Out of the depths of despair and the darkness of death itself, life breaks forth brightly shining. Like lightning suspended over the silhouette of a storm-pounded mountaintop, Christ rises in the white light of glory. He is the New Creation ascending from the grave. He is the brilliant beacon of God’s eternal victory.
He is the radiance of Pure Spirit breaking into the chaotic domain of Satan.
He is the embrace of Divine Mercy for a long-lost world.
Easter is the greatest of all Christian celebrations. While Christmas sings God’s praises for the birth of the Savior, Easter shouts the Good News from the highest places: “Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!” In the inspired words of St. Peter, “Praised be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, He Who in His great mercy gave us new birth; a birth unto hope which draws its life from the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead; a birth to an imperishable inheritance, incapable of fading or defilement, which is kept in heaven for you who are guarded with God’s power through faith; a birth to a salvation which stands ready to be revealed in the last day.” (1 Peter 1:3-5).
This infinitely beautiful destiny, held in store for all who put their faith in Jesus Christ and who walk according to His Word, is available to everyone.
If “the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims His handiwork…” as the blazing sun “comes forth like the groom from his bridal chamber” to meet his beloved Bride (Psalm 19:2,6), how much more should we rejoice in the rising-in-majesty of the One Who is Love Incarnate! For He is “the firstborn from the dead, so that primacy might be His in all things” (Col. 3:18), and “we were predestined to praise His glory by being the first to hope in Christ” (Eph. 1:12). Rejoice! His Resurrection-Life becomes ours.
As I write, pirates hold the world at bay, using hostages for human shields. The anxious search for Sandra Cantu ended in a nightmare, and the killer remains loose. News of unstable weather patterns, earthquakes, wars, and wickedness increases our anxiety about the country and world in which we live. A man gone crazy from his meth addiction meets me outside and asks for more money. A woman fleeing domestic violence seeks safe haven. A homeless stranger knocks late at night looking for a warm meal and a place to lay his head.
Everywhere, God’s children are struggling against the harsh realities of life in a desert of despair and discouragement. But even in this pain—above all here—Christ is alive.
Christ is alive in the person who gets up, day after day, and begins again with renewed hope. Christ is alive in the child who smiles again, extending once more the hand of confidence to a parent who is anything but perfect. Christ is alive in the wife who reminds her husband of what he has promised to be, who keeps serving the needs of her children despite their ingratitude. Christ is alive in the one who forgives, who perseveres in prayer, who still believes.
Christ is alive in every sign of life throughout Creation.
For Christ is Life.
Jesus had said to Martha, “I am the Resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in me, though he should die, will come to life; and whoever is alive and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11: 25-26). With Martha, we of Easter respond: “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God: He Who is to come into the world.”
We believe, because if we don’t, we are lost. “If Christ was not raised,” St. Paul wrote, “your faith is worthless. You are still in your sins, and those who have fallen asleep in Christ are the deadest of the dead. If our hopes in Christ are limited to this life only, we are the most miserable of men” (1 Corinthians 15:17-19).
But for those who believe, nothing can separate them from the Love of God. “For God Who said, ‘Let light shine out of the darkness’ has shone in our hearts, that we in turn might make known the glory of God shining on the face of Christ…We believe and so we speak, knowing that He Who raised up the Lord Jesus will raise us up along with Jesus and place both us and you in His presence” (2 Cor. 4:6, 13-14. See also Romans 8:35-39). Amen to that!
Amen to all that is Life in Christ! May the Risen Lord rise this Easter in your Lives, and may the Life you live be not your own, but His (Gal. 2:20).
He is the radiance of Pure Spirit breaking into the chaotic domain of Satan.
He is the embrace of Divine Mercy for a long-lost world.
Easter is the greatest of all Christian celebrations. While Christmas sings God’s praises for the birth of the Savior, Easter shouts the Good News from the highest places: “Christ is Risen! Truly He is Risen!” In the inspired words of St. Peter, “Praised be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, He Who in His great mercy gave us new birth; a birth unto hope which draws its life from the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead; a birth to an imperishable inheritance, incapable of fading or defilement, which is kept in heaven for you who are guarded with God’s power through faith; a birth to a salvation which stands ready to be revealed in the last day.” (1 Peter 1:3-5).
This infinitely beautiful destiny, held in store for all who put their faith in Jesus Christ and who walk according to His Word, is available to everyone.
If “the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament proclaims His handiwork…” as the blazing sun “comes forth like the groom from his bridal chamber” to meet his beloved Bride (Psalm 19:2,6), how much more should we rejoice in the rising-in-majesty of the One Who is Love Incarnate! For He is “the firstborn from the dead, so that primacy might be His in all things” (Col. 3:18), and “we were predestined to praise His glory by being the first to hope in Christ” (Eph. 1:12). Rejoice! His Resurrection-Life becomes ours.
As I write, pirates hold the world at bay, using hostages for human shields. The anxious search for Sandra Cantu ended in a nightmare, and the killer remains loose. News of unstable weather patterns, earthquakes, wars, and wickedness increases our anxiety about the country and world in which we live. A man gone crazy from his meth addiction meets me outside and asks for more money. A woman fleeing domestic violence seeks safe haven. A homeless stranger knocks late at night looking for a warm meal and a place to lay his head.
Everywhere, God’s children are struggling against the harsh realities of life in a desert of despair and discouragement. But even in this pain—above all here—Christ is alive.
Christ is alive in the person who gets up, day after day, and begins again with renewed hope. Christ is alive in the child who smiles again, extending once more the hand of confidence to a parent who is anything but perfect. Christ is alive in the wife who reminds her husband of what he has promised to be, who keeps serving the needs of her children despite their ingratitude. Christ is alive in the one who forgives, who perseveres in prayer, who still believes.
Christ is alive in every sign of life throughout Creation.
For Christ is Life.
Do you have that Life of Christ in you?
It all hinges on your faith. Jesus had said to Martha, “I am the Resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in me, though he should die, will come to life; and whoever is alive and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11: 25-26). With Martha, we of Easter respond: “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God: He Who is to come into the world.”
We believe, because if we don’t, we are lost. “If Christ was not raised,” St. Paul wrote, “your faith is worthless. You are still in your sins, and those who have fallen asleep in Christ are the deadest of the dead. If our hopes in Christ are limited to this life only, we are the most miserable of men” (1 Corinthians 15:17-19).
But for those who believe, nothing can separate them from the Love of God. “For God Who said, ‘Let light shine out of the darkness’ has shone in our hearts, that we in turn might make known the glory of God shining on the face of Christ…We believe and so we speak, knowing that He Who raised up the Lord Jesus will raise us up along with Jesus and place both us and you in His presence” (2 Cor. 4:6, 13-14. See also Romans 8:35-39). Amen to that!
Amen to all that is Life in Christ! May the Risen Lord rise this Easter in your Lives, and may the Life you live be not your own, but His (Gal. 2:20).
