The resurrection? It’s meant to inspire joy and fear!
That’s right! I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and you know what? That’s the truth. This weekend when we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, it’ll be great cause for great joy, but also great cause for holy fear because Jesus’ resurrection has paved the way for the resurrection of all who have died. And when you think about it, that’s amazing! Even Jesus said in John 5 – get this, he said, “Do not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and come out – those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned.” That should cause your knees to shake. Because think of it…
Think of all the people you know, people you see everyday – people at the gas station, in line at the ATM, people flipping burgers at McDonald’s, people at the supermarket, the bag boy that you say “hi” to. We see them all the time, but trouble is, we never really look deeply at the run-of-the-mill neighbor or waitress or shopkeeper and picture that person one day rising out of their grave to be either condemned or to live. Then we read Jesus’ words in John 5 and he hits the nail on the head – because Jesus assumes there that we just might overlook the stunning reality of the resurrection as well as the coming judgment. After all, like he said, it’s amazing.
Well, maybe it’s because we can’t envision men really rising from their graves. More horrifying, we are stymied at the thought of our neighbors, co-workers, or relatives rising only to be condemned. And we think, “O, Lord, do you mean my third-grade teacher that I loved so much? The women who run the daycare center where I take my child? My mailman? My housekeeper? The lady who teaches the quilting class down the street? The bank teller who’s always telling me jokes? If these people don’t know Jesus, they won’t ‘rise to live,’ they’ll be condemned?” Well, Jesus answers that in a later verse in John 5 where he says: “He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him… By myself, I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but Him who sent me.” There you have it, friend; if people don’t know Jesus, they don’t know God the Father.
Good Friday is meant to jar us out of our spiritual slumber. Because of his resurrection, one day Jesus will come to judge the living and the dead. The dead, we can’t do anything about – they’re gone, but the living, we can do something about. So, agree with God today that you want to fit into his plan to reach the women who work the daycare center… the cleaning lady… the bank teller… the guys at the gas station, or just anybody you know who doesn’t know the Savior. And one way you can do this is to give them a special little book written by my good friend, Max Lucado, called “Resurrection Morning.” I think Max specifically wrote it for people who don’t believe in the resurrection – it’s an imaginative story about a Roman soldier who ended up giving his life to Christ and it just might be the thing God will use to convince the people you know that, yes, the resurrection of Jesus really happened… all for the love of the Father and for the salvation of people just like them. So visit me today, would you, at joniandfriendsradio.org and ask for your free copy of “Resurrection Morning.” And from all of us at Joni and Friends, have a Happy Easter celebrating all that Jesus has purchased through his awesome resurrection.
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