Pastor’s Perspective – April 2026
Resurrection is an odd concept.
It is both triumphant and demands the acknowledgement of defeat.
It is the reclaiming of something that has been lost. It is born out of death and ashes and brokenness. That is why it is so odd.
Resurrection is a distinct and difficult concept that differs from the standard definition of victory. Victory and success very rarely acknowledge the presence of failure and death, yet resurrection cannot take place unless and until defeat is acknowledge and death snuffs out life.
Christians do not celebrate straight line victory. We do not believe that Jesus came to and beat up the devil. Regardless of some Christian clip art, Jesus does not win the victory over death by kissing his biceps and throwing the devil over his shoulder and driving him onto the mat.
The old, old story is simply told. On Good Friday, Jesus lost. In every way that human beings weigh the evidence; Jesus lost. He didn’t just die. He died in public disgrace. Hung on a tree. Crucified between criminals. Condemned to death by Church and State. Despised and rejected by men.
To the wisdom of humanity, Good Friday holds no victory.
One can say that it pays the price for human sin, or that it shows the depth of God’s love, or that it reframes the character of God. To which I can say AMEN to all of these theological statements. But none of these assertions are what the world would claim as winning.
In modern terms Jesus does not win. He suffers. He is obedient to death. He shows enormous strength and inner resolve. He is stoic and courageous. He is pure and righteous. But he does not win.
In human terms, Jesus is the man who takes a bullet for a friend. The man who jumps onto the grenade in a fox hole. The man who allows himself to be convicted for the crime of another. Some will celebrate the sacrifice, while others (those who measure victory in personal glory and gain) simply think that sacrifice without personal profit is the behavior of a loser.
To see the victory of Jesus on the cross of Calvary demands that we reconsider our understanding of victory itself. Even in the presence of the resurrection which shows both the power of God and the victory of death, the cross itself seems odd. Why allow yourself to lose, just to flip the script a few days later? Why does Jesus allow Himself to publicly lose in order to privately rise triumphantly? Why not go all the way and claim the throne on earth?
There is something in the way God moves that gives us the template of expectation for the Church. We are not to judge victory in human terms. Our best days are not the days on which we WIN, but the days on which we OBEY. Persecution may be the sign of victory and popularity may be the sign of sinful accommodation.
The resurrection is the sign from God that our faithful obedience may not be rewarded in human victory but is never forgotten by our loving God. The resurrection power of Jesus lives large in those who reject the false victory of human success for the honor of divine approval.
We seek not a crown on earth, but a crown in heaven. Not an award-winning life, but a God pleasing one. Easter is the day when the new life is revealed. A day in which the losers and the godly are reminded that not all rewards are monetary and not all success is recorded on Wikipedia. A day where new birth in Christ means that the meek and the low born can indeed inherit the earth.
Easter continues every time we rise to Godly motivations and Christ like obedience. To new life in Jesus Christ. Happy Easter!
Pastor Dan
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