Most church-goers can tell you about Jesus’ resurrection on Easter morning. Many of us may even have their favorite gospel text of this event. Nevertheless, each time we hear this “old, old story of Jesus and his love,” as ELW hymn 661 describes it, we are invited to ponder new insights about the cross and resurrection.
In the gospel of Luke (24:1-12), the women go to the tomb with their spices and find the stone rolled away, but they do not find the body of Jesus. They are perplexed by this, but suddenly two angels appear beside them and say: “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen.”
As a child, I remember having a conversation with my grandmother as we looked at the large brass cross on the altar in our church. The cross was empty, without the body of Christ as seen in some other churches. My grandmother pointed out that this was a reminder that we believe that Jesus rose from the dead. Meanwhile, those crosses which include Christ’s body remind us that Jesus was crucified and died “for our sake,” as we confess in the Nicene Creed. Indeed, for us who preach Christ crucified, it’s powerful to point to our Savior Jesus on the cross and say, “He is risen!” and when we see an empty cross, to remember that the nails, the grave, and not even death itself could keep Him from rising.
The angels proclaimed Jesus’ resurrection: “He is not here, but has risen.” But they also asked the women: “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” In our own lives, we can get caught up looking for life and fulfillment in the wrong places, according to what the world says is needful or beneficial, but which are, sadly, dead-ends to our well-being. Christ came to bring life, and bring it abundantly. Since we are united with him in his death and resurrection, we have life and salvation. As St. Paul wrote (Col. 3:1): “So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.”
As you ponder the many different crosses you see, be they on church steeples, altars, pictures, or jewelry, may they remind you both of Jesus’ death and of his resurrection. May you rejoice that Jesus’ victory over sin, pain, and death is your victory! And may this celebration of the Resurrection deepen your faith, draw you closer to Christ, and bring you God’s Blessings, Peace, and Joy!
+Bishop Wilma S. Kucharek
