Do You Believe in Easter?
Do you believe in Easter, that is the death and resurrection of Jesus?
The early Christians believed in the resurrection. Only twenty years after Jesus’ crucifixion, the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:4-9:
…[Jesus] was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.
At the time this was written, there were still people around who you could talk to who had literally seen Jesus after his resurrection! Seeing the living, resurrected Lord Jeus, transformed the cowardly disciples who had all fled at Jesus’ arrest in the garden, into bold preachers of his resurrection who were willing to suffer and die for the truth of the risen Lord Jesus. Paul himself hated Jesus and killed Christians in an all-out effort to stamp out the early church until Jesus actually appeared to him while traveling on the road to Damascus! (Acts 9:1-5)
So what about you? Do you believe in the Resurrection? Does it really matter?
It does matter! For if the resurrection is true, then Jesus is who he claimed to be: God in human flesh (John 1:1-3 & 10:30). It means that he is alive today reigning from heaven (Ephesians 1:19-22). It means that his words are true, including John 14:6 “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” It also means that John 3:18 is true:
“Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
And what does it mean to be condemned? It means to be sentenced to an eternity separated from God in a place of never-ending punishment called Hell. Jesus taught a lot about heaven and hell (Luke 16:19-31).
The Bad News
The Bible is clear that the default destination of everyone of us is Hell. No matter how hard we try we can never do enough good deeds to earn entrance into heaven, because the standard is the perfect righteousness of God and we ”all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Likewise, James 2:10 says that “whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.”
The Really Good News
The awesome news of Easter is that God loves us too much to just let us all perish. The incredible, mind-blowing news of Easter is that the eternal Son of God put on human flesh; that Jesus Christ dwelt among us and offered himself to die on a Roman cross to take the full punishment of your sin and mine. No matter how bad or how much you have sinned, Jesus’ death on the cross will cover your every sin, if you believe in him.
You see, forgiveness and eternal life (salvation) is the free gift offered to every one of us because of what Jesus did on Good Friday and Easter (Colossians 2:14, Romans 3:23-26). But this gift must be humbly received. We must come to Jesus admitting that we have sinned against him, asking for his forgiveness and we must start seeking him (that is what is called repentance).
In her book Is Easter Unbelievable? Rebecca McLauchlin observes that “If Jesus did come back to life, it means the Maker of all time and space has stepped into the universe for love of you. It means that you were worth his death and that he wants you in his life. It means you are more seen and known and loved than you could dare to hope and that the greatest offer ever made is sitting on the table, waiting for you to take it up.” Have you taken Jesus up on his offer?
Jesus himself said in John 11:25:
I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?
If you are struggling to understand, to believe, pray to Jesus to show himself real to you. That is a prayer he loves to answer! But don’t just pray, start reading the Bible. The Bible contains God words written to you. The Gospel of John or Mark are good places to start. Feel free to contact or visit us at Grace Baptist Church if you have questions, if you want someone to pray with you, if you are looking for a churchy family.
More Truths that are True Because of the Resurrection of Jesus
- All our hopes end when we die, except for our hope in Jesus which lasts for eternity (1 Peter 1:3-8).
- The same power that resurrected Jesus will resurrect our bodies and those of our loved ones who believed (1Thessalonians 4:13-17).
- We who trust in Jesus have an eternal home and inheritance in paradise (1 Peter 1:3-8).
- The resurrection of Jesus brings us and inexpressible joy, even amidst the difficulties of this life (1 Peter 1:3-8).
- The resurrection allows us to begin experiencing the infinite love of our Lord- this makes our life now worth living and will be our greatest joy in heaven (Romans 5:7-8, Ephesians 3:18-19, Romans 8:38-39)!
- The resurrection makes possible relationship with God (we were dead to God before we were saved), and God gives us the strength to get through the trials of life (Ephesians 3:20).