Why A Christ-Centered Easter Matters

Easter often arrives amid baskets, multi-colored eggs, baby chicks, and stuffed bunnies. Families dye eggs, have Easter egg hunts, and enjoy a big family dinner. Most of the decorations center on pastel colors and spring. Many even receive new dresses and cute outfits to wear on Easter Sunday.

Beneath all of this is something so much more powerful than candy and hardboiled eggs.

Easter is not simply a fun springtime celebration. It is the absolute declaration that Jesus Christ suffered for our sins in Gethsemane, was crucified on the cross, and then rose on the third day in His glorious resurrection.

When we focus on the Savior, Jesus Christ, and make Him the center of our celebration it becomes more than a holiday, it becomes a Holy Day. A day to recognize His infinite Atonement. A day to recognize His infinite love for each one of us. A day to recognize that because He lives, we will all live. Death has no power over us.

We Talk of Christ

In the Book of Mormon, 2 Nephi 25:26, we read:

“And we talk of Christ, we rejoice in Christ, we preach of Christ, we prophesy of Christ, and we write according to our prophecies, that our children may know to what source they may look for a remission of their sins.”

We “talk of Christ” when we make Him the topic of our conversations. When we reverently speak of Him and show our love for Him by the way we treat His name. Our conversations about Easter can and should focus on the voluntary sacrifice Jesus made for each one of us. He willingly took upon Him all of our sins, heartaches, sorrows, sickness, and afflictions. He then willingly laid down His life for each of us.

We need to speak more regularly and more openly about Him, His life, His sacrifice, and His love for us.

We Rejoice in Christ

Jesus was ridiculed, mocked, beaten, and tormented. He was innocent of the trumped-up charges against Him. As we speak of Him and His sacrifice, we should do so with respect and reverence, but we should also rejoice.

Because of His infinite Atonement, death has lost its sting. Death does not end our relationships. We will all live again. We will be able to see those we’ve loved who’ve died before us. We need to rejoice in Jesus and what He’s done for us. We need to be joyful.

The Atonement of Jesus Christ brings us joy and everlasting happiness because we all now have power over the grave. And if we choose to follow Jesus, we can be reunited with our Heavenly Father and live with Him for eternity. What joy!

We Teach Our Children of Christ

What better message can we teach our children than that they have a loving Heavenly Father and an elder brother who loves them so much, He was willing to experience all He did for them?

Teaching our children about Jesus and teaching them to love, follow, and become like Him is the greatest service and act of love we can do for them. Helping them to come to know Jesus and develop a connection to Him is the best gift we can give our children.

They need to know where to look for a remission of their sins. They need to know where to look for peace. They need to know where to look for comfort. In a world that is in constant commotion and with evil on every side, the only true protection we can give our children is to teach them about their Savior and how to live so that His Spirit may guide, direct, and protect them.

They need to not only know who Jesus is, but also how to make Him a vital part of their lives. None of us can spiritually survive this mortal world without a constant connection to the Lord.

He is Risen

What a joyful, happy message: He is Risen.

Easter is about His glorious resurrection and what that mean to us. The Atonement and Resurrection of our Lord, Jesus Christ, is the most important event in the history of the world. Nothing else compares.

We are so blessed that Jesus was willing to be the sacrifice and that Heavenly Father was willing to sacrifice His only begotten Son. We should be shouting from the rooftops about this wonderful event.

Jesus Christ literally rose from the dead.

Why a Christ-Centered Easter Matters

It gives us hope. Hope that this life is not all there is. Hope that we can be reunited with loved ones. Hope that there is so much more to our lives than what we experience in mortality. Without hope, we are lost. Jesus gives us hope.

It strengthens our family relationships. When we understand that our families can be eternal, it changes how we see and treat each other. We see each other as eternal beings and that helps us to create stronger bonds within our families.

It helps us become dedicated disciples. As we focus on Jesus during the Easter season, we become more like Him. We desire to serve, help, and love others as He did in His mortal ministry. The more time we spend thinking of Him, studying about him, and emulating His qualities the better disciples we become.

It reminds us that Jesus should be our priority. In our baptismal covenant, we promise to always remember Him, take His name upon us, and keep His commandments. When our Easter celebration is centered on Jesus, we keep our baptismal covenant.

Whatever happens in mortality, if we keep our focus on the Savior, we won’t get lost and we won’t be deceived. He should not only be the center of our Easter celebration but also the center of our lives.

Ways to Create a Christ-Centered Easter

We don’t need elaborate plans to make Easter meaningful, we can shift our focus through small, intentional acts. Here are a few ideas:

• Read 2 Nephi 25:26 together and discuss what it means to “rejoice in Christ.”
• Study one Resurrection account (John 20 or Luke 24) before any other Easter activity.
• Sing or listen to “He Is Risen” as a family.
• Perform a quiet act of service in His honor.
• Display an image of the resurrected Christ in your home as a visual reminder of the day’s meaning.

For more ideas, you can purchase my book, He is Risen: A Family Guide to Celebrating a Christ-Centered Easter, on Amazon or in bookstores.