Parkes clergy share their Easter messages for 2023

After his resurrection Jesus greeted his disciples with the words, "Peace be with you" and also told them, "Do not to be afraid". These reassuring words are also addressed to us and a guarantee that our hope is not in vain. The resurrection is at the heart of our faith because Christ has overcome the finality of death and replaced it with the assurance of eternal life for those who believe in him.

Over the years in First World Nations there has been a rapid decline in those who believe in God or churches. The reasons are varied, some for example are due to the actions of church people and authorities, a lack of hospitality or welcome, secular values in the society and a busy lifestyle. Easter is a great opportunity to reach out to fallen away Christians as well as other people who may be interested in Christianity and/or God.

Irrespective of which faith community we belong let us work together to make the message of Christ known and loved so that Easter is truly a celebration of Christ's love and acceptance for all people. The best place to start is with prayer, especially community prayer, followed by personal invitation. Another important way to celebrate this event is to attend your faith community during the Easter season and invite others to join with you.

Wishing you a very happy, holy and joyful Easter.

Fr Barry Dwyer, Parish Priest Holy Family Church

Part of the Lenten journey towards the cross invites us to recognize ways for each one of us to bring light into the darkness.

On Easter morning, as we stand with Mary at the empty tomb, we see that death did not have the final word- Light has overcome the darkness; new life has been offered to all people. And that means us.

Early on Sunday Morning- while it was still dark- Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been rolled away. Mary had been with Jesus all the way. She had seen lives made new, bodies healed, and eyes opened.

The text describes the opening moments as "still dark". And perhaps the writer is trying to do more than just tell us the time of day -these words are quite powerful in their own right.

While it was still dark- while Jesus was still dead; while the disciples were still hiding; while my fears are still chasing me; while my mistakes are still messing with my life.

While it was still dark- you can put your own words there.

Darkness is present and real in our lives.

But- while it was still dark- things were happening.

Each of the gospel accounts of the Resurrection story is different. Some accounts it is a group of women who first go to the tomb - some accounts the stone is moved while they are looking. In John's version, it is just Mary- one woman alone- who heads to the tomb to follow up on burial rites after the harrowing events of the previous days. Mary's initial reaction was to run and tell the disciples what she'd found - and they in turn ran to the tomb in disbelief and saw the linen wrappings and the empty tomb for themselves and whether in belief or disbelief, they left and went back home.

But Mary stayed. She stayed with the darkness, she stayed with the uncertainty, the fear, the grief, and she was rewarded.

And you know "while it was still dark"- God was already moving-the events of that first Easter morning were already in play-already underway.

Mary experienced the resurrection of Jesus in a very personal way.

Mary sees "the gardener" - but the Risen Lord Jesus looks at her and says one word, "Mary". Immediately her eyes are opened, and she realises to whom she is speaking. Jesus.

While it was still dark- Jesus showed himself to Mary.

In the midst of Mary's pain and anguish- Jesus stepped in and became the light.

Sometimes we need help to overcome our darkness.

Allowing ourselves to remain in the darkness- to remain in the heavy places- is not what God intended for our lives. Jesus came that there would be light in the darkness- he came to bring light and life into our darkness.

The empty cross is not a symbol of death- it's a symbol of life!

And "while it may be still dark:" in our own lives today- be assured God is working - God has the plan- God knows the bigger picture.

His Resurrection is what changed everything- Jesus is the Living Hope in our lives. And this hope comes through the love of God. His love is perfect love, a totally giving and selfless love. In 1 John 3:16 we read "this is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.".

As we remember the celebration of that first Easter morning, The day that changed the world -I wonder, what are you stumbling over, or struggling with "while it is still dark"? What parts of your journey are you waiting for the light to scatter the darkness? May you find your way to the light of Jesus as He offers His love to you.

You are welcome to join us for worship: Good Friday 9am and Easter Sunday 9am.

Alison Westcott, Parkes Uniting Church

On Good Friday we see the death of Jesus who in both action and word, claimed to be the son of God. And this son of God, not only tasted death, but he died an excruciating death, reserved for criminals on a shameful cross. It is something that ordinarily just wouldn't make sense. And yet Jesus death on this cross, was exceptionally important. You see, without the shedding of Jesus blood in payment for our sins, the wrath of a Holy, Righteous and Just God could not be satisfied.

God could not just turn a blind eye to the sin of humanity. For Him to do so would go against His very nature. There were consequences to this sin. Consequences for humanities rebellion against God. And that consequence was death. Romans 6:23 says "for the wages of sin is death". Without the actions of the son, there would be no forgiveness of sin and justification before the Father.

We see in the Old Testament that sin needed to be paid for, through the shedding of blood. A lamb without blemish was to be sacrificed for the sins of the nation. Sin racked up a debt to God that could only be paid for, through the shedding of this blood. But it was not the perfect scenario, as it had to be done time and time and time again........Until Jesus.......the perfect lamb of God. Jesus died, once for all, so that we could have life. But here's the thing. For us to have eternal life, Jesus needed to rise from the dead.

If Jesus died and stayed dead, then either Jesus was not who he claimed to be, the son of God. Or Jesus was the son of God but didn't have the power and authority to actually rise from the dead. Either of these scenarios would not be good for us. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then we have no hope for eternal life.

But we know, without a shadow of a doubt, that Jesus, on that third day, did rise from the dead. Victorious over sin and death. And this proves to us that Jesus was indeed who he claimed to be, and could do what he claimed he could do. Bring restored relationship with our Father in heaven, and offer salvation to the lost. So when Jesus promised his followers that we would also be resurrected, and would then spend eternity with him, in the presence of God the Father, it is something that we can trust and know to be true.

If you don't know Jesus, let me encourage you to seek him out. Find out more about this amazing person who died in your place, so that you could have eternal life. What will you do with Jesus?

God Bless

Pastor Matt Kennedy, Parkes Baptist Church

You know the expression, 'Two's company, but three's a crowd.' Now while we can have more than a friend or two, many of us have no doubt experienced the spare wheel kind of feeling. Perhaps at a party, where the depth of conversation and connection between the two, isn't quite matched by the third. You are not necessarily excluded, but you're not exactly included either. Important perhaps, but not necessary, not truly valued, not truly belonging. It's not like anybody says anything, but it's the body language, the unspoken cues that fill us in on the true reality.

But God doesn't communicate like that. For God never sent us an email, or sms; He sent the exact likeness of Himself so that we could get Him and get how important we are to Him. Jesus, the Son of God, voluntarily left paradise, to live amongst the suffering and the pain, and die the most agonising death - crucifixion, so that we might understand that God loves us.

This Easter, amidst chocolate and hot cross buns may we take time to reflect on the essence of the cross of Jesus Christ. For it is the cross of Jesus where we see and hear God declare that we are necessary, we are valued, and we have a place where we belong.

Lorenzo Berry, Pastor Parkes Seventh-day Adventist Churches

What comes to mind when you think of Easter? Obviously it is a religious tradition that's been around for a long time, but is that all? Easter is more than a religious event. Easter is the answer to all our hardest, most difficult, and deepest questions in life.

Our Easter traditions remind us of what happened - Jesus, accused of blasphemy by the Jewish leaders, was handed over to the Romans, and although he was found to have committed no crime, he was crucified in place of a criminal who was set free in a last minute trade. He died on the cross, a cruel execution, and rose to life three days later. That's what our traditions remind us of: the special church services, the crosses, the palm branches, the easter eggs all remind us of different parts of those events.

But do our Easter traditions help explain why these events took place? And when we have times in life that cause us to ponder why we are here at all, or how we can know that we have lived the best possible life, or why is there so much suffering and pain - it is Easter that helps to give us those answers. Because Easter is about a Person and a Relationship.

When Jesus was executed on a Roman cross, this looked like the utter failure of his ministry and mission, but was in fact part of God's plan, because Jesus was the Son of God and his death was not an accident. His death was all part of God's plan - in fact it was the climax of that plan - the righteous in place of the unrighteous, the faithful servant in place of the rebellious wrong-doer - to make a way for all people to come back to friendship and relationship with God, our creator.

Our lives are not an accident, we are not alone in the universe. We were made, individually, by a loving God, each of us unique, and though we reject God, he invites us to come back through Jesus. Even though Jesus was innocent and blameless, he willingly suffered to make the way to new life possible for us. And though he died, God raised him to life again in demonstration of his power, showing that new life is now freely available to all.

The point of life is know God and to enjoy relationship with him - just as the first humans did before they rebelled. And, at Easter, as we remember the cross that Jesus willingly went to for us, we know that he has compassion for all our suffering and pain and has done what needed to be done bring an end to all suffering and pain.

So this Easter, let's not just remember what happened that first Easter, but why, remembering that the person of Jesus is the only way back to a relationship with God. Happy Easter and I hope you are able to look forward to a break this coming long weekend!

Rev'd Ben Mackay, Anglican Parish of Parkes and Peak Hill

There's a great kids song called 'The Bible Alphabet' that really sums up why we celebrate Easter. The lyrics are:

A is for Alphabet and B is for the Bible, C is for Christ who D died for me. E is for every sin and F is for forgiveness G is the gospel, God's great news.

H is for heaven where I, I am going, J is for Jesus, He's the K - King of Kings, L is for Lord (Lord!) and M is for Messiah. There's N O - no other who can set us free.

P is for praise (Praise!), so don't Q be quiet, R is rejoicing and S is for song. T is for thank you, it's what U can say, 'cause V is the Victory and it's W won.

X is the cross (the cross!), It's why (Y) Jesus came Z is for Zion where Jesus we'll see. This is the Alphabet according to the Bible. Let's sing about Jesus with our A B C!

Easter is all about praising God for his Son, Jesus. It's about recognizing that the cross is why he came, so that every sin could be forgiven. It's God's great news and it's worth looking into because there's N O - no other who can set us free!

If Jesus is already your Lord then don't Q be quiet this Easter, spread the good news!!

Happy Easter from Parkes Presbyterian church, we'll be celebrating at 10am on Easter Sunday if you want to join us.

Rev. Craig Bland