What is the True Meaning of Easter?

It’s So Much More Than the Easter Bunny and Candy

The Easter season is here again, but do you know the true meaning of Easter? Many people celebrate the holiday with candy, Easter baskets, bright pastel colors, presents, bunnies, and chicks. In fact, TheStreet.com reports that the National Confectioners Association estimates that people purchase more than 120 million pounds of candy each Easter! While there is nothing wrong with any of those things (especially the candy), it’s very important for everybody to understand the true celebration behind Easter. The holiday is so much more than the Easter Bunny or Easter baskets. It’s a celebration of life, of eternal life freely offered to everyone, no matter what their background, race, ethnicity, or even the country they live in. It’s the story of Jesus Christ, and what He did for you. It’s a love story. This month, we here at the R.O.C.K. Club in Radford, VA, want to tell you the story of Easter and help you understand its true meaning.

Jesus Christ is The True Meaning of Easter

This love story behind the Easter holiday begins thousands of years ago. It involves a hill outside of Jerusalem called Calvary, but that’s not where it starts. It involves a garden named Gethsemane, but it doesn’t begin there, either. It involves a manger in a small town called Bethlehem, but it doesn’t even start there. It begins in another garden, one called Eden, where God Himself placed the first created man and woman, Adam and Eve. God loved Adam and Eve very much, but they disobeyed Him. The Bible states in Romans 5:12, “For by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.” That “one man” was Adam. Again, God loved them very much, but He is also a holy and just God. Holiness means perfection, without sin. So in the name of true justice and true holiness, God had to punish them for their sin. As Adam’s descendants, we are also sinners, both by birth and by action. That punishment of death also passed down to us. But God also came up with a plan to redeem all of us from that sin. He would send a perfect sacrifice to be the substitute for us and pay the debt we owed. In the Bible, John 3:16 reads, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

That’s right: God sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, from Heaven to die for us, because He loved us so much. And Jesus Christ loved us so much that He willingly came to die. The Bible says in Hebrews 12:2a, “Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross…” This was Jesus Christ’s purpose, to shed His blood and die for our sins so that we could be redeemed and reconciled to God. He was born as a human, to a virgin in a stable and placed in a manger, thousands of years later in a small town called Bethlehem. He lived here for 33 years, preaching and performing miracles everywhere He went. One of His disciples, Judas, betrayed Him in the garden of Gethsemane to those in power who wanted to get rid of Him. And on an old, rugged cross on a hill called Calvary, they crucified Jesus Christ. He shed His blood, and He died to pay your debt in your place. They buried Him and walked away.

But the story doesn’t end there. It’s actually just beginning. Three days later, His disciples found Jesus Christ’s tomb empty and the massive stone that blocked the entrance rolled away. At first, they thought someone had stolen His body, but He appeared to them to show them that He had risen from the dead! How was this possible? It was possible because He is the Son of God! By rising from the dead, He gives us all victory over death. He died to pay the price for our sins, and He rose to give us eternal life. In the Bible, 1 Peter 1:3 states, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” This is what we celebrate on Easter! This is its true meaning. We have a risen Savior that offers eternal life to all of us, no matter who you are, where you live, or what you do or have done.

We Pray that You Trust the Risen Savior During This Easter Season

Beyond the meaning of Easter, this is the true significance of the holiday: the truth that you can have eternal life. Jesus Christ didn’t just die for others. He died for you. He rose again from the dead for you. He offers you eternal life and a home in Heaven as a free gift. You may ask, “How do I get this eternal life?” You must first realize a few things. You must realize that you are a sinner. If you are honest with yourself, you know that this is true. You must realize that as a sinner, you can’t have a relationship with a holy God. You are subject to the punishment of death. This is not just physical death, but also spiritual death, which is separation from God for all of eternity in a place called Hell. You must also realize that there is nothing you can ever do to reconcile yourself with God again. In the Bible, Isaiah 64:6a states, “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags…” But Jesus Christ died on the cross for your sins, and all you have to do is believe in Him and call out to Him in prayer to save you. Romans 10:13 reads, “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

If you have done this, please call us at The R.O.C.K. Club today! We love you, and we would love to pray for you and help you grow as a Christian.

Call Us at The R.O.C.K. Club Today

The R.O.C.K. Club in Radford, VA, offers outstanding, faith-based educational programs for families all throughout Virginia’s New River Valley. We provide daycare and early childhood programs, as well as tutoring for first- through sixth-grade students. We are at 1820 2nd Street, in the west end of Radford. Call us, or stop by for a tour of our facility. Check out our slate of programs. We would also love to discuss Jesus Christ and the true meaning of Easter with you!

For more information on how you can have a real relationship with God through Jesus Christ, call us now at (540) 267-3000. We can’t wait to talk to you about the true meaning of Easter.