February 17, 2022 | Risen
“Christ is risen! He is risen indeed, Halleluiah!” This message is shouted in almost every Christian church on Easter Sunday. But why is this fact so exciting? Why do people get so emotional when they say it? Why does it matter that Christ has risen?
It’s because “The Resurrection is the keystone of the arch on which our faith is supported. If Christ has not risen, we must impeach all those witnesses for lying. If Christ has not risen, we have no proof that the crucifixion of Jesus differed from that of the two thieves who suffered with him. If Christ has not risen, it is impossible to believe his atoning death was accepted.” (Sermoncentral.com).
If Christ had not risen, He would just be a foot note in history, a wannabe Messiah like so many before Him. His resurrection showed those who had committed their lives to Him that their faith was not in vain. “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:20-22).
And because Christ arose we can be assured that someday we also will experience new life. Paul explained it this way to the Galatians, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
With Christ’s resurrection we also have been given new life because in this act He ushered in the promise of everlasting life for everyone who believes. Romans 6:4 says, “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4).
And that new life is not just the rebirth of the soul, but it is life everlasting on a new earth where there will be none of the trials found in this one. Even the earth will be reborn, all of creation will be reborn no longer under the curse of sins caused by past mistakes. “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11).
Just as Christ was risen, we will also be risen into new bodies free from the weaknesses and sicknesses we have been forced to live with in this life. Just as Christ was risen, we will also be risen into a new relationship with our Heavenly Father.
All believers are promised that this life is only the beginning of an everlasting life where we will one day receive an inheritance from God that will last forever. That is why we shout out Halleluiah’s, because Christ is Risen!
When Christ died, our old lives died with Him and when He rose our promised salvation was assured. 2 Corinthians 5:17 reminds us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away, behold, the new has come.”
This is the Good News of the Gospel that people need to hear. This new birth is offered to anyone who places their hope and trust in Christ. So many have become lost in their sins. They have died to the world and have lost their way in the graveyard of despair. But we have a message of hope for them. They too may be risen into a new life that will last forever. No matter their past, God’s forgiveness can offer them a new path and a new life.
But if this message stays trapped in our hearts, then it only benefits ourselves. Romans 10:14-15 makes it clear saying, “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” (Romans 10:14-15).
You can be the seed planter to new life in the world. Don’t keep the message that Jesus has been risen from the dead to yourself. The message is to great not to share. May your ministry include looking for every opportunity to make an eternal difference in someone else’s life by telling other that Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed, Halleluiah! Please pray with me:
Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us Your Son so that by His death and resurrection we might also rise to newness of life. Help us to share this message of salvation to all who will listen and give us courage to live for you. Amen.
