To the human heart those could be terrifying words. Not because it is a supernatural message that might evoke thoughts of the walking dead, zombies, or ghosts; but because it is a message that the person who you betrayed, abandoned, and put do death on the cross is risen! Your victim has been raised from the dead! And if he is anything like the people of this world, he is risen and looking to seek vengeance.
Jesus, our victim, is risen and he has left the tomb our judgment and justice put him in. Now he is certainly coming to judge us and to bring us to justice. If Easter judgment and justice is anything like our judgment and justice, who wouldn’t be terrified? Who will save us from the wrath that is certain to come?
Turns out the victim of our corrupt judgment and justice is the one who will save us.
The moment Jesus rises from the dead and returns to those who persecuted, abused, convicted, and crucified him, he confronts the world’s judgement with divine judgement. The resurrected Lord, still bearing the wounds of his community’s corrupt power, authority, and selfish judgment, returns without vengeance but with restorative hope, forgiveness, and mercy. The perfect victim returns to those who rejected and crucified him with saving love.
The Resurrection reveals the profound truth that the Lord who judges is also the victim who saves. The judgment and justice of Easter is not an end but a beginning. Easter justice opens the tombs of our way of death–our corrupted judgment and justice that sees ourselves as the victim and seeks the death or the removal of those we judge to be offensive or dangerous to our status quo, our power, our authority, our wealth, or our beliefs.
Easter justice proclaims that Christ is risen! But Easter justice does more than shout this message with joy: It brings to light and everlasting life that the sin of human judgment and corrupted justice has been overcome by God’s perfect judgment and justice. The true and perfect victim is raised from the dead, and in this victim is our hope, our salvation. He comes to us as he did before his crucifixion with the gift of reconciliation for our salvation.
Easter justice turns this world around not upside down. Our victim is the source of our salvation, not by making us victims but by reconciling us to God and each other with love that is stronger than death..
