We Remember Your Resurrection

By Bob Bunn

I’ve heard it said that confession is good for the soul. So, with that in mind, here it goes: I’m a history nerd!

Now, if you know me, that’s really not a confession at all. It’s pretty much a given. I’m the guy who likes visiting historical sites. I’m the guy who reads the presidential biographies. I’m the guy who wants to visit all the monuments, and I’m the guy who reads every word of every plaque along the way.

I’m the guy who has a wealth of useless historical knowledge and who has a goal of one day visiting every presidential burial site.

Yes, all of that drives my family crazy, but they’ve learned how to sound fairly gracious when they roll their eyes and ask, “Will you please come on?”

In college, I majored in journalism because I like telling stories, but I minored in history because I’m fascinated with what we can learn from the past. The monuments and markers are reminders of where we’ve been as a nation and a challenge to be even better moving forward.

Of course, reminders aren’t reserved for national parks and famous landmarks. The church has a long history of its own. Some of our rituals honor special people and special dates. Others have to do with solemn reflection as we recall God’s work in our lives. Like historical markers, they are reminders of where we’ve been as believers and a challenge to draw even closer to God moving forward.

One of the most significant remembrances in the Christian life is baptism. Admittedly, good people disagree on a lot related to baptism. We don’t all agree on how to do it or why to do it. We even debate on who should be baptized.

Yet, despite the differences many believers hold, Paul was clear about one aspect of baptism in his letter to the Romans. Baptism serves as a reminder of Christ’s resurrection—it symbolizes His death, burial, and resurrection in a way that helps His people remember what He did for us on the cross and how the fact that He was raised from the dead changed our lives today and for eternity (Romans 6:3–11). As Paul wrote to another church—the church at Corinth—without the resurrection “we should be pitied more than anyone” (1Corinthians 15:19).

Human beings tend to be forgetful creatures. Yet, baptism jogs our spiritual memory. It reminds us that we are called to live as resurrection people—not just on Easter but every moment of every day. Even more, it reminds us that our death will never be the end of the story because this world is not all there is.

We will live because He lives. And that’s something worth remembering.