The most incredible day in human history

By Scott Cernek
HARVEST HILLS CHURCH
It is spring again and that means warmer temperatures, green grass, chirping birds, tractors in the fields, rainy days, cattle turned out on pasture, baseball games, baby kittens, and another school year winding down. I could write an article on each of these different springtime events, but the most important happening of all is remembering what occurred on that first Easter Sunday two thousand years ago. It is without argument the greatest incident in all of human history. Nothing has influenced our world like it. In fact, our very calendar that is used by every country in the world is based on the life of Jesus Christ.
So many times we see pictures of a scrawny Jesus carrying a lamb across his shoulders, but Jesus was really a strong, muscular man with great physical endurance. We know this because He walked everywhere sometimes for miles and miles at a time across some pretty rough terrain. He was also a carpenter throughout His entire life. He felled trees, split logs, framed homes, created beams for headers, and lifted and hammered them into place.
In fact, after He was beaten and scourged on the night of His death, the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, was amazed that Jesus was still standing there in front of him having been up all night, whipped, bloodied, beaten, bound in chains, and with a crown of thorns jammed into His head.
Pilate turned to the crowd who was screaming for Jesus life and declared, “Behold the man!” In other words, “Look at this man. Can you believe He is still standing? What more do you want, people?”
Jesus was no weak man. He was meek, but certainly not weak. Meekness has been defined as power under constraint, and weakness as feeble and soft without strength. Jesus was a strong man. He once cleared the temple with a whip, and He would clear it a second time about a week before the crucifixion by flipping the heavy tables over of those who were buying and selling in the temple yard. If you want to get someone’s attention, try flipping a few tables. Jesus was God’s only begotten son, who knew what His purpose on this earth was. His purpose was to suffer and die, like a lamb before the slaughter as the prophet Isaiah wrote some seven hundred years before Jesus’ was even born.
Jesus did indeed go to the cross and die as the perfect sacrificial lamb so that all who believe down through the ages would be forgiven. After spending parts of three days in that cold dark tomb, Jesus Christ, the only begotten son of God actually came back to life. He was resurrected by God Himself, and He walked out of that tomb proving that there is a greater power than death or as the Bible says; Where O death is your victory, where O death is your sting? Thanks be to God, He gives us the victory over death through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches that we too will be resurrected one day to live in the glory of heaven, if we believe.
Why is this the most amazing occurrence in all of human history? First of all, Jesus had been telling His followers that this would indeed happen. He said He would be killed and then He would be raised from the dead in three days. No one in all of human history ever said such a thing and then followed through on it. He declared that His purpose in coming to this earth was to become the sacrifice for our sins so that God, being perfect, could accept us and give us salvation by believing in Jesus Christ as Savior and then making Him the Lord of our life. He is alive today and even though we live in a modern society with modern conveniences, Jesus still is the only source of true happiness and purpose for living. I urge you to give Him a chance today. You will never regret placing your trust in the truth of the resurrection. So enjoy all the wonders of spring, but don’t forget the most wonderful wonder of all! Until next week, have a happy Easter season!