He is risen! He is risen indeed.

I wanted to share the following song lyrics. They are from "The Easter Song," written by Anne Herring. I popped in one of Keith Green's CDs the other day and was delighted that this song, one of my favorites of his, was on it.

There are so many Christmas songs, many of which I learned as a child and still remember all the verses. I wonder, though, why we don't have more Easter songs. I guess you could argue a lot of hymns, praise songs, worship songs, etc. are at their essence Easter songs. I love the use of one of the most famous lines in a Christmas song -- Joy to the World -- in this song about Easter. And remember the bells of Christmas Day? How about the bells of Easter?

Still, Easter doesn't get nearly enough attention, even among Christians. The birth of the baby overshadows the resurrection of the God-man. My faith -- my whole existence -- hinges on Easter. Not just the death of Christ on the cross, not just His sacrifice, but also the resurrection -- the actual, historical resurrection of Jesus from the dead. His resurrection was not figurative, not merely a symbol, not just a nice thing to think about. Without the resurrection, following Jesus means nothing. He's just another nice guy, another well-intentioned prophet, who died for a cause but has no real power. Christianity is not Christianity without both Jesus' death and resurrection. They go together like springtime and flowers, like popcorn and movies, like hotdogs and ketchup.

He is risen from the dead! He is God and has power over death -- he defeated it. That is totally mind-boggling. Forget the cultural symbols of Easter -- pastel eggs, chocolate bunnies, green grass and daffodils. Wrap your mind around an empty tomb this weekend.

He is risen! He is risen indeed.

The Easter Song
Here the bells ringing
They're singing that you can be born again
Here the bells ringing
They're singing Christ is risen from the dead
The angel up on the tombstone
Said He has risen, just as He said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

Joy to the world,
He has risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah

Hear the bells ringing
They're singing that you can be healed right now
Hear the bells ringing,
They're singing Christ, He will reveal it now
The angels, they all surround us
And they are ministering Jesus' power
Quickly now, reach out and receive it
For this could be your glorious hour

Joy to the world,
He has risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah, hallelujah

The angel up on the tombstone
Said he has risen, just as he said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

Joy to the world,
He has risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah
He's risen, hallelujah
Hallelujah