Resurrection and why Christ had to rise

Happy Resurrection Sunday, friends!

One of my favorite passages regarding the Resurrection of Jesus Christ is in Luke 24. Multiple women from Galilee (namely Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary, James’ mother, and other women) had prepared spices and ointments for his dead body. Since the Jews didn’t practice embalming, they were going to use these items to preserve the body and assist with body decomposition odors.

However, approaching the tomb, the stone had been rolled away, and inside, they found nothing but strips of linen.

Where was Jesus?

Their shock was evident, as Scripture says, they were perplexed. No doubt, they were asking where He could have gone. Where was His body? Who rolled the stone away? How could this happen?

God, in His rich mercy, sent two angels to comfort the women with an explanation.

Standing beside them, they were asked

Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the sinful hands of men and be crucified, and on the third day rise.”

These believers had the reasoning for Jesus’s resurrection from the messengers. Jesus’s missing body was evidence that He had truly risen. He couldn’t have opened the sealed tomb from the inside. Especially when He was dead! We know He gave up His spirit (Matthew 27:50) while He was on the cross, and His death was confirmed by the centurion standing nearby, after an earthquake, before He was placed in the Tomb.

Fulfilling prophecy, the soldiers did not break His legs (John 19:28-42), as He was already dead when they approached Him. Also, His body was proven to be dead before it was released by Pilate to Joseph of Arimathea (Mark 15:33-47). The only conclusion was that Jesus’s body was gone! And the angels said He had risen! This was truly a miracle!

Further into the passage, starting at verse 13, we see two unnamed disciples walking and discussing all that had happened. During their commute to Emmaus, in the middle of their conversation, the risen Jesus appeared among them, but was not recognizable to them. He just seemed to be another person interested in what they were talking about. Cleopas couldn’t believe that someone could be unaware of all that had happened, yet Jesus inquired anyway, and the two men explained their disbelief TO JESUS that He was dead.

“…we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.”

Jesus rebuked them and reminded them of what Jesus had told them. And then beginning with Moses, He interpreted all of the Scriptures. Luke 24:31 states that after Jesus took the bread, blessed it, and broke it, giving it to them, their eyes were opened and they finally were able to recognize Him! Can you imagine!?

These passages have always stirred something inside of me. As a believer who is reading and trusting these details from over 2000 years ago, I always get excited about imagining their realization. Looking into His face and seeing that He is, in fact, alive again…would I even be able to comprehend that? It had to be mind-blowing! I know the heartache of losing many loved ones. Death seems to have won, and we feel defeated. It can be debilitating.

Friends, it’s been a while since I’ve written on here, and in the time since, both of my parents, as well as my mother-in-law, have been ushered into the presence of our Risen Lord and Savior. Death and physical separation create a justified anger in me. I hate death! I know we aren’t meant to live here forever, but it’s painful to lose those we love and spend time with, have many shared memories and experiences with. I know the goal is to know and believe in Jesus this side of Heaven, and share the truth of the gospel here during the years God allows us to live. But the ache…How my heart sings just thinking about our future Reunion in Heaven!

Dear ones, if Jesus hadn’t gone to the cross and fulfilled the salvation plan that God had designed, we wouldn’t have hope FOR ANYTHING. If Jesus didn’t die and rise to life again, all would be lost. Dead bodies decay and return to dust.

But the resurrection of Jesus Christ proves many things for Christians:

• The Lord God had this exact plan in mind from the beginning. The devastation of Eve and Adam’s decision cost all of humanity perfect union with the Lord. Consequences resulted, a curse was placed, and a prophecy foretold. Death became a realization. But God didn’t let it stay that way. He already knew WHEN and HOW He would redeem people back to Himself. Jesus could die for our sins, sure, but still needed to satisfy the penalty for sin. And by rising to life, Jesus proved that death no longer has a grip on us.
• Human bodies don’t last. Breath will be taken from our lungs, and we will not live forever in these physical states. Scripture promises that for believers, “To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:6-8). When we die, we will be with Him immediately.
• When Christ died, He suffered for ALL of our sins so that He could be the bridge back to the Lord for us (1 Peter 3:18). Hebrews 9:26 declares that Christ “has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.” Also, Hebrews 9:12 states that Christ “entered once for all into the holy places…by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption”. Our sins cost us our relationship with God, but Jesus did all that was necessary by taking our sin on Himself and dying, so that our sin would die with Him, and thus impute the perfection of Christ to His believers. No longer are we on the hook for our sins; they are dead and forgiven by our Almighty God. Jesus was our substitute. The perfect sacrificial lamb. Because His blood was shed, we are covered by His grace and can be free to live in grace and peace with God, being sanctified daily. And by rising to life, we can live new lives this side of Heaven and usher in Christ’s Kingdom on earth. We have purpose and a justified HOPE!

“…walk in the newness of life.”

Romans 6:4 explains that believers are baptized into Christ’s death, and therefore, we can live new lives. Not just behavior modified lives, but lives following Christ’s righteousness, and no longer our own way. God puts in us a heart of flesh that can be molded by Him and moved to live rich, full lives of love and service for others.

A transformation from sin to grace. Death to life.

All because of Christ and His death and resurrection. None of this is deserved, but it is given freely by God to us.

Jesus’s followers were given a great gift that Sunday! As they realized His sacrifice didn’t end in death, they were filled with hope and amazement! Just like His followers, we too have eternal hope! We can know with certainty that He was raised to life again. He was seen by over 500 people in the 40 days from His resurrection until He returned to the right hand of God. And those people shared all that they had seen with others, at great cost. His disciples died horrendous and excruciating deaths proclaiming that He had resurrected from death, despite what religious leaders and political leaders told them to believe. They had truly seen Him alive after death! Without the resurrection, Jesus would be just another man who died.

Not too long ago, the Lord revealed something important to me. About two months ago, on one of my hardest days of grief, I was sitting in my sunroom and just sobbing. I let the pain overtake me and gave in to the tears and memories. I was missing my mom incredibly (it had only been four months since her unexpected passing), and I was still processing what I had lost. I’ve progressed in my grief journey since, but that day was extremely heavy. After wiping wet eyes, I spotted my Nana’s Bible on a nearby shelf, and I reached and opened the cover. In front of her Bible, she has written:

Resurrection and why Christ had to rise caught my eye. I quickly went to the passage in 1 Corinthians 15.

I read all 58 verses out loud. And I just sat stunned. Full. Tears of sadness turned to tears of joy and happiness.

I felt such peace and just sat in it for a bit.

Her notes and insights were visible and preserved in her handwriting.

I continued sobbing as the Holy Spirit helped me to realize the depth of Christ’s resurrection and what it meant for me, for my parents, for other loved ones, for believers who take Scripture at its word. God tells us why He does everything!

In this passage, Paul is writing to the Corinthian church about Christ’s resurrection. In the preceding chapters, he laid out what love is and WHO love is. He continues with instructions for believers and then gives a tight defense for Christ’s resurrection and what it means for us. He readdresses what the Gospel is and questions why some are saying that life after death is impossible. I encourage you to read it yourselves. Read the entire chapter. And be filled with the Truth of life after death. Jesus made it all possible for us as well. We will no longer just die, but we can be made alive here, and when we do take our last breath here, we will be alive forever because of what He did for us!

That is true love, folks. Jesus laid down His life and rose again, so we could live. Forever with HIM!

Don’t let this become just another Sunday to you. Because of Christ, FUTURE VICTORY IS SURE! Be strong and steady, always abounding in the Lord’s work, for you know that NOTHING YOU DO FOR THE LORD IS EVER WASTED!

Be rooted in Christ, in the Scriptures, in His death and resurrection! If you are unsure how, reach out. I’d love to tell you about my Savior!

I pray this Resurrection Sunday that you would know that Jesus died for your sins. You are not doomed to live meaningless lives. Because of what Christ did on the cross, He fulfilled everything necessary to save us from the curse. He is our Risen Savior! He conquered death so we could live! You can have hope, and you can have a fresh start! You are loved so much that God sent His ONE and ONLY SON to die for you, so that you could have eternal life!