EASTER CHANGES EVERYTHING
I took this picture of The Garden Tomb in Jerusalem on my last trip there.
In the spring of 1942, at Auschwitz concentration camp, Father Maximilian Kolbe stepped forward from a line of prisoners. Ten men had been randomly selected to die of starvation as punishment for another's escape. When Franciszek Gajowniczek cried out in anguish, “My wife! My children! I’ll never see them again!”
That’s when something unexpected happened. A thin man with wire-rim glasses stepped forward from the crowd of prisoners - Father Maximilian Kolbe, known simply as prisoner number 16670. “I am a Catholic priest,” Kolbe said to the Nazi officer. “I want to take this man’s place.”
The officer agreed to the switch. Gajowniczek went back to the group while Father Kolbe joined those marked for death.
In the starvation bunker, fellow prisoners heard not screams of agony but prayers and hymns. Father Kolbe was leading worship and helping the dying men to find comfort in their final hours. After two weeks without food or water, when all others had died, Kolbe was somehow still alive. The Nazis, wanting his cell for other prisoners, finally killed him with an injection of carbolic acid on August 14, 1941.
Franciszek Gajowniczek, the man Kolbe saved, survived the war and lived to be 93. He spent his life telling everyone about the priest who died so he could live.
The Power of Easter
When Jesus went to the cross, He stepped forward and took our place. But unlike any other sacrifice, His story didn’t end at death. The grave couldn’t hold Him.
This is the heart of Christianity: “Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, was buried, and was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).
Yet many people celebrate Easter without experiencing its transformative power. They acknowledge the empty tomb as a historical fact but miss its invitation to a completely changed life.
How Easter Changes Our Identity
The resurrection fundamentally rewrites who we are. Without it, we remain defined by our failures, limited by our weaknesses, and imprisoned by our past. But Easter declares that in Christ, we are made entirely new.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
This isn’t poetic language—it’s spiritual reality. The resurrection transfers us from death to life, from condemned to justified, from rejected to beloved.
Think about the disciples after Jesus’ death—hiding behind locked doors, consumed by fear and shame. But after encountering the risen Christ, these same men became fearless proclaimers of the gospel, willing to face persecution and death.
What changed? Their identity. They no longer saw themselves as failed followers but as resurrection people—ambassadors of the living Christ, indwelled by the power that conquered the grave.
In Christ, you are not defined by your worst mistakes or deepest wounds. You are made completely new, with resurrection power flowing through your veins.
How Easter Changes Our Hope
In Rwanda, during the 1994 genocide, a school headmaster nicknamed “Benyoni” was captured along with eleven teachers by soldiers ordered to execute them. When one terrified teacher begged to be killed first, Benyoni replied, “Oh no, I am the leader. They will kill me first. And you will see what a glorious thing it is to go home to be with God.”
He asked permission to pray—not for his own deliverance, but for the very soldiers about to kill him. His final request was to sing. As the soldiers watched, Benyoni and his fellow teachers sang, “Out of my bondage, sorrow, and night, Jesus, I come... Into the joy and light of thy home, Jesus, I come to thee.”
What kind of hope enables someone to face execution with such peace? Only resurrection hope.
Peter calls it a “living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).
This isn’t wishful thinking—it’s rock-solid confidence that death has been defeated.
This hope transforms how we live today. It means no suffering is meaningless, no injustice will go unaddressed, and whatever we face isn't the end of our story.
As Paul wrote, “I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Romans 8:18).
Easter hope doesn't minimize our pain; it puts it in eternal perspective.
How Easter Changes Our Purpose
When the Rwandan soldiers returned to base, their lieutenant was haunted by what he'd witnessed. He sought out a Quaker teacher and asked, “I must know what would enable men to die like that.” After hearing about Jesus, the lieutenant became a follower of Christ himself and began sharing Jesus before he, too, was executed.
This is the transformative power of Easter—it gives us a purpose greater than personal success or happiness. It gives us the privilege of participating in God’s redemptive work.
Jesus’ final commission was, “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8).
This wasn’t a suggestion for the super-spiritual—it was a commission for everyone who claims the name of Christ.
Every conversation, every decision, every act of kindness has the potential to extend the impact of Easter into someone else’s life.
Making Easter Personal
Easter is more than a historical event—it’s an invitation to experience resurrection life ourselves.
Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, prays that we would understand God's “incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms” (Ephesians 1:19-20).
As a believer in Jesus, you have the power of the resurrection living in you. It’s a power that will give you a new identity, new hope, and a new purpose.
Easter changes everything.
TAKE ACTION
As you consider the story of Easter, ask yourself:
Where do I need resurrection power in my life today?
What stone needs to be rolled away?
What “grave clothes” need to be left behind?
As you do, make this your prayer: “God, I don’t want to merely celebrate Easter—I want to experience it. Help me to live as a resurrection person, with a new identity, new hope, and new purpose because of the empty tomb.”
*If this has been helpful, please send me a message and let me know at brad@bradjenkins.me. And please help me by sharing this post with others who could benefit from it. My writing aims to help people enjoy a vibrant relationship with Jesus, and it is an honor to be on this journey with you.
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