This month marks the 20^th anniversary of my family living in our current house. This realization brings with it a flood of memories and a flood of gratitude. The years seem to have passed by very quickly. Actually, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how quickly time is passing. This year contains many significant milestones and other events that are marking the time for my family. My parents have celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. I will turn 50 years old later this year. I’ve been married for 30 years. My oldest child is almost a quarter of a century old. This year is the fifth anniversary of my book’s publication. My youngest child got married and made me a mother-in-law six months ago. I began a podcast two months ago. And a month has passed since we celebrated Easter. This got me to thinking about how we view the passing of time. Once the days are gone, it seems we put most of them out of mind—unless they are milestone days—but even those get buried in the forward motion and busyness of life. I wonder how many of us have already put out of mind the significance of Easter: the pain of the sacrifice, the depth of the love, the power of the Resurrection, the salvation made available, and everything to which these events point. But although we may have moved beyond thinking about that event, what took place that day is significant for every day of the year. As a matter of fact, it is the most significant thing for our lives and eternity. 

On Easter Sunday, people are known to say, “He is risen!” Some will even respond to this declaration with the phrase, “He is risen indeed!”¹ Have you ever said these words? To whom have you spoken them? Is this a common practice in your family and church? Or are these possibly new phrases to you? What thoughts and feelings arise when you say these words? What are the ramifications of these words?

Have you ever heard of 1 Corinthians 15 being called “The Resurrection Chapter”? Read 1 Corinthians 15:1–8 and list the names of those who were able to utter the words that Jesus was risen indeed. These people saw Jesus with their own eyes. There was living proof right in front of them that He was risen from the dead.

This knowledge brought hope and joy to the world almost 2,000 years ago, and the resurrection of Jesus still brings hope and joy to our world today. And we sure do need it these days. Heartbreaking things are happening. People are in dire circumstances and desperate situations. Perhaps you are yourself. Hearts are full of questions, and fear, and anxiety. Hope is wearing thin, dwindling away, and for some people is already gone.

Was any of this happening when Jesus walked the earth? Yes. The circumstances were different, but the hearts of people are the same through all time. And so is Jesus. Jesus cared for people back then, and He cares for us today. He never changes. His heart is filled with compassion and a longing to help us through this life. He can bring hope into the darkest of times. We do not need to get to the end of the tunnel to see the light; we can see it now. He is the Light of the world.

In our times of difficulty and darkness, we only need look up and cry out. He will come to our aid. The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is available to us today through the Holy Spirit, whom Jesus left here to help us while He returned to heaven to prepare a place for those who would believe.

God is still on the move, and the return of Jesus is moving ever closer. Time is passing quickly, and we need to be ready. We are living in “post-Easter” days. We are living in “pre-Second Coming” days. Someday soon, we will be seeing Jesus face-to-face. Look up, you who believe in Jesus Christ, the Risen Savior, for your redemption draws nigh! The tomb is empty, and one day the sky is going to be full—full with the glory of God, as Jesus returns for His own.²

And if you are someone who does not know Him yet, the fact that you still live and breathe gives you an opportunity to know Him. Please, don’t let another moment of time pass you by. The God of the universe loves you, and He wants to have a relationship with you. He sent His Son, Jesus, to remove the barrier of sin that keeps people separated from Him. Jesus died on the cross to atone for that sin, and He offers forgiveness to all who will ask Him for it. Simply believe in who He is and what He has done for you, acknowledge your need for Him, ask for His forgiveness, ask Him to save you, and you will become a child of God. You will be saved from eternal separation from Him and will be welcomed into heaven. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” ^{3, 4}

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NOTES

¹ See Matthew 28:6 and Luke 24:34.

² Paragraphs two through six are taken from an April 12, 2020 article I wrote entitled “He Is Risen! He Is Risen, Indeed!”.

³ John 3:16 is taken from the New King James Version of the Holy Bible, ©1982 by Thomas Nelson.

⁴ Feel free to send me a message via my contact page to let me know your decision or to ask questions.

©Text and photo Francee Strain, May 22, 2022