THE IMPACT OF THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST (Part 2)

SONG:

Alive, alive, my Savior is alive.

Alive forever more, the sting of death is gone. And now in Him, I have eternal life, since Jesus is alive.

TEXT:

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead," (1st Peter 1 verse 3 ).

 The Scriptures make us understand that by the rising of Jesus from the grave, death was defeated, and the gates of eternal life became opened wide unto as many that come unto Christ. This can be likened to the sun rising upon the darkness, illuminating it with life and hope (2nd Peter 1 verse 19).

      I wonder what it would've been had the Lord Jesus not risen from the dead. His resurrection brought hope and assurance to mankind. The Bible says of Christ's resurrection as follows:

 "And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable." (1st Corinthians 15 verses 17 to 19). In other words, Christ's resurrection secures for us the fullness of God's Salvation.

      Let me explain what I mean by this: Though Christ our heavenly Friend has died for us and paid off our debts, by our nature, we will yet with time be in sin again. As time goes on, we are very likely to contract new debts, necessitating His further intervention. But to forestall this, Christ's resurrection serves to put paid once and for all the matter of our debts, both past and the future.

     God’s salvation causes the Lord Jesus to die at Calvary for us and to live in us as well. He not only pays all our debts but also lives in us so that through the power of His Life in us, we will never have to run into debt again.

      For example, God does not save us merely to escape hell and to enter heaven: The Bible says that He saves us to the "uttermost" (Hebrews 7 verse 25), to the extent of Christ being our life, so that through the power of His Life at work in us, our Salvation is once and for all complete. It's half of God's Salvation to escape hell and to be heaven headed if we do not have the power to live right as candidates heading for heaven. This is what Apostle Paul meant when he said we are men most miserable without Christ's resurrection (2nd Corinthians 15 verse 19)

Christ's resurrection is the cornerstone of the Christian faith, conveying assurance of hope and enlightening the hearts of believers. Without Christ rising from the dead, there would not have been Salvation, resulting in eternal life for us as believers.

    Let's give Praise to God for raising Jesus from the dead!

PRAYER:

Dear Heavenly Father, You have given me an unshakable assurance of hope by raising Jesus Christ from the dead. I'm grateful!