Introduction:
Have you ever wondered why Easter is called “Easter”?
It all goes back to an old English word, Eosturmonath. This word was the name used for the first month of spring when there would be a big celebration in honor of Eostre, who was thought to be the goddess of the dawn who brought about the new life that accompanies the changing of the season following winter. After the Gospel reached England and the people there exchanged their worship of old goddesses for the worship of Christ, the name stuck.
Though we now celebrate this holiday in honor of Jesus, in a lot of ways, the name still fits. Easter is still all about new life. Sure, it happens in the spring, but not because that’s when the winter frost melts away, and the earth blooms again with all the colors of God’s creation. It happens in the spring because that’s when Jesus was crucified, around the celebration of the Jewish Passover. Even still, the new life in nature that surrounds us in spring serves as the perfect reminder of what Easter is all about.
Sometimes people will call Easter “Resurrection Sunday,” which is a lot more on-the-nose than Easter is. After all, that’s what we’re actually celebrating: Jesus’ resurrection, when following His death on the cross, God the Father raised Him from the dead and made Him alive, again.
That’s why Easter is central to the Gospel, the good news of Jesus. Only, it wasn’t just good news for Him. I mean, it was. I think we’d all agree it’s better to be alive than dead. More than that, though, it’s also good news for us, for all of us. The Apostle Paul explains it better than I ever could:
“But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in
our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved…” – Ephesians 2:4-5
In this time between Palm Sunday and Easter, we want to reflect upon what we know as Holy Week and remember what it was Jesus said and did. We want to see all He accomplished that week for our good and for God’s glory and how it propels us all toward our God-given mission and purpose.
Jesus was raised alive, again, so we too might have new life in Him. My prayer is that these ten devotions serve to motivate us throughout the rest of the year and the rest of our new lives.