It is finished

Suddenly there was a great earthquake! For an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled aside the stone, and sat on it. His face shone like lightning, and his clothing was as white as snow. The guards shook with fear when they saw him, and they fell into a dead faint. Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying. And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.” (‭Matthew‬ ‭28‬:‭2-7‬ NLT)

Every Easter people around the world come together as one to worship not only a living God but a victorious one. However, how many of those people return to worship the next week? The week after that? For many followers of Christ, living out faith is only applicable on two occasions: Christmas and Easter. And while there is absolutely nothing wrong with having people worship and hear the word of God, would it not be better to have the same crowds weekly that most churches only witness to on two occasions? What we see here in the story of Jesus's resurrection is not only a story of victory over death and sin, not only a battle in the grave for all of humanity, but there is also a calling straight from heaven directed to each and every one of us.

When Mary approaches the grave and finds an angel there, the angel orders her to go and tell the disciples. Beyond to go, Mary must also remember- something we so often lack the ability to do. As followers of Christ, it is our mission to tell the world of the great love God has for us and the grace we now receive because of Jesus's victory over sin. Like Mary, we must go. We must go beyond our comfort zones, outside of our neighborhoods, to the ends of the earth to share who God is and what he has done for us. We must share. Because in reality, if we receive God's love to the fullest, and we believe His word to be true, how could we keep quiet? How could we keep that amazing gift of grace and forgiveness to ourselves. It contradicts itself to call ourselves followers of God, who teaches love, if we do not also spread His love around us.

The angel that morning also told Mary to remember. You and I, I'm willing to bet we have a hard time with that sometimes. Ever forget the keys on the counter, leave your purse in the car, misplace someone's name? Too often we forget the smallest things but no, God's love is all too powerful to be simply forgotten. Many of us hear the Easter message and by Monday morning we are back to normal, only to come back and hear the story once more a year later. However, we live because Jesus rose to life. Without the crucifixion on the cross, without the empty tomb, and without a celebration of victory we would not live to see days as great as we do. Darkness held the world in its fingertips until Jesus rose from the ashes to bear light. We cannot go day by day without remembering the Savior who made those days possible. As the year goes on, sure people may stay in their boundaries or become absent minded of the victory Jesus held over the grave, however as followers of Christ we must lead by example and continue to go. Day by day, don't only remember how great God's love is for you, but share that truth with those around you so that they too can experience the abundance of grace gifted to us. It is finished, indeed!