“The Lord is risen indeed…” Luke 24:34 

Easter Sunday is the culmination of Holy Week. We would do well to take time to reflect on who we are and where we stand in our faith. In recent years, our patience and devotion have been tested—but also strengthened. Now is a fitting moment to look back on the path we’ve walked and prepare for what lies ahead, both as followers of Christ and as citizens entrusted with the responsibilities of self-government.

We must also remain steadfast in prayer for our state and our nation. The moral and spiritual foundations of our culture are under constant assault. A culture of death increasingly replaces what was once a beacon of hope, and the institution of marriage faces relentless redefinition.

Yet, we have great hope.

As A.W. Tozer reminds us:

One thing the resurrection teaches us is that we must not trust appearances. The leafless tree says by its appearance that there will be no second spring. The body in Joseph’s new tomb appears to signify the end of everything for Christ and His disciples. The limp form of a newly dead believer suggests everlasting defeat…

Yet how wrong are all these appearances. The tree will bloom again. Christ arose the third day according to the Scriptures, and the Christian will rise at the shout of the Lord and the voice of the archangel. Faith can afford to accept the appearance of defeat, knowing the true believer cannot be defeated finally.

And consider this timeless declaration by Rev. Billy Grahm:

It was the resurrection of Christ that caused the disciples to go out as burning young revolutionaries to change the world of their day. They preached that Christ was alive. This should be our message, not only at Easter but every day of the year…

The world today offers many saviors, but none of them saves to the uttermost. The world today offers many panaceas, but they cannot reach to the depths of our depravity. The world today offers many shortcuts to salvation, but to be truly saved we must be reconciled to God.

Elisabeth Elliot, the widow of Jim Elliot, the missionary who, along with four other men, was killed in Ecuador in 1956 wrote about the important of Easter in her book Keep a Quiet Heart.

Easter, the most joyful of all Christian feast days, follows that most sorrowful of days we remember. The joy of Easter proceeds from the Cross…

Without Christ pouring out His soul to death there would have been no resurrection. We cannot know Christ and the power of His resurrection without also entering into the fellowship of His suffering.

Through His life, obedience, and sacrifice, Jesus revealed the Father’s great love for us. In response, we are called to love Him, obey His Word, and serve our neighbors as we stand boldly for truth, with both conviction and compassion.

This is our calling.

To our faithful supporters and friends, we wish you a blessed Easter. Thank you for standing with us in this important work.

It is the love and hope of God within us that compels everything we do at Illinois Family Institute.

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
~1 Peter 1:3