A Foolish Thing. . .
Have you ever believed in something foolish? Of course, you have! We all have! How about April Fool’s Day? Have you ever fallen for an April Fool’s prank? It can be a fun day. In fact, last year, I told my kids that the water company was flavoring the water at different times of the day. They completely fell for it, and we still laugh about it!
While we sometimes find ourselves to be gullible, there are also times when a belief we once thought to be foolish, actually turns out to be life-changing.
Consider these examples:
- A student believed she wasn’t good enough only to find out that she could be.
- Parents thought the teachings of the Bible were good for their kids, but later realized they needed what their kids were experiencing.
- A senior adult once feared death, but now understands that death actually leads to life.
Now, let me ask you this. What about Easter? This year Easter is on April 1. That’s right, April Fool’s Day, and it begs the question, do you think Easter is foolish, or do you believe Easter is something worth celebrating? Take it a step further, are billions of people around the world who celebrate Easter believing in something foolish, or are they believing in something completely worthwhile? Is Easter a grandiose April Fool’s joke or something that is life-changing and completely worthy of celebrating? What do you believe?
How about this for a test? If a person were to observe your life, as the most holy day of the Christian calendar approaches, what would your life say about what you believe? Do your plans and preparations point to a grand celebration, or do they indicate that the celebration of Jesus rising from the dead is an April Fool’s joke of historical world-wide proportions? As the adage goes, “Actions speak louder than words.” What do your plans and preparations say about your life, and about your beliefs?
As you consider the questions that have been asked, let’s remember what the Bible says about Easter. The Bible presents the essence of Easter in this way: “… that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).
In the weeks to come, we invite you to consider your own plans, your own beliefs, and your own actions with respect to Easter. Once again, what you believe?
This Easter season, we want to help you believe in the Resurrection. We want to help you discover the great joy of celebrating Easter as the most hopeful day of the year, and we also hope that you’ll believe that Easter falling on April Fool’s day isn’t fitting, but is instead perfectly ironic! We want to help you celebrate Christ dying for YOUR sins and rising on the third day so that you can worship the Creator of the universe!
As the Apostle Paul said, “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but it is God’s power to us who are being saved” (1 Corinthians 1:18).
What about you, is Easter a foolish thing?