McDowell County
“Sin’s masterpiece of shame and hate became God’s masterpiece of mercy and forgiveness.”
Easter 2026 is fast approaching. Easter is celebrated today by Christians around the world. It is one of the most important events in human history, which is the Crucifixion and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Easter means the full confirmation of all that Jesus taught and preached during His three-year ministry here on earth.
Throughout the history of the Israelites, they experienced cycles of oppression and redemption. They endured vicious periods of exile and enslavement where they could not meet with God’s presence in the temple. People cried out to God to save them from their exile. In His infinite lovingkindness, God produced a plan to allow all people, not just the Israelites, to dwell with Him, the source of all life, forever.
God’s plan for salvation went beyond rescuing His people from their enemies. The Kingdom of God does not operate according to the ways of the world. God’s Kingdom is one of peace. Throughout the Old Testament, He speaks about how He will punish the malicious or unjust—those who impose unjust burdens on others, harass people with unjust laws, or treat others with unreasonable severity, rigor, or hardship.
On the morning of the third day after Jesus Christ’s Crucifixion, God, through Jesus, began remaking all of creation. Jesus is the first fruits of this new creation (1 Corinthians 15:20), a sign for us of what is both happening now and yet to come. Through Christ Jesus, we have the promise of bodily resurrection and eternal peace with God and with each other. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the core of the Christian gospel.
Without Christ and the resurrection, the cross is meaningless. The cross shows us the seriousness of our sin, but it also shows us the immeasurable love of God. God’s love is proved on the Cross. The cross has become the symbol of Christianity because at the cross Jesus purchased our redemption and provided a righteousness which we could not earn ourselves.
God undertook the most dramatic and comprehensive rescue operation in history. Determined to save the human race from self-destruction, God sent His Son, Jesus, to redeem them. The work of man’s redemption was accomplished at the cross. Sin’s masterpiece of shame and hate became God’s masterpiece of mercy and forgiveness.
It was through the death of Christ upon the cross that sin itself was crucified for those who believe in Jesus. The resurrection blasts apart the finality of death and opens a way to new life. “An unopened grave would never have opened heaven.”
The Holy Spirit, through Jesus Christ, dwells in the heart of every believer to give us supernatural power for living our daily lives. We should look upon Easter and Christmas as the two most important days of the year. Easter is a holy day—the day in which we remember the sacrifice Jesus Christ made on the Cross for our sins and celebrate His resurrection, bringing hope to all of us.
What does the Cross tell us? For the Christian, it tells us that God understands our suffering and all our failures, heartaches, sorrows, and pain. He was saying from the Cross, “I love you.”
Easter forms the basis for all that we as Christians believe. Easter points us to the hope of the empty tomb and the hope for eternal life, because Christ conquered death on the Cross. It tells us God has triumphed over evil and hell. All of Christianity is built on the resurrection of Christ. The Bible teaches that because Jesus Christ lives today, we can also live eternally with Him in God’s Kingdom.
The greatest truth that you can ever hear is that Jesus Christ died but rose again so that we too can rise again from death into a new life.
Before the joy of Easter dawned, Jesus Christ gave His life on the Cross. Willingly He shed His priceless blood on that Cross at Calvary to cleanse the sin-darkened hearts of the human race. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, yet shall he live” (John 11:25).
This most precious gift we can ever receive is given to us by God Himself. This gift is available for anyone who will repent of their sin and come to know the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the hope and assurance of Easter—Resurrection Day.
We celebrate Easter because this day reminds us that we can die to our old way of living and be resurrected into our new life with Christ.
Bible Truths For Easter
• John 11:25
• Acts 17:31
• Romans 6:4
• Romans 8:11
• Romans 10:9
• Romans 14:9
We celebrate Easter because Jesus lived the life we should have lived and died the death we deserved to die, so that we could live. What a wonderful cause to celebrate this day.
Benefits of Jesus’ Resurrection
• Mary Magdalene — Jesus delivered her hope from deep discouragement (John 20:11–18).
• For the disciples gathered on the evening of His Resurrection, Jesus brought peace to replace their fears (John 20:19–23).
• Thomas — Jesus instilled faith to settle doubts (John 20:24–29).
• Jesus brought resurrection power to the discouraged disciples (John 21:1–14).
• Jesus provided powerful restoration for Peter’s divided heart (John 21:15–19).
• Jesus gave John a renewed sense of purpose (John 21:20–24).
Faith We Experience from Christ’s Resurrection
Take a moment to read John 20:24–29. Jesus challenged Thomas to pursue a faith that moves beyond doubts.
• Faith is kindled when the heart identifies obstacles (John 20:25).
• Faith is sparked when the Lord reveals Himself at our point of need (John 20:27).
• Faith is ignited when the heart submits to the revelation (John 20:28).
• Faith grows when it comes before seeing (John 20:29). “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).
Why Easter Is Important to Christians
- Jesus restores our brokenness.
- Jesus provides faith to settle our doubts.
- Jesus gives peace to replace our fears.
- Jesus conquers our struggles.
- Jesus encourages us when we are overwhelmed.
On Easter Sunday everything became new. The message of the resurrection is the good news about Jesus Christ, who conquered sin and death and rose from the grave. The empty tomb has never been and will never be old news.
Scripture teaches that Christ was put to death in the flesh but made alive by the Spirit. The Bible states:
“For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit: by which also He went and preached unto the spirits in prison” (1 Peter 3:18–20).
While interpretations differ regarding this passage, Scripture is clear that Jesus did not give anyone a second chance for salvation. Hebrews 9:27–28 teaches that judgment follows death.
No one has to go to hell. Jesus died for all who will place their trust in Him. As John 3:17–18 explains, Christ came not to condemn the world but to save it.
This Easter, let us focus on the central foundations of the Gospel—the cross and the resurrection that bring salvation to all who repent and believe in Jesus Christ.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. Christ died for our sins according to Scripture, was buried, and rose again on the third day according to Scripture. When Jesus rose from the dead, He confirmed His identity as the Son of God and validated His work of atonement, redemption, reconciliation, and salvation.
For forty days after His resurrection, Jesus appeared to many witnesses (1 Corinthians 15:5–8). These appearances included Mary in the garden, the women on the road, Simon Peter, the disciples on the road to Emmaus, the disciples behind locked doors, the disciples including Thomas, and later hundreds of followers.
Jesus also appeared to James, the apostles, and finally to Saul on the road to Damascus.
The resurrection guarantees the future resurrection of believers, provides spiritual power today, and assures that God will judge the world in righteousness.
The empty tomb guarantees the future resurrection of believers. Easter points us beyond the suffering of the cross to the hope of eternal life because Christ conquered death.
On the morning of the third day after Jesus’ crucifixion, God began the work of remaking creation through Jesus Christ. Jesus is the first fruits of this new creation (1 Corinthians 15:20).
God invites us to become part of His Kingdom where we will experience eternal peace with Him.
Easter Sunday celebrates the single most important event in human history: Jesus is alive.
The message of the resurrection is just as relevant today as it was more than 2,000 years ago. The invitation to join God’s Kingdom is still open to anyone who will accept it.
He is not here. He is risen.
_____________________________________________________
Glenda Ward is a member of Grand View Baptist Church in McDowell County and is a Christian writer/author of “Something to Think About” – weekly Christian Articles. She finds purpose and joy in writing Church Programs & Bulletins, VBS Material, Christmas and Easter Programs, Memorials, and now expanding to include weekly articles to other churches, as well as writings to include Christian-based articles on Relationships in Marriage; all material based on the KJV of the Bible. From personal experience, I hope to set an example of how to serve a risen Savior and live by the Holy Spirit with joy. My goal is to help people partake of the better option in life to experience the transforming power that is available in Christ Jesus today. You can read more, good, Christian news from Glenda HERE.
_______________________________________________________