Christians all over the world will be celebrating Easter this month. Depending on your country and culture, there are a variety of celebrations that range from family gatherings to religious ceremonies. In some countries it is a tradition to join a procession that reenacts the steps toward the crucifixion. In other countries, people attend sunrise service on Easter Sunday to celebrate the resurrection. Recently, many families have made it a practice to gather around their favorite movie about the life of Jesus. Wherever you are from, and whatever your Easter traditions, we recommend taking time apart to read the accounts of Jesus’ betrayal, crucifixion, and joyous resurrection found in any one of the Gospels. (See Matthew 26–28; Mark 14–16; Luke 22–24; John 18–21.)
This month’s Activated magazine will celebrate Easter by celebrating heaven! What makes us think of heaven at Easter? The fact that Christ defeated death through His crucifixion and triumphant resurrection! From the time of the earliest dated book in the Old Testament, the book of Job, people have looked forward to the coming of a Savior and have held onto the hope of heaven. Job 19:25–27 (TLB) reads:
As for me, I know that my Redeemer lives, and that he will stand upon the earth at last.
And I know that after this body has decayed, this body shall see God!
Then he will be on my side! Yes, I shall see him, not as a stranger, but as a friend!
What a glorious hope!
Yes, heaven and our reunion with Christ is our glorious hope and future, as Jesus promised His disciples, “Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live” (John 14:19).
The articles this month will surely nourish your faith and encourage your heart as you read the many promises that point towards eternity—the eternity that begins when we open our hearts to Jesus, as explained in the feature article, “Heaven: Our Eternal Hope”.
In this Easter edition we include an article by Ruth Davidson, a beautiful account of the history of Mary Magdalene, who was the first person to see Jesus on the morning of the resurrection. May we all have a blessed Easter as we contemplate the ultimate sacrifice, the cross, and the ultimate victory, the resurrection.