The Last Word

 

Hope is a human need. From Harvey Milk's famous quote "you gotta give em hope," to the title of Obama's book, The Audacity of Hope, even secular non-believers recognize this. 

Like justice and peace, faith and hope are kindred brothers enmeshed as twins in the womb in an eternal embrace. For faith is the assurance of what we hope for and the certainty of what we do not see (Heb 11:1). When you don't have faith, you don't have hope. 

But we are people of faith, and as a result we have hope as our reward. It is always darkest before dawn, when the light of faith is bordering on being extinguished and at its dimmest point. Faith is inoculated for three days in the stew of limbo. We can sometimes forget the wellspring of emotions that must have occurred for the disciples during this time who weren't sure if they had cast their bets on a losing horse. We have the benefit of knowing how this race is won, and can find ourselves sauntering over to the tomb for the finale even before the pool of blood beneath the cross has dried.

Our faith is assured, because while Christ will return again, he will not die again, for he has conquered death by death (Rom 6:9).Death's reign has come to an end, and we now live in the expectant hope of reunion and restoration. But that dawn is still on the distant horizon, while darkness in the world seems to reign.

While we have the historical assurance of the Resurrection, we can sometimes doubt the promises of Christ to return when things are simply so bad and so longstanding that it seems he has forgotten us. God is angry with the wicked every day (Ps 7:11)...but he doesn't seem to be doing much about it.

This is the melee in which we must marinate, our proverbial three days of darkness before the light of dawn. The faith and hope of the disciples is that he would rise after death...our faith and hope is that he will return. Our responsibility, then, is that we are not found sleeping, but standing watch and doing the work while the Master is away. Our historical Easter is celebrated today, but the Easter of our particular epoch for which we await has not yet come.

But it will--this is an element of faith that gives hope and meaning to our lives as Christians, why we believe what we believe and live as we do. How do we know? Well, we don't--that's faith. But we believe that he who rose from the dead in fulfillment of his word does not speak falsehood when he said he will return to judge the living and the dead. 

Your judgement awaits, and your faith will be tested in the darkest hours of the night. During those times, even the elect will be deceived and many will fall away as love grows cold (Mt 24:24). But today, you are given an empty tomb of memorial to bolster your hope for your future in eternity. You are given the company of believers, the Church, to rejoice and celebrate with. You are given his flesh to sustain you, and his blood to wash you. Satan thought he has won the battle, but he will lose the war. For Christ will have the last word.

Happy Easter. He is risen indeed!