How to Be an Easter People

What would it look like to live your life out of the power of the resurrection? Find out this Easter!

Transcript

THE QUESTION OF IDENTITY

Who am I? That’s the question at the heart of identity.

And identity is a big deal these days.

• Topics like racial identity and gender identity fill the headlines.

• If you’re Hmong, you know how complex a bicultural identity can be.

• You even have a digital identity – who you are online vs. in person.

Is identity something you’re born with, something you do, or something you choose for yourself? Yes. It’s all of this.

And sometimes, our identity can change.

For a long time, I identified as an evangelical because that term was defined by theological beliefs that matched my own. But now, surveys show that the term evangelical is more closely aligned with political beliefs that do not match my own. So, I don’t use that term as part of my identity anymore.

Identity is multi-faceted. It’s intersectional. It’s dynamic. Sometimes our identity serves us well; other times, it doesn’t.

ARE YOU AN EASTER PEOPLE?

We have all kinds of identities in this room.

• We have Hmong people, black or brown people, white people, and more.

• We have rich people and broke people and everyone in between.

• And thanks to the pandemic, we have tired people and hurting people.

But this being Easter and this being church, I want to ask you… Are you an Easter people? What does that mean? Are you living out of the resurrection of Jesus that we celebrate on Easter? Or are you living out of something else?

This is an identity question, and it’s a critical one because, as author Josh Chatraw put it, “Our identities are made up of our allegiances and assumptions. They give us a framework for deciding what we should do, how we should live, what is valuable, what we should support, and what we should stand against.”

So, this question—are you an Easter people—drives everything else you do, say, and think about faith.

You are living your identity out of something. What is it? Your family, your aspirations, your wounds? Is your identity bringing you peace and well-being, or is it ultimately hurting you and others?

For our time together, would you consider what it could look like for you to live your identity out of the resurrection of Jesus Christ? For you to be an Easter people?

THREE DIFFERENT PEOPLE AROUND JESUS

Today, I want to tell you about some groups of people who were around Jesus during his ministry, the last week of his life, and the weekend of his death and resurrection.

First, let’s start with the UNINTERESTED PEOPLE.

Every celebrity has people who aren’t interested in them. I couldn’t tell you the difference between Cocomelon and MrBeast. Or Khloé vs. Kourtney. I’m just not interested.

Jesus was no different. During his 3-4 years of ministry, he had people who just didn’t care. When he entered Jerusalem for his final week, there were plenty of people who went about their business, unaware that God was walking among them.

These were people disconnected from Jesus.

Next up are the FOLLOWING PEOPLE.

Jesus almost always had crowds around him as he traveled, taught, and performed miracles. These were people interested in him or curious about his teachings. Some were even following him for what they got—food, healing, a king to kick out the Romans.

These people lined the streets and cheered for him during Palm Sunday. They were in the town square during his arrest, trial, and maybe even his crucifixion.

These were people that had been listening to Jesus.

Next up are the DISAPPOINTED PEOPLE.

Jesus got executed and buried. That wasn’t supposed to happen. Messiahs don’t die. That left a lot of people disappointed, disillusioned, and heartbroken. They once listened and believed. But now, he was gone.

These were people disillusioned with Jesus.

Now, let’s pause here. These people are still around Jesus—the uninterested, the following, the disappointed. You probably fall into one of these categories.

• You’re here at church, but Jesus? Don’t know, don’t care. You’re uninterested.

• Or you’re a Christian and you come to church (when you can), try to be a good person, and pray sometimes. You’re following, but you’re living mostly out of proximity to Jesus.

• Or maybe you’re disappointed in God, disillusioned with Jesus and his so-called promises. You’re deconstructing your faith, questioning what you’ve always been told about him.

Are you in one of these groups this Easter?

THREE EASTER PEOPLE

I want to talk about three people in the Easter story that went from following to disappointed. But their stories didn’t end there. Each one had a personal encounter with the risen Lord, and they became Easter people.

Let’s start with MARY MAGDALENE. She was one of Jesus’ closest female followers. She was one of his few followers at the crucifixion, watching the horror firsthand. I can’t image what Saturday was like for her. Or the long walk to the tomb with her friends to anoint Jesus’ dead body. The sorrow, the loss, the heart-wrenching grief.

It just gets worse. Jesus’ body was gone. She’s weeping, thinking that somebody had taken it. Then a man appears behind her. She thinks he’s the gardener. And then this happened.

16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”)… 18 Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. (John 20:16-18)

She encountered the resurrected Jesus and cried out, “I have seen the Lord!” At that moment, she became an Easter people, and that was her Easter declaration.

Now, let’s talk about TWO FOLLOWERS OF JESUS ON THE ROAD TO EMMAUS.

On Sunday, they left Jerusalem for a town about 7 miles away, talking about everything that had just happened. Along the road, a stranger joined them, and they started talking about all the drama around Jesus’ arrest, death, and missing body. And they included this heart-breaking line, “21 …but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.” Shattered hopes for a promised Messiah to bring freedom and justice.

The three stopped in a town to rest for the night and had dinner together. And in that meal, Jesus revealed himself and disappeared.

33 They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together 34 and saying, “It is true! The Lord has risen.” (Luke 24:33-34)

At that moment, they became Easter people, and that was their Easter declaration.

Lastly, let’s talk about THOMAS. Even after being told that Jesus was alive by the other disciples, he couldn’t believe it. Have you ever been in such deep despair that you can’t even believe the possibility of hope? Thomas was. And he sat in that despair for a whole agonizing week.

And then, during one of their gatherings, Jesus appeared.

26 Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.” 28 Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!”

At that moment, he became an Easter people, and that was his Easter declaration.

LIVING OUT OF THE RESURRECTION

Mary, the guys on the road to Emmaus, Thomas. We don’t know much about what their lives were like after this, but I bet they were never the same. You don’t experience a dead man coming back to life and stay the same person. You’re transformed. They were now Easter people.

I return to a question I asked earlier: Are you an Easter people? Are you living your life out of the resurrection of Jesus? More importantly, how would you know?

Here are three qualities of Easter people. This is how you know you know you are living out of the resurrection of Jesus.

The first is TRANSFORMATION. Is your life different because of Jesus? Or is your life basically the same, just with the label of Christian on your identity?

The Bible calls this new life, new birth, and it’s available to us because of the resurrection. Listen to this verse from 1 Peter:

“3 In [God’s] great mercy, he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3)

If Jesus is transforming your life, then you’re an Easter people and you’re living out of the resurrection.

The second quality is POWER.

The Apostle Pauls writes,

“18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know… his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms.”

The power by which God raised Jesus from the dead is the same power at work within you.

• Power to gain more and more victory over sin.

• Power to invite God into the pain of your past.

• Power to be content amid hardship.

If you’re living in power for God’s kingdom, then you’re an Easter people and you’re living out of the resurrection.

One last quality is HOPE. There is a hope that the resurrection brings that nothing in this world can offer.

14 We know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you to himself. (2 Cor. 4:14)

There is hope that mistakes and sins can be forgiven.
There is hope that we can have joy, peace, and security.
There is hope that Jesus will return to restore heaven and earth.

Your hope is not in your own ability, your goodness, or your strength. Your hope is instilled in you by the resurrection of Christ.

If you have hope in God, then you’re an Easter people and you’re living out of the resurrection.

PRAYER REFLECTION

So, how can you go from being uninterested, following, or disappointed to being an Easter people, living in the transformation, power, and hope of the resurrection? How can you let 2023 be the year you become an Easter people?

It starts with an experience of the risen Lord and an Easter declaration.

• Mary – “I have seen the Lord!”

• The Guys on The Road to Emmaus – “It is true! The Lord has risen.”

• Thomas – “My Lord and my God!”

So, I want to give you some time with God. I’m going to lead you through some prompts and then give you some time to determine your Easter declaration.

Now, get comfortable and close your eyes. Picture the risen Jesus. It can be at the empty tomb like Mary, along the road like the guys, or in a room like Thomas. Picture every detail.

Then, stare at Jesus. Take it all in. Let him overwhelm you, comfort you, forgive you.

Now, what do you want to say? What do you want to cry out? What is your Easter declaration? Listen to the Holy Spirit.

When you hear something, open your eyes and write it down on the card in the pocket in front of you. That is your 2023 Easter declaration.