The Real Beauty of Easter

Happy Easter weekend, sweet gal! While we may not be celebrating Easter in our churches or in the homes of friends or family this year, let’s be sure to whisper a few hallelujahs from the depths of our soul all the same. If we have to be going through a pandemic right now, at least Easter reminds us not to despair and renews our hope. And that hope, that sweet calm assurance of victory, that’s the real beauty of Easter.

Easter is a truly beautiful time. But we can lose the real meaning of this significant holy day in all the trappings if we don’t intentionally pause to reflect on it. And while the reading of the gospel accounts of resurrection morning are never a waste of time, I think we have to go further in our meditations than just recounting the historical narrative to get to the real beauty of this day.

By God’s grace, all that’s required for us to know Him and spend eternity with Him is to confess that Jesus is who He said He is and to acknowledge that God raised Him from the grave. So yes, simply knowing and believing the story of Easter is indeed crucial.

But the beauty of Easter is when that story of Jesus’ death, burial and resurrection takes root in a woman’s life and changes her day by day from the inside out. There is, in fact, nothing more beautiful that I can think of than a life changed by the resurrection power of God.

Has your life been changed by the resurrection?

So let me ask you, has your life been changed by Jesus’ resurrection? You see if Jesus had not died for you, you’d have to bear the weight of your past mistakes and the condemnation of your fruitless efforts to please a holy God. That’s a heavy burden that’s been removed from your shoulders if you have professed Jesus as your Savior and Lord.

And if Jesus, the perfect lamb of God, had not died for you, you’d still be trying in vain to make things right between you and your Maker. That’s an endless pursuit that only leads you in circles of despair.

And if Jesus had died for you, but had stayed in the grave lifeless and doomed, then you would have no hope of living eternally in God’s presence. If Jesus did not rise again, then you would not be able to either.

And if Jesus had not walked out of that tomb leaving His grave clothes behind, then the enemy of our souls would have real power in our lives and we would be trembling in fear of him. We would be weak women, easily manipulated and worn down and scared.

Finally, if Jesus had not overcome death and appeared first to a woman and then to His disciples, we would have no reason to believe that our God has the power to overcome any obstacle in our lives either. We might know that God loves us, but we’d be disappointed that His love could not move heaven and earth to get to us, to redeem us.

But God…

But…oh my, don’t you just love that word “but?” Especially when it’s linked to God. But God. But God did indeed raise Jesus from the grave. And because we serve a risen Savior we can potentially be completely different women than we would have been without Him.

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

~ Romans 5:8

And when they had carried out all that was written of him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb. But God raised him from the dead

~ Acts 13:29-30

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

~ Ephesians 2:4-7

If the story had gone differently, we’d have no hope. But because we have an all-powerful God who loves us dearly we are assured of a bright tomorrow and peace for today.

What difference does this make in your life?

Besides setting a pretty a table laden with your favorite foods, besides wearing something spring-like and colorful today and besides indulging in a few jelly beans or chocolate eggs, this days is best observed reflecting on the difference Jesus’ resurrection makes in your life.

I hope that you know Jesus as your Savior and Lord. I hope you’ve heard or read the good news and you know that, while you have and will make mistakes, God sent His Son Jesus to die for your sins and to rescue you from the death penalty for those sins.

I hope you understand that there is absolutely nothing you can do or have done that can earn God’s love and favor. He loves you so much that, while you were (or are) still ignorant of your own sin, He sent Jesus to die for your sins. And He did that knowing that many people would reject His gift. That’s how much He loves each and every one of us.

And I hope that you know that Jesus paid the price for your soul in full. You don’t even need to “pick up the tip” by doing good things or going to church or praying regularly. It’s completely by the grace of God that you can have a relationship with your Maker. You can breathe easy, sweet gal.

In fact, that’s the real beauty of Easter, that we can breathe easy. It’s finished. Jesus died for your sin. Jesus paid the price in full. Jesus arose from the grave victorious. And Jesus is returning for His own one day. Breathe easy, sweet gal. Just breathe.

Celebrating Easter isn’t just knowing the story of the resurrection. To celebrate Easter is to have the story living within you. You, sweet gal, tell the story of Easter with each breath you take.

Do you have thoughts you’d like to share about today’s topic? I’d love to hear from you today! I tend to take as much time off from work as I can during the weekends, so I may not reply to your comments unless you ask me a direct question. But I’d love for you to carry on this conversation in the comment section below. And you can know for certain that I read and value each and every comment. Please remember that I try to keep this space free from controversy, so let’s stay away from the topic of politics or other divisive issues.