Easter is a holiday I always look forward to. When I was little it was all about the Easter bunny and candy even though my parents always tried to remind me what it was “really” about. But as I have gotten older I have realized what it’s really about. It’s about spending time with my family and pondering about Easter, but most of all we have Easter to remind us.
Easter reminds us of one the greatest events that have ever happened to mankind. In fact, president Gordon B Hinckley said,”It is the greatest event in human history and I do not hesitate to say that.” This event was Jesus Christ sacrificing himself for us and rising again. It is what our religion is about. Joseph smith even said “The fundamental principles of our religion are the testimony of the Apostles and Prophets, concerning Jesus Christ, that He died, was buried, and rose again the third day, and ascended into heaven; and all other things which pertain to our religion are only appendages to it.”
But it’s mans nature to wonder, especially if he doesn’t know the truth. Job is a perfect example of this when he asked “If a man die, shall he live again?” There has never been a question of greater importance than this. The thought of this life just being it is hard to fathom. Thinking that after all the things we have learned and the relationships we have created, thinking that this life is the only one that we have is concerning. Death will come and there is no escaping it. But “if a man die, shall he live again?” This very important question is answered by our savior in (John 14:19) “Because I live, ye shall live also.”
Jesus the Christ changed what death is. Only a God could do what He did. He broke the very bonds of death. He too had to die, but on the third day, following His burial, He rose from the grave. “
Jesus Christ volunteered to do this in the pre-existence, and he knew why he was doing it…for us
The Easter story is a story of love. Heavenly Father loves us so much that He sent His Son to earth to atone for our sins.
STORY- I found this story called The Bridge that reminded me of how hard it must have been to sit back and watch the events of the last days of His Son…
There once was a big turntable bridge which spanned a large river. During most of the day the bridge sat with its length running up and down the river parallel with the banks, allowing ships to pass through freely on both sides of the bridge. But at certain times each day, a train would come alone, and the bridge would be turned sideways across the river allowing the train to cross. The bridge was just wide enough for a train to cross it.
A switchman sat in a small shack on one side of the river where he operated the controls to turn the bridge and lock it into place as the train passed. One evening as the switchman was waiting for the last train of the day to come; he looked off into the distance through the dimming twilight, and caught sight of the train's light. He stepped to the controls and waited until the train was within a prescribed distance when he was to turn the bridge. He turned the bridge into position for the train to cross, and moved the lever to lock the bridge into position, but to his horror, he found the locking control didn't work. If the bridge was not locked securely into position it would wobble back and forth at the ends when the train came onto it, causing the train to jump the track and go crashing into the river. This would be a passenger train with many people aboard.
He left the bridge turned across the river, and hurried across the bridge to the other side of the river where there was a lever which he could use to operate the lock manually. He would have to hold the lever back firmly as the train passed. He could hear the rumble of the train now, and he took hold of the lever and leaned backward to apply his weight to it, locking the bridge. He kept applying the pressure to keep the mechanism locked. Many lives depended on this man's strength.
Then, coming across the bridge from the direction of his control shack, he heard a sound that made his blood run cold! -----"Daddy, where are you?" His four--year old son was crossing the bridge to look for him. His first impulse was to cry out to the child, "Run! Run!" but the train was too close; the tiny legs would never make it across the bridge in time. The man almost left the lever to run and snatch up his son and carry him to safety, but he realized he could not get back to the lever. Either the people on the train or his little son must die.
He took just a moment to make his decision. The train sped swiftly and safely on its way, and no one aboard was even aware of the tiny, broken body thrown mercilessly into the river by the onrushing train. Nor were they aware of the pitiful figure of a sobbing man, still clinging tightly to the locked lever long after the train had passed. They didn't see him walking home more slowly than he has ever walked----to tell his wife how he had sacrificed their son.
Now if you can comprehend the emotions which went through this man's heart, you can begin to understand the feelings of our Heavenly Father when he sacrificed His son to bridge the gap between us and eternal life. Can there be any wonder that he caused the earth to tremble and the skies to darken when His Son died? And how does He feel when we speed along through life without giving a thought to what was done for us through Jesus? He did this because he loves us!
A switchman sat in a small shack on one side of the river where he operated the controls to turn the bridge and lock it into place as the train passed. One evening as the switchman was waiting for the last train of the day to come; he looked off into the distance through the dimming twilight, and caught sight of the train's light. He stepped to the controls and waited until the train was within a prescribed distance when he was to turn the bridge. He turned the bridge into position for the train to cross, and moved the lever to lock the bridge into position, but to his horror, he found the locking control didn't work. If the bridge was not locked securely into position it would wobble back and forth at the ends when the train came onto it, causing the train to jump the track and go crashing into the river. This would be a passenger train with many people aboard.
He left the bridge turned across the river, and hurried across the bridge to the other side of the river where there was a lever which he could use to operate the lock manually. He would have to hold the lever back firmly as the train passed. He could hear the rumble of the train now, and he took hold of the lever and leaned backward to apply his weight to it, locking the bridge. He kept applying the pressure to keep the mechanism locked. Many lives depended on this man's strength.
Then, coming across the bridge from the direction of his control shack, he heard a sound that made his blood run cold! -----"Daddy, where are you?" His four--year old son was crossing the bridge to look for him. His first impulse was to cry out to the child, "Run! Run!" but the train was too close; the tiny legs would never make it across the bridge in time. The man almost left the lever to run and snatch up his son and carry him to safety, but he realized he could not get back to the lever. Either the people on the train or his little son must die.
He took just a moment to make his decision. The train sped swiftly and safely on its way, and no one aboard was even aware of the tiny, broken body thrown mercilessly into the river by the onrushing train. Nor were they aware of the pitiful figure of a sobbing man, still clinging tightly to the locked lever long after the train had passed. They didn't see him walking home more slowly than he has ever walked----to tell his wife how he had sacrificed their son.
Now if you can comprehend the emotions which went through this man's heart, you can begin to understand the feelings of our Heavenly Father when he sacrificed His son to bridge the gap between us and eternal life. Can there be any wonder that he caused the earth to tremble and the skies to darken when His Son died? And how does He feel when we speed along through life without giving a thought to what was done for us through Jesus? He did this because he loves us!
Jesus loves our Heavenly Father; He was willing to obey Him. And Jesus loves each one of us. He gave His life so that we may be forgiven when we do something wrong and repent.
Because he loves us….
He was betrayed, arrested, condemned to death, to die in awful agony by crucifixion. His living body was nailed to the cross. And he endured unspeakable pain. He did all of this because he loves us.
The earth shook as His spirit passed. And the world went dark. Those who loved Him took His body from the cross. They dressed it and placed it in a tomb. The tomb was sealed with a great stone at its opening, and a guard was set.
On the third day peter came to visit the tomb in (john 20: 7) he describes what he saw…
“6 Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulcher, and seeth the linen clothes lie, 7 And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself.”. I didn’t really understand the importance of this verse until I found an article that talked about some of the traditions in Jesus’ time. It talked about how carpenters when they finished a job would use a cloth to wash the saw dust off their arms and would fold and put it on top of their work. This was like a signature to tell everyone that his work was done.
Now that you know this, you can start to understand what Peter felt when he found the napkin nicely folded away from the other cloths. He was filled with hope and his sorrow left him because Peter understood...The carpenter had left a simple message.
It is finished.
Now that you know this, you can start to understand what Peter felt when he found the napkin nicely folded away from the other cloths. He was filled with hope and his sorrow left him because Peter understood...The carpenter had left a simple message.
It is finished.
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