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Prayer of the Day
Historical Collect
O God, for our redemption you gave your only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, to suffer death on the cross, and by his glorious resurrection have delivered us from the power of the enemy. Grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him who died and rose again for us. Grant this, we pray, through the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. (Gregorian Sacramentary, 6th Century)
Thematic Collect
God of all mercy and grace, your only Son’s death and glorious resurrection have delivered us from the power of death and redeemed all creation. Grant that we may no longer look for the living among the dead and instead daily die to sin and rise to newness of life; through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Thoughts on the Readings
The Common Thread
Oh, the grumbling of God’s people. Fear not! Stand firm! The Lord has promised and will deliver his people. He is the God who brings us out of bondage. He is the gate of righteousness through which the righteous pass into salvation. Only hold fast to his word, that Christ Jesus has been set as the cornerstone of salvation. As it is written, he died for our sins, was buried, and was raised on the third day. Run with Mary and see the testimony of Scripture. The tomb is empty. This day of salvation is the Lord’s doing. Rejoice and be glad!
First Reading • Exodus 14:10–15:1
Every day, whether we realize it or not, we are staring death in the face: Media Vita In Morte Sumus (In the midst of life, we are in death). The Hebrews knew it and certainly felt it when Pharoah drew near them with his army. They knew they had come out into the wilderness to die. But Moses exhorted them to take a courageous stand and see the salvation of God. This is how we, too, should face death, knowing that death is near in each moment — and so is salvation.
Psalm • Psalm 118:15–29
In Homer’s The Odyssey, when Odysseus experiences Hades, he sees his family, but they only stare back, unknowing, only a little better off than dead. This is not the end for those who believe. We shall not die, nor shall we simply live. We shall live and enumerate the accomplishments of the Lord. We know only so much in this life, but in the life to come we will know fully, even as we are fully known (1 Corinthians 13:12). Better even than this is that we will know the One who fully knows us.
Second Reading • 1 Corinthians 15:1–11
Luther puts Paul’s opening words this way: “If you wish to heed the Gospel properly and adhere to it, you must reasonably heed what was first proclaimed to you, what was implanted by me and believed by you” (Luther’s Works, Vol. 28). What is it that was first proclaimed, that item of “first importance,” but that Christ died for our sins (1 Corinthians 1:3)? Nearly all Christian people would say they believe Christ did so. However, if some of them say that sin is not sin, then how has Christ died for their sin? Indeed, it would seem that he has only died for that sin which they name as sin. Worse, they both deceive themselves and call Christ a liar (1 John 1:8, 10).
Imagine Paul saying that he was now a believer in the Messiah who died for his sins, but that murdering Christians was not a sin and he was going to continuing killing them. We do the same when we claim Christ has not died for all our sins — those cherished sins we, in essence, claim do not need the broken body and shed blood of the Savior.
The first and standing order for the Christian is that Christ died for her sins — all of them.
Gospel • John 20:1–18
What was first seen is what must be believed until the end: Christ is risen! Without this, Christianity is pitiable (1 Corinthians 15:19). It is one thing to believe that Jesus forgives our sins and wants us to lead a righteous life. It is an altogether better thing to know that he died for those sins and has promised us eternal life. This is what Mary needed to come to grips with that Easter sunrise. Imagine how she felt. On top of her own grief at the loss of Jesus, she might have been struggling with the question of what good her belief and her following of him have been since he is now dead. What good is forgiveness? What benefit is righteousness? Then, in the space of a few moments, she perceives the answer. He is alive! Because he lives, we, too, shall live (Romans 6:5).
