THE Christian’s Easter was for ages, is, and shall be till the Lord’s return, the feast of victory of Life over Death.
Death is the most terrible power that has become evident in the sphere of the world. Great is the power of Knowledge, greater still perhaps the power of Love; but Death in the mightiness that has become almighty far excels both. Nothing can stand before Death.
And whatever mighty princes and world rulers have risen among the nations and what innumerable hosts they have collected, and with what fear and dread they have made the nations bend the knee before them, in the end even they have had to pay their toll to that still mightier prince of the grave, and have died away in death.
Innumerable, not in ciphers to be expressed, is the number of the children of men, which since sin exiled man from paradise, have bent before that Death. Every thirty years he strikes down some 1400 million people. Almost half a hundred million every year. Of David it was sung, that Saul had slain his thousands, but Jesse’s son his ten thousand; but what are the trophies of a David compared with the millions upon millions victims of Death?
No, in all destroying power and in nothing sparing violence, the king of terrors far surpasses all power that under the Almighty has a place in His creation.
Nothing stops him. Carefulness and prudence, art and science, heroic courage and devoted love may succeed for a few moments to prevent dying, and to avert mortal danger. But though death lets himself be repelled for a while, presently he returns with double reinforcements, till helplessly the physician shakes his head, and another precious life is snatched away by Death.
What has not the human heart suffered in the ages long gone by and in our own times, under the tyranny and irresistible superiority of Death. What tender holy ties have not been broken. What pillars of the family and of the social structure have not been pulled down. What mourning and soul-harrowing sorrow has he not brought about. What rivers of tears has he not caused to flow. What happiness of life has he not ruined.
And always Death came back without mercy even without pity.
One victim had not been sacrificed, but the second was demanded and the third appointed to die.
Death casts his somber shadow across every human pathway of life; he passes no house by where sooner or later he does not come to disturb home happiness; he respects neither poor nor rich; he puts down the strong man and the weak child; and before the newly born have outgrown their infant shoes, Death has already plucked away a third part of all these scarcely budded flowers and made them wilt in his trenches.
Hence do not believe it, when the worldling and the philosopher tell you, that for them Death has lost his terror. That he did not. Death is and remains terrible. And whether you will or not, always a chill comes over you, when you think of the dread moment, when your soul and your body shall be torn apart and darkness shall cover you, and in the silent, deserted grave shall be your abode with all the dead that have gone before.
No, excitement is here of no avail, diversion is here no help, here no blindfolding of eyes can mislead you. Death is too terrible a reality, a superior power that shall some day also attack you; in such a way that you can offer no resistance, and that when once clutched by Death, you have no power, to free yourself from the gripping of his hand.
But, hark, in the midst of this dominion a call is sounded from One Who is mightier still. The call of Immanuel. The call of Jesus. The joyful sound of Him Whom God had sent, to deliver us from death and curse.
And what does the holy apostle say of this yet more mighty Immanuel?
This, that it was impossible, that He should be holden of death (Acts 2:24).
Death could attack Him, could cast Him down, could overpower Him, and make Him go down into the grave; but what Death could not do, after he had taken hold of Him, was to hold Him.
That was impossible, says the apostle of Jesus.
Impossible, because Death can hold him alone, whom he of his own free will has taken hold of and carried away. But such was not the case with Jesus.
Clearly and explicitly Jesus had declared: “No one taketh my life from me. I lay it down of myself. And because I lay it down of myself, therefore I take it back again of myself. This is the commandment, this the ordinance of life, which I have received of my Father” (John 10:1).
What was God’s ordinance of life?
This indeed, that he who did no sin, should not die, but that he who kneeled before sin, had to go into Death.
And Immanuel had never bent His knee to sin. He was immaculately pure in His conception, holy in His birth, and spotlessly pure all the days of His life, till He went away from the earth.