The
Hope of
Easter A PROMISE OF REAL PEACE FOR THE ANXIOUS
THE HOPE OF EASTER Heart racing. Trembling. Stomach knots. Mind buzzing. Full alert; full of fear . . .
is our body’s natural response to danger, but for many of Anxiety us, it has become a way of life. With soaring numbers of peo-
ple suffering from various forms of anxiety, it’s as though our bodies are screaming that just being alive is dangerous. Life is full of unknowns and, if we’re honest, we have very little control over much of what makes up our daily lives. Children, partners, work situations, health, global crises . . . any one of these can dramatically affect us; and they are all slightly outside our grasp. Two thousand years ago, the lives of a small band of Israelites were spiralling out of control. The man they were certain was the Messiah—the saviour of the world—had been unjustly condemned to death; and, to their utter horror, was immediately executed. Now, hiding behind locked doors and barred windows, they didn’t know if they would be exiled or killed. The world they knew was shattered and their future seemed bleak. Then, someone spoke the words that changed everything: “Peace be with you!” Of course, those words don’t mean much coming from me or you; they would be a nice sentiment at best. But they take on a whole new meaning when uttered by the man who just defeated humanity’s oldest and fiercest enemy: death. Days after his public execution, Jesus—very much alive—was standing in the room with his friends, offering an entirely new kind of peace. Not the kind of peace that comes from life getting back to normal—that would never happen again for these men—but a deeper, more profound peace that could carry them through even the most awful circumstances. On the cross, Jesus opened up a way for us to have true peace: peace with God, and peace from God.
Jesus’ death on the cross wasn’t brought about by unlucky circumstances; it was God’s plan all along. There, Jesus won us this peace by paying for any wrongs, any shame, any mistakes, any bad things we’ve ever done. He took the weight of our lives upon himself, dying in our place. You see, not one of us has lived a life that truly loves and follows God—and the result of this is a lot of selfishness, pain and bad decisions. God says that death is the price that must be paid for how we have lived. Thankfully, it is a price that God himself has paid for us. When Jesus then rose from the dead, it proved that there is nothing more we need to pay. Our debt is cleared and our conflict with God has ended. Through Jesus, we can enjoy peace with God. That answers the overwhelming fear of death and the anxiety of facing God someday. But what about the day-to-day anxieties of life? How does this help chaotic circumstances, addictive behaviour, challenging relationships, danger and all the rest of it? Jesus offers us peace for these things as well. The Bible says that he daily bears our burdens. Having risen from the dead, he is alive forevermore to be with us and care for us. He will never leave us or forsake us. He gives us an open invitation to bring every single anxious thought to him in prayer. Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. PHILIPPIANS 4:6-7
Jesus is a living saviour offering you the deepest, most profound peace imaginable; one that we can keep, even when life seems unbearably hard. Because the one who has beaten death for us—and so can defeat any other enemy too—walks every step of the way with us. “Peace be with you!” Jesus says to us today. This is the hope of Easter.
FIND OUT MORE There’s so much more to discover about the Easter story and the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. We want to encourage you to attend a local church during the Easter holidays to find out more about the God who takes our burdens on himself. Our Daily Bread Ministries is also here for you. For over fifty years we’ve been helping people in the UK and Europe open up the Bible to meet the God who cares. Follow @ourdailybreadeurope on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok for daily encouragements. And visit odb.org to see all the free resources we have available to help you get to know Jesus for yourself.
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