Years ago I rented the movie, “The Sixth Sense,” famous for its surprise ending. Unfortunately, while I was in the video store, I had heard people talking about the movie and, about halfway through watching it myself, I realized their comments had clued me in to the twist at the end. I still enjoyed the film, but I realized I wasn’t having the same experience most people had being blindsided by the finish.
But this is the way we all experience Easter. Knowing how it ends naturally dampens our ability to feel the full range of Holy Week’s highs and lows.
Still, as any English teacher will tell you, there’s a lot of value in re-reading, or re-seeing a story. It’s in the second, and successive looks that we discern nuances and gain insights that really penetrate our awareness and understanding.
That’s why I’d like to take a deeper dive into the truths we can take away from the Easter story:
God forgives us. God has gone through considerable effort to bring us that reprieve in a meaningful way – a way that not only relieves us of the burden of guilt, but also transforms us. Paul will call it freedom to do God’s good works; James will say faith without deeds is dead. But what does it actually mean in our own lives?
Death is not the end. What does it mean that Jesus is resurrected? What happens to each of us when we die? While the Old Testament never directly addressed the question of life after death, everyone who has ever lived wonders about it. How does our thinking about death color our living of life?
God wants us to spread the word. Why is this important? How do we even accomplish it?
In the coming weeks I plan to explore these ideas, but I welcome your input – particularly your questions. The best times I had as an English teacher were the vibrant discussions I had with my students about all the ideas their reading awakened in them.
Let’s have a good conversation.
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