LETTER: Easter means it’s going to be OK
Easter means it’s going to be OK
With the uncertainty of current events, there are many who are wondering if everything is going to be OK.
Easter for me this year is wrapped up in a simple statement:
Everything is going to be OK.
The world is definitely in chaos right now – much like when Jesus entered the world. I remember what the angels said to the shepherds when he was born: “Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.” – Luke 2:10-11 KJV
Everything is going to be OK.
I remember how John the Baptist announced the Christ: “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” – John 1:29 NIV
He was saying: Everything is going to be OK.
I remember how Jesus encouraged the people he was teaching to hold their heads up in a world of tribulation. He told them to cheer up: “I have told you all this so that you will have peace of heart and mind. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows; but cheer up, for I have overcome the world.” – John 16:33 LIV
In some ways I think he was saying that everything is going to be OK.
When Jesus went to the cross, it was brutal and cruel, but he said from the cross, “It is finished.” The “it” was his work and ministry. His act of sacrifice signaled to all humanity that everything is going to be OK.
The first Easter morning women went to the tomb of Jesus. They were greeted by the angel who said, “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. – Matthew 28:5-6 NIV
When he rose from the dead, in some ways I think Jesus was saying everything is going to be OK.
Easter is about the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and Jesus rising from the dead means everything is even better than OK!
We are in quite a battle with COVID-19. We may even be able to feel the despair the disciples felt as they watched Jesus suffer and die on the cross. We need to take it very seriously, but this virus will pass. This war will end with cures, immunity, and vaccines. We will return to a new normal, and we will rise from this deadly pandemic. We also know that the coronavirus will not stop Easter from coming. Jesus arose from the grave. We have joy because we know Christ, the Lord, is risen today!
Even in the uncertainty of current events, we have this confident hope: God is with us, listening to us, and offering us his peace. As I find myself looking around, I see how God is alive and that there is hope and beauty in the world.
Rev. Kenneth S. Custer
Pastor of Grace United Methodist Church, Coal Center