Now That Easter’s Over

Easter is the Super Bowl of the church. The weeks of Lenten services lead to Good
Friday and culminate with Resurrection Sunday. It is the ultimate high for worship and usually is
the largest attended service every year. But once the pastor closes the service and the worship
team sings the closeout song and the congregation disperses, what do we do with the Easter
message? How should we live out Easter the week after? Where do we as a church go from here?
The answer to these questions can be found in the work of Christ between his resurrection and
his ascension.

Luke 24 begins with the resurrection story. The tomb is empty and angels in “dazzling apparel”
guard the tomb when the women arrive to anoint the body of Christ. The women approach with
fear and bow before them. The angels say, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is
not here, but has risen” (24:5). The women run to the disciples and tell them what they saw. But
they refuse to believe, passing their gospel off as an “idle tale” (24:11). They are hurt and
discouraged that their friend and teacher, who they followed and put their hope in, is dead and
gone. But Jesus does not leave them in that state. Between his resurrection and his ascension,
Jesus offers hope to his followers in three ways.

His Presence. First, Jesus meets his struggling followers where they are. He finds two
men walking along the road to Emmaus. They are talking about all they witnessed concerning
Jesus. Without revealing who he is, Jesus walks with them and asks what they are speaking
about. The two are incredulous, asking, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not
know the things that have happened there in these days?” (24:18). Of course, Jesus knows. He
experienced them. But he has a plan for these two disciples. So he simply asks, “What things?”
Upon hearing this question, the men begin to lay out all of their hopes and expectations for what
Jesus was to do and be for them. Jesus knows that these men are hurting and need to reveal their
broken hearts. When we deal with fellow church members who are hurting, sometimes we just
want to jump to the right answer. The best course, however, is to follow the example of Jesus
and let people pour their hearts out, rightly or wrongly, before jumping to the “quick fix”
response. Real love requires hearing people out.

His Participation. After listening to the men, Jesus rebukes their lack of faith and
understanding. Starting from the beginning of the Old Testament through the prophet Malachi,
Jesus explains and interprets the biblical text to demonstrate that they point to him. It must have
been a long walk! Imagine listening to a bible study of 39 books of their meal, Jesus reveals the
truth of who he is after unpacking the Word of God for them.

One thing that the church can improve on is participating with people’s struggles. Some of our
people at Courtland Baptist Church do a great job with this, particularly when someone is
hospitalized or during a time of grievance over a lost loved one. But perhaps we can help people
walk through anxiety, depression, fear, doubt, lust, anger, and countless other struggles in a more
concrete way. By doing so, we are not only hearers of the Word, but doers.

His Promise. Jesus appears before the remaining disciples and proves his Person and his
resurrection. He also opens their minds so they can see how the Old Testament speaks of Christ.
He calls them “witnesses of these things” (24:48). They are to tell others what they have seen,
heard, and experienced. But before that, he tells them to wait. That’s weird! They now know
Jesus has risen from the dead. Should not everyone know that right now? Why sit around and
wait? Because Jesus wants them to be cloaked with power. And power comes in God’s timing,
not our own. Jesus promises to send “the promise of the Father upon you,” which is the Holy
Spirit. Until the power of the Spirit envelops their lives, they are to sit still. What a message for
us today! So often, we feel like we just have to do something. If we are sitting still, we are
wasting time. But if we move without the power of the Holy Spirit, our work is in vain. During
this season after Easter Sunday, set a guard around your calendar to spend time waiting on the
Lord, reading his Word, and praying to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

While the excitement of Easter may wane, we can continue to do the work that Christ has
called us to do. Let’s be present with our fellow church members, listening to their hurts and
even complaints. Let’s participate in the sufferings of our brothers and sisters. And let’s wait on
the Lord, and he will strengthen our hearts.