UBC Fusion Worship - Easter Sunday, April 5th, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: The Forward-Looking Stance of Biblical Faith

The biblical narrative consistently calls us forward into a future filled with God's promise. It is not a faith rooted in nostalgia, looking back to what was, but one that is drawn toward what is to come. This perspective transforms our journey from a decline into an adventure, trusting that God is always ahead of us, beckoning us into greater fulfillment. This forward movement requires courage and a heart open to God’s leading. [38:07]

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and the sin which clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:1-2 ESV)

Reflection: As you consider your own spiritual journey, what is one "weight" or familiar comfort from the past that God might be inviting you to lay aside in order to move more freely toward the future He has promised?

Day 2: Life Gets Harder and Harder, and Better and Better

There is a profound paradox at the heart of the Christian life. As we follow Christ, the challenges we face do not diminish; they often intensify and demand greater faith and perseverance. Yet, simultaneously, our capacity for joy, depth of character, and experience of God’s faithfulness also grow. This dual reality—increasing difficulty alongside increasing fulfillment—is the pattern Jesus himself walked. [40:10]

For the sake of the joy that was set before him, [Jesus] endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:2 NRSV)

Reflection: Can you identify a recent challenge or difficulty in your life that, in hindsight, also became a place where you experienced God’s goodness or your own growth in a new way?

Day 3: The Resurrection as the Foundation of Hope

The promise of a better future would ultimately collapse if death were the final word. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the divine guarantee that life truly does get better and better, forever. It shatters the power of death and establishes an eternal context for our journey, ensuring that light awaits us on the other side of any darkness. Our hope is not wishful thinking but a confident expectation grounded in this historical event. [45:03]

But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. (1 Corinthians 15:20 ESV)

Reflection: How does the reality of the resurrection change the way you view a current hardship or your fears about the future?

Day 4: The Functional Necessity of Hope for the Human Spirit

Hope is not a luxury; it is as essential for our spiritual survival as air is for our bodies. It is the confident expectation of God’s promised future that gives us the strength to persevere through present trials. Without a “land of promise” out ahead, our strength for the journey quickly fades. The hope Easter provides is the very thing that creates and sustains life within us, enabling us to keep swimming. [47:38]

For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. (Romans 8:24-25 ESV)

Reflection: What is one specific, God-given promise you are choosing to hold onto this week as your source of hope and strength?

Day 5: Cultivating Trust and Flexibility on the Journey

Moving forward into God’s promised future requires two vital postures: trust and flexibility. We must trust that the God who calls us forward will also provide for us in the unknown. We must also be flexible, willing to release the forms of joy we have known in the past to receive the new gifts God has for us in the present and future. Clinging to the old can render us spiritually rigid, while openness to God’s creativity brings life. [53:54]

Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? (Isaiah 43:18-19a ESV)

Reflection: Where is God inviting you to exercise trust in His provision right now, and what might He be asking you to release with flexibility to receive something new from His hand? [01:02:06]

Sermon Summary

Hebrews 12:1–2 frames the Christian life as a race to be run with perseverance, eyes fixed on Jesus, who endured the cross for the joy set before him and now reigns at God’s right hand. Life, the biblical witness insists, holds a paradox: it becomes both better and harder as it goes on. The Bible presents a forward-pulling God who beckons people into promise, calling figures like Abraham, Moses, Deborah, and Esther to leave safety for a future that demands courage and brings deeper fulfillment. That forward thrust only reaches its full meaning in the resurrection; Easter transforms death from a terminus into a passage and grounds the claim that later stages of life can mature into greater goodness.

The reality of increasing difficulty tests hope. The human spirit needs hope as air and food; without it, endurance collapses. Empirical illustrations and historical testimony show that a credible future reshapes present resolve. The resurrection supplies that credible future. By rising, Christ established light beyond death and turned final aging into an inclination toward growth rather than decline.

Practically, two habits make the forward life viable: trust and flexibility. Trust releases efforts to manufacture ultimate security and invites reliance on God’s provision even in uncertainty. Flexibility refuses nostalgia as a default posture; it learns to receive new forms of blessing without demanding exact repeats of the past. Resistance to change calcifies into spiritual deadness, whereas openness to God’s unfolding creativity allows joy to emerge in new garb.

Hope, sustained by trust and practiced flexibility, fuels perseverance. Looking to Jesus as pioneer and perfecter of faith models a life that accepted mounting hardship because of a known, certain joy ahead. The call stands simple and urgent: cast aside encumbrances, run with endurance, lean into the promise revealed in Easter, and live as people moving toward a future that redeems struggle into deeper life.

Key Takeaways

1. Life grows better and harder This paradox holds that maturation brings both deeper fulfillment and increasing challenge. Embracing growth means expecting hardship without surrendering the conviction that later stages can yield greater good. This stance converts trials into refining work rather than final defeat. [33:19]
2. Easter secures the future hope The resurrection reframes death and anchors hope in a reality that outlasts temporal endings. With Easter, the pilgrimage gains eternal context so present sacrifices point toward enduring joy. Hope rooted in resurrection translates into practical courage for daily trials. [44:01]
3. Trust sustains forward movement Trust releases the compulsion to self-secure and opens space for God to provide in unknown terrain. Reliance on divine provision transforms fear-driven paralysis into obedient stepping. Persistent trust undergirds perseverance when trouble multiplies. [49:01]
4. Practice flexible fidelity to God Faith requires receptivity to new gifts instead of clinging to familiar forms. Flexibility prevents spiritual fossilization and invites God’s creative work in unexpected ways. Letting go of past comforts often makes room for greater, unforeseen blessings. [51:56]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[30:49] - Scripture: Hebrews 12:1–2
[31:45] - Opening prayer and petitions
[32:44] - Gordon Cosby anecdote
[33:19] - The paradox: better and harder
[37:10] - Biblical promise and forward movement
[40:45] - Resurrection completes the perspective
[46:28] - Hope’s necessity illustrated
[49:01] - Trust and Moses’ call
[51:56] - Flexibility, Lot’s wife, disciples
[55:57] - Exhortation: run with perseverance

Bible Study Guide

Bible reading: Hebrews 12:1-2 (ESV)
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Observation questions

According to the passage, what are the two things we are instructed to lay aside before we can run our race?
What does the text say was Jesus’s motivation for enduring the cross?
The sermon described life as a paradox that gets "better and better and harder and harder." [33:19] What biblical figures were mentioned as examples of people who lived this way?
How did the resurrection of Jesus complete the perspective that life gets better and better? [44:01]

Interpretation questions

Why is it significant that the "cloud of witnesses" surrounds us? How does this image help a person facing increasing difficulty?
The sermon mentioned that "hope is as necessary for the survival of the human spirit as air and food are for the body." [46:28] How does the resurrection of Jesus provide a "credible future" that fuels this kind of hope in our daily struggles?
The sermon described trust as "releasing the compulsion to self-secure." [49:01] Why is it so difficult for us to stop trying to create our own security and instead rely on God's provision?
What does it mean to practice "flexible fidelity" to God, and how is it different from simply clinging to the way things have always been? [51:56]

Application questions

What is one specific "weight" or "sin" that is currently clinging closely to you and slowing you down in your spiritual race? What would it look like to lay it aside this week?
The sermon suggested that nostalgia can be a "default posture" that keeps us from seeing God’s new work. [51:56] Is there an area of your life where you find yourself constantly looking back and saying, "I wish things were the way they used to be"? What might God be trying to give you in this new season if you were more flexible?
Where in your life right now are you being called to step forward into an "unknown," much like the biblical figures mentioned? [38:26] What fears are making it hard to trust that God will provide for you there?
The sermon shared that "hope creates life." [47:38] When a difficult circumstance arises this week, what is one practical way you can actively "look to Jesus" to renew your hope instead of giving in to despair?
How can the truth that life is meant to get "better and better" because of the resurrection change the way you view the process of aging, changing life circumstances, or even suffering?

Sermon Clips

35s

#RisenAndGrowing

“It is rather a long night's journey into day, an inclining plane into unending, becoming, and maturing, and joy. How do we know? Because of Easter. Christ Jesus has risen from the dead. And he who lived by the promise was not disappointed. His life did get harder and harder to be sure, but it also got better and better. Therefore, since we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely.”

42s

#ResurrectionMatters

“Here was life getting better and better and harder and harder at the same time. But the event of Easter was definitely needed, to round out this perspective. If it had not been, for the victory over death, we could not really say life gets better and better as it goes along. How could that be true in any meaningful sense if death is a catchall that makes the end that marks the end of every life? Only by the event of the of the of the resurrection, only by that is the pilgrimage of life set in an an eternal context. And only then does the promise of Israel really come true.”

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UBC Fusion Worship - Easter Sunday, April 5th, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: The Forward-Looking Stance of Biblical Faith

Day 2: Life Gets Harder and Harder, and Better and Better

Day 3: The Resurrection as the Foundation of Hope

Day 4: The Functional Necessity of Hope for the Human Spirit

Day 5: Cultivating Trust and Flexibility on the Journey

Sermon Summary

Key Takeaways

Youtube Chapters

Bible Study Guide

Sermon Clips

UBC Fusion Worship - Easter Sunday, April 5th, 2026

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