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Easter Resurrection: How We Preach It and How It Motivates Disciple-Making Culture

We’re approaching the central defining event of our Christian faith—the resurrection of Jesus. While Jesus’s birth, life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension all hold deep significance, the entire gospel story finds its meaning in this one truth: Jesus is risen indeed. Without the resurrection, there is no Christianity.

In our churches and ministries, the way we worship is driven by celebrating the resurrection year-round. It’s why we gather on Sundays. It’s one of the ways we keep Jesus central in our hearts and minds—even outside church walls.

For pastors, preaching the Easter sermon is an opportunity to share the news that we can be freed from sin, restored to Jesus, and welcomed into the new creation He began. Still, Easter preaching isn’t without its common pitfalls—and it can also be one of the most powerful motivators for cultivating a disciple-making culture.

At Clarity House, we help church leaders build cultures where disciples make disciples. And Easter gives us fresh reason to hope and recommit to that work.

Preparing for Easter Sermons

It’s important to remember—and to remind others—that Easter is part of a week-long journey. Holy Week invites us to walk with Jesus through suffering and death, to wait in the silence of the tomb, and then to rise with Him in resurrection life.

One common pitfall in Easter preaching is rushing to the celebration without honoring the pain that precedes it. But Jesus didn’t. Again and again, He spoke to His disciples about His impending death. He wanted them to understand that following Him includes suffering—and it’s through that suffering that new life comes.

We often avoid pain and discomfort. Our culture trains us to numb it, escape it, or explain it away. But Easter reframes suffering—not as failure, but as formation. As Richard Foster puts it, “Sometimes God refines our faith by threatening to destroy our faith.” And Pastor John Kitchen reminds us, “Just because God is not speaking, it does not mean God is not working.”

So, as you prepare your Easter message, consider this checklist:

  • Don’t skip past the suffering, silence, and death to get to the resurrection.
  • Invite people to see God’s presence even in the tomb.
  • Proclaim resurrection not just as an event to celebrate—but as a new way to live.

Watch the recording where the Clarity House team discusses the significance of Christ’s resurrection and emphasizes the importance of carrying its message with us in our daily lives.

A Biblical Framework for Preaching the Resurrection

Paul’s letters and ministry give us a powerful model for Easter preaching. His encounter with the risen Christ on the road to Damascus changed everything. From that moment on, the resurrection wasn’t just an event—it became his lens for seeing the world and his foundation for disciple-making.

In Acts 17, Paul proclaims that the resurrection is proof God is setting the world right. In Philippians 3:10, he invites us to know Christ—even through suffering. In Romans 8, he lifts our eyes beyond personal salvation to see the restoration of all creation.

What’s striking is how Paul contextualizes the resurrection. He meets people where they are. To the broken, it’s healing. To the enslaved, it’s freedom. To the grieving, it’s hope. And that’s what makes the resurrection such a compelling foundation for a disciple-making culture.

How Easter Fuels a Disciple-Making Culture

The resurrection isn’t just something we believe—it’s something we live into. It’s the power of new creation breaking into our everyday lives. And it’s the core of any church culture that wants to multiply disciples.

At Clarity House, we talk about the shift from an assimilation funnel to a multiplication funnel. Disciple-making often feels slower. Sometimes it starts with pruning, not growth. It’s more like gardening than marketing. But Easter reminds us: what feels like silence is often a prelude to resurrection.

The same is true in our churches. Moving toward a disciple-making culture might first feel like a loss—less programming, fewer familiar metrics. But if we embrace the tomb, we will also experience the empty grave. This Easter, look around your sanctuary. See not just the crowd, but the crowd cloud—the extended influence of the people sitting in those pews. What might God do if those people became Dream Disciples? What would multiply if they were deployed with clarity?

Suggestions for Application and Discussion

  1. Reframe the Easter Message with Your Team
    • Ask your team: “What are the moments of suffering and silence our church is experiencing right now?” How might those be opportunities for resurrection?
    • Rework your service flow or communication to slow down and reflect on the full arc of Holy Week.
  2. Connect Resurrection to Your Dream Disciple
    • Revisit your Dream Disciple description: How does resurrection life show up in their everyday rhythms, relationships, and calling?
    • Update your pathway touchpoints to reflect resurrection themes like hope, healing, and new creation.
  3. Practice Contextual Disciple-Making Like Paul
    • As Paul did in Acts 17, challenge your team to share the resurrection in language that fits your context: What does resurrection mean for the people in your city?
    • Role-play gospel conversations with your staff where the resurrection is connected to real-life pain points.
  4. Use Easter to Inspire Multiplication Vision
    • Ask: What if everyone at your Easter service saw themselves as a seed carrier of resurrection life?
    • Brainstorm new ways to invite attendees into a disciple-making process post-Easter—not just into a program.
  5. Lead a Post-Easter Debrief Focused on Culture
    • After Easter Sunday, gather your team and discuss: “What did we see? Who showed up? What stirred hope?”
    • Then ask: “How can we steward that momentum toward culture—not just attendance?”

At Clarity House, we don’t just preach the resurrection—we help churches live into it. That’s why we created the Dream Disciple Accelerator: a two-session virtual workshop to help you and your team define the kind of disciples your city needs more of—and begin building a multiplying pathway to develop them.

This isn’t a plug-and-play program. It’s a process that gives your team the clarity, language, and vision to lead with hope and purpose.

Limited-time pricing: $799 for a team of 3–5 (normally $1999).

Upcoming Dates

  • May 13 & 27
  • June 11 & July 2
    (All sessions run 12:30–4:30pm ET)
LEARN MORE AND REGISTER →

Let this Easter be the beginning of something new.

Steve Finkill