Easter has always been one of my favorite holidays to celebrate. When I was younger, I was all about the new Easter dress in some bright color and the hunt that followed a big meal on Easter Sunday. Now that I think of it, Easter dress shopping was a hunt in and of itself. Browsing the racks at the JCPenney became a sport I could excel in. But as I've gotten older, Easter has taken on a new level of purpose and significance in my life. To be fair, I have and always will know that Christ rose from the dead and because of that we celebrate Easter. I can sing "Up from the grave He arroooossseee" with such gusto. However, Easter is more than that. Easter is at the core of who a believer is. Without Easter, we would be without purpose. Morbidly, we would be dead.
So, I ask it again -- Why does the empty tomb matter for the believer?
I've really been thinking about this for quite some time. We can easily spout out our Sunday School answers, eat our Easter ham, and find the golden egg. But for our own spiritual growth, we should ask the hard questions and give more than a cursory answer.
The empty tomb matters because without it, then Jesus was just a good man. If Jesus were just a good man, then we would not be saved from our sin. If we are not saved from our sin, then we are spiritually, eternally apart from relationship with God. Therefore, the empty tomb makes all the difference in our lives. Because He was not there, we can be with Him.
His body was not found to be rotting behind the cover of a heavy stone, but instead HE WAS ALIVE. I can't fully grasp it all. I can barely take it all in. But I believe the Bible to be true. I believe Jesus to be a man. I believe the accounts of the empty tomb to be true. Therefore, it all must be true. And when Christ was raised from the dead, it is/was the promise that death had been defeated. The curse and sting of death are nullified and shattered! (1 Cor. 15:55). The resurrected Christ appeared to well over 500 people. His resurrected body signals to us, the believer, that God's promises of eternal life in Christ will be fulfilled, and we will spend eternity with Him.
I wanted to provide some quick historical proof/support for the empty tomb. I need it!
- Jesus first appeared to women. During this day in age, women were not prominent in society. Therefore, for gospel writers to include this information in their texts would've otherwise been scandalous if not for it being historically accurate.
- Joseph of Arimethea, a member of the Sanhedrin, asked to be the one to bury Jesus. His prominence in society did not stop him from his dedication of burying Jesus. He could have easily been shamed.
- Jesus appeared to multiple people thus the spreading of their own personal accounts. The gospel propigated first in the town where He was ultimately crucified.
For those who are not believers, my prayer is that you will one day look upon Jesus as your salvation. I can't help but believe. I look around this crazy, chaotic world and can not for the life of me believe this is it. There is ugly, and there is sin. And our hope beyond this world only comes through salvation in Jesus Christ. Just as the Israelites painted the blood on their doorposts in faith, I'm hanging on to every bit of faith in Jesus to believe there is more. There is greater. There is an eternity with the Lord that we are waiting on.
The tomb is empty. Come quickly, Lord Jesus.
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