Death Defeated!

You brought me up from the grave, O LORD. You kept me from falling into the pit of death.

Psalm 30:3

On this Easter Sunday, we celebrate the defeat of death. Psalm 30 gives us words to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus and its implications.

The images of Psalm 30 take on new meaning in light of the resurrection of Jesus. David spoke of being brought up from the grave (Hebrew, sheol) metaphorically. What he had experienced in his life was so bad that it felt like death. Therefore God’s deliverance felt like resurrection. In the case of Jesus, however, his death was not mere metaphor. He truly died on the cross, where he also took upon himself the spiritual death associated with sin. Yet the death of Jesus was not the end, but in many ways just the beginning. When God raised him from the dead on Easter, the power of death itself was defeated. Jesus broke out of the cage that keeps us in bondage, inviting us to follow him from death into new life.

Thus when we read Psalm 30, we think of Jesus and his resurrection. But we can also think of ourselves. As Paul explains in 1 Corinthians 15, the resurrected Jesus is the “first fruits” of the harvest. We who put our trust in him will one day be raised, even as he has been raised. We will join him in the new creation, in the resurrection of heaven and earth.

So, on this Easter Sunday, we not only look back with awe at the resurrection of Jesus. We also celebrate what his resurrection has accomplished for us. Through faith in him, we enter into new life now, with the hope of our own resurrection ahead. Anticipating what God will do with us, we celebrate along with David, saying: “You brought me up from the grave, O LORD. You kept me from falling into the pit of death.”

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION: Have you ever thought of Easter Sunday as a day to celebrate your own resurrection in the future? How might you live differently if you really believed that death was defeated through the resurrection of Jesus?

PRAYER: All praise be to you, Lord Jesus, because you were raised from the dead on Easter!

All praise be to you, Lord Jesus, because your death was not in vain!

All praise be to you, Lord Jesus, because you have broken the shackles of death, giving us new life!

All praise be to you, Lord Jesus, because you are the “first fruits” of the bountiful harvest yet to come!

All praise be to you, Lord Jesus, because your resurrection assures me of my future resurrection into eternal life!

All praise be to you, Lord Jesus, because you are the Savior of the world . . . and my Savior too!

Hallelujah! Amen.