And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.
-I Corinthians 15:14
This weekend isn’t about Easter egg hunts, pastel colors, or being able to finally wear white shoes. It’s about something much bigger, much more important. In fact, all of Christianity rests upon this event we celebrate each year as followers of Christ. It’s about an empty tomb.
The Apostle Paul put it very simply: if Christ did not rise from the dead, then forget it all and go do something else because that faith you express is empty and futile. Find something else to give your life to because this – Christianity – would not be worthy of your time much less your life. Without the resurrection, there is no Christianity, but…
If He did rise from the dead, then everything changes. Ordinary people don’t do that. Even great people don’t do that. Only God can do that, and Jesus no longer simply claims to be God, he backs it up with action. And the conversation regarding Jesus takes on a different tone. No longer is He a lunatic, a miracle worker, or a teacher.
He is the Christ, the Son of the living God (Matthew 16:16).
Or you can be sucked into the vortex of our culture and society that characterizes Jesus as a teacher, a prophet, or a revolutionary. The progenitor of a movement or a religion? Sure. But God? C’mon, this is 2021, we have science. We don’t need God.
With all due respect, I’m going to go with the guy who predicted his own death and three days later raised Himself from the grave. Those credentials are pretty hard to beat. Even in 2021.
Have a blessed Easter!
In Christ,
Matthew H. Skinner
President
P.S. You know the saying that you can eat raw oysters in months with an “r”? It’s a lie!