We believe, indeed we know, that Jesus rose from the dead on that first Easter Sunday. He broke the chains of death and rose to a new way of living and loving beyond our wildest imagining. The resurrection was an earth shattering event, the most important event in human history and it has many implications for us and for the way we live our lives.
One implication of the resurrection is the fact that Jesus is still with us. The presence and power of the risen Jesus permeate our lives. As a consequence of the resurrection Jesus is no longer limited by time and space. He is present to us and with us at every moment of every day. He is the invisible companion of our life’s journey. We do not have to wait for heaven to experience the friendship, the healing, the peace and the joy of the risen Jesus. These things are already available to us. The risen Jesus is already working in our lives. He is involved with us here and now.
A second implication of the resurrection has to do with the mission of Jesus. The resurrection was a vindication of the way Jesus lived his life. It was a confirmation of the values Jesus practised, preached and died for. The way of Jesus works. When Jesus was nailed to the cross on Good Friday it seemed as if his mission was a failure, that he was a dreamer who offered the world an unrealistic vision of happiness. His resurrection changed this, it transformed it. Jesus was no dreamer. His values of justice and compassion and service and humility and forgiveness are in fact the only values that work. His values are the values that make the world a better place and that bring us personal fulfilment. The resurrection of Jesus was proof that love is stronger that hate, goodness is greater than evil, life is more powerful than death.
Of course another implication of the resurrection is that our death is not the end. What happened to Jesus on Easter Sunday will happen to us. We will share in the risen life of Jesus when we die. Because of the resurrection of Jesus we have a life to look forward to beyond the grave. Because of the resurrection of Jesus a new world will be opened up to us on the other side of death. Because Jesus rose from the dead the place we call heaven is our destiny, our destination, our future home. Indeed, in the words of St Paul, it is our true home. For those who believe in Jesus and in the power of his resurrection the future is bright because the best is yet to come. It is with good reason that we can say, ‘It belongs to the Christian to hope!’