Easter has come and gone, and with it the Easter Bunny and egg hunts with family get-togethers and traditions from before we were born. Maybe you’re bored by it all, or maybe your perspective is that two thousand years ago Christ paid for our sins, and therefore, we don’t have to worry about them.

Great! But if that is your take on Easter, you may have missed the most important point completely. Interestingly, most people would probably say that Christmas is the most important Christian holiday, but theologians would beg to differ.

The truths behind Easter are of far greater significance.

The event we know as Easter has many elements, some significant and others not so much. I suppose that one could dissect it in a variety of ways, but for a moment I would like to examine it simply by separating it into two basic parts:

God confronting mankind’s sin and Christ doing something about mankind’s sin.

If you are a typical American, you might not even realize that sin has any relationship to the holiday, at least not anymore. Discussing sin is now generally taboo. Anyone tuning in to the cultural chatter surrounding the date would be led to believe that it has something to do with rabbits, eggs, or ham dinner, and possibly something to do with Jesus dying and rising, but sin? Really?

Truth be told that which brought about the need for Easter’s events is mankind’s sin. If we were not sinners there would be no reason for Christ to come or for Him to die and rise again.

Therefore, ignoring the issue of our sin is a serious mistake.

On one hand ignoring sin is understandable. It is quite humiliating to be a sinner and to be known as a sinner, so we prefer to bury the truth. At the same time, we love our sin, not every sin of course, but we have our favorites! Be honest. We all know that we are sinners!

Scriptures even note that “there is pleasure in sin for a season.” And we do solace ourselves by pointing out the sins we avoid as if that fixes everything.

The problem is that acknowledging our sinfulness immediately sets us in conflict with God, so we try to gloss it over, deluding ourselves into thinking we can avoid accountability in the end.

When we are on occasion forced to be honest with ourselves, in the stillness of our thoughts, we see that our sin is really ugly. And that ugliness is all the more painful when we understand that sin is not merely something we do, but rather something we are!

However, when we witness the worst sins of others, and consider that we don’t commit “those” sins, we flatter ourselves that we are “better” than others and foolishly assume that God grades on the curve.

However, God does not grade on the curve. Every sin, big or small, is the act of a rebel against the Ruler of the universe, the Creator God, and brings with it appropriate judgment.

Our sin, far from being irrelevant, is serious business, regardless of our perception or understanding. It is said that the first step in solving a problem is to identify it. At the moment, American culture denies the existence of sin and thus has no solution for the evils which are destroying so many lives and igniting conflict on every hand.

America will never be peaceful or united so long as the real source of the problem is denied. Ignoring our sinful condition is the worst thing we could ever do, especially in light of the fact that God has provided a means of defeating it and for escaping the judgment due because of it!

This is so important: Why would we ever believe for even a moment that the Creator, due to our sin, would come to endure the anger, rejection, and abuse of sinful people, go to the cross experiencing the greatest physical and spiritual suffering any being could ever face, with the purpose of eliminating both sin and its consequences, only to then be indifferent to us going blithely on in our sin?

Are we really that delusional?

In simple terms, Christ did indeed die for sinners, taking our place, suffering the wrath of His Father that was due us. But He cannot apply that forgiveness and pardon to those who in callous indifference continue in their rebellion. Such would make a mockery of justice, an impossibility for the Just One!

Let us not forget that when Christ arrived on the scene in Israel two thousand years ago His first message was a call to repent!

It was no mistake or exaggeration. Repentance in one’s heart is key to God’s grace. If you have not yet turned from your sin, you have no access to God’s forgiveness.

And so it is that the message which everyone ought to hear at Easter is hidden in plain view.

Year after year we hear a diversity of messages at Easter time: There will be easter egg hunts here and there, children should watch for the Easter Bunny, and in the mix, maybe something about Christ’s death and resurrection. Never-the-less, if you take the time to examine Easter you will discover that the message is there: The cross, the burial, and the open tomb communicate the Truth: Our sin problem is real and inescapable by our own means, but redemption and salvation are available for all who repent and trust in Christ.

This year don’t let the season pass without getting its most important message!