2 mins

God’s rescue plan

The Rt Rev Dr Iain Greenshields reflects on the meaning of Easter.

The Rt Rev Dr Iain Greeshields photo credit: Andy O’Brien

I HAVE always loved Easter – it is an “eggceptional” time of the year (sorry!!) What did Easter mean to you growing up? For many it meant chocolate, new beginnings, holidays – that time when life started to come back into our world! For the Church, it is the time of year. I remember having an engaging conversation with a head teacher. She waxed lyrical about Christmas and told me that this must be the high point in my year as a minister.

“No it’s not,” I said, “Easter is the high point for Christians and always has been. Celebrating Christmas as we do is relatively new in comparison to Easter, which from the very origin of the Christian faith, has been the time of great celebration.” “But Christmas is so special!” she replied. “It is special and a great time of year, but Easter lies at the heart of the Christian story.” “I don’t get it,” she said. “Think about it. Take each of the four gospels – almost half of their chapters are taken up with the last days of the life of Jesus, His death and His resurrection. What happened on the Cross and in the resurrection are the life-changing moments for our world. He died for our sins, removed our guilt, made us right with God and overcame the power of death forever. That is why we celebrate Easter – it is the core of our faith.”

“But how do we know that is what happened? Is that not just speculation?” she ventured.

“Not at all. We are told that Jesus first of all appeared to Mary Magdalene, then to the disciples, to over 500 people at one time and on other occasions. It was at these times He would have explained the meaning of His death and Resurrection and why the early church was so certain of these things and why the good news spread so rapidly. Easter is at the heart and core of what the Church is – who we are as Christians. Sure, Christmas (or the Incarnation as we call it) is important because this is when Jesus enters history, but Easter is the climax.

“Ok, but what difference does this make to me?” she asked

“It means that this was God’s rescue plan. I don’t think any of us yet realise how badly we need Jesus – but the Cross and Resurrection strongly hint that this was God’s only way of saving us. It’s a gift (we call it ‘grace’). He offers to us forgiveness, the clearing of our guilt-record, a right relationship with God and eternal life. We call the response to this ‘faith’ along with the caveat that we change the direction of our lives and follow Jesus. For Christians Easter is not just about the turning point in history but the turning point in their own lives.”

“ For Christians Easter is not just about the turning point in history but the turning point in their own lives!