Easter is all about hope. But, more often than not, that hope seems intangible. Suffering, pain, and the weight of this world seem to obscure the hope that the cross provides us. And yet, our pain doesn’t have to obscure hope. It can actually enhance it.
Join us this Easter as we attempt to freshly embrace hope. Specifically, we will look at the brokenness of our bodies but remember how Jesus overcame death and entered into life so that we, too, can one day be transformed.
Romans 8:23 says that we “groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.” Most of us can relate when we read about inward groaning. We somehow sense that things aren’t how they should be, and we experience an intense longing for everything to be made right. That’s especially true when we experience physical pain. And physical pain isn’t something that’s unusual. After all, we are fragile creatures. I look around our church, and I see (and experience) a whole lot of pain and injury. From cancer to back pain, from infertility to simple exhaustion. We are all damaged goods.
And yet, all of our infirmity can be a reminder that we have a future hope. We are “wasting away,” but at the same time being “prepared for an eternal glory beyond all comparison” (2 Corinthians 4:16-17). This Easter, we hope to take a long look at the finiteness of our bodies, but then let that finiteness drive us towards a hope in our future redemption.
So as we approach the Easter season, let us prepare ourselves to truly connect with the hope of glory. Let’s make sure that we are able to reflect on the life that Jesus is leading us into. We’ll begin on Palm Sunday with a full morning of music and prayer. We’ll follow that with a Good Friday service at 6:30 p.m. that will remind us of the brokenness and death that is a part of this fallen world. And then we’ll end on Easter Sunday with a celebration and anticipation of our “adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.”
Also, please keep in mind that this Easter season presents an opportunity to invite others who are likely more willing to come to church on Easter than other times of the year. As we talk about redemption from pain and death, our hope is that it will connect with many people who are experiencing that pain and death in a very real way.
So this Easter season, enter into a fresh hope. Because, indeed, he has risen. And we will as well.
