Easter Sunday: Reuniting with God, Self, & Others

Vishü Rita Krocha
Kohima | March 30 

Emphasising how the story of Easter gives hope for a new life and encapsulates triumph over darkness, Rev Father James Sangtam, Administrator of Good Shepherd Seminary, Dimapur advocated on Easter eve that, “it is time for the Nagas to unite no matter what tribe we belong to or to whichever church we belong.”

“The word ‘Naga’ should unite us and we must stand together especially at a time when every Naga wants peace and we are looking forward to a solution”, he told The Morung Express. Underscoring that this is possible only when we live our Christian life, he illustrated his point by saying, “let others know that we are a changed people” by leading an exemplary life. “This Easter vigil night, we ask the Lord to help us change ourselves”, he expressed.

Easter, he said, “is a moment of joy and a time to reunite with God and not only unite with God but also unite ourselves with those we live because our God, in his goodness and love sent his only son Jesus, who completely forgot himself because for him, you and me are more important.” 

For Rev Azahto Kiba, Senior Pastor of the inter-denominational New Life Church, Kohima, “Easter is a message of love and a message of the ultimate sacrifice of a loving saviour for his creation - his children, who may or may not love Him in return.”

Reiterating that it is a message of how love overcame sin and death, bringing hope and victory, Rev Kiba encouraged everyone on the occasion to “overcome evil with goodness, sacrifice our life for the greater good of others and learn to love even those least deserving and to always hope.”

‘Resurrection is God’s divine plan that sin is defeated’

“Resurrection is not a mere talk. It is not a makeup story. Resurrection is not reincarnation. It has no equal; no comparison. It is more than the moment when your hero has a final and ultimate encounter with death.” These are Easter thoughts that Rev Dr Zelhou Keyho, General Secretary of Nagaland Baptist Church Council (NBCC) put across even while elucidating that “in almost every case, the hero is able to survive the encounter through their strength, courage, wit, nobility, heroism, or teamwork.”

However, Resurrection, he asserted, “is the crux of God’s divine plan that sin, that has brought death to mankind is totally defeated and crashed powerless so that mankind can live in hope forever.”

Stating that Jesus’ resurrection is not a hero act, but is a divine act for salvation, he expressed that, “if I don’t believe in the resurrection, I have no reason to be holding on to my Bible.” Resurrection, he went on to say, “is not the end story but it sums up everything from Genesis to Revelation” in the Bible. Further emphasizing that “Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday are not just events to be observed and celebrated but are meant to be personally experienced in one’s life”, he also expressed that, “my prayer is that on these two important events in Christian history, we will all experience the grace, mercy, hope and power of God in our lives.”

‘Easter is about how God removes obstacles in our lives’
During the Passion Week, Kakheli Inato Jimomi, Secretary at the Department of Women Ministry, Western Sümi Baptist Akukuhou Küqhakulu (WSBAK) reflected about that Easter morning when the women made their way to the tomb with just one question on their minds— “who will roll away the stone for us?”

Citing the Gospels in the Bible, she said, “the stone being rolled away tells us something about Easter which is very significant. It tells us that Easter is also about the ways in which God removes obstacles in our lives—those obstacles that try to keep us from God, and try to stop us from living the life that God has called us to live.”

In her Easter message, she urged every Christian to think about the large or massive stones in their lives that are keeping them from living the full abundant life with Christ. “Think about those challenges that you face every day, those battles that paralyze us with fear and trap us from living a new life in Christ and think about what Easter teaches us about how God plans to remove all those unwanted and heavy stones from us”, she illustrated while asserting that the Risen Lord has rolled away the stone for everyone.