Why Do We Celebrate Easter?
Easter is the day on which Christians remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, agreeing with the angel at the tomb: “He is not here; he has risen!” (Luke 24:6-7). Jesus had promised before his death: “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.”
Death is a reality of life in a fallen world. All that is born will eventually die, and all good things come to an end. Or do they? Easter is celebrated as a reminder of the resurrection of Jesus Christ turned this earthly idea on its head—by his victory over the grave, he gave humanity hope that death does not have to be the end, but rather, what is mortal “can be swallowed up by life” (2 Corinthians 5:4)! Jesus left his heavenly dwelling to dwell among us (John 1:14), facing the pain of mortality and the death of his own body in order to make possible our own resurrection through the power of His Spirit at work in us! This is the beautiful truth that we celebrate at Easter time.
Why Do Christians Celebrate Easter?
Easter is the day on which Christians remember the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, agreeing with the angel at the tomb: “He is not here; he has risen!” (Luke 24:6-7). Jesus had promised before his death: “I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” And surely as the sun rises, Jesus rose after his crucifixion, prompting Paul to declare: “We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him” (Romans 6:9). The resurrection of Jesus is the central tenet of the Christian faith.
1 Corinthians 15:17,19 puts it bluntly: “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins…If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” Paul continues joyfully: “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep” (1 Corinthians 15:20, emphasis mine). This means Christ is the first to trample death in this powerful way, but he will not be the last! In Christ, our own bodies, which were “sown in weakness” will be “raised in power” (1 Corinthians 15:43). And then we are left with a wonderful hope to hold onto as we experience the temporary nature of earthly existence: “When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.’
‘O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?’”
The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” This is a future worth celebrating, even in the midst of mortality. Death is not the end.
While early Christians likely celebrated the resurrection, the celebration of the Easter holiday is first recorded in the 2nd century. The etymology of the English word “Easter” is uncertain, and there was much controversy associated with choosing a date to celebrate it. In 325 AD, the Council of Nicaea officially declared that Easter would be celebrated “on the first Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox,” accounting for the fact that Easter falls on different days each year.