Thoughts on Easter/Resurrection Day (Or Whatever You Call It)

"And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry....11 Then the devil left Him, and behold angels came and ministered to Him." Matthew 4:2,11

"And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body.' 27 Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, 'Drink from it, all of you. 28 For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.'" Matthew 26:26-28

I never know what to call this day that is coming. I called it Easter for so long growing up, and even into my adult life, that it is hard to stop, even though now I know the origins, and don't want to give credence to that by calling it "Easter." Easter as some of you know, comes from a pronunciation of 'Ishtar." For more on those subjects, of which I could spend all time and space allowed here, you might do yourself a service and do a study on it. But don't just plug it in to your search engine and get all google-eyed, because the internet is full of, shall we say, "questionable" sources. Get some books from your pastor, or a Bible software program, and do the research within the Bible. Your pastor should be able to point you in the right direction. The day that Jesus Christ arose from the dead is never called Easter in the Bible. So that is why I now choose to call it Resurrection Day. I'm not sure that is in the Bible either, as a name for that glorious day (it never came up in my search of my Bible software program), but it just seems more appropriate, fitting. I am not saying I am right, or that you should make the switch. I'm just saying for me this is what i try to do.

But something caught my attention as I was reading this morning, and meditating on God's Word. My mind was directed to go back and re-read Matthew 4, where Jesus is tempted in the wilderness by Satan. Since I am going through my own dry, desert place right now, I thought it only right to read this passage again. The Word tells us that Jesus fasted for forty days and forty nights. That is a long time. I miss one meal in one day and I am a basket case. But here, our Lord, went without food and water for forty days and nights. Some might want to explain it away by saying, "Yes, but He was God. He can do that sort of thing." To say this takes away all humanity from our Savior. Yes He was God, but He was fully human as well. To take away His humanity is to take away His death, which in turn would take away His resurrection. Jesus Christ was fully God, yes, but He was fully human. He got hungry. Just like you and me. He got thirsty. Just like you and me. He had moments when His flesh was weak. Just like you and me. And don't think that the devil, when showing Jesus the stones and telling Him to turn them into bread, didn't make the smell of fresh baked bread come wafting up from someplace. Jesus was hungry, and to just say turn the stones to bread, while teasing, would not be the temptation that fresh baked bread would be.

So we call this week Holy Week. To me, every week is Holy Week. No, I don't pray the stations of the cross. There is only one station where I meet Jesus. It is on top of Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, where I meet Jesus...at the foot of the cross. That is the place where the ground is level, and it does not mater if I have money or am the poorest person in town. It doesn't matter whether I am the president or the janitor. It doesn't matter if I am black, yellow, brown, red, white, or green with purple polka dots. All that matters is that I come to Him, and meet Him there, at the place where His precious blood drips down to cover my sins with forgiveness, and washes them whiter than snow.

You might call it Resurrection Day. You may call it Easter. It's okay. It isn't as important so much what you call it, but that you meet Him at the cross, receive His death, and celebrate His resurrection. So go forth this day, beloved, and celebrate the resurrection and the life of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Shalom!