I have been waiting three months to tell you this story. As I was leading our Christmas Eve services this year, I was unable to help my wife put our kids to bed. When I returned home around 1:00am, my wife woke up to tell me what had happened while the kids were saying their bedtime prayers just a few hours earlier. I was amazed at what came out of their mouths. First, three year old Baxter said a heartfelt, honest prayer to God with a sweetness and a truth that reflected the thoughts of many of us at Christmas: “Thank you for Santa Claus, for gifts, and all the fun.” And instead of ‘Amen,’ he just exclaimed, “Thanks!”. (A preacher father couldn’t be prouder!)

Katie then went into Kenzie’s room for her prayers, expecting a similar sentiment of thanksgiving. However, when Katie told me about her prayer, I was struck by how Kenzie, even at five-years-old, saw through the revelry and anticipation of packages and bows and presents to the deeper significance of Christmas when she prayed, “Dear God, thank you for sending Jesus at Christmas; and letting him rise again on Easter.”

In just a few words, Kenzie was able to capture what many of us often forget—the real significance of Christmas is linked directly with Easter.

II. TRANSITION

Every Sunday during Lent, we’ve been examining in great detail the Lord’s prayer. Line by line, we examined how the Lord’s Prayer echoes our deepest sentiments:

reverence before the Almighty Creator;

submission to God’s will over our own;

trusting God who will provide for all our needs;

discovering God’s forgiveness of us through our forgiveness of others;

needing God’s protection from the devastating power of temptation;

gratitude for the great gift of creation and the coming Kingdom;

And now, on Easter Sunday, we examine probably the most important line in the entire prayer. Two words that knit together the heart of the entire prayer: “Forever. Amen.”

How appropriate. On Easter Sunday, we examine what ‘eternity’ means through the eyes of the resurrection; exclamated with a confident AMEN…meaning, ‘so be it.’ What Kenzie’s prayer taught me is that eternity is what links Christmas to Easter. Christ was born because God loves his creation so much. Christ died because only God could rectify the problems we created. And, Christ was resurrected to give us the greatest gift of all time: eternal life.

I must admit that when I first thought of how to talk about eternity, I was distracted by the slogan for the cologne made for men, “Eternity” which advertised, “Heaven must smell like Eternity.” As I pondered this play on words, I began to wonder what significance eternity has on our lives today.

In a time when our nation is painfully divided about what to do about terrorism on our doorstep, war in Iraq, genocide in Darfur and Somalia, AIDS crisis in Africa, and hunger and disease that is sweeping the world…we wonder really what difference Eternity makes.

In a time when our city is looking for answers in the tragic deaths of two police officers; for support in an ailing school system; for a solution to a growing homeless and immigrant population; for a compass to a confused moral direction…we grow less and less confident that Eternity holds the key.

As we examine the pain and struggle in our own lives—friends fighting for their lives in the hospital, family members dying of disease, husbands and wives marriages at their breaking points, anxiety over our jobs, children, finances, and the future pushes thoughts of eternity out of our hearts and minds as somehow…impractical.

In what seems like an unending spiral of hopelessness, pain, and evil…it’s no wonder we soon begin to question if anything really changes as a result of God’s great gift of eternal life given at the resurrection. Can the gift of eternity really make any difference in our lives right now?

As Christians, our answers better be more than YES! Our attitudes, our lives, our choices, and our relationships should exude a confidence that eternal life not only makes A difference, it makes the ONLY difference. AMEN!

III. SCRIPTURE

Today’s scripture is a remarkable, yet unique story. While all four gospels tell the story of the resurrection, only John tells the story of the “other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved.”

Mary, Peter and this other disciple arrive at the tomb, and all ‘see’ the evidence. The guards have run off, the stone is rolled away, the linen wrappings were laying there, but there was no body. Mary Magdalene concluded that someone must have stolen the body. Peter’s reaction is not specifically mentioned, except that he decided to go back home. But look closely at verse 8: it was only this disciple who not only saw the evidence, but he also saw the truth. All of Jesus’ teachings came crashing down on him with instantaneous clarity. All the miracles made sense. All the stories, the parables, the warnings, the commands…everything pointed to one incredible truth: Jesus was the real thing…Jesus was the Messiah…and Jesus’ birth, life, and death meant more than he could possibly imagine. He was with Jesus every step of the way, but it was only at the resurrection that made it clear: Jesus is the Son of God, come to redeem us all! At that moment, this disciple’s faith opened his eyes to the truth: Jesus the Christ is risen. He is risen indeed!

Everything changed from that moment of faith—that moment when one sees AND believes. The bumbling disciples, who were hiding away in an upper room fearing for their lives, somehow became emboldened, even determined. Something changed in them that day—they understood and more importantly, they believed that they walked and talked with the Word that became flesh, the author of life, and the giver of eternal life. After the resurrection, the gospels no longer portray the disciples as wimpy, confused, or incompetent…rather they are the rock in which the church was founded. Although they knew it was risking their lives, they instantly became so confident in their preaching that it led thousands to see and believe. As a result, each and every disciple ended up beaten and killed, not because of an empty tomb…but because of a risen Jesus. And ever since, there have been generations that followed their lead, listened to their stories, and discovered an empty tomb for themselves…AND have believed.

Believing in eternity continues to have an enormous impact on us…it changes everything…it gives color to life…makes everyday special…makes every breath meaningful…makes every relationship vital…and makes our lives absolutely essential.

So, does believing in eternal life make a difference?…Well, it inspired a few disciples, spawned a worldwide movement, and continues to offer hope to a world in desperate need to know that everything will be all right.

Court met Wesley at age 4. Like most boys, they played together every day, quickly becoming best friends. One day while on the playground, Court noticed that Wesley began to drag his leg, and an MRI showed that Wesley had developed a significant brain tumor. Wesley had to undergo a particularly dangerous surgery, but in far away Oklahoma City. Tears rolled down Court’s face, and Court was afraid he would never see his friend again. Wesley, frail, and much shorter that Court, hugged Court at chest level, looked up into his eyes and soothingly replied, “Don’t worry, it’ll be all right.”

Wesley pulled through that surgery and after many weeks, returned to school where Court and Wesley grew closer than ever.

However, by age 11, Wesley’s tumor had finally taken over his body, and every surgery and alternative medicine had been exhausted. Court went to visit Wesley, and found him in bed in their family room. A soft light was shining on his fragile, angelic body. Between the cancer and pain medication, Wesley could do very little. Occasionally, he was able to squeeze someone’s finger and open one eye.

Court tenderly woke Wesley and wanted to express his deep feelings of friendship. As Court leaned over to give Wesley a kiss, he whispered, “Goodbye Wesley, my friend. Don’t worry. It’ll be all right.”

Wesley died a few weeks later.

Exactly one year later, Court himself became violently ill with meningitis. While in the emergency room, twelve-year-old Court desperately clutched his mother, visibly afraid and trembling. While the doctor was completing the spinal tap, an indescribable calmness came over Court and his mother. Court had instantly relaxed and stopped shaking. Court turned to his mother and said, “Mom, Wesley was just here in this room and he said, ‘Don’t worry, it’ll be all right.’”

God never promised our lives would be without pain and struggle. But he does promise to be with us and to hold us through it. No matter what we might face in our lives, with a faith rooted in knowing that God holds eternity in God’s hands, everything will truly be all right. The gift of Eternity is the source of all our hope. The gift of eternity is the gift of God’s hope.

That’s the story that links Christmas to Easter. When we see a baby in a manger…when we stand in the shadow of the cross, and when we encounter an empty tomb, our hearts should flutter with the reminder of what Jesus did so that we too can have eternal hope and eternal life.

V. CONCLUSION

While some believers, and even entire denominations, emphasize the importance of Christmas or cling to Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, or stress the resurrection above all else, the truth is that all three are necessary for eternal life, save one important caveat: It is only when we have the eyes to see and the heart to believe that Jesus is the one from God who was born, who lived, who died, and who was resurrected that eternal life can be given. It is through our faith, and faith alone that eternal life can give hope to a desperate world. Those who came to the tomb came as hopeless mourners, but left as hope-filled believers.

Christmas, Good Friday, Easter, and everything in between offers the gift of eternal life; but the choice to believe rests on you and me. Maybe it is a decision some of us need to make today—for the first time. Maybe it is a rededication some of us have neglected. Maybe it is finally offering forgiveness to someone; maybe it is letting go of our need to control; maybe it is deciding to choose others before ourselves. No matter how, in the end for all of us, the choice to believe in the resurrection and claim the power of eternity can begin with a simple, yet powerful prayer, “Thank you God for sending Jesus at Christmas, and letting him rise again on Easter.”

Christ the Lord is risen. He is risen indeed.