Are you still in the tomb?

I love Easter.  I sing in the worship band and Easter is like the Super Bowl event of the year.  I love to worship with so many people.  There is just something special about being in a room that is busting at the seams with worshipers.  Oh, be still my heart.

My favorite thing about listening to the word (on any given day) is that, to me, its interpretation is different each time I hear it based upon the season in my life.  Last Easter, I wrote a strongly convicted post about feeling empathy for God when losing a child.  It was a new, appreciated prospective.  You can read more about it here.

This Easter, God spoke to me about the significance of the tomb.  This morning in the sermon, my pastor referenced the significance of Jesus being in the tomb for three days.  If Jesus was in the tomb for just one day, maybe some would call his resurrection a coincidence and that Jesus hadn’t really died.  Three days.  Long enough to dispel any doubt.  It was planned and purposeful.

The tomb.  The place where Jesus’ body lay for three days.  He was brutally crucified but willingly died. Knowing he would rise again. Three days.

What does this mean to me?

Before salvation, I was sitting in a tomb. I wish it had only been for three days.  The guard would often change based upon the sin of my choosing but no one moved the rock, keeping me bound within.  I sat among the sins of myself and the world.  Without the removal of that rock, I was trapped.  A slave longing to be free.

Lucky for me, and you, Jesus freely moved my rock and set me free. My salvation comes with a new guard, one bringing good news.  So, here is my question for you.  If we have been set free, why do we still stay in our tomb?

Maybe your tomb is shame. Infidelity.  Past discretions.  Current immoral thoughts. For me, I think my tomb is self-control, or the lack of when it comes to making better choices for a healthier life.  You see, we all have a tomb but as a believer, there is no rock keeping us inside of it.  Jesus’s resurrection set us free.  Free from yesterday, free from today and free from tomorrow.

Romans 8:11 says, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who lives in you.”

Sin does not define you. It’s something we do, not who we are. Granted, the goal should be to not sin, but we are not perfect people.  As a believer though, we are set free.  Hopefully through that freedom you find wisdom and direction by listening to God’s voice and letting him lead your path.  Whatever path he has planned for you, I promise…it’s not sitting in a tomb.

Jesus’s life had more purpose than to lie in a tomb. So does yours.

Happy Easter friends. He is R I S E N.