Easter morrow stills our sorrow,
Stills our sorrow forevermore.
Light ever glowing,
Life overflowing
Stream from that dawn on benighted shore.
Easter morrow stills our sorrow,
Stills our sorrow forevermore.
Yes, “Easter morrow stills our sorrow” – but why are we sorrowful? Not only because Jesus has died on the Cross, but because we are sinful and separated from God. As Isaiah reminded us, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord hath laid on him [Jesus] the iniquity of us all” (53:6).
From his prison, Christ has risen,
Christ has risen in morning glow.
Hell weeps in sadness;
Heavens in gladness,
Heavens in gladness their praise bestow.
From his prison, Christ has risen,
Christ has risen in morning glow.
“From his prison, Christ has risen.” But why was He imprisoned in the tomb? Christ died the death of a felon, “bearing our sins in his own body on the tree” (I Peter 2:24). God told Adam in Genesis 2:17 that the penalty for sin is death, and Ezekiel repeated the warning, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die.” But as Paul assures us, “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”
Crucifixion was one of the most agonizing means of death ever imagined by man, but even greater was the agony of bearing our sins. Imagine all the sins you’ve ever committed, rolled in a bundle, then placed in a pile with the bundles of sins committed by every person in the history of the world. Then, imagine that enormous pile of sins, placed upon the shoulders of Jesus as He hung upon the cross. God the Father and God the Holy Spirit turned their faces from Him rather than look upon such sin. No wonder He cried out, “Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthanai!” (“My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46). Isaiah 53:10 tells us that it pleased the LORD to bruise Him, the Father Himself, whose smile the Son had always sought and whose favor He had always enjoyed. No doubt, this wrath from His Father was the greatest agony that Jesus endured on the cross.
Anthems glorious, joy victorious,
Ringing to our Redeemer rise.
He, interceding,
Upward is leading,
Leading us home to His Paradise.
Anthems glorious, joy victorious,
Ringing to our Redeemer rise.
Christ died on Good Friday, and He rose on Easter Sunday. But what happened in between?
The Apostles Creed answers that question: “He descended into hell” (Latin inferos, Greek katotata, both meaning lower or inferior places). The medieval church celebrated Holy Saturday, White Saturday, or Black Saturday, as the “Harrowing of Hell,” when Christ “descended first into the lower parts of the earth” (Ephesians 4:9) and “preached unto the spirits in prison” (I Peter 3:18-20; cf II Peter 2:4-5, Jude 5), triumphally announcing the condemnation of the wicked and leading the Old Testament believers (whose sins are now covered by the atoning blood of Christ) out of the bosom of Abraham and upward to heaven.
Angels ’biding bring the tiding,
Bring the tidings at break of day.
Sunbeams awaken;
Tomb is forsaken;
Heralds of heaven the news relay
Angels ‘biding bring the tiding,
Bring the tiding at break of day.
On Easter morning, the followers of Jesus visited the tomb and found it empty. As they stood perplexed, two angels appeared to them in shining garments, saying, “Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen!” (Luke 24:5). Their triumphal announcement was confirmed by the Lord Himself, who appeared to the faithful on numerous occasions for the next 40 days before He ascended to heaven.
But what is the significance of His crucifixion, and what is the significance of His resurrection? We recognize the importance of both, but which is most central to our salvation – Good Friday, or Easter Sunday?
The importance of Good Friday is relatively clear. On that day, “Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God” (I Peter 3:18). Had He not done so, we would still be dead in trespasses and sins. As He died, He declared, “It is finished!” (John 19:30), meaning the sacrifice was complete and our sins were paid once for all.
But if our salvation was completed on the cross, does that make the Resurrection a mere afterthought? Hardly. Like two sides of a coin, the crucifixion and the resurrection cannot be neatly separated. Each plays a central role in our salvation, but we might distinguish their roles like this: By His crucifixion, Christ conquered sin. By His resurrection, Christ conquered death. As Paul assures us, “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled we shall be saved by his life” (Romans 5:10). The resurrected life of Christ also plays a continuing role in our complete salvation and sanctification.
“Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).
Sin confounded, grace abounded,
Grace abounded and set us free.
Tomb-dreads are ended; Jesus ascended,
Jesus ascended; the shadows flee.
Sin confounded, grace abounded,
Grace abounded and set us free.
So, am I saying that if Christ had died on the cross but had not been resurrected, we would be lying in our graves with our sins forgiven but with no place to go? No. His death and resurrection are like two sides of the same coin. But the emphasis is there:
“Sin confounded” – Sin has been paid for once for all by Christ’s death on the cross.
“Grace abounded” – Eternal life in heaven has been opened for us by Christ’s resurrection.
“Tomb dreads are ended.” We need not fear death, because we know that, as Christ rose, we too will rise from the dead and, as believers, live eternally with Him.
And so, a blessed Easter morrow to y’all!
And you can listen to this glorious hymn sung in Norwegian or English!
Colonel Eidsmoe serves as Professor of Constitutional Law for the Oak Brook College of Law & Government Policy (obcl.edu), as Senior Counsel for the Foundation for Moral Law (morallaw.org), and as Pastor of Woodland Presbyterian Church (woodlandpca.org). He may be contacted for speaking engagements at [email protected].
Mary Huffman is the Editor of The Pilgrim Psalter, Secretary of the Plymouth Rock Foundation (plymrock.org), and Organist for Woodland Presbyterian Church. She may be contacted at [email protected].
