“Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, come down from the cross and save yourself!” In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him. – Mark 15:29-32 (NIV)
We like to paint Easter as joyous, and a celebration. But it's very important to remember why we are celebrating. We are celebrating Jesus' overcoming, because he overcame even more than just death when he rose from the dead. He overcame sin itself. We all wish that when Jesus defeated sin and death that these things would be gone immediately. Although Jesus overcame death, our final redemption has not yet been completed. Even so, we still have a huge reason to celebrate, because in spite of sin, Jesus took away our punishment and tore the veil separating us from God. So, this is why we celebrate, because Jesus went through turmoil, suffering, and pain to save us and free us from sin and death. We aren't powerful enough to save ourselves; instead we have an amazing God who would go to any length to save us, even though we don't deserve it.
By Saraya Schwartz
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