Easter is the most important date on the Christian calendar because it celebrates the day Jesus defeated death. And because Jesus defeated death, everyone who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, we are set free from death.
Here is how the Bible explains it.
14 Since the children, as he calls them, are people of flesh and blood, Jesus himself became like them and shared their human nature. He did this so that through his death he might destroy the Devil, who has the power over death, 15 and in this way set free those who were slaves all their lives because of their fear of death. GNT Hebrews 2:14-15
This is the epic story of God. He loves and cares for us so much, God comes to save us. This story helps us understand the world we live in. We live in a world of evil. But you already know this don’t you? Life is hard. Really hard. In life, we experience hurts and wounds. In life, we experience fear and doubt. In life, we have to overcome so many challenges. And over time all of this can wear us down and we think, ‘Can anyone help me? Can anyone rescue me?’ And that is why Jesus came. To defeat evil and rescue us. How? I want to read it for you.
The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. NLT Romans 8:11
That’s amazing. Jesus comes to defeat evil. To do that, he dies. God sends a piece of who He is, the Holy Spirit, to bring Jesus back to life. And that same Holy Spirit that raised Jesus to life is the same Holy Spirit that God wants to place inside of you. You can see why Easter is a huge celebration. We are celebrating how Jesus defeated evil and rescued us. That simply means, because of Jesus, we are free from our sin and the damage sin can bring. Because of Jesus, we are free on judgment day, we go to heaven. That means, because of Jesus, we can have God live inside us through the Holy Spirit. That’s Easter.
As beautiful as this story is, people have a ton of questions about God. So, for the rest of the time, I have today, I want to answer five common questions people have about God.
Question 1: Why does God allow bad things to happen? The answer: Because we made the choice to sin.
4 The snake replied, “That’s not true; you will not die. 5 God said that because he knows that when you eat it, you will be like God and know what is good and what is bad.” GNT Genesis 3:4-5
You know the story. Adam and Eve wanted to be like God, so they made the choice to sin. And ever since that moment, sin has been in our world. But here is what is even more amazing, after the flood, God hasn’t hit the reset button. God can hit the reset button and make our world perfect again but if He did that, many people would be lost. How do we know this?
God isn’t late with his promise as some measure lateness. He is restraining himself on account of you, holding back the End because he doesn’t want anyone lost. He’s giving everyone space and time to change. MSG 2 Peter 3:9
Until God comes back, we will live in a world with sin in it. And because of God’s mercy, God is pushing back the end of time to give people space and time to fall in love with Him. That is why bad things continue to happen.
Question 2: Do all religions lead to God? The answer: No.
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” NIV John 14:6
Jesus was clear, there is only one way to God, and that’s through Jesus. Jesus is the only person, or prophet, in all of human history who died and came back to life. That means only Jesus defeated death through His resurrection. Only through Jesus will we find God because He is the only one who defeated death. No other prophet came back to life. That is proof that they did not defeat death.
Question 3: Is there a real hell? The answer: Yes. Let’s read what Jesus said.
“Don’t be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” NLT Matthew 10:28
There is a day when we will stand before God and be held accountable for how we lived on earth. However, because of what Jesus did, we can be prepared for that day.
If we confess our sins to him, he can be depended on to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong. And it is perfectly proper for God to do this for us because Christ died to wash away our sins. NLT 1 John 1:9
We can live with courage and passion knowing Jesus has washed us clean of all sin. Jesus has prepared us to meet with God that day. And every time we sin, because we will, we ask Jesus to forgive us and He does.
Question 4: Can I earn my way to heaven by being a good person? The answer: No.
If keeping the law could make us right with God, then there was no need for Christ to die. NLT Galatians 2:21
That simply means, if you could earn your way into heaven by being a good person and doing all the right things, then Jesus never had to die for you. The whole point of Jesus dying on the cross is, no one can earn their way into heaven. No one is good enough. No one can earn their way into heaven based on their human effort. We are completely dependent on Jesus to walk us into heaven.
This is why I like how Scripture explains this. Every time we think we can earn our way into heaven, we are saying, ‘Jesus didn’t have to die, I can make it into heaven on my own.’ Every time we think we are going to do a good thing and that thing will get us into heaven, we are saying, ‘Jesus didn’t have to die, I can make it into heaven on my own.’ It’s silly. Please hear me, we are completely dependent on Jesus to walk us into heaven.
Question 5: How do I find peace in my life? The answer: Jesus explained, to find peace, we must surrender our lives to Him.
24 Then Jesus said to the disciples, “If anyone wants to be a follower of mine, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25 For anyone who keeps his life for himself shall lose it, and anyone who loses his life for me shall find it again. 26 What profit is there if you gain the whole world—and lose eternal life? What can be compared with the value of eternal life?” TLB Matthew 16:24-26
To find peace, we surrender our lives to Jesus. We ask Him to be our savior. That means we confess our sins to Jesus and ask Him to forgive us and rescue us. We ask Him to be our Lord. That means we want to follow after Him and live the way He asks us to live. We read the Bible, pray, and surrender our lives to the Holy Spirit.
Now there are a couple of things we have to talk about. As you surrender your life to Jesus, you will need to wrestle with a few things. The first thing you will need to wrestle with is just how much God loves you. Why do I say that? Because it’s normal to struggle to fully understand how much God loves us. And because of that, we can struggle to live with a faith that leads to courage and passion. Instead, we can live in fear and anxiety because we are afraid that God might not come through for us today.
We believe that Jesus was born as a baby – that’s amazing. We believe that God sent Jesus to die for us – that’s amazing. We believe that when we ask Jesus to forgive us, he does – that’s amazing. We believe that someday we will be in heaven – that’s amazing. So think about that. We believe in all the things God has done for us in the past. We believe in all the things God will do for us in the future. But, we wonder, will God come through for me today? So, we live in fear and anxiety.
You are going to have to wrestle with just how much God loves you. Because when you fully understand how much He loves you, you will begin to relax and know, God is there for you today. Please hear me, the same God who sent Jesus to die for you, the same God who will walk you into heaven, that is the same God who wants to live in you today. When you fully understand how much God loves you, your faith will begin to have courage and passion.
The second thing you will have to wrestle with is being honest with God. That means, as you live life, you will need God every day just as much if not more than the first day you met God. We need to come to God every day and let Him know, ‘God, I’m a mess, I need you.’ And in that honesty, God will meet you there.
You must understand, this is a relationship. This isn’t religion. In a relationship, we are honest, passionate, and real. In religion, we act fake and go through the motions while we hide who we really are. In a relationship, we aren’t afraid of God, so we run to God. In religion, we are afraid of God, so we hide from God.
The more honest you are with God, the more real your relationship with God will be. You need God the same if not more today than the first day you surrendered your life to Him.
The last thing I want to bring up with you is you will have to be prepared that life will continue to have struggles. Scripture is very clear that life will be full of struggles.
Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. NIV 1 Peter 4:12
Some people wrongly believe that when they come to Jesus, He makes everything perfect, removes all struggle, and makes life comfortable. That’s not true. They treat Jesus like a genie who grants wishes. Wishes that promise us health, wealth, and comfort. That’s not true.
Again, it’s a relationship. God wants to walk with us as we walk through the struggles of life. That includes the good times, the bad times, and the ugly times.
To close today, I want to ask you a few questions. What does the Easter story mean to you? Is it a story of how God came running to you to rescue you? Do you realize that because of Jesus, you are free from sin and all it’s damage? That means you aren’t helpless, you don’t have to continue to sin. Do you realize that the same Holy Spirit that brought Jesus to life is the same Holy Spirit God wants to place inside you? Do you realize how much God loves and cares for you today, right now? Do you believe in God’s love so much you have less fear and anxiety and more courage and passion? How about your relationship with God? Do you hide from God or do you run to God? Are you real or do you feel like you are just going through the motions? Did you know that God doesn’t remove all your struggles in life? Did you know that God wants to walk with you as you walk through those struggles?
I want to read Romans 8:11 again.
The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you. NLT Romans 8:11
That’s for you today.