Then, there was pain and suffering, darkness covered the whole land and death seemed to have the last word.  Just like that, their plans seemed to have succeeded, the righteous one has been killed and the world lay in silence. What next?

But remember, he had told us, “Unless the grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains a single grain, but if it dies, it bears many fruits.”  “The Son of Man must die. And when he is lifted up, he will draw all people to himself.”  Now from the great beyond, the Lord of all life is working, because he is alive, all locked doors have been thrown open, captives are being set free, dominions and principalities are being confined to their rightful abode and the children of men are being redeemed. These are events of unimaginable proportions. Such have never been heard or experienced. But at this time, when the fullness of time, the Pleroma, had come, everything is falling in place again and the Saviour of all mankind is taking his rightful place. Today is Easter, the dawn of the new creation, the beginning of new life, the realization of our hope and the delight of the universe.

Easter is such a unique celebration in the history of mankind. It celebrates the victory of life over death, the supremacy of good over evil, the triumph of truth over falsehood. The defeat of darkness by light. It is a season of celebration because the ancient enemy has not only be trampled upon, but he has also been defeated forever. We walk in victory because the conqueror is the God-made-Man. To our God belongs victory, glory and power and honour forever and ever.

As we bask in the victory of God over the devil, we must begin a new life. To succeed in this new goal, we must follow closely in the footsteps of Christ our leader, the one who leads us from darkness to light, from the gloom of the grave to the glory of Easter. In this season of our life, life is born anew of God and hope is given to mankind. Life is not an endless struggle with pain and defeat, life is a struggle, but we know that we do not walk alone, God is with us and as he leads us, we are confident of reaching home, because he is the Way, the Truth and the Life.

Easter is a celebration of hope, and the great gift of Easter is hope. With Easter, we are certain that life never ends, new life awaits the faithful of God and their love of God continues for ever. Therefore, hopelessness should not have a place in human life.  The Lord holds the key to all things and if we go to him, he can turn all defeat into victory for us. In the face of the harsh realities of our life as a nation. We must not give up on hope, we must not succumb to defeat or the power of darkness. Each day, with our focus on Christ, we must fight the battle with God on our side and only then can we expect victory and new possibilities and a better life.

The celebration of Easter reminds us that our good efforts are not in vain. We are reminded that the sacrifices we make for the honour of God and our own salvation are salutary and beneficial to us. There is, therefore, enough reasons for us to start afresh, to try new things, to live a new life, because hope is born of the living and only the living can praise the Lord. Hope keeps us going, without hope, life is meaningless and death stares us in the face. Thus, by rising to life, Christ renews our hope, we have the hope of rising to new life. The Lord gives life to our souls and gives us the joy of life. Easter is our experience of God, our rescue from the grasp of Satan and our chance to triumph with Christ. No wonder, Christians have always proclaimed at Easter, the great Alleluia, because it is our song of victory to the One who reigns forever.

It is Easter, let us celebrate our new life. The sentence of death incurred in the Garden of Eden has been overturned. Our life is redeemed by the precious blood of the Lamb without blemish. Life is wonderful again and because Christ lives, we can face tomorrow. Easter is the symbol of a new beginning, a new beginning fashioned by God himself. It is a celebration of life, of hope and of victory. What more do we, human beings need more than what Easter offers us? I love happy endings, and as you can see, in Christ’s resurrection, we have everything. So, friends, like those first apostles of Jesus, go and tell the world that He is risen! That Christ is alive, he has thrown open the gates that held us back. We are free, free to love, free to live and live with God forever.

Happy Easter!