Resurrection! A Time to Celebrate

By Mrs. Linzey

 

Resurrection time is the greatest celebration a Christian can commemorate. Christmas is that beautiful time of recognizing our Savior’s birth. Yet the Christmas season is not complete without looking forward to the victory of our Lord and Savior over sin, death, and the grave, which is celebrated on Resurrection Day (Easter).

 

Several years ago we recognized that our culture has hardly celebrated Resurrection time in its true sense and we as a family desired to have that time set aside as one of greater importance than we had before. So we set out to change some things in our own family traditions, and added some things as well.

 

Decoration

Since Resurrection often falls either at the end of March or beginning of April nowadays, we take the month of March to intentionally enjoy wonderful music and a choral build-up to a Resurrection Cantata. We usually have a missions focus by placing different missionary cards on display as a reminder to pray for the laborers in the mission fields, and to remind ourselves of Jesus’ words before He ascended to go and help fulfill the Great Commission. We decorate our home with lights and floral garlands placed in strategic places. On our dining room table, we put centerpieces with a decorative world globe and other symbolic pieces like a small sheep figure, a cross saying “He Is Risen”, etc. (Salt and Pepper shakers, and candles can be very symbolic in this regards as well! Check out Matthew 5:13-14.)

 

Documentaries

During the week leading up to Resurrection Sunday, we watch “The Messiah – Prophecy Fulfilled” film done by Nick Mancuso, depicting a former Jewish Rabbi going back to Jerusalem after being converted to Christianity and seeing the reality of Christ truly being the final Sacrifice that the traditional Passover lamb had pointed to all throughout Israel’s history. Instead of preparing a Passover meal ourselves, this film depicts the meal and its symbolic representations so well that we have found it to be a wonderful tool to go through and explain the tradition of the Passover feast pointing to Christ’s crucifixion.

 

We also enjoy watching an oratorio written by my dad, called “ICHTHUS” as a family. This Oratorio was performed twice, but the DVD that we have was when I was a senior in high school and able to participate in the presentation. This wonderful musical uses much Scripture to retell the story of Christ’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem, the events leading up to His death by crucifixion that week, then His resurrection from the dead, and His giving the Great Commission as He ascends into Heaven. It has greatly shaped my personal life these many years… and my children get a thrill out of watching me sing before I was their mother :).

 

Dining Together

On Resurrection Day after hearing/singing in the Cantata and hearing a sermon commemorating our Risen Lord, we enjoy a very special Resurrection Dinner at home. Several years ago, as my husband and I were praying about how to celebrate this special day, we realized that the first and only meal recorded that Jesus fixed for His disciples, after His resurrection, was fish over a fire on the shore of Tiberias (see John 21:1-14). We realized this was quite symbolic of His calling His disciples to be fishers of men. With that in mind, we now have a Resurrection Dinner tradition of fish and other symbolic foods. Here is an example of what we as a family have chosen to incorporate up to date and the symbolism supporting the selections:

Dish:                 Symbol:

Fish:                  Be fishers of men (Mark 1:17)

Bread:               Jesus, the Bread of Life (John 6:35)

Green Salad:   Everlasting Life (John 3:16)

Figs:                  Be bearers of good fruit (Matthew 21:19; John 15:2)

Grapes:             Jesus is the Vine (John 15:1&4)

Olives:              Jesus was crushed for us, but heals us with His anointing oil (Isaiah 53:5)

Grape Juice     The new wine in Heaven (Matthew 26:27-28)

Water               Jesus is the source of the water of Life (John 4:14)

Other foods    Abundant Life (John 10:10)

Desserts          O taste & see that the Lord is good! (Psalm 34:8)  

 

Discipleship

After a wonderful meal, we go to the living room and my husband gives a lesson on the emblem of the FISH as a signet of Christianity spelled out in the Greek word ICHTHUS. It is a powerful lesson! (A note to the reader: If you would like to know what that lesson is, post a comment below and we would love to go into more details!) Then we enjoy a wonderful sing time of hymns, testimonies, and songs of praise to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ!

I hope this gives you some ideas of what you can do to celebrate the Resurrection this year with you family, friends, or even in a special way between you and our Risen Lord. May each of you rejoice this year in the Hope that we have because of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ!