BIBLE Q&A with Johann #15

Easter or Resurrection Day

By JQuisumbing

Why do we call the Resurrection ‘Easter’? What does the Bible say about Easter? Why is Easter called Easter and why do we celebrate it?

Easter always falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox (aka vernal equinox). The vernal equinox is two moments in the year when the Sun is exactly above the Equator and day and night are of equal length which usually occurs around about March 20 or 21. Christendom knows of this time as the end of the Holy Week when Christ Jesus rose from the dead, the 3rd day after He was crucified and died on the cross. But during the times of the Old Testament, when Easter came about, the Israelites celebrated the festival of Pesach, better known as the Passover.

The Passover commemorates the Hebrews’ liberation from slavery in Egypt and the “passing over” of the forces of destruction, or the sparing of the firstborn of the Israelites, when the Lord “smote the land of Egypt” on the eve of the Exodus. [from http://www.britannica.com]

Is it blasphemy to say ‘Happy Easter’, thinking that it may have been a pagan practice?

Remember that Easter was marked by early observers as an annual celestial calendar event. At the time of Creation, God had set this event in the heavens as a sign.

Genesis 1:14

And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years.

If you worship anyone other than God, then you are blaspheming.

How about the Easter Bunny and hunting Easter eggs?

The Easter Bunny is just a fictional character and should be confined in fantasy. However, the Easter Egg Hunt is an annual teaching opportunity for the kids. You see the Easter egg itself can be a symbol of the Resurrection. Just as Jesus rising from the tomb, represents the guaranteed promise of our own resurrection from the dead, then the egg symbolizes our new life in Christ. This is what should be taught to the kids before they hunt for the eggs.

For myself, I can say HAPPY EASTER but for accuracy sake I prefer to declare…

HAPPY RESURRECTION DAY!

THE CENTURION’S GOSPEL – Ch24 – part 3

THE PROMISE OF LIFE – Site of the Tomb, Emmaus, Galilee

“Sir, I am not one to cast doubt, but some might say that all of this may have been staged.”

“I do not believe so, Cestus. However, it is important to have proof even if it is for posterity sake.”

“Sir, I suggest witnesses.”

“Ah yes, the guards… Where do you think they would have gone?”

“They dare not report back to barracks. That would mean instant execution for deserting their guard duty.”

“So, what do you think, Cestus?”

“I think, sir, they will run. And some will head South for Egypt.”

“Right! You take my horse and get some of our men. Go to En Gedi. I am certain they will go there first. Go capture them. We will go to Bethany. They will have news there.”

By the afternoon, they arrived at the house of Simon the leper. The old man was there with his son and two daughters.

Cornelius asked, “Is there news of the Lord?”

Old man Simon said, “Mostly rumors. However, we have a woman here who says she had seen and talked to him.”

The woman was Mary of Magdala. She was one of the women who helped bury Jesus. When she saw Cornelius, she smiled and said, “I have seen the Lord. He has risen!”

“I know Mary. Tell me all.”

The Sabbath was over. It was very early in the morning when Mary of Magdala, and another Mary, the mother of James, and Salome were bringing more spices to complete the burial process that was not finished because of the Sabbath. They were discussing on how they were going to roll the heavy cover stone when an abrupt earthquake shook the ground under them. Not long after, soldiers were frantically running past them. One was hysterically shouting that they saw ‘ghosts’. When they came upon the tomb, the stone was rolled far away. When they looked into the tomb, the body was gone. So, they panicked and went to where they knew some of the disciples were staying in the old city. It was Mary that told Peter and John. They in turn ran to the tomb themselves. When Mary returned to the tomb by herself. For awhile she wept out loud outside then she entered the tomb again and to her surprise, two men were there.

They asked her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”

She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”

Then she heard a call. She turned around and saw another man standing there. She thought she recognized him but could not put her finger on it.

The man said, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?”

She wondered if he was the gardener. So, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

Then he softly said to her, “Mary! Do you not know Me?”

As she looked closer, it was the face of Jesus as she remembered him but yet different. Mary then fell on her knees and hugged his legs, crying “Rabboni!”

Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’”

[Italics – John 20:11-17]

Then Jesus helped her to her feet, turned her and said, “Now, go Mary…”

When she turned around, he was gone. But she knew it was no dream. She went again to the disciples and told them what he told her. She went to every house of the Lord’s followers until she arrived here in Bethany.

The story continues on in my next post.

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Johann Q

THE CENTURION’S GOSPEL – Ch24 – part 2

THE PROMISE OF LIFE – Site of the Tomb, Emmaus, Galilee

The next day, the sun rose bright. The third day has come. Cornelius had no way of knowing exactly what to expect. And he was tired of waiting.

“Jacob, how is Trax?”

“He is still sad, I’m afraid, since you told us what happened two days ago. He really liked Jesus.”

“Well, maybe he would like to see him again. Come, I cannot wait any longer.”

Cestus commandeered a cart from the supply post while Cornelius rode his horse. He felt that they should go first to where Jesus was buried. When they got there, it was already the fourth hour since the rising of the sun. What Cornelius found was a hopeful mystery.

What they found was that the tomb site was bereft of soldiers with only their spears and shields scattered and left behind. The tomb itself was open with the heavy cover stone rolled away some twenty feet leaning against a tree.

Cestus came to him saying, “Sir, there is no sign of struggle or any violence. Not a drop of blood anywhere. These soldiers were not driven away by force. Something scared them away for them to abandon their post.”

Cornelius was examining the the entry way. “Look at this, Cestus,” he said, pointing at the bent ringed nails still on the wall with torn rope ends dangling. “Look at these two pins bent outward. This took a lot of force to roll that heavy stone up that sloped track, break the ropes, bend these two pins then roll twenty feet away.”

“Cornelius, what of the Master’s body?” asked Jacob still sitting on the cart with Trax looking confused.

Cornelius hesitated. “Everybody stay outside,” he said.

Then he bent himself to enter through the short entryway. It took just moments for his eyes to adjust to the darkness of the chamber. He looked towards the slab and was almost dismayed when he saw a shape. At first he thought it was Jesus’ body. At first, he thought the prophecy was false and everything was lunacy. But then he looked closer. What was on the slab was not a body but Jesus’ empty linen wrappings so hardened by the spice mixture that the linen still retained his body’s shape.

Cornelius could not help but shout for joy. He emerged from the tomb laughing and with tears running down his cheeks. “The tomb is empty! Jesus is alive!” He excitedly told them what he found.