The Significance of the Resurrection
by Daniel Carandang
The past three blogs have discussed how Jesus became the Game Changer for us. We've been told that Adam and Eve's fall caused the ball to fall into the hands of the total enemy, namely, Satan. For years, we found ourselves struggling with our sins, failing God and offering sacrifices to make amends with Him. We were condemned from the moment we were born.
But God was able to take offense when He sent His Son to redeem us.
Jesus became the ultimate Game Changer when He rose again from the dead.
What's the big deal with Jesus returning to life?
17 And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your sins.
1 Corinthians 15:17
Jesus' resurrection is the core of Christianity. It's the biggest of big deals. The reason why we call ourselves Christians is because we believe with all our heart that He died for our sins and He rose again, signifying His victory against Satan.
If Jesus remained dead, then there's no point in believing in His salvation.
We've just been fooling ourselves.
But He isn't dead. You can't find His remains.
Cause He's alive.
Agnostics and Atheists have a number of excuses with regards Christ and His resurrection. Here are the top 3 among the large numbers:
1. Jesus was merely passed out
Unbelievers claim that Jesus really didn't die on the cross. He pretended to be unconscious. When He was taken down, He probably woke up inside the tomb and managed to escape.
This is seriously laughable.
For starters, the way Jesus was positioned in the cross made it impossible for Him to feign death. He had to raise Himself up and down should He want to breathe. If he decided to pretend He was unconscious, He would still die. Jesus died by asphyxiation or lack of oxygen.
It was impossible for him to pretend He was dead.
2. A look alike died in Jesus' place
This can't be possible.
Jesus had no one to ask for help when he was tried. His disciples scattered because they were fearful for their lives. Besides, it would've been difficult for Him because the religious leaders planned everything well: from His capture to His burial. No one could have fooled them.
3. His body was stolen
The tomb was SEALED. It was also guarded by two heavy-set soldiers. In the Bible, there's an account of the religious leaders, seeing the empty tomb, deciding to spread the lie that Jesus' body was stolen.
The resurrection of Jesus has tremendous implications on who He is, same goes for us today in the present and when we face the life after death.
1. JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD!
1 This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News. 2 God promised this Good News long ago through his prophets in the holy Scriptures. 3 The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line, 4 and he was shown to be[a] the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit.[b] He is Jesus Christ our Lord.
2. A look alike died in Jesus' place
This can't be possible.
Jesus had no one to ask for help when he was tried. His disciples scattered because they were fearful for their lives. Besides, it would've been difficult for Him because the religious leaders planned everything well: from His capture to His burial. No one could have fooled them.
3. His body was stolen
The tomb was SEALED. It was also guarded by two heavy-set soldiers. In the Bible, there's an account of the religious leaders, seeing the empty tomb, deciding to spread the lie that Jesus' body was stolen.
The resurrection of Jesus has tremendous implications on who He is, same goes for us today in the present and when we face the life after death.
1. JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD!
1 This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News. 2 God promised this Good News long ago through his prophets in the holy Scriptures. 3 The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line, 4 and he was shown to be[a] the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit.[b] He is Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 1:1-4
Paul was talking about his mission here on earth. He was called, set-apart to preach the truth about Jesus- that He is descended from David and is also the Son of God.
Jesus is 100% God, 100% Man. He's more than just a teacher or a prophet, He claimed to be more than just a man. He claimed that He is the Messiah, the Christ and the Savior of the world. Through His miracles and ultimately, His resurrection, prove who He is.
Because of His resurrection, we can be assured of who He says He truly is! He's the Son of God.
For some people, they require more proof before they budge. Remember that scene in the Avengers when Captain America tells the Head of the police officers to clear civilians? And the police officer asked: "Why should we listen to you?"
Before he could even answer, Captain America finished off his enemies in front of the officer, who eventually gave in.
Who is Jesus to you?
Many people aren't passionate for God because they don't who He is. You yourself have to decide the answer to that question. And whatever answer you have, it will cause an impact for eternity.
There are 4 major religions in this world, plus 700 more minor religions. All of them claim to be the ONE, the RIGHT ONE! How do we know which one's the legitimate faith?
Notice that all of their founders are dead. Their bodies can be found in graves.
Except one.
JESUS IS ALIVE.
He died and He rose again.
All the others are rotting in their graves but if you look for Jesus in His, it's empty. This assures us that He is who He really is!
Even His disciples experienced difficulty in believing that He is the Messiah before His resurrection. The miracles sort of helped but when Jesus was arrested, they fled and deserted Him. However, when He rose again and revealed Himself to them, they changed.
It's one thing to predict that you'll die; it's another to predict that you'll die then you'll rise again in three days.
His disciples might have had a difficult time believing that because people don't just simply rise from the dead. After his resurrection, the remaining disciples changed from fearful men to fearless newsbearers of the Gospel. They were willing to be martyred for their faith because they knew that Jesus was the real deal.
Many times, we live as if God's dead. We think His promises are fake and that He is weak. But we are wrong. We're not praying to a powerless God! He is the Living God! We're not praying to a dead God.
2. Our hope is real
3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again, because God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. Now we live with great expectation, 4 and we have a priceless inheritance—an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.
1 Peter 1:3-4
Have you ever had difficulty with your studies?
It's no secret that studying can be very stressful and sometimes, the results are discouraging. Other areas in our life can also be the same: family, friends, love lives, etc.
During the era of the Roman Empire, the believers had a hard time living with their persecutors. They were verbally abused and looked down upon. They lived in despair.
Are you living in despair?
Are you in a hopeless place?
What is hope? It's the confident expectation of things in the future. How is this connected with Jesus' resurrection with this? It brings two ideas mashed into one: the resurrection defines HOPE- because Jesus rose from the dead, we have our HOPE.
Because of the Fall of Adam and Eve, we were all damned to hell due to our sinful nature. We earned a one-way ticket to hell without us even wanting it. Once we died, we're damned. Hopeless, as they say. We were all destined for eternal damnation.
But God had other plans.
He gave us a Living Hope.
13 So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. 14 So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. 15 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 16 For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”
Because of the Fall of Adam and Eve, we were all damned to hell due to our sinful nature. We earned a one-way ticket to hell without us even wanting it. Once we died, we're damned. Hopeless, as they say. We were all destined for eternal damnation.
But God had other plans.
He gave us a Living Hope.
13 So think clearly and exercise self-control. Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. 14 So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. 15 But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. 16 For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”
1 Peter 1:13-16
The trials we encounter are temporary. Jesus keep His promises. He promised that He will rise again in 3 days, He will surely fulfill His promise to come back and wipe away our tears and help us through. Don't give up standing up for the true God! Though people may mock your faith, stand upon His promises!
We are serving a God who raised His Son to win over the game. We shouldn't let the world dissuade us. Jesus did not die for nothing, He died and rose again for us.
Don't give up.
Don't take the resurrection for granted.
It was the ultimate game change made by the best game changer of all time:
JESUS :)
Written by: Ashley Bernadette Petallano (c) 2013
No comments:
Post a Comment