Empty, but full

Personal Photo: One of my favorite animals, spotting an Osprey during our week-long fishing trip in Canada has always been a treat. While they are hunting or looking for a mate, their nests are empty. We must not look for Christ in an empty tomb, but remember that He is within each of us, inspiring hope and reminding us that He paid the price for our sins and gave us the precious gift of salvation!

I peeked open my eyes, the brightness outside just barely daring to spill into my bedroom. It was early, before it was time to get ready for church, and I wiped my eyes awake because it was time to open up my bedroom door and see what had filled my Easter basket. Each year was different, but I could count on a full basket outside my door each Easter growing up, the colorful grass littering the hallway as my brothers and I carried our goodies out to the family room to examine what we had received. Every year, my mom made sure that we had a chocolate Easter bunny tucked into the set of gifts, and she shared with me that when she was growing up, she often wondered why the bunnies were not solid chocolate, but hollow on the inside. Not just a trick for companies to make more money on less chocolate, she informed me that she learned the hollow Easter bunny was representative of the empty tomb, and ever since, she sought out the traditional empty chocolate bunnies to put in each of our baskets.

I rarely consider the power of emptiness, usually a word associated with sadness or unfulfillment, but Easter is a special reminder of how important it is to consider something being empty as a blessing. Today is Easter, and it is the day dedicated to commemorating the resurrection of Christ, His tomb being empty, and His promise of defeating death fulfilled. This day marks the end of Christ's journey on Earth, but the beginning of so much more for all of His children. When we begin to think of emptiness as just the beginning, rather than the end, we can really appreciate the power of Jesus's tomb being vacant.

When we consider how important it is for the tomb to be empty, we can realize that this is the key piece of evidence that Jesus gave, proving He rose from the dead. The tomb was guarded by soldiers, there was an enormous rock over the entrance, and yet, there was no body found and the linens with which Jesus was wrapped were left folded inside. The fact that it was empty means to us that His promise was fulfilled. Death has no power over us, because Jesus defeated death and the devil. Through Jesus's death, we have the chance for eternal life. John 11:25-26 references when Jesus explained this perspective, reading "Jesus said to her 'I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?'" This verse demonstrates that dying is not the end for believers in Christ, but just the beginning of a new life with Him. Just like the death of Jesus, the empty tomb symbolizes not the end of His life, but the beginning of His reign as King over Death and Sin. Because He paid for our debt, we have new life.

Easter Sunday comes after a brutal end to Holy Week. The horrifying reality of the crucifixion of Christ is impossible to ignore, which is why the relief of the tomb being empty is so exciting. Rather than fear, desperation, and defeat, we have the chance to hope, love, and be grateful that Jesus is not in the tomb, but that He is in Heaven. 1 Peter 1:3 expresses this blessing: "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead." This verse highlights the incredible gift of God's only Son, and how His payment of our sins instills within us a hope for life after death, a chance to be with God for all eternity. Hope is something that no one and no situation can take from us without our permission. Knowing that we are saved, that our sins are forgiven, that we have a room being prepared for us in Heaven is the most encouraging truth we could ever lean into. It reminds us that whatever shackles hold us down during our journey of life on Earth are nothing but temporary, and they might confine our bodies, but never our souls. Hardships, while inevitable, could never extinguish the flame of love from Christ, the victory that Jesus shares with us through His gift of salvation.

I consider emptiness and how many times we encounter it and give it little or no thought at all. When something is empty, like the nest of a bird, the inhabitants must be somewhere else. I think about how any times I have watched an Osprey scan the area, soaring through the sky. I fail to think about how they leave their nest is empty as they go searching for food or a partner. The nest is vacant because they are taking care of things elsewhere. In the same way, we can rejoice that Christ is not in the tomb, for He is not there, but within each of us, the power of His victory and resurrection echoing through the empty tomb in which He was laid. Romans 8:11 emphasizes this, reading "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you." Here we are reminded that the same force that raised Christ from the dead is within each of us, and we can live our day to day focusing on the salvation that releases the burden of sin from our hearts. Jesus is not in the tomb, for He is watching over each of us, living within our hearts, forgiving us our sins as soon as we repent for them, and loving us so much that we cannot even comprehend its depth.

In the case of Easter Sunday, emptiness really symbolizes fullness. Because of the tomb being empty, we can be full of love and hope, full of joy and gratitude, and we can trust in the fulfillment of the promise of victory over the devil. We can fill our hearts with the love and will of God, listen to the Holy Spirit which fills our souls, and anticipate an eternity of days filled with giving God thanks and glory for the gift of eternal life and salvation with Him. I hope that you all have a blessed Easter! He is risen! Alleluia!