Easter. Buying new clothes. Celebrating the coming of Spring. The Easter Bunny. Pictures. Easter egg hunts. Family. Food. Even...going to church. Humans always have a way of surrounding the real issue with "stuff" so that the real issue can hardly be seen anymore.
But due to the current Covid19 situation, this Easter none of the aforementioned things will be a reality. It would appear that all the man-made add-ons we've attached to the Resurrection of our Lord have been dismissed this year; stripped, if you will. Perhaps that's a good thing.
Perhaps this Resurrection season we can actually focus on ... the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Our current circumstance certainly gives us the time to focus on all the things that the Crucifixion and Resurrection of Jesus have provided for us. Deeply theological, eternal, and soul-assuring things:
Redemption (Ephesians 1:7)
Propitiation (Roman 3:25)
Cleansing (Hebrews 9:14)
Forgiveness (Hebrews 9:22) Access to God (Ephesians 2:13)
Reconciliation (Colossians 1:20)
Justification (Romans 5:9)
Sanctification (Hebrews 13:12)
Adoption (Ephesians 1:5)
Perhaps, like the early disciples, we should return to the empty tomb and spend some time there, unencumbered by all the things with which we've surrounded the Resurrection. Maybe a stripped Resurrection is a good thing.
Happy (stripped) Easter.
