TOPIC:“The Excitement of That First Easter”
TEXT:St. Matthew 28:1-10
“The angel said to the woman, `Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said. Come and see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples: He has risen from the dead” (28:5-7, NIV.
On this Easter Sunday in worship services across the country you will find different looks on the faces of those who make up the congregations. Bored faces. Defeated faces. Blank faces. Bewildered faces. Discouraged faces. But all too often no face ablaze with the shining radiance of Easter. No real excitement about what actually took place so many years ago.
But Easter, I say, is too great and glorious an event not to be excited over. We who claim to be followers of Christ must rescue it from being neglected, dull, and misunderstood, to an historical event that should be energetic, electrifying and life-changing. For associated with that first Easter there was much excitement felt and energy displayed.
Look at Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James, these women of the dawn, as they approached the tomb that first Easter morning, only to find it empty. They heard these words of action from the angel: “Come...see...go...tell.” Then we read these words in verse 8: “So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell His disciples.”
What energy! What excitement! There was nothing dull about it. With incredible energy they ran to share the Easter message of a risen Christ to such a despondent crowd. Let us now take a closer look at the four verbs found in our text.
To begin with, from the verb “COME” there's the excitement of a CONVINCING VERIFICATION. “The angel said to the women...'Come' ” (vv. 5, 6).
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