Easter: Hope for the present world, not just the future
According to one recent national study, one-third of Americans do not view Easter as a religious celebration. Even more interesting is that 19 percent of Christians do not view Easter that way either!
I think that is rather unfortunate - not because I hold to some sectarian faith that “rages against the dying of the light,” but because of the hope that Easter inspires, not just for the world to come, but for the one here and now.
Easter celebrates the resurrection of Christ from the dead - not only to accomplish the redemption of humanity from sin but to ultimately restore all creation to its original glory. As beautiful as this world is (at least parts of it), it is not the best of all possible worlds. God grieves at all the evil, corruption, violence, and injustice in the world today. More than we will ever know!
So what difference does Easter make? If anything, the resurrection of Jesus Christ reminds me that matter matters! In the Greco-Roman world, people believed that matter - the material world, the physical body - were evil and corrupt. But because these things matter to God, it fuels my passion to be a part of the answer to the petition in the Lord’s Prayer: “Thy kingdom come...on earth as it is in heaven.”
To that end, Grace Ann Arbor Church will be giving away all donations from our Easter Sunday offering to help low-income families and individuals without insurance to receive the medical, dental, and social services that they so desperately need.
If you cannot join us for Easter Sunday, you can still make a difference by giving online to Hope Clinic in Ypsilanti:
- $600 gives better health to ten people who have no insurance
- $100 helps keep a family in their home through emergency assistance
- $60 lets a sick person see a doctor and receive the care they need
- $25 provides a healthy smile for a child through a dental check-up
- $20 helps feed two families with much-needed groceries
- $15 feeds ten hungry people a warm meal
Perhaps if Easter were less about candy, chocolate rabbits, and egg hunts, and more about sharing the hope that God so freely and generously gives to us, maybe then we could all experience more of heaven here on earth. God knows, we sure could use it!
Sung Kim is the pastor at Grace Ann Arbor Church, a new church started in September 2009. Contact Sung at sung@graceannarbor.com.
Comments
Sung Kim
Tue, Apr 6, 2010 : 10:30 a.m.
Rebbapragada - yes, the Christian understanding of heaven is not that we will "escape" this earth to our heavenly home "up above" but rather, the "new heavens and new earth" (Revelation 21:1) will "come down." Heaven will be the ultimate restoration, renewal, and redemption of this world! Earth will be re-created (if you will), free from the effects of sin, death, sickness, and sorrow. A biblical view of heaven should shape Christ-followers to be so heavenly-minded that we are of the most earthly good!
W. Vida
Sat, Apr 3, 2010 : 3:22 p.m.
Hi Sung, I am going to challenge you a little on this one. I am all for caring for the poor. It is a very important part of the Christian faith. But isn't Easter supposed to be about a celebration? Don't the chocolate eggs, and the big meals, and the family parties all point to the fact that when Christ rose from the dead it gave us all cause to get up and dance a little happy dance? There are seasons for everything. Isn't there a season for some guilt free breaking of the Lenten fast and partying like we are at a Cana wedding? That is just the way that I have always understood the point of Easter. God bless. http://religionannarbor.wordpress.com/
Loyola
Fri, Apr 2, 2010 : 8:29 a.m.
One third not believing Easter is a religious holiday may be accurate according to the pollsters BUT if a "Christian" said it wasn't, then they probably are not Christians. What a loose term nowadays- Christian is a follower of Christ, whom Christians believe to be God. Deconstructionism of the definition is apparent in this article.