Thoughts on Easter

Keypoints on this page
	Easter originated as a pagan feast and was adopted into Christianity.
	Remembering Christ's death and resurrection is only part of the answer to the question: "What must I do to be saved?"
	Baptism is a symbolic burial and resurrection that reflects the sacrifice of Christ at his crucifixion.

Every year the preparations for Easter seem to start a little earlier. Easter eggs are on sale in the UK before January ends and window displays of Easter bunnies begin to appear. Many people will associate Easter eggs with the springtime - the new cycle of life, the fresh start that nature makes after the cold and desolation of winter. It seems natural to associate these things with the new beginning that was made by the Almighty when He raised Jesus from the dead.

'and they found the stone rolled away from the Sepulchre' [Luke 24:2]

Jesus is spoken of as the ‘beginning of the creation of God’ [Revelation 3.14] and also as the 'firstfruits' [1 Corinthians 15.20,23] but there is no connection in the Bible with Easter eggs, which are not mentioned at all. In fact, the Bible gives no instructions about the keeping of Easter. There is just one reference to Easter in the King James Version of the New Testament. In more modern versions this is translated as Passover, referring to the Jewish feast which occurs around the same time [Acts 12.4].

Easter was a pagan feast
It is clear that the celebration of the Festival of the Spring goes back well before the time of Christ when red and gold eggs were used to symbolise the germinating life of early Spring. Special cakes were prepared and offered to the goddess of the Dawn in Europe and similar celebrations can be traced back to Persian times.

It seems to have been during the second century AD that the Spring Festival was adopted by the ‘Christian’ church. Certainly, after the time of Constantine, Easter was put on the church calendar. It helped Roman pagans to accept Christianity when they found that their own festivals and celebrations had been adopted and 'Christianised' - the cakes or buns were marked with a cross! True Christians will recognise the pagan origins of Easter and will see the rabbit as another fertility symbol.

A new beginning
Although Easter is pagan in origin, the Bible does speak of a new beginning in Christ. The resurrection of Jesus has a very important link with the fresh start that the true Christian will want to make when he or she comes to recognise their own responsibility to their heavenly Father. The importance of the sacrifice of Jesus is explained in the Bible. At the end of a sinless life Jesus died. He was ‘taken…by wicked hands…crucified and slain’ [Acts 2.23]. However, death is the ‘wages of sin’ [Romans 6.23] and Jesus had not sinned. Because of his righteous life, the justice and righteousness of God were demonstrated and He raised Jesus from the dead.

Firstfruits

‘For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming’ [1Corinthians 15.22,23].

The Apostle Paul, in this passage, speaks of Christ as the ‘firstfruits’ and he says that at the second coming of Christ those who belong to Christ will be raised in the same way. There are many other verses which speak of the resurrection taking place when Jesus returns [Daniel 12.2; John 5.28,29; John 11.24,25; 1 Thessalonians 4.16].

Hymns in prison!
In the depths of a Roman prison at Philippi, two men were being punished for stirring up trouble in the city - their feet were held fast in the stocks. The two men were Paul and Silas, who had been imprisoned for their preaching and for their work of healing. At midnight, they were singing hymns when suddenly there was a louder noise:

‘there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened’ [Acts 16.26] and all the prisoners found that they were free. The jailer was about to commit suicide when Paul called out that none had escaped and said: ‘Do thyself no harm: for we are all here’ [Acts 16.28].

This miracle, together with the godly example of these two men, convinced the prison governor of the truth of the preaching of Paul. ‘what must I do to be saved?’ he asked. ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved’ was the reply [Acts 16.30,31]. The record in Acts says that the apostles spoke the word of the Lord to him and to his household and they were baptized. [Acts 16.33] Here was a man who, with his family, made a fresh start in Christ.

The day of Pentecost
When the gift of the Holy Spirit was given to the apostles in a wonderful manifestation on the day of Pentecost, the gospel was preached in a number of different languages and many visitors to Jerusalem were able to hear the good news in the language of their own country. Peter spoke about the mission of Jesus, his sacrifice, and his resurrection. The people who were listening were convinced of the truth of the gospel and said:

‘Men and brethren, what shall we do? Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ’ [Acts 2.37,38]

As a result of Peter’s preaching, ‘they that gladly received his word were baptized' [Acts 2.41]. Following a belief of what Peter had been preaching, his hearers made a new beginning in Jesus and were baptized. We are told that ‘they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers [Acts 2.42].

The African convert
In the book of Acts we read about one of the ministers at the court of Ethiopia who became a convert to Christianity when he heard the preaching of Philip. ‘See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?’ he asked. ‘If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest’ said Philip [Acts 8.36,37]. He accepted the teaching of Philip, confessed his belief in Jesus and was baptized, as were many others: ‘when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women’ [Acts 8.12].

The real symbol of a new beginning
Why this emphasis on baptism? Because the Lord Jesus Christ commanded his disciples: ‘Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned’ [Mark 16.15,16].

A baptism in Uganda

This is the way the Christian makes a fresh start. This is the way he makes a new beginning. Baptism in the first century represented the making of a fresh start by washing away the past. So, when Paul became a Christian, Ananias came to him and told him to be baptized and wash away his sins. ‘And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord’ [Acts 22.16].

Baptism in the first century also represented a change of colour. The original word was used in the dyeing trade. We associate political belief with colours and different colours are used by the various political parties. A man who changes his political allegiance is said to have changed his political colour. The Christian, when he is baptized, has changed his colour. He has changed his way of life. He has changed his allegiance. Sin was his master – now he is a servant of God:

‘Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you…ye became the servants of righteousness…and become servants to God…’ [Romans 6.16-22]

The sacrifice of Jesus
Baptism is the way in which the new Christian is able to be associated with the saving work of Jesus. In Old Testament times, instructions were given that when a sacrifice was brought to the Tabernacle, the faithful Jew who was making the offering was to place his hands on the head of the sacrificial animal that was to be killed. He recognised that ‘the wages of sin is death’ [Romans 6.23]. He associated himself with the sacrifice that was being offered for him.

The Lord Jesus Christ offered one perfect sacrifice for sin. There was no further need for animal sacrifices, which pointed forward to his perfect sacrifice. But, those who want to be saved need to recognise the necessity for his sacrifice: ‘the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord’ [Romans 6.23]. Those who want to be saved need to recognise the love of God in giving His only begotten son. They need to associate themselves with the love that Jesus showed in giving his life for the sins of the world:

‘If you believe you may be baptized’, said Philip to the Ethiopian.

‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved’ said Paul to the jailor.

‘And they were baptized.’ They associated themselves with the wonderful saving work of the Lord Jesus as Paul wrote to the believers at Rome:

‘Know ye not, that as many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life’[Romans 6.3,4].

A God-given symbol
So, when the Christian is immersed in water at his baptism it represents:

• Washing away the past
• Making a fresh start as a servant of God
• A symbolic burial and resurrection with Jesus

Baptism is the rite that shows we belong to Christ. Paul wrote to the Christians in Galatia:

‘as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.’

He said that there was no difference between men and women, between freeborn and slave, between Jew and Gentile. It makes no difference because ‘ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise [Galatians 3.27-29].

The promise that God made to Abraham is really the subject of another article, but enough has been written to show that, for the true Christian, there are beautiful symbols to be seen in obeying the command to be baptized. Jesus said of his own baptism, ‘thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness.’ [Matthew 3.15]

Do not be distracted by the bunnies and Easter eggs - they may, in their pagan origins, symbolize a new start, but they lead our minds away from the real truth taught by Jesus and the apostles. After belief and baptism, the first-century Christians 'continued stedfastly.' The new life in Christ had begun. True Christians today will want to make sure that their ‘newness of life’ in Christ begins in the same way.