He Is Risen

It's Easter Sunday. He is risen. Jesus is no longer in the darkness of the tomb. No longer a prisoner in his uncomfortable human form. Although after his resurrection he appeared to witnesses in human form, even inviting Thomas to put his fingers in the holes in his hands, and even eating fish on the beach, he was no longer human in the same way as before. He appeared out of - and disappeared into - thin air. Mostly, the spectre of death no longer loomed over him. He had overcome it. And that, of course, is exactly why he rose from the dead; to show, to prove, to us that even death could not defeat the Son of God. And he had said we are all sons of God if we believe in him. So we should not fear death. In fact, we should not fear anything. One of the shortest, simplest, and most power-packed lines in the Bible is Jesus speaking to Jairus, the man with whom he travelled to heal his daughter, who was at the point of death. As they were travelling, news came to them that it was too late. She had died. Never mind bothering Jesus any more. (Mark 5:36) Jesus, undeterred, simply said to him, "Do not fear. Only believe." And kept on walking.

Those simple words have sustained me many many times. Those words, coming straight from Jesus' mouth, are like an instant tranquilizer. How can we not believe Jesus when he calmly tells us, "Do not fear. Only believe."

And here he is, on Easter Sunday, risen from the dead. The disciples need not have feared. They should have believed. But they were human, like us. They needed proof, and Jesus, knowing the hearts of men, gave them the proof they needed. He appeared suddenly to them in a locked room. And again. And again.

So today we rejoice. Jesus keeps his promises. And he has promised that he prepares a place for us in his Father's house.

Do not fear. Only believe.