As we celebrate the Easter season, we meditate on the rich mercy and grace Christ offers to us all. We celebrate His resurrection and rejoice in the victory He gives us over sin through His divine mercy.
A Triumphant Mercy
“And if Christ has not been raised, then empty is our preaching; empty, too, your faith. Then we are also false witnesses to God, because we testified against God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised, and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is vain; you are still in your sins. Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are the most pitiable people of all.” — 1 Corinthians 15:14-19
The resurrection is central — not only to the message of Divine Mercy, but to our entire faith. While Christ’s death is important, it is Christ’s resurrection that proves, once and for all, that He is the Almighty God, the Ruler of the Universe. If Christ did not rise again, He would be nothing more than a kind person with teachings for living in goodness. But Christ was not a powerless teacher — He holds the keys to death and hell and triumphed over sin and death! (Revelation 1:18.)
“Death is swallowed up in victory.
Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?
…thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
— 1 Corinthians 15:54-55, 57
A Life-Giving Mercy
From the moment Adam and Eve sinned in the garden, all mankind was dead, cut off from God’s goodness and glory. Without Christ, we would be cut off from God forever.
Jesus Christ bridged that gap in His death, freeing us from our death in sin and enabling us to partake of God’s goodness. No matter how great our sins are, Christ’s mercy is still greater. Because of Him, we can stand before God as sons and daughters, covered by the blood of Christ and given new life in Him.
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you who by the power of God are safeguarded through faith, to a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time. In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” — 1 Peter 1:3-7
An Everlasting Mercy
No longer does Satan reign in darkness, but Christ has triumphed over sin and death. In Christ, we have life everlasting, hope beyond the corruption and vanity of this fallen world. We joyfully await His return, resting in the knowledge of our eternal hope.
“For this momentary light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to what is seen but to what is unseen; for what is seen is transitory, but what is unseen is eternal.” — 2 Corinthians 4:16-18