Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and *saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. So the disciples went away again to their own homes.
But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus *said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene came, announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her.
John 20:1–18 (NASB)
He Has Risen Indeed.
Praise the Lord, all you nations!
I praise God for His devotion in you to Him (The Triune God),His Word, the Creeds, Confessions and Catechisms. Also the intense investigations, discussions, and the blessed distinctions that proclaim and display – HE HAS RISEN INDEED!
HE HAS RISEN INDEED!
Praise the Lord God Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth and His Son who has saved us who believe.
I’m a little bit puzzled why this blog will speak out against Roman holidays and then make positive posts essentially acknowledging those holidays on the actual holiday. I understand and appreciate the regulative principle of worship. I guess I am just confused as to why you guys are acknowledging these holidays on the day when you ordinarily post articles against these days. Are your reformed churches teaching on the resurrection on Easter? I don’t know if I am misunderstanding what you guys do on that Sunday. Do you just continue your regular exposition on the next section of scripture in whatever book you guys happen to be teaching in on Easter Sunday? That is what quite a few of the reformed churches in my town do, but there are a couple of exceptions. The only churches I have real life experience with are PCA and ARP churches. Neither are as strict about the regulative principle as most reformed denominations are .
Bradley,
There is a distinction to be made between observances that are utterly man-made or ecclesiastical inventions and those Lord’s Days that are actually grounded in Scripture. Christmas is without warrant in Scripture. We do not know when during the year our Lord was born. They same is true of Lent. It an ecclesiastical invention. The same is not true of the day of resurrection, which we observe every Sabbath but especially on what the early church called Pascha. We know exactly when during the year our Lord was crucified, died, was buried, and raised. Further, we know that the earliest church observed Pascha because its day of observance was a cause of controversy. Some (the Quartodecimans) favored a moveable observance that kept it connected to Passover and others wanted it on the 1st Sunday after.
So, when you say “you guys” and “these holidays” you might want to narrow your target.
Most Reformed ministers observe Pascha but there are probably some who do not. The earliest Reformed churches (including Geneva) all observed Pascha and it was they who recovered the rule of worship. There was some debate among their churches as to how extensively Reformed churches ought to observe the ecclesiastical calendar. Some retained the “evangelical” days (Easter, Christmas, Pentecost, Trinity) but not all did. Those who did not, however, did not regard those who did as corrupt. There were arguably some compromises in the 17th century Dutch churches due to pressure from civil authorities (another argument against a state-established church).
For my part, I would observe none but Pascha, for the reasons given.
Dr Clark, I appreciate your clarification. The only Reformed Churches near me are Presbyterians. There are no Reformed churches such as the one you are ordained in near me. My experience with Presbyterianism saying one thing in their Confession and doing another made me reticent to make any assumptions regarding what the URC or the Reformed churches affiliated with WSC actually do. The nearest URC church to me is over seven hours away, for example. There are two Presbyterian churches in my town who do not celebrate Easter or Christmas. The rest celebrate both holidays.
He is risen indeed. The empty tomb is the vindication that His righteous life and suffering is accepted on behalf of all those the Father gave Him from eternity. When the Holy Spirit has gathered every one of these through saving faith, they too will be vindicated through the resurrection of their glorified bodies, when He returns. Christi’s empty tomb is our guarantee. So we who trust in Him have every reason to look foreward to that last day, not in fear of judgment, but with joyful anticipation of acceptance with God. What a Savior!