Scripture Reading: John 20:1-31, Psalm 16:9-11
Today, Christians around the world gather in numbers rivaled only by Christmas Eve. People wear blazers and khaki pants, colorful dresses and uncomfortable shoes; perhaps garish hats and bold pastel colors suitable only for this day of the year. Some churches will hire brass ensembles and install gorgeous displays of fragrant spring flowers to mark the specialness of the day. Services will range from ostentatiously formal to questionably casual; some preachers will lob softballs for the holiday crowd while others will hurl scathing criticisms about behavior in and outside of the flock.
Whatever your Easter experience, I’d like to invite you to consider what it means if Jesus of Nazareth really, truly died and rose from the dead.
My gut reaction to the reading today was that we must not take the resurrection for granted. If Mary and the other disciples did not encounter the risen Jesus, there is no need to belabor the trappings of our religious affiliations; let’s just go get some brunch and take a nap.
But I believe that they really did see, talk to, and have meals with their friend Jesus after He had been abandoned, executed, and entombed. For these men and women, the resurrection was more than a byword for vapid religiosity; it was an incontrovertible fact.
I believe because I have seen atheists come to faith and because I’ve seen people give up their comfortable, upper-middle class lifestyles to serve the poor. I believe because I myself am radically different than I was before I accepted the reality that a man conquered the grave for me to be reunited with God. I believe because I’ve witnessed dying people whisper, “Hallelujah” and families on the brink of homelessness raise their hands to praise the God they trust in spite of their circumstances.
Yes, I believe.
“My heart is glad, my whole being rejoices, and my body also rests securely” (Psalm 16:9) because my belief is not built upon mythology or wishful thinking; it is founded on the solid rock of Jesus, whom the grave could not contain.
Will you join me today and believe? Not because it’s fashionable or culturally necessary; not because it makes a nice story or to keep up appearances for the family; not even because pretending to believe helps take the edge off of our grief and turmoil. Let’s believe without cynicism or fear of being mocked. Let’s believe with such passion that every part of our lives makes the declaration that, “I have seen the Lord!” (John 20:18).
Jesus was crucified and his body was surrendered to a grave. But the story does not end there. In fact, the best part of Easter is that the resurrection of Jesus is certified every time someone affirms with words or believes in their hearts that Jesus is Lord. The result of believing in the resurrection is that our thoughts, words, and actions all have the potential to testify to the fact that Jesus is risen indeed.
Written by Alex Florez
Leave a Reply
87 thoughts on "Easter Sunday"
❤️
Psalms 16:9 Amen!! ❤✝️
❤️
I’ve so enjoyed doing this devotional with all of you! Christ is risen!
What a beautiful Lent season! Thank you SRT for making these special seasons available to us! I will see you all for ADVENT!
Happy Resurrection Sunday!!✝️✝️
He is Risen indeed! Happy Resurrection Sunday sweeties!
My Sister Shes
Here it is!
Easter Sunday!
The third day!
There is “shock” & there is “awe”.
There is an empty tomb.
There is the risen Christ.
Returning to us.
Returning for us.
Here it is!
Easter Sunday!
The third day!
Hallelujah!
Hallelujah Indeed!
The Holy week discussion questions
1. What Holy Week or Easter traditions, if any did you grow up with? If you didn’t grow up with any then what days of Holy Week were particularly meaningful to you in your walk with the lord now?
2. What details or moments stand out to you in the stories leading up to Jesus’s crucifixion?
3. How was your holy week reading affected by the themes in your conversations about the book of Isaiah?
4. How has your time in Isaiah shaped your personal perspective on the season of month this year?
5. What passages in this week’s readings were confusing?
6. What passage’s in this week‘s readings brought you hope?
7. How can Hebrews 10:10 shape the way you engage with the Lord or the people around you this week?
Mary was having a rough weekend. Her Savior had been brutally killed. She walked the 3+ miles of rough and steep hills to the tomb (check out a topographical map of the journey from Bethany to the outskirts of Jerusalem!) He wasn’t there. In deep distress, she ran back the way she had come. The ran back alone again since Peter and John left her in the dust. And then to hear her name, spoken in that voice. I can’t imagine the awe, the relief, the joy. He was alive! I’m not sure if the joy of Easter has ever been felt more powerfully than by that woman, in that garden, on that morning. Lord, give me a fraction of the gratitude and wonder Mary experienced on that first Easter. Let me marvel anew at the glory of your resurrection.
He is Risen, Hallelujah, I believe!
I have often been perplexed why Lent ends here. As we are reminded in Acts1:3, Jesus stayed on Earth— a place that condemned and murdered him- for 40 days. He stayed healing the broken hearted, restoring faith to the doubters, teaching and guiding his followers, giving the Holy Spirit to his followers all so that scripture could be fulfilled and he could take his rightful place on the throne. As we reach Easter, we are only 2/3s into this beautiful story. We still have 40 days until the Feast of Ascension (May 29, 2025). I feel like this important day gets skipped over. I encourage us to see this entire story through and mark our calendar to celebrate and acknowledge this day as well. This is the day the Lord Jesus is King of the Jews, of the Nations, of all creation. Praise be to God.
With gratitude, Kati!
For your generous observation & kind recommendation.
Thank you for this Kati!! I actually have never thought this (being a Christian my whole life!), and read your comment out loud to my husband. We agree…we should continue to study what Jesus and the disciples did from this point until Ascension Day! (thank you for the date!).
I love these WHOA MOMENTS!!
And Jesus continued teaching the disciples during this time
Our local Lutheran church, LCMS, added an Ascension Day service a few years ago.
Yes! Eastertide! I only learned about this in the last few years. I love what my pastor wrote about it: “It’s almost like the early church fathers and mothers of the faith understood the human proclivity (and certainly Western tendency) to move on to the next thing, and they said, ‘No, wait, linger in the wonder of the resurrection; it’s too wonderful to behold in one day.’ And if the very first disciples’ journey is any indicator, we NEED this time of purposeful pondering. They couldn’t ‘get it all’ in one encounter with the resurrected Jesus. They needed days, weeks even, to sit with the reality of the risen Jesus and let it transform them before the church was launched at Pentecost.”
.
Thanks for pointing this out, Kati!
Hallelujah! He is risen!
I believe because He is who He says He is. I believe because His presence and the faithful work of His hand is in every moment and in everything. I believe because in my questions, failings, wandering and sin, He is steadfast and forgiving. I believe because He is good. Thank you Jesus. May I be found faithful to testify and live out the Truth of the saving grace of Jesus.
Easter Blessings, SRT sisters✝️
❤
I believe because when I’ve been at my lowest, He finds a way to speak life to me! He never fails! I have believed since I was an 8 year old child who felt to go forward for salvation! And even though we didn’t go to church all the time, I knew He was with me. As a teenager, when we did start going to church, I had such a deep hunger for Him and He met me where I was. He has been with me through financial struggles and we almost lost our house. But God spoke to someone we had not seen or spoken to in years, to send us the exact amount we needed for our house!
I could go on and on! He is faithful! Even if He did not do any of that, He provided away for me to have a relationship with Him through His shed blood! God loves us that much!
I can only praise Him. He did for me what I could not do!
Praying for all! Have blessed Easter!
❤️
Amen!! Keep telling, I LOVE to hear what God does in our lives!! Hallelujah!! He is good!
❤
Happy Easter SRT She’s!
“My heart is glad, my whole being rejoices, and my body also rests securely” (Psalm 16:9) because my belief is not built upon mythology or wishful thinking; it is founded on the solid rock of Jesus, whom the grave could not contain.
“The result of believing in the resurrection is that our thoughts, words, and actions all have the potential to testify to the fact that Jesus is risen indeed.” Alex F.
.
Love, hugs,and prayers! ❤
❤️❤️
Yes they do, CeeGee
They really, really do!
❤
He is risen indeed! Hallelujah!
Thank you Jesus.
Happy Easter! He is risen indeed!
Jesus,
You rose from the grave and called Mary by name—
call me too.
In my doubt and confusion,
let me hear Your voice.
Thank You for peace that enters locked rooms,
for grace that welcomes questions,
and for love that conquers death.
Fill me with Your Spirit.
Help me live like You are truly alive—
with faith, with joy, and with purpose.
Amen.
❤
Amen! Thank You, Jesus for everything my heart needs!
With faith, with joy, with purpose.
Amen!
.
Thank you Kimberley. ❤️
Beautiful
Amen ❤️
Oh yes, Kimberly!
To live in a way that shouts: He’s alive!
Lift Him high!
Thank you Lord for the ultimate sacrifice Happy Resurrection Sunday!!!
Lord Jesus,
You stepped out of the tomb,
and everything changed.
When all seemed lost,
when grief settled in like a stone,
You moved.
You called Mary by name—
call me too.
In my confusion,
in my doubts,
in my searching—
let me hear Your voice.
Like Thomas, I’ve wrestled with questions.
But You didn’t turn him away.
You came close.
So come close to me.
Let me touch the truth of Your love,
feel the peace You breathed over Your friends.
Thank You for defeating death.
Thank You that no door can keep You out—
not fear, not sin, not my past.
Help me live like You are alive—
because You are.
Fill me with the Spirit You breathed on Your disciples.
Send me out with courage,
with compassion,
and with resurrection joy.
In Your living name I pray,
Amen.
❤
❤️
Amen!
Amen
Amen ❤️
I had to copy to save this! Beautiful and Powerful!! Glory to God, thank you for Jesus!!
This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!
Happy Resurrection Sunday ☦️
These final verses, The Purpose of the Gospel (John 20:30–31):
John writes that these things are recorded so we may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, and by believing, have life in His name.
It all comes down to this: belief that leads to life. John’s Gospel isn’t just a story—it’s an invitation.
Yes, Kimberly!
Not a story. An invitation.
Happy Easter to my SRT family! He is risen indeed! I believe!
Happy resurrection Sunday! He is risen indeed!
He is risen!
JESUS IS RISEN INDEED!! Hallelujah! I believe! My belief is founded on the solid rock of Jesus…on Christ the solid Rock I stand – all other ground is sinking sand.
—
I Believe by Charity Gayle…
I believe You are who You say You are
You do what You say You’ll do
You’ll come through, You are always able
I believe You’ve already made a way
so I’m running through parted waves
Straight to You, You are always faithful
I believe, I believe
That on that cross Your blood was spilled
And by Your stripes I have been healed
And every promise You’ve fulfilled
I believe, I believe
That You rose again in victory
And that same power lives in me
I’m born again, I’ve been made free
I believe, I believe
That the gates of hell will not prevail
Your church is still alive and well
This gospel truth I live to tell
I believe, I believe
That one day soon You’ll split the sky
You’re coming for a spotless bride
Until my faith has been made sight
I believe, I believe
—
HAPPY RESURRECTION DAY my dear sisters – He is alive! Peace be with you.❤️
❤
❤️❤️
I believe..He is alive and forever reigns.
.
so now I was dead and now have life eternal.
He has risen, indeed ✝️
❤
I believe!
I have seen the Lord.
He is risen!
I’m grateful for His sacrifice and His resurrection!
❤
Good Morning and a Beautiful Resurrection Day She’s!!
I hope wherever today finds you—in the grief, struggles, wishing, or joy, that because He Lives…You, too, will rejoice that everlasting eternal life IS coming. The old will pass away, our time is brief, and we will live where no tears shall fall, and no sin will be. That is worth shouting and praising about on this day!!
Not only shall we remember and be joyful today…but every day is a day to share that truth and faith with others! When you see something fantastic, you just have to tell your facebook audience eh? When you hear something too good to keep to yourself—we tell. NOW go and tell the good news, Jesus says. It shouldn’t be a chore, it shouldn’t be hard- it is life-changing! We have seen transformation and restoring, we have tasted and it is good, how can I not want to give a sip to someone else!!?
Don’t get comfortable in your relationship with the One, that it doesn’t excite you anymore! If you have trouble on your own…serving with your church in the community is an excellent way to get out there and see and taste how the Good News changes peoples lives afresh and new!! It is water to the thirsty, bread to the hungry. Step out of your ordinary, comfortable zone, and share what the Risen One provides! The disciples immediately went out and shared, even to the detriment of their lives, knowing that everlasting life was awaiting! Not easy, But God, He enables! Thank you Jesus!
❤
Go tell it on the mountain ❤️
Amen❤️
Amen!! Thank You Jesus!! (And Alex)!!♥️
I’m so glad I believe!
Happy Easter!
I love that out of everyone He appeared to Mary Magdalene. Not a religious leader, not one of His best friends, not a disciple. A woman who had made mistakes, who had a sinful past. Who was changed radically by encountering Jesus. All she had to do to be changed was to give her heart to Him and believe.
Lord, continue to show Yourself to me with my imperfect past and help me to keep giving my heart to You.
Karen Maxon, isn’t it?
Knowing what I know and the journey so far, it warms my heart to know Him as my LORD and Saviour..
❤️
Yes, Dear Karen!
Our risen Lord has the power to use our imperfect selves for His more perfect purpose.
Amen and Happy Easter Sunday to all ❤️
HE IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED!
HAPPY RESURRECTION DAY, precious sisters!
May we all be reminded of the sacrifice that was made on the cross so that we can spend eternity with our Lord and Savior! ❤️
Hi Lynn! Hoping you have a beautiful day as you go through all these “firsts” without your Jack! That there is comfort that he is WITH JESUS, all because He Rose for that, and that we will see our loved ones again….soon.
Lynne, dearest..Happy Resurrection Sunday to you too..
Sending much love and hugs wrapped in prayers for peace of heart this first Easter without your beloved Jack..❤️❤️❤️
Aw…Sweet Lynne, Happy Resurrection Day! Praying for you in agreement with Rhonda and Tina as you experience all these “firsts” without your Jack. Enjoy your place of worship this morning or by now its probably later there as its not even 8:00am here.
Your first Easter without Jack. So bittersweet, as He died so Jack can live.❤️❤️
To me what truly testifies that He is risen, besides what He has done in and for and through me, but that all of His disciples went from cowards, rag tag followers, they all ran at His crucifixion…but then they became bold proclaimers! They wrote gospels & told the world about Jesus! We saw Peter preach on the day of Pentacost to see thousands saved! They saw Him! If they hadn’t, they would not have given their entire lives to the death for Him! He is alive! His has risen and He lives in You and me!
Yes, Erica!
He lives. Our Savior lives. Inside of us!
I believe!
I believe.
.
I believe because I have seen.
.
I believe because I have felt.
.
I believe because I have known.
.
I know.
.
I believe because my heart sings, and my knees bow at the name of Jesus.
.
I believe.
.
I believe because as I write I have tears of gladness, running down my cheeks.
.
I believe.
I believe.
I believe.
.
That Jesus Christ is LORD, and that today celebrating His resurrection gives me the Hope of life everlasting and hope in my life today..
.
I absolutely BELIEVE.
.
AMEN.
.
Believing and hope-filled that today, there will be much rejoicing for you and yours.
It’s SUNDAY and life looks a whole lot better, because of Jesus…
.
Happy Resurrection Sunday, you beauties..wrapped in much love and hugs and prayers ❤️
.
HE IS RISEN.
.
HE IS RISON INDEED!
Amen, Tina, I believe!! Thank you, Jesus
Happy Easter to all
❤
I believe!
.
He is risen! ❤️❤️❤️
.
Jesus appearing to Mary at the tomb is my favorite resurrection account. Goosebumps and tears. Every. Time.
Agreed, Adrienne.
What a tender, touching scene.
One we get to play out in ongoing prayer.
Can you imagine the conversations He and His followers had? The joyous meals. The accounts in their journals,firsthand accounts passed down to children,grandchildren. The laughter.
Yes, Sandi!
One of the first “you should have been there” stories!
Exactly
Can you imagine the conversations He and His followers had? The joyous meals. The accounts in their journals,firsthand accounts passed down to children,grandchildren. The laughter.