Easter Sunday: Rejoice! Salvation Lives!

The Risen Christ, Simone Cantarini, 1644. Oil on canvas, 250.82 x 207.33 cm. The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Massachusetts. Public Domain.

Mary Magdalene, Giovanni Girolamo Savoldo, 1535–1540. Oil on canvas, 89.1 x 82.4 cm. National Gallery, London, England. Public Domain.

"He Is Risen, He Is Risen" from the album Easter on Fifth Avenue. Composed by Cecil Frances Alexander (lyrics), Joachim Neander (music). Performed by the Choir of Saint Thomas Church New York City and the Saint Thomas Brass conducted by John Scott.

“I’ve Just Seen Jesus” from the album Larnelle: Collector’s Series, Volume One. Composed by William James Gaither. Performed by Larnelle Harris and Sandi Patty.

Week Eight—Bright Week: Seven Words of the Resurrected Christ

The season of Lent should be an essential part of every Christian’s spiritual journey. A thoughtful, slow progression towards the resurrection allows for self-examination, reflection, pondering, and ultimately being drawn closer to the Lord we love. Just as we continually, routinely clean our dwelling places, so too must we be vigilant about searching our hearts, rooting out the evil therein, and seeking forgiveness at the foot of the cross. There are those who dismiss Christianity as a dismal religion full of blood and gore. To meditate, as we have done over the past seven weeks, on Christ’s suffering and ultimate death might seem like a gruesome preoccupation to some, yet to those who believe “it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18). Richard John Neuhaus writes, “Because of Easter, the words from the cross are words of life. The cross is not merely the bad news before the good news of the resurrection...Rather, the resurrection means that the way of the cross is the way to victory.”

Jesus’ seven last words from the cross were not His very last words spoken on earth. In our final days together we focus on the post-resurrection sayings of Christ—words of encouragement and instruction He gave to His closest followers regarding the coming Church Age. Scripture indicates that Christ appeared to over five hundred people in the days between His resurrection and ascension, with eleven accounts recorded in the New Testament. Because multiple witnesses interacted with Him for an extended period of time, there is no doubt that Jesus actually rose from the dead. “He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God” (Acts 1:3). We have selected seven of the most beloved encounters to share with our readers. In a variety of settings, Christ revealed Himself to those who would play key roles in spreading the good news of the eternal life He promised. Three of the sayings are addressed to groups: the eleven disciples and the women who followed Him. The other four incidents are more private in nature—intimate, vulnerable, and poignant. These one-on-one conversations indicate that Christ, the Lord of Heaven and Earth, is keenly interested in fellowshipping with individuals, the likes of you and me.

This week is referred to throughout the Eastern church as “Bright Week.” Fasting is finished, the colors purple and black are replaced with the color white, and continual shouts of “Christ is Risen” fill the air. Gone is the dark night of the soul as the piercing light of resurrection morning shines eternal. Dramatically shifting gears, Christians around the world now enter into a season of unmitigated gladness, repeating joyful praises to our living Lord for His triumph over death. Early church father St. John Chrysostom wrote, “Today the angels leap with joy and all the heavenly powers rejoice—elated because of the salvation of mankind.” New Testament Christians moved their Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday as a weekly commemoration of the resurrection. Eastertide, a forty-day-long celebration focusing on Christ’s great gift of eternal life, extends from Easter Sunday through the Feast of the Ascension. This “Season of Resurrection” is the perfect time to dedicate ourselves anew to Christ and His Kingdom. Those of us who are in the process of being transformed live lives bound together with that of the risen Lord. Over the centuries, children of the light, even in the midst of extreme suffering and sorrow, were and are able to give God the glory for the great things He accomplished in His death and resurrection. May this be true of us as well!

Poetry:

“Resurrection”
by Jonathan Henderson Brooks

His friends went off and left Him dead
In Joseph’s subterranean bed,
Embalmed with myrrh and sweet aloes,
And wrapped in snow-white burial clothes.

Then shrewd men came and set a seal
Upon His grave, lest thieves should steal
His lifeless form away, and claim
For Him and undeserving fame.

“There is no use,” the soldiers said,
“Of standing sentries by the dead.”
Wherefore, they drew their cloaks around
Themselves, and fell upon the ground,
And slept like dead men, all night through,
In the pale moonlight and chilling dew.

A muffed whiff of sudden breath
Ruffled the passive air of death.

He woke, and raised Himself in bed;
Recalled how He was crucified;
Touched both hands’ fingers to His head,
And lightly felt His fresh-healed side.

Then with a deep, triumphant sigh,
He coolly put His grave-clothes by—
Folded the sweet, white winding sheet,
The toweling, the linen bands,
The napkin, all with careful hands—
And left the borrowed chamber neat.

His steps were like the breaking day:
So soft across the watch He stole,
He did not wake a single soul,
Nor spill one dewdrop by the way.

Now Calvary was loveliness:
Lilies that flowered thereupon
Pulled off the white moon’s pallid dress,
And put the morning’s vesture on.

“Why seek the living among the dead?
He is not here,” the angel said.

The early winds took up the words,
And bore them to the lilting birds,
The leafing trees, and everything
That breathed the living breath of spring.

REJOICE! SALVATION LIVES!

In John 20:15-17 we read about Mary Magdalene who went to the grave of Jesus, whose name in Hebrew means Salvation, to tend to his dead body according to custom. When she arrived at the tomb, the stone had been moved. Mary then went to the disciples and told them that Jesus’ body was missing. The disciples hurried to the tomb and were confronted with a reality that they could not comprehend. Jesus’ body was gone. Then the disciples returned to their homes while Mary remained near the empty chamber crying. Angels appeared and asked her why she was crying, and she said that they had taken away her Lord and that she did not know where they had placed his body. Then another man asked her why she was crying.

Not until the man said her name—Mary—did she understand that this man was Jesus.

In that moment she fully understood that Salvation lives.

He is risen!

Now, no questions remained. Jesus was not simply a wise and compassionate rabbi or an amazing miracle worker. He is the Messiah, the living Word, the fount of eternal life who had broken the shackles of death.

Since the dawning light of that resurrection morning, the world has never been the same.

Mary would be the first to know about Jesus’ resurrection and the first to announce to the disciples and to the world that Jesus lives. The Church Jesus birthed at the empty tomb on resurrection morning has continued to proclaim the truth of Mary’s testimony century after century bound by a deep and abiding tradition affirmed by the witness of the Gospel.

The resurrection of Jesus is what makes the Gospel a new form of historical literature. The Gospel proclaims something that has never happened before in the history of the world. Salvation was born, lived, died, and is resurrected. The corruption of sin that began in the Garden of Eden which brought the curse of death upon all people was conquered by Jesus’ death on the cross and his bodily resurrection.

In each generation, painters and poets, composers, and troubadours have tried to capture anew the resurrection of Jesus. In artist Giovanni Savoldo’s painting Mary Magdalene we see Mary outside the tomb overcome by the death of Jesus, while in Simone Cantarini’s altarpiece The Risen Christ we see Jesus’ resurrected body ascending above the sleeping Roman soldiers who were sent to ensure he remained in the grave. Jonathan Brooks’ poetry reminds us that in the light of the resurrection, “Now Calvary was loveliness.” In the melodic notes of Neander and Alexander’s hymn “He is Risen,” our souls are stirred to proclaim, “Let the whole wide earth rejoice: death is conquered, man is free, Christ has won the victory,” while the inspiring vocals of Larnelle Harris and Sandi Patty proclaim, as Mary did, “I’ve Just Seen Jesus.” All attempt to explore the depths of what Jesus’ triumph over death means for a sin-marred world.|

Only in Jesus’ resurrection can we find hope in the reality that we were made for something more, something beyond sin and the grave. We were made to live eternal lives with our Messiah, our Lord, our God.

Praise be the name of Jesus, ourSalvation! He is Risen!

Prayer:
Thank you, Father God, for your majesty, your infinite mercy, and your abounding grace! You sent your Son, Jesus, on a mission of divine love to redeem us from our sins so that we could be with you forever and ever. His brutal death at the hands of the Roman soldiers became our story of redemption. We are your people because of his sacrifice on the Cross. We know this to be true because on Resurrection morning Jesus rose to life. He is Risen! He lives and because he lives, we know that we will live for all eternity in your Kingdom! Our hope is in Jesus, our Salvation! Help us to live lives that reflect the joy of the Resurrection so that others may come to know Jesus as their redeemer, their Savior, and their Lord. Praise be to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit always and forevermore!
Amen.

Dr. Darin D. Lenz, FRHistS, FSA Scot.
Chair of the Department of History
Professor of History
Biola University