A Gift for You

Easter, like Christmas, is one of the most important holy days (or “holidays”) on a Christian’s calendar. On Christmas, we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ by giving gifts to one another. Yet on Easter, we celebrate Jesus’ death and resurrection with the greatest gift of all—salvation.

Luke 24:1–8 is the basis of our Easter celebration, “He has risen!” To understand the significance of that, remember that we were born into sin. And sin has a cost. Death.

When Adam disobeyed God and ate the forbidden fruit, he brought sin into the world. Because of the impropriety of one man, the entire world had to suffer the consequences of sin. Back in the days of Moses, to repent for their sins, God’s chosen people had to make sacrifices of animals. Blood for blood. And they couldn’t sacrifice just any animals, they had to be the best of the flock. Now, the Old Testament prophets promised that this would not always be the case. A great Savior (or Messiah) would come to pay the sin-debt once and for all.

Generations later, along came Jesus, born of a woman through the Holy Spirit. Part human, part divine, and God himself. He was the perfect sacrifice, the best that humanity had to offer. He spent about 3 years teaching the Word of God, performing miracles, and building up disciples who would continue to spread the Word. In spite of His wisdom and evident holiness, the religious leaders of the time could not accept Jesus as the Messiah. Convinced that He was a heretic, the religious leaders convicted Jesus of blasphemy had had Him crucified.

Jesus endured torture and crucifixion, dying a humiliating death on the cross. In actuality, for those who followed Him at the time, all seemed lost. But it was His resurrection that proved His divinity. Jesus demonstrated power over death! And it all began to make sense—Jesus, who was able to even raise Himself from the dead, allowed himself to be persecuted, humbly submitting to the beatings and insults. He endured the persecution and gave himself as a willing sacrifice—a perfect specimen whose blood was shed to save us from our sins. Just as one man (Adam) brought the penalty of sin into the world, one man (Jesus) was able to redeem us from it. This is why Romans 6:23 says, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Celebrate Easter all year long by sharing the gift of the Good News with others. Pray this prayer with them, which accepts the gift of salvation: “Lord, I know that I have sinned. But I believe that Jesus lived a life without sin, that He died as a sacrifice for my sins, and that he was raised from the dead so that I might have everlasting life. Jesus, please come into my life. Be my Lord, my Savior, and my friend.”

What a wonderful gift!