Resurrection day (Sunday) was wonderful.
During his sermon, the speaker recounted a conversation he had had many years ago with an atheist about Jesus' resurrection and the Christian faith. This man of course would not accept that the resurrection had happened, prefering to see the whole event as either a figment of a few individuals' imagination, or a clever hoax. He himself was a self-made man, quite successful and content with his achievements in life. Our speaker finally asked him "But lets put aside all our preconceptions, and ask ourselves - if it REALLY did happen, what would you do?" The atheist thought for a few moments and then burst out "If it really happened, I'd give up everything I have and planned to do, and give myself 100% to spreading the news and its implications."
This, alongside a lot of reflections I have been having during lent, made me wonder:
- have I just got so used to the idea as being intellectually acceptable, that it doesn't have any real impact on me? or...
- have I, like so many others, just seem to accept it as a truth equivalent to gravity, and again simply take it for granted? or...
- have I become so inured to death (on TV, in the news, in books) that death itself seems unreal, or just commonplace and not so hideous, that resurrection is not such a big deal either, sort of like life is a movie in which the actors who are "killed" aren't really - they all get up and go on to act a new part, maybe "die" again...and again... and again? So we are actually living more in this virtual world than in reality.
When you think about it, defeating death must be one of the most pervasive wishes of all people everywhere. So when it happened, why were so few people enthusiastic about it? It is the ultimate goal of all medical science, and researchers are making progress towards bionics, biotechnics, pretending progress is being made in achieving everylasting life.
The problem with this approach is that putting off, or avoiding death, does not defeat it. The only way to defeat death is to die and then break out into life again. That is REALLY breaking the chains of death.
So what happened that momentous passover REALLY was a once-in-history event! It must be THE CENTRAL EVENT of history!
Why do so many of us seem so apathetic about its implications? Why has its celebration been reduced to a relaxing long weekend with Easter eggs, bunny rabbits, and lots of food? If is REALLY happened, shouldn't it make a HUGE impact on my life today, tomorrow, this week, and beyond? (Oh, I know that there are those for whom Easter is a deeply moving celebration - but even for such people, do they display the stupendous life-giving POWER of the resurrection in their daily lives that Jesus promised - truly abundant LIFE?)
What do YOU think? Did it REALLY happen? And if you think so, what practical, real life (in the here and now) impact has it had, or does it continue to have on you?
During his sermon, the speaker recounted a conversation he had had many years ago with an atheist about Jesus' resurrection and the Christian faith. This man of course would not accept that the resurrection had happened, prefering to see the whole event as either a figment of a few individuals' imagination, or a clever hoax. He himself was a self-made man, quite successful and content with his achievements in life. Our speaker finally asked him "But lets put aside all our preconceptions, and ask ourselves - if it REALLY did happen, what would you do?" The atheist thought for a few moments and then burst out "If it really happened, I'd give up everything I have and planned to do, and give myself 100% to spreading the news and its implications."
This, alongside a lot of reflections I have been having during lent, made me wonder:
- have I just got so used to the idea as being intellectually acceptable, that it doesn't have any real impact on me? or...
- have I, like so many others, just seem to accept it as a truth equivalent to gravity, and again simply take it for granted? or...
- have I become so inured to death (on TV, in the news, in books) that death itself seems unreal, or just commonplace and not so hideous, that resurrection is not such a big deal either, sort of like life is a movie in which the actors who are "killed" aren't really - they all get up and go on to act a new part, maybe "die" again...and again... and again? So we are actually living more in this virtual world than in reality.
When you think about it, defeating death must be one of the most pervasive wishes of all people everywhere. So when it happened, why were so few people enthusiastic about it? It is the ultimate goal of all medical science, and researchers are making progress towards bionics, biotechnics, pretending progress is being made in achieving everylasting life.
The problem with this approach is that putting off, or avoiding death, does not defeat it. The only way to defeat death is to die and then break out into life again. That is REALLY breaking the chains of death.
So what happened that momentous passover REALLY was a once-in-history event! It must be THE CENTRAL EVENT of history!
Why do so many of us seem so apathetic about its implications? Why has its celebration been reduced to a relaxing long weekend with Easter eggs, bunny rabbits, and lots of food? If is REALLY happened, shouldn't it make a HUGE impact on my life today, tomorrow, this week, and beyond? (Oh, I know that there are those for whom Easter is a deeply moving celebration - but even for such people, do they display the stupendous life-giving POWER of the resurrection in their daily lives that Jesus promised - truly abundant LIFE?)
What do YOU think? Did it REALLY happen? And if you think so, what practical, real life (in the here and now) impact has it had, or does it continue to have on you?
