A dying British pastor, barely able to hold a pen, once wrote his daughter a letter on Easter morning. His voice was gone. His legs were useless. And still he wrote: "It is a terrible thing to wake up on Easter morning and have no voice with which to shout resurrection — but it would be still more terrible to have a voice and not want to shout about it."
Three words. That's all it took. Three words echoed out of a garden tomb 2,000 years ago and have been ringing through the hearts of believers ever since. He is risen.
"He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee."
Luke 24:6
A Truth of Triumph
No poet's pen, no orator's tongue, no writer's quill has ever come close to the weight of what that heavenly messenger declared from the mouth of that empty tomb. All of heaven, all of earth, and all of hell could hear it clearly: He is not here — He is risen.
He rose in spite of the false accusations. In spite of the kangaroo court and Pilate's sentence. In spite of the cat of nine tails. In spite of the thorny crown and the spit and the mockery. He rose in spite of the nails, the spear, the grave, and death itself.
"Resurrection — just mention that word. It draws joy out of sorrow. It brings peace in the midst of the storm. It produces hope in hopelessness. It robs the sting from death and steals victory from the grave."
— Justin Cooper
Like Samson who brought down the pillars of the temple, Christ in resurrection broke the bands of sin. Like David who cut down Goliath, Christ cut down the giant of death. Like Joshua who shouted down the walls of Jericho, Christ broke down the wall that separated us from God. Like Moses who stared Pharaoh in the eye and made a way through the Red Sea — Jesus stared death and hell in the eye, took the keys, and made a way for you and me to get to where God is.
What This Means for You Today
You may feel like you're living in a dark Saturday — surrounded by what didn't work, what didn't survive, what got sealed behind a stone. But the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the declaration that Sunday is coming.
You serve a risen Savior. That word — resurrection — belongs to one person. It rings one bell. And when it chimes in the heart, it draws our attention to one name above every name: Jesus. Don't be a person with a voice who doesn't want to shout it. Shout it today.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, today I choose to let this truth be more than a fact I know — I want it to be a fire I feel. You are risen. You conquered death. You are not in a tomb somewhere; You are alive and seated at the right hand of the Father. Let that reality light up my day. Let me carry the joy of resurrection wherever I go. In Your name, Amen.
