Most messages I have heard concerning the Gospel speak more of the cross of Christ
than His resurrection, but if the Bible did not contain the words, “He is risen,” none of us would have any hope for eternity. We would all be damned to an everlasting hell. It would seem to me that both the cross and the empty tomb are of equal importance. One cannot stand without the other.Every human being from Adam
to the last person who will be born upon this earth needs a Savior. When our
original parents, Adam and Eve, succumbed to the temptation of Satan, sin corrupted
all that God had made. We were given a choice, obey God or listen to Satan, and
we chose to listen to Satan and forfeit our companionship with God in that
beautiful Garden of Eden. Also, let us not be too critical of Adam and Eve.
Would we have done any better? I think not.
Anyway, from that fall from
innocence to guilt, all of us now must make the same choice individually. I can’t
decide for you and you cannot decide for me who to follow, Satan or God, but we
must decide before our life ends upon this earth.
“Well
then, should we conclude that we Jews are better than others? No, not at all,
for we have already shown that all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are under
the power of sin.
As
the Scriptures say,
“No
one is righteous—
not
even one.
No
one is truly wise;
no
one is seeking God.
All
have turned away;
all
have become useless.
No
one does good,
not
a single one.”
“Their
talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave.
Their
tongues are filled with lies.”
“Snake
venom drips from their lips.”
“Their
mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”
“They
rush to commit murder.
Destruction
and misery always follow them.
They
don’t know where to find peace.”
“They
have no fear of God at all.” (Romans 3:9-18)
“For
everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.” (Romans
3:23)
Adam and Eve were privileged
to walk with God in the Garden of Eden, but after sin was found in them due to
their disobedience, they could never look upon His face and live. That includes
all their progeny … you and me.
“But
you may not look directly at my face, for no one may see me and live.” (Exodus
33:20)
Since sin entered the world,
its effects have been devastating for us all, but there is light at the end of
the tunnel. Death reigns in our bodies, but we can have eternal life through
Jesus.
“When
you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right.
And
what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things
that end in eternal doom.
But
now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you
do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life.
For
the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through
Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 6:20-23)
That life comes from the
death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
“I
passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to
me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said.
He
was buried, and he was raised from the dead on the third day, just as the
Scriptures said.
He
was seen by Peter and then by the Twelve.
After
that, he was seen by more than 500 of his followers at one time, most of whom
are still alive, though some have died.
Then
he was seen by James and later by all the apostles.
Last
of all, as though I had been born at the wrong time, I also saw him.” (1 Corinthians
15:3-5)
In this passage alone, the
Bible makes it clear that Jesus did die. He did not swoon and just pass out. He
did not somehow survive the ordeal on the cross. He died “according to the
scriptures.” He gave up His Spirit and His body died.
The passage then says that He
was buried. Only a body that is dead is buried. Jesus’ body was buried in a
tomb “according to the scriptures,” but His Spirit was not in the tomb.
Then this passage states that
“He rose again the third day according to the scriptures.” He didn’t rise on any
other day but the third day. Why? Because the scriptures said so and Jesus said
that He would rise the third day. Jesus was in total control.
And then in the last verse it
is stated, “And that He was seen…” Hundreds of people saw Him in His resurrected
body after He was crucified, buried and raised from the dead. HE IS RISEN!
If you and I had died on that cross we would
still be under condemnation. Only one without sin could die and pay our sin
penalty, but Jesus isn’t just a man without sin, as was Adam in the beginning. He
is God in human flesh. His righteousness and purity are far beyond even our thoughts.
As the holy God He laid aside His glory, but not His deity, and became one of
us. He fulfilled the Law for us, which we could never do.
Why is it important that Jesus
fulfill the Law on our behalf?
“But
those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse,
for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all
the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.”
So
it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law.
For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”
This
way of faith is very different from the way of law, which says, “It is through
obeying the law that a person has life.”
But
Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on
the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written
in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”
Through
Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised
to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit
through faith.” (Galatians 3:10-14)
James tells us that if we have
committed only one small sin in our entire lifetime, we would still be guilty
of breaking the entirety of the Law. We would still be under the curse of the
Law.
“For
the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who
has broken all of God’s laws.” (James 2:10)
Thankfully, Jesus fulfilled
the Law for us, died for us, was buried and rose again on the third day, all
according to the scriptures. Our hope is in the RISEN JESUS who is now in
Heaven.
Grant Phillips
Email: Phillip5769@twc.com
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: http://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html
