Series: Lent & Easter
April 21, 2019 | Pastor Chris Riedel
Passage: 1 Corinthians 15:51-58
Scripture:
For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must cloth itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory."
"Where, O death, is your victory?"
"Where, O death, is your sting?"
-1 Corinthians 15:52b-55
Devotional:
And the trumpet shall sound. How right it is that the proclamation of God's mighty act of salvation that we have come to know in the Resurrection of Christ is declared with the sound of brass. Easter has always been a deep and ringing day in the life of the Church. How right also it is to see the pastels, brightness, and fresh clear morning on Easter. vibrant sights, sounds, and song to worship and praise a God unlike any other. A living God who died and was buried but could not be contained. To a weary and broken world is offered salvation, a purpose, a hope beyond any imagination and grounded in love.
Christianity has always been considered at core the Easter faith and Christians to be Easter people. But when the festivities have passed and our day to day lives begin again what should we take from this highest and holiest of days? How are we called to live in light of what God has done? I would raise one idea that I hope to incorporate into my own prayer life through the next few months. That of having a heart and soul like a trumpet. Odd at first glance perhaps but I was moved by the clamor and movement of the brass this past Sunday. As I returned home and life began to intervene as it always does with thoughts on appointments, oil changes, and work I thought...what does my soul sound like? Would the music it makes be as joyful and boisterous as the trumpet and brass of an Easter morning?
Prayer:
Lord of life we thank You for the grace we have been shown in Christ. The grace that we proclaimed on Easter with the ringing of brass and the joy of flowers, color, and all that is vibrant. We pray for hearts like a trumpet. Hearts that live joyfully and deeply, ringing evermore in praise of You. Send down your Spirit, the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead, to raise and heal us. Work your endless wonders in our hearts, minds, and bodies so that we might be your people and You our God. Amen.
Written by Sam Riedel. Sam graduates from Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, DC in May. He is the son of Pastor Chris and Julia Riedel, and brother to Ben, Jessalyn and Emily.
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