Easter greeting from President Robert Bugbee

Beloved friends in the Body of Christ!

St. Paul has an Easter word for you and me, recorded in Romans 14:8-9, “If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that He might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.”

I hope you will hurry to God’s House this Easter to hear the riveting news that Jesus, Who died a real death on His cross outside Jerusalem, also came alive in a real resurrection as He Himself had foretold. His promises are all true! His victory is for real!

I also hope that you will never let this Easter news flash be only a dusty record of something that happened long ago and far away. God means to bring the power and help of Easter near to you right now! The Risen One is alive and watching you. In other words, it does matter how you live and speak and think. He especially wants you to live your life in devotion and love toward other people, as the entire 14th chapter of Romans makes clear. He’s paying attention to how you are doing this.

But the Presence of the Risen Christ is not intended to be only a threat. Above all, it’s happy consolation, that He stands beside you in your struggles, that He listens to your prayers, that He sees your pain when others cannot, and makes you strong by His Word and Spirit to live as you never could live on your own. He is able to do all of this for you, because He’s not just a Lord Who did mighty things a long time ago for other people. The Risen One is strong and active in your personal life and in the church family to which you belong.

Please know that all our co-workers in Synod’s office in Winnipeg took time this week to pray God’s blessing on your celebration of Easter as it happens in your congregations and homes. In our thoughts and prayers we reach out across the miles to embrace you, to thank God for you, and to ask Him to preserve us all in the faithful confession of Jesus Christ, crucified and now raised from the dead.

Sincere Easter greetings to one and all,

Robert Bugbee, President

Lutheran Church–Canada

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