Now, we are called to spread the message. We are called as the body of Christ’s disciples to believe in the power and the occurrence of the resurrection, and to make it known through our work and through the way that we live our lives as a church. How do we believe in the power of God? By accepting the evidence of Christ’s resurrection in the empty tomb, and making the decision to believe in the power of God. If we decide that we will not accept something, we will not. It cannot be forced upon us. George Wilson was a man who was granted a pardon, but refused to accept that he deserved a pardon. While his lawyer argued that he could not face his sentence because he was pardoned, George wanted to keep his sentence. The case went to the United States Supreme Court, who ruled that without an acceptance, the pardon could not go into effect.
Jesus pardoned each of us by dying for us on the cross. We may not deserve it, but we are pardoned if we only make a conscious decision to accept that we are forgiven. We have seen the power of God in the resurrection, and that Jesus is God, as the Roman Centurion exclaimed. We have seen the love of God in the crucifixion. God is more powerful than Death, and God loves the world so much that God sacrificed God’s only son, “so that whoever might believe in him might not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Do you accept this pardon? If you do, Jesus has granted you eternal life, which is a life beyond death. Pray to Jesus, and tell Jesus that you want to know what he is calling you to do. Christianity is made famous by the wonder of the resurrection. Yet Christianity finds its meaning in the love and forgiveness of God. We are called to spread Christ’s sacrificial example. Not to die on a cross, but to serve others so that they may also know what we know. You can see the Lord today, like those 500 witnesses did during the Easter season that Paul described. The Lord Christ is accessible to us. He still lives. He called Mary by name so that she might recognize him; he calls us by name too. We must hear this and accept and believe that it is Christ in order to overcome our fear and follow the path that Jesus lays out for us. We have spent Lent growing closer to Jesus and becoming better disciples following Jesus. Then, we were shocked that he could be taken away from us so quickly. Now, that we are on a first name basis with him, our minds are clear and we have made a decision to accept his pardon, we are able to be witnesses. We may be timid at first, as was Mary when she said nothing to anyone. But it is our call. We have built our own selves up. Now it is time to reach out to others and spread the news of Christ. In this Easter season, we will study how we do this. First, see the word; we declare what we have heard and seen. Second, teach the word; be witnesses to what Jesus taught. Third, live the word; spread the love that Jesus shared with you. And lastly, believe the word; accept that we and you are pardoned as one of God’s children. The work of the church will know no end. Thanks be to God! Amen.
