Not quite the Easter Bunny

My flesh trembles for fear of you,

and I am afraid of your judgments.

Psalm 119:120

That's sure not the palatable 21st century God we've crafted for ourselves, is it?  No, we'd prefer one who will bring healing when we are sick, comfort when we are sad, provision when we are in need.  We wouldn't mind too much if a wee bit of judgment got spread about upon those hostile to our cause or our way of life.

But that's not the God who is.  That's the god of our mind, the god of our invention.  The preceding verses thunder,

You spurn all who go astray from your statutes...

All the wicked of the earth you discard like dross...

Psalm 119:118a, 119a

The historical resurrection of Jesus Christ, the verifiable event we celebrate this Sunday, gets painted with Hallmark pastels and fuzzy edges.  We morph the risen and still-scarred Messiah into the Easter Bunny, toting chocolates and trinkets to all the good little boys and girls (in which of course we are included).

But the resurrection should make us tremble.  No longer can we say we don't get it.  Our destiny, the destiny of every life ever conceived, now hinges upon that singular event.  He's the fork in the road of eternity.  All who come to him and will not bow will be spurned and discarded.  "The word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing" (1 Corinthians 1:18a)  This should make the believer tremble, too, because we all know those who have rejected that word.

No, we don't like to talk about judgment, but it is the message of our humanity.  We have each rebelled against an absolutely righteous God.  All of us. 

Yet here is why the cross should give us great joy and hope.  God himself took the just and fierce punishment for humanity upon himself.  The pure and right wrath of God was poured out upon the willing and pure sacrifice, God the Son, Jesus Christ.  "To those of us who are being saved, it is the power of God" (1 Corinthians 1:18b), and "to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become the children of God" (John 1:12).

Easter is a phenomenal season for those who know the punishment for their rebellion has been dealt with, for those who have submitted their lives to the Lord of lords.  At the same time, it's a terrible time because it provides no middle ground, no maybe.

That's why the same psalmist who trembled before a holy God could write a half-dozen verses earlier

You are my hiding place and my shield;

I hope in your word

To some he is the aroma of life.  To others he is the stench of death.  There is no other alternative. 

Consider Jesus. 

It is the Easter season, after all.