What really changed after the resurrection?<\/em><\/p>\nOn the surface it\u2019s a deceptively simple question to answer for most Christians. Without much hesitation we would say things like, \u201cEvil has been defeated!\u201d \u201cThe grave has been conquered!\u201d or \u201cSalvation has come to the world!\u201d<\/p>\n
But when we really get honest with ourselves and take a hard look at the world around us, it\u2019s hard to make a case to somebody that wasn\u2019t already a believer that any of those things are really true.<\/p>\n
Evil still plagues the world, often in epidemic proportions.<\/p>\n
Injustice abounds.<\/p>\n
And people still die.<\/p>\n
Which makes salvation seem as far off as it\u2019s ever been.<\/p>\n
50 or so years ago, maybe even 10 or 20 years ago, these sorts of things could be glossed over with a good turn or burn sermon. Force people to focus on abstract theological questions and a possible fiery future in hell and they\u2019ll be much more willing to ignore the glaring credibility gap between the promise of our prayers, \u201cThy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,\u201d and the way we actually live our lives.<\/p>\n
But as the world around us becomes increasingly post-Christian, and theological rhetoric no longer holds sway for people who don\u2019t speak Christianese, it has become increasingly more difficult, if not altogether impossible, to simply talk someone into becoming a Christian.<\/p>\n
And I think that\u2019s really good thing.<\/p>\n
Because if Christianity is just a list of doctrines to believe in or a magic prayer to say, then it\u2019s worthless and irrelevant in a world of injustice, suffering, and evil.<\/p>\n
And people know that.<\/p>\n
Which is why if we\u2019re going to convince people of the reality of the resurrection, if people are going to believe that something really changed after Jesus walked out of the tomb on Easter morning and that all things really are being made new, then we have to incarnate that truth with our lives. Arguing about science and historicity or even theology simply won\u2019t work anymore \u2013 if it ever did.<\/p>\n
In other words, if the kingdom of God is really at hand, the only way people are going to notice is if we become the physical embodiment of the kingdom of God on earth as it is in heaven. Only if we take seriously our call to be the hands and feet of Christ in the world, doing justly and loving mercy, will anyone ever be convinced that the resurrection really did happen and something really did change and really is changing as the result.<\/p>\n
Which is why even though most talk of resurrection is supposed to wait until after Lent, I think we should begin ponder this question of the post-resurrection reality now as we prepare for Easter Sunday.<\/p>\n
Giving things for Lent is a great practice, but if you haven\u2019t found something to give up this lenten season or that\u2019s just not you\u2019re thing, I want to encourage you to spend the next 40 days pondering the question that has haunted me since I first heard it way back in college.<\/p>\n
What really changed after the resurrection?<\/em><\/p>\nMake it a question you ask yourself every day during Lent.<\/p>\n
But don\u2019t stop there.<\/p>\n
Find ways of answering that question in your own life through acts of love and mercy and compassion and grace.\u00a0Through acts that force those around to stop and consider the possibility that maybe just maybe the resurrection really did happen. And maybe it still is happening.<\/p>\n
Maybe just maybe the world is<\/em> being made new.\u00a0And maybe it\u2019s happening right before their very eyes.<\/p>\nNow be warned, this challenge will probably be a whole lot harder than it sounds. But commit to it for the next 40 days and when you finally make it to Easter you\u2019ll discover, maybe for the very first time, why the resurrection is really worth celebrating.<\/p>\n
Not just because it\u2019s a great story or even because it\u2019s a beautiful promise of hope for the future.<\/p>\n
But because the kingdom of God is at hand and the world really is being made new.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
Grace and Peace,<\/p>\n
Zack Hunt<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
(Painting by Krystyna Sikora) Back in college one my professors shared what he called the most challenging question any student had ever asked. What really changed after the resurrection? On the surface it\u2019s a deceptively simple question to answer for most Christians. Without much hesitation we would say things like, \u201cEvil has been defeated!\u201d \u201cThe […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3437,"featured_media":11696,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-11694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
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<\/a><\/p>\n