On the morning after the Jewish Sabbath, a small group of women went to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus, wondering who would roll away the stone. When they arrived, the stone had already been rolled away and they were met by an angel who said:

“But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.  He is not here, for he has risen, as he said.” Matthew 28:5-6

When it comes to classic Easter music, a favorite of mine is the refrain from the Robert Lowery hymn Up From The Grave He Arose:

“Up from the grave he arose;
with a mighty triumph o’er his foes;
he arose a victor from the dark domain,
and he lives forever, with his saints to reign.
He arose! He arose! Hallelujah! Christ arose!”

If we consider more contemporary music, my favorite has to be The Easter Song, written my Keith Green and performed by The 2nd Chapter of Acts. I actually found a short clip of an early performance by the 2nd Chapter of Acts with Keith Green on guitar here.

Favorite Easter music aside, there’s the significance of the resurrection, summarized by the Apostle Paul  in one of his letters to the Corinthian church:

“And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.” 1 Corinthians 15:14

If there were no resurrection, not only would preaching Christ be senseless and faith in Christ useless, all the witnesses and preachers of the resurrection would be liars, no one would be redeemed from sin, all former believers would have perished, and Christians would be the most pitiable people on the earth! (See 1 Cor 15:14-20).

To borrow from The Easter Song:

Here the bells ringing
They’re singing that you can be born again
Here the bells ringing
They’re singing Christ is risen from the dead

The angel up on the tombstone
Said he has risen, just as he said
Quickly now, go tell his disciples
That Jesus Christ is no longer dead

Joy to the word, he has risen, hallelujah!