30 (Sunday School at 9:00), but on this morning another service was added at sunrise.
On the way out to the car, Mom stopped us on the front porch for Dad to take pictures. We knew from the beginning this was no ordinary day at church. The pomp and circumstance left a lasting impression on a preschooler.
Nearly every year adds to the story of the heritage. Like the year all the churches in the area put on an Easter play at a sunrise service. My father had constructed a frame with tracks for a huge plywood stone to be rolled away. I was the Roman Soldier with only one task – no lines. Roll the stone away then pretend to fall into a deep sleep.
But snow and ice solidified the stone. It wouldn’t budge. Not with a push. Not with a kick. Not with a father who snuck in from the back to help. That was the year that God didn’t roll away the stone – He pushed the entire frame over.
Or like the years that a man in the congregation cooked breakfast at the church for anyone who attended the sunrise service. Pancakes. Eggs. Sausage. Hash browns. Easter meant a feast for the church. The man’s name was Rocky Addams. He also led singing most of the time. Most of the time, he would break into the hymns with his favorite song, I’ll Fly Away. Poor theology, but incredibly rich passion.
Or the years I was on staff at a church, and we spent weeks planning for the day. The largest crowds of the year would attend, and everyone had specific roles to play during the services. Or the years we took our own children to a service with new clothes and pictures. Or the years I have watched my own children participate in an Easter program on stage during a service.
Or the year in Louisville when driving by a Lutheran church, the walk way to the entrance of the church was lined with men in Churchill Downs regalia, proclaiming through their bugles that Jesus Christ is risen. Easter is a huge part of the heritage of my faith.
- Easter celebrates the two greatest things that God has done in His plans with man – and He has performed a lot of incredible miracles. In a magnificent chapter to the Corinthians, Paul says the gospel – the good news of God – is that Jesus died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that God raised him from the dead according to the Scriptures. These events are the foundation of our faith. Easter brings these two crucial points of theology to the spotlight.
- Easter reminds me of the faithful who have gone before me. From Abraham, Moses and Paul to family and friends of my own, gathered above me is a crowd of witnesses, surrounding me, encouraging me, anxious for me to join them in eternity. I am ready for a reunion and the warm sentiment of “Welcome home.” I have attended several family reunions in my lifetime. Can you even imagine the moment when you arrive in heaven? You expect your immediate relatives to greet you joyfully, but your relatives go all the way back to Adam. People whom you don’t know and haven’t met yet have been waiting for you. Easter shakes our thinking with images that are beyond our imagination.
- Easter reminds me that I am raised with Christ – now and soon. Warren Robbins, the preacher who baptized me, said words during the ceremony that impacted me greatly. I have tried to use the same words every time that I had the privilege of baptizing someone else. As he lowered me into the water, he said, “Buried with Him in the likeness of His death,” and then as he raised me from the waters, “raised to walk in a newness of life.” My life here is to be different – new and transformed. Easter energizes me and helps me renew that commitment.
- Easter reminds me that this world is not my home. Without wanting to sound morbid, I know my days here are as numbered as the hairs on my head. Easter helps me look forward to the return of Christ. It is so easy in this world to become comfortable and then complacent. Easter reminds me that God’s plan isn’t for me to stay here, it is to meet Him somewhere else. Do you remember the words of the risen Savior to His disciples: “Meet me in Galilee”? Easter scribbles God’s invitation upon the parchment of the mind and heart. “Meet Me in eternity.”
So although today is a Sunday and its Easter meaning encourages our steps, let us never forget that it really is still Friday. Don’t lose hope. Devil you’re done, you better start runnin’. Friday’s good because Sunday’s comin’
Today isn’t the end. Let me tell you what happens next.
Now Jesus reigns upon the throne
All heaven sings to Him alone
We watch and wait, like a bride for a groom
Oh, church arise! He’s coming soon!
