Many know by now that Easter is another word for Ishtar, who was a self-proclaimed, real life Babylonian goddess, said to have been married to the biblical figure of Nimrod (Genesis 10:8-10) and long before it (meaning “Easter”) was celebrated by Christians around the world, it was celebrated by pagans worshiping this goddess who happened to specialize in fertility (I guess if you’re going to specialize in something…).  This celebration apparently drew world wide popularity because King Herod Agrippa celebrated it after killing James, one of Jesus’ disciples and then decided to imprison Peter during the party, which at the time had no connection to the resurrection of Jesus. (see Acts 12:1-5, KJV)  It happened to occasionally connect with the Jewish celebration of the passover.

Years go by and the church becomes official and the church becomes THE CHURCH.  THE CHURCH decides, in honor of their risen Savior to mix holiday metaphors a bit, and copy the culture that exists.  Easter then becomes a THE CHURCH holiday.  The problem is the former holiday never really goes away, but the two begin to meld together in a bunny loving, egg coloring, candy eating, oh yeah, and by the way, Jesus rising type of way.

By the time it’s too late, THE CHURCH becomes THE CHURCHES and wonders what all the confusion is about – this thing, after all, is about one thing.  The one thing that, somewhere along the way, was not enough, and needed to be pepped up or apologized for or altered a little bit, because it’s been years since anyone’s seen anyone rise from the dead.

So this Sunday, THE CHURCHES are going to do everything they can to ‘pull out all the stops’ and wow you with classy production, excellent gimmicks, and the pastors best 3 point outline.  None of those things are wrong and none of those things are going to be demonized here, but none of those things are also the reason why we meet together and call ourselves “followers of Jesus” or “Christians”.

But the reason we are gathered as the church is not because of a holiday or a tradition or because we’re supposed to, but because a man walked this earth (many have done this), did amazing, miraculous things (many have done this, too), could not be found guilty of anything (no one else has done this), gave His life for the glory of God and for the salvation of mankind (wait for it…), then three days later rose again, after he was indeed (not figuratively) dead. (1 Corinthians 15:1-4)

The hope that we have because this happened is unimaginable, as our trust can now be placed firmly outside of our own hands and into the hands of a Savior and a God who made a way for our world to be healed and redeemed back into His arms.

Call it whatever you want, but just celebrate the right thing.

Sitting in church with a sweet yellow suit. Must have been Easter.

Growing up in a midwest church is a little bit like taking a cold shower in the middle of winter.  You know something’s broken and it really sucks to do, but you also kind of understand that in the end, it’s the best thing for you.

Sometimes I wonder what people in churches are thinking.  Well, actually I know what they’re thinking.  A lot of people use church as one of two things:  A place where they can obtain power easier than anywhere else or a place where, if they are needy enough, they can come and get what they need.

Consequently, American churches are full of two types of people:  power-hungry Napolean types and selfish “give me what I need” adolescent types.  And the good news for the former (but not for the church) is that they can control the latter very well.

The verses that people use to tell everyone else that they need to be in church (and rightfully so, btw) can be found in Hebrews 10 when the writer quips, “And let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds.  Let us not give up meeting together as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another – and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

There’s a major disconnect here then because churches want people to get involved in their activities (many churches go 7 days a week) and immerse themselves in the community of the church organization, yet the purpose of said organization is, at its best, “spurring towards love and good deeds and encouraging one another.”

We’re supposed to be a coach, and instead we’re trying to be the game.

I wonder sometimes if the reason we don’t get excited about following Jesus is because we haven’t really seen Him resurrected.  We cry when we watch movies like “The Passion” and the thought of someone giving their life for us astounds and encourages us to live decent lives, but I wonder if sometimes we stop there.

I’ve heard it questioned several times this year about why Christmas gets more celebrating (at least a month, every year more) than Easter does, but Christmas is of course a token holiday, representing (religiously) the birth and the life of Jesus.  Nobody has problems with his life, or even His death and everyone might believe that it was necessary.

It’s the Sunday thing that we have difficulty with, therefore we hesitate to follow Him with our whole hearts.  It’s the saying out loud that someone who lived in this world, who talked to real people, and who did some great things and gave some great speeches, then had the power to get up after His gruesome death and walk the earth some more, then be taken up to heaven.

I wonder whether our minds really wrap around that one very well, because of our imperialistic approach to the world today.

I’m hardly one to talk.  I hate when people overdue the spiritual stuff.  The term “God is so good” just might apply to things like you finding your contact on the floor or being able to figure out which color of shirt to wear to the office today, but somehow I’ve felt that saying it out loud every two seconds waters it down to the point of absurd piety.

But in order to really become a Christ follower, someone who doesn’t just talk game, but lives it, there must be a sincere belief that Easter isn’t just a respectful holiday where “I should probably go to church”, but it should represent a belief I have that Jesus lived on this earth, gave his life as a sacrifice for the sins of the world,and then rose again on the third day as a testimony to his deity, making Him my Savior.

This Easter, I challenge you to wrestle with that thought which the apostles in Scripture call the Good News.  Grapple with the fact that Jesus is indeed alive and is our “mediator between God and us”.  Launch into a belief that his victory over death gives you and me new life, and that is a celebration worth having.

Until next time…