I want to tell you one story.
But it’s a story in five
movements.
A story that begins at the
very beginning…
moves through the brokenness of the world…
is whispered through centuries of promise…
finds its fulfilment in a locked room…
and then lands right here.
With you and me.
Because if we really
understand Easter…
we realise this is not just
their story.
It’s ours.
So question we ponder as you
read -what difference does or should
Easter make to our lives
What does it mean to be a
Easter people?
Movement 1:
Creation.
Day 1 - The story begins in
Book of Genesis.
Where the love of the triune
God – the father, Son and Holy Spirit – has spilled over – overflowed – and the
world was created.
And it was so very good!
Light instead of darkness
Life instead of void
Creation Not just
working—but beautiful.
But not complete…
He forms humanity from the
dust…
and then breathes life into them.
From Adams side God creates
his companion Eve
Now creation complete
And in that creation, there
is shalom:
- peace with God
- peace with each other
- peace with the land
- peace within
Shalom. All is well.
And…
God walks with humanity in
the garden.
Just imagine that.
No fear.
No shame.
No hiding.
Nothing to prove.
Nothing to protect.
Everything is as it should
be.
One task – take the shalom
of the garden, live it, enjoy it... enlarge it.
Eventually to cover the
entire earth – so that all may know shalom.
Movement 2: The Fall.
But the story turns.
Humanity chooses
independence over trust.
And in that moment:
- peace fractures
- intimacy breaks
- shame enters
And we’re told something
small—but devastating:
They hid.
They hide from God.
They hide from each other.
And ever since then—that has
been the human condition.
We hide:
- behind success
- behind entertainment
- Behind consumerism
- behind control
- behind humour
- Behind materialism
- behind silence
We learn to present a
version of ourselves.
We build “locked rooms.”
And deep down we know:
This is not how life was meant to be.
Shalom broken… calling to enlarge shalom destroyed.
Movement 3: Promises.
But God does not abandon the
story.
In the third movement - He
speaks.
Through the prophets, He
makes promises.
Not vague hope—but clear
intention:
He is not finished.
This is not
the end of the story.
In Book of Ezekiel 37:
A valley of dry bones.
No life. No future.
And God says:
“I will make breath enter
you, and you will come to life.”
The breath of life of the
garden promised once again to God’s people.
In Book of Isaiah 65:
“I will create new heavens
and a new earth.”
No pain, no death, no war,
shalom reigns once again…
Not patched up.
All Made new.
echoes of creation.
And then this extraordinary
promise of how he would do this.
The Book of Isaiah 53:
“He was pierced for our transgressions
by his wounds we are healed.”
And that time – the Book of Zechariah 12:
“They will look on the one
they have pierced.”
So the story carries this
tension:
The world is broken
But God has promised to make it new
And for generations, people
wait.
And then Jesus comes...
And The real rock bottom –
when we saw love and nailed it to a cross and let him die...
Remarkably the story does
not even end there... But continues into our 4th movement.
Fulfilment...
Movement 4: The fulfilment
And as we arrive at John 20.
Let’s not rush this.
Because it’s the first day
of the week – not a marker – not a introduction to the next chapter – but echoes
of Genesis –
The first day – a new start
– new creation.
So we step into the room.
It’s evening.
The light is fading.
The atmosphere is heavy.
The disciples are
together—but not in celebration.
In fear.
The doors are locked.
Not just shut—locked.
Because they are afraid that
what happened to Jesus…
might happen to them.
Everything they hoped for
has collapsed.
And beneath the fear…
something deeper:
Shame.
Because they didn’t stand
with him.
Echo’s of the garden…
They ran.
They hid.
Hiding.
Then without warning—
Jesus is there.
No knock.
No door opening.
He simply stands among them.
Can you imagine that moment?
The shock.
The silence.
The disbelief.
And what are the first words
he speaks?
Not: “Where were you?”
Not: “Why did you run?”
But: “Peace be with you.”
Shalom. Wholeness. Restoration.
This is the peace of
Eden—spoken into a broken room.
And here’s the key:
Nothing around them has
changed.
The doors are still locked.
The threats are still real.
But everything has changed.
Because Jesus is there.
Reminding us that peace is
not the absence of trouble.
It is the presence of Jesus.
What was lost in the garden—
is being restored.
And the God that used to
walk the garden is now in the locked upstairs room.
Then he shows them his hands
and his side.
The wounds are still there.
The wounds that Isaiah
promised would bring shalom and life
The wounds that Zechariah
said they would look upon…
Visible. Real.
But there is something even
deeper happening.
Echoes of creation.
In Genesis, Eve is formed
from Adam’s side.
Life came from Adams side.
And here— Jesus’ side is
pierced.
And from it flowed blood and
water.
And now he stands, showing
that wound.
And there is life in those
wounds.
Just as Eve came from Adam’s
side…
now a new people—the church—born from Jesus’ side.
A new humanity.
Born not from dust this
time— but from sacrifice.
Echoes of creation
And here is the shock:
The wounds are still there.
Because the new creation is
not built by erasing the past.
It is built by redeeming it.
The very place of suffering…
has become the place of life.
As eve was born of Adams side
– given the task of enlarging shalom – what would the disciples task be – the
churches task - now born of Jesus wounds?
“As the Father has sent me,
I am sending you.”
Let that sit.
The same mission.
The same love.
Now given to them.
And who are they?
The ones who ran.
The ones who failed.
And Jesus says:
“You are
still part of this.”
Grace doesn’t just forgive.
It restores.
It commissions.
And as we all panic – and think how on earth
do we heal the sick, be good news to the poor – bring release the captives –
recovery of sight for the blind – enlarge the shalom that the prince of shalom
brings?
Echoes of creation –
promises of old…
he breathes on them.
“Receive the Holy Spirit.”
Genesis. Breath. Life.
Ezekiel. Breath. Promise of life
Upstairs room - Promise
fulfilled.
New creation begins.
Not somewhere else.
Right there.
In a locked room.
And then Thomas.
Honest. Doubting.
“I need to see.”
And a week later Jesus comes
again.
And this time, he speaks
directly to him:
“Put your hand here.”
“See my side.”
And Thomas says:
“My Lord and my God!”
Not just belief—
recognition.
The God of creation…
is standing in the room.
And he can be called ‘my’ – a
personal relationship.
This is new creation…
Everything:
- the garden
- the fall
- the promises
All of it—
comes together here. Right here… in a locked upstairs room.
Movement 5:
Here and now
But Also in our final
movement in the story - right here – right now.
Because this is not just
their moment.
This is our invitation.
And we learn... What Easter
means to us as a Easter people...
We learn...
Our story is not over
The disciples thought it was
finished.
They were wrong.
And some of us have quietly
decided:
“This is just how it is
now.”
But Easter says:
God is not finished with us
This is not the end.
This is Day One.
There is still so much we
can do together.
We learn that we don’t have to hide anymore
In Genesis, people hide.
In John 20, Jesus walks into
the hiding place.
Which means:
We don’t have to pretend.
We don’t have to perform.
We can come as you are.
Because he already sees and He
already knows…
And He still comes.
And He still loves...
And He still has plans.
We learn peace is available—right where we are
Some of us are waiting for
peace to come when life settles.
In some magical place in the
future when we finally get all our ducks in a row!
But what if peace comes
first?
Because Jesus is present.
In our anxiety.
In our uncertainty.
In our questions.
Not instead of them but in
the middle of them.
Remember the heartbeat of
the gospel – do not be afraid because I am with you.
We learn our wounds don’t disqualify you
We all carry things:
- regrets
- failures
- wounds
And we assume:
“I’m not good enough.”
But Jesus stands there—with
scars—and sends his disciples.
God works through real
people.
Even you and I.
And what is broken, bruised
and tarnished can be made beautiful and a sign of new life.
The challenge -
Let’s not hide our wounds but
declare them, reveal them and may they witness to the God who makes all things
new
And may that help all we
meet because of Easter now everything matters.
We learn in this new creation—
That its not just about one
day.
This is about all our days..
This is about right now and
about the entirety of life.
Which means:
There is no “ordinary” part
of our life anymore.
- our work matters
- Our family life matters
- our friendships matter
- our struggles matter
- our decisions matter
Because Jesus says:
“I am sending you.”
Not out of your life—but into
it
So now:
- how we speak matters
- how we forgive matters
- how we show kindness matters
- how we live under pressure matters
Because every part of our
life becomes a place where:
new creation is breaking in and
we are sent into the world as partners with God who is making all things new.
Who promises to be with us
my lord and my God
Not a distant God or a
theoretical one.
But the intimate God who
walks with us.
Every step. Every moment. Every
day.
And finally – we learn at Easter that the worst thing is not the last
thing
The one standing in that room
was dead.
And now he is alive.
Which means:
The worst thing is never the
last thing.
And as our Lord Jesus is
risen from the dead – so we, His followers, are promised eternal life in the new heavens
and the new earth with him
We learn that to die is to
gain.
So here is the story:
A world created in beauty.
A world broken by sin.
A promise that it would be restored.
And a risen Jesus standing in a locked room saying:
“Peace be
with you.”
And now—
that story reaches us.
And God says:
“I am not
starting somewhere else…
I am starting again—right here. With you”
Calling us
to be a Easter people meaning
Our story is not finished. We can stop hiding. We can once again know shalom. We can live lives with purpose. Be filled with His breath and we can know the
personal risen God who is with us today and everyday and for eternity…
Amen.
