Easter is a celebration! The victory we celebrate today is for all of us, and it abides for all time and eternity. It is an all-inclusive victory. It includes the conquest of every foe that we are called upon to face, victory over sin, victory over fear, victory over death, and victory over the grave.
Yes, we have victory over sin. We are dead to sin in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. “As many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death…just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” Even now as we abide in Him and through Him and He lives in us, in Jesus Christ we have victory over every sin.
We also have victory over every fear. The fact is clear that with all classes of people, fear is an awful reality. People have fears for themselves and for others. They have fear of the future, and fears from the past. People fear sickness, death, poverty and the unknown. Well, today
we shout the victory over fear! For Jesus, in His resurrected power says to every one of us, “Do not be afraid!” Be not afraid of life, He says, for I am the way, the truth and the life. Trust me. Be not afraid of death, for “I was dead but behold I am alive forevermore.” The enemy death is destroyed. “O death, where is thy sting? O Grave, where is thy victory? But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Not only does Jesus bid us not to be afraid of life or of death but He also bids us to be unafraid of eternity. In the Christ-emptied tomb, the soul finds its needs supplied, its longings met, and its questions answered. The empty tomb is the gateway to the glory of the
Christian’s eternity, to the glory of undimmed vision and understanding, to the glory of heavenly fellowship. When we understand the victory Christ has won at Calvary and revealed in the emptied tomb, it will put a song of gratitude in our heart that nothing can hush. When we grasp this marvelous truth, we will face the future with confidence and calm expectancy. Praise God, the victory is won through Christ Jesus!
Oh Precious Jesus, I lift my face to the heavens and lift my heart to You. Praise Your Name for taking my place on Calvary, and for leading the way through death to eternity. The thought of Your great love is overwhelming. “Thank You” seems so small, when what I feel is so big. Amen.
Classic Christianity