We must be careful: with Holy Week there is the risk of sentimentalism swallowing up substance.
This week is what has been called Holy Week - the week leading up to the formal recognition and celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ on Good Friday and Easter. But there is a danger in this week, one that too many of us face. DeYoung knows this - it is the risk of sentimentalism.
Easter makes us feel really nice, doesn't it? We're wrapped in warm and fuzzies, singing all the cheeriest hymns, hearing that uplifting message, usually seeing a full sanctuary, and meeting babies in Easter bonnets. And we can't forget the joy of family breakfasts, brunches, and/or dinners, the Easter greeting cards, and all those trending pictures of bunnies and kittens in spring fields. Easter is such a happy time, isn't it?
It's true; we love Easter. It's a nice holiday, and our perceptions and beliefs about it have been shaped by our traditions. Unfortunately, traditions breed sentimentality.
"We must be careful," warns DeYoung. He's right. This is not the week of good feelings and Kinder Surprises; it is a week for a celebration of the solemn and the theological. Our theology of the Cross and the resurrection should pour out into this week, just another week of magnifying the gospel - an occurrence that shouldn't be unusual but can still be special. But make no mistake, Easter should be about the gospel, not feelings, no matter how fun and familiar those feelings are.
Easter is about substance, the theological framework of the person and work of Jesus Christ - the incarnation (God the Son becoming man), the crucifixion (God the Son suffering the wrath of the Father), and the resurrection (God the Son raising from the dead by the power of the Father). Easter is also about joy, but it is an informed, biblical, Christcentric, God-glorifying joy in the atoning sacrifice of Jesus. Not joy in tradition.
So celebrate Easter! Rejoice in the sacrifice and the glory of Christ on the cross and through the absent tomb. Gather with family and friends and enjoy those traditions as you magnify the gospel together, but remember the risk of sentimentalism. Combat it with the substance of truth.