Bishop’s Easter Message Fright Not! For He has Risen! By Bishop Aaron Yap In the Gospel of Luke 24:10, the three women (Mary Magdalene, Joanna and Mary, the mother of James) were baffled when they discovered that the stone had been rolled away from the tomb where Jesus Christ was buried. They were even more frightened when the two angels spoke to them, “… but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!” (Luke 24:5b—6a) Every follower and disciple of Jesus Christ was caught by surprise as none of them believed what He had repeatedly said to them about Him being brought to life 3 days after His death. Everyone was just demoralized and felt hopeless as they witnessed how Jesus Christ was interrogated, tortured and nailed to death on the Cross like any other criminal despite of His innocence. This is the time the Word of God and Jesus Christ must be proclaimed even more to allow the Holy Spirit to work through our despair and broken hearts. “… Remember how He (Jesus Christ) told you, while He was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ Then, they remembered His words.” (Luke 24:6b-8) We need consistent, regular reminders of the encouraging words of God when we are in pain, grief, distrust, suffering, sorrow, hopelessness and despair. The risen Lord had said to the two disciples on the Road to Emmaus, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!” (Luke 24:25) No matter what our situation and challenges may be or where we are in life, be it in our work, business, family, relationships, partnerships, congregations, Church – Lutheran Church in Malaysia, country, and the whole world - remember who we believe and serve! Remember His Word! Remember He is the Risen Lord! We shall learn from these women, continue to share, to witness and to spread this Good News to the whole world that our Lord has risen from the dead; Jesus Christ had conquered death, the devil and our sins, even when others may not believe it, “Fright Not! For He has Risen!” (Luke 24:11) On behalf of LCM EXCO and my family, I wish all of you, “An Experiential Lenten and Encouraging Easter by Remembering God’s Word and the Risen Christ!”