Remember the Easter victory Jesus won for us

I have a pastor friend who had to declare bankruptcy many years ago.

He did not want to, but this pastor was in a mission congregation in an oil state in the mid-1980s. When oil prices dropped, people started leaving the area. The congregation he served was started by the church district, and the district told him it was closing the congregation because the district did not have the funds to support it. He couldn’t sell his house for anything near what he owed because everyone was leaving. He could not stay either because the church was closing. He took a call and served a church in another state, but had to declare bankruptcy to get rid of his old house. The debt was too big for him.

Do you face struggles that at times seem just too big for you? Perhaps like my friend, it may be finances. For some, the struggle with an addiction is a battle they just have not been able to win yet. Sometimes troubles in a family seem overwhelming. Problems at work may require a new job. Can you think of problems you face in this life you just can’t fix?

Christians believe there is one struggle we all face within ourselves that we can’t overcome on our own. That is the struggle with selfishness and sin. The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 7:19, while he was a leader in the church, “For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do — this I keep on doing.”

I have often said there is one Biblical teaching that is proven every day in this world. That is the teaching about evil and sin. Everywhere we look, even the best efforts of people fall short and exhibit selfishness and lack of trust in God. Sin is that struggle we cannot overcome on our own no matter how hard we try.

That is why the events we celebrate this coming Sunday are so important. The struggle against sin we could not overcome, Jesus did overcome. Jesus took our guilt, our selfishness and our sin to the cross. He paid for the sin of the world in his suffering and death. But sin and death did not have the final word. Jesus did not stay dead. On the third day, Easter Sunday, Jesus rose from the dead, winning victory over all sin, over death and victory over our guilt. The struggle that is too big for us was overcome by God’s son, Jesus, when he rose from the dead!

One of the consequences all people face because of our sin is death. In my family there have been three deaths in this past year of close family members one generation older than I. Death is one of those enemies that is bigger than we are.

But, when speaking to Martha, Jesus told her the blessings we receive from his resurrection: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.” (John 11:25-26)

The most important event in the history of the world is Jesus’ rising from the dead. In his death, Jesus paid for our sin. In his rising, he overcame sin and death so that we can live forever with him in heaven. His victory is our victory over the struggle that was too big for us.

So, have you seen the victory celebrations of a sports team when it wins? Where are you going to celebrate Easter this year? I pray you are able to make it to Easter worship to praise God and to rejoice in the Easter victory Jesus has won for you.

Jonathan Rockey is pastor of St. John Lutheran Church in Palmer. Contact him at jonrock53@mtaonline.net.

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