For those of us who have grown up in the church, the stories of the Bible are all too familiar -- so familiar that it's easy to forget how real they are. The Easter story in particular seems to have lost much of its charm in the yearly retelling. We all know how it ends, so we're not too horrified when we hear of the crucifixion, not too sympathetic for the grieving disciples, and not too surprised when the news of resurrection comes. Yes, we know the vital doctrinal significance of the atonement and Christ's victory over death, but it's too easy to stop with a nice sermon and a clean, smooth wooden structure bedecked with flowers.
Should the horror of the cross be less shudder-inducing to us because such a heinous death is beyond our imagining? Should the devastating emptiness for the Lord's followers be less heart-rending to us because we have inside information about what's really going on? Should the ecstasy of the words "He is risen!" be less hope-overwhelming to us simply because we've heard them before? This is no mere account with theological significance, it is a living story as real and human as our own. The question for us may not be, Where is your faith? but perhaps we ought to ask ourselves, Where is your wonder?
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