Easter 2024 – The Resurrection of Christ
We’re at the time of year when Christians around the world focus on the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This is something the world around us does its best to undermine any observance of Jesus Christ whatsoever. Thus the invention of the Easter bunny, Easter egg hunts and other non-spiritual things. For many non-Christians, Easter has become a secular holiday associated with springtime, renewal, and the changing of seasons. For the world, it’s a time to celebrate life, growth, and the awakening of nature.
In Sweden, Easter has taken on a more secular character. It even resembles Halloween in some ways. The ancient belief was that witches were more active during the Easter weekend than any other time. To ward off evil spirits, Swedes host community bonfires and paint crosses on their doors. When you think about it, satan and his demons probably hate it when Easter comes around.
For the Christian, it’s a time to celebrate the victory of Jesus, remembering what He did to re-unite God with mankind. Tonight, we have Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday before us. Many years ago, there was a pastor named Tony Campolo, who coined the phrase, “It’s Friday, but Sunday’s coming.” Referring to the torturous death of Christ and then His coming resurrection.
Thinking about what Jesus went through before He died can bring even the most un-involved Christian to tears.
The very death of Jesus was prophesied hundreds of years before it took place.
Genesis 3:15: After Adam and Eve’s disobedience, God declared, “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”
This seed of the woman, foretold to crush the serpent’s head, ultimately points to Jesus. Moses, credited as the author of Genesis, wrote this around 1500 years before Christ’s birth.
Then in Genesis 12:3: God promised Abraham that he would become a great nation, and through him, all peoples on earth would be blessed. This blessing pointed to the redemption of people from every tribe and tongue, a promise that is fulfilled in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 53: In this powerful chapter, Isaiah paints a detailed picture of the Suffering Servant, who would bear our sins and bring healing. It speaks of His rejection, suffering, and eventual death. For instance, verse 5 states, “But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds, we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). This prophecy finds its fulfillment in the perfect sacrificial death of Jesus, the Lamb of God.
Jesus predicted His death at least three times in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke.
Matt. 16:21-23
“From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.” But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”
Mark and Luke both repeat this by saying Jesus would suffer many things, be killed, and be raised up on the third day.
Also at this time of year the Jews celebrate the time of Passover, reminding them that they were slaves, but that God freed them from the Egyptians. Within the Passover story we see a foreshadowing of the death of Jesus. In the final tenth plague from God, the angel of death would kill the first born of each household, unless the blood of a sacrificed lamb was spread on the doorpost. Some Bible teachers say that the blood on the door made the sign of a cross… this was hundreds of years before crucifixions were even invented. The symbolism here is sobering, having the lamb’s blood placed on wood, which we all know, that is what happened when Jesus, the Lamb of God was crucified on the cross.
Tonight, it’s Wednesday for us, but Sunday’s coming… Resurrection Sunday. It’s where Christians celebrate by saying to one another, “He has risen, He has risen indeed!”
I want to do a deep dive into the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. We must ask ourselves, “Where would any of us be today if Jesus was never resurrected from the dead?” One thing is for sure, we wouldn’t be here tonight, being part of the body of Christ.
The resurrection of Jesus is important for several reasons. First, the resurrection is a witness to us, demonstrating the immense power of God Himself. To believe in the resurrection is to believe in the power of God. If God exists (and He does), and if He created the universe and has power over it, then He has the power to raise the dead. If God doesn’t have such power, He is not worthy of our faith and worship. Only He who created life can resurrect it after death, only He can reverse the dreadfulness that is death itself, and only God can remove the sting of death and gain the victory over the grave.
I Cor. 15:53-57
“For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” For sin is the sting that results in death, and the law gives sin its power. But thank God! He gives us victory over sin and death through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (NLT)
The resurrection of Jesus is also important to us because it validates just who Jesus claimed to be, that He is the Son of God and the only true Messiah. This means that all believers are justified before God through the blood of Christ.
Our justification is an act of God whereby He declares a sinner to be righteous because of that sinner’s faith in Christ.
According to one theologian, G.E. Ladd, he says, “The root idea in justification is the declaration of God, the righteous judge, that the man who believes in Christ, sinful though he may be, is righteous – is viewed as being righteous, because in Christ he has come into a righteous relationship with God”
An easy way to think about justification is to say to yourself, “Just as if I had never sinned.”
Romans 3:21-26
“But now God has shown us a way to be made right with Him without keeping the requirements of the law, as was promised in the writings of Moses and the prophets long ago. We are made right with God by placing our faith in Jesus Christ. And this is true for everyone who believes, no matter who we are. For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. (NLT) Being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.” (NASB)
Without the resurrection of Jesus, we would not be justified!
The resurrection of Jesus is the cornerstone of redemption for mankind and the earth. Everyone is in need of redemption. Before redemption, our natural condition was characterized by our guilt: “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
What then are the benefits of redemption? Most importantly, it includes eternal life…
Revelation 5:9-10
“And they sang a new song, saying, “Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. “You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.”
Redemption brings forgiveness of sins…
Ephesians 1:7-8a
“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace which He lavished on us.”
Redemption brings us into a state of righteousness before God.
Romans 5:17
“For the sin of this one man, Adam, caused death to rule over many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and His gift of righteousness, for all who receive it will live in triumph over sin and death through this one man, Jesus Christ.” (NLT)
Having redemption means that we have been adopted into God’s family.
Gal. 4:4-5
“But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”
Our redemption through Christ means the deliverance from sin’s bondage.
Romans 8:2 “And because you belong to Him, the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.” (NLT)
And now that we are redeemed, we have peace with God.
Col. 1:19-20
“For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.”
The moment we are redeemed, we receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.
Eph. 1:13
“In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation – having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise,”
Therefore, to be redeemed is to be forgiven, holy, justified, free, adopted, and reconciled to God, all because Jesus was resurrected by God from the grave.
The resurrection means that Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross was sufficient, and therefore our sins can be forgiven.
I Cor. 15:34
“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures,”
Hebrews 7:26-27
“For it was fitting for us to have such a high priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners and exalted above the heavens; who does not need daily, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the sins of the people, because this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.”
Christ’s resurrection also confirmed His own claims that He would be raised on the third day, we see this three times in the book of Mark (Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:34). If Jesus Christ is not resurrected, then we have no hope to be resurrected. In fact, apart from Christ’s resurrection, we have no Savior, no salvation, and no hope of eternal life.
Paul zeros in on this in I Cor. 15:14-19:
“And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.”
But such is not the case for us because Jesus has been raised from the dead, the victory is His. We have witnesses! Let’s go back once again to First Corinthians 15 (4-8)
“Jesus was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me.”
John 11:25
“Jesus said to her (Mary, sister of Lazarus) “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,”
Here Jesus declares to us that He is the source of our resurrection and our eternal life. There is no resurrection apart from Christ… no eternal life. Jesus does more than give us life; He is life, and that’s why death has no power over Him.
Jesus awards His life on those who trust in Him, so that we can share in His triumph over death.
I John 5:11-12
“And the testimony is this, that God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have the life.”
Have you ever joined a cub? Christianity is the most exclusive club in the universe… there’s no secret handshake, no password, and there are no buy-ins. In fact, it doesn’t matter who you are, where you’ve been or what you have done, you can get in absolutely free. But it does involve one thing… your heart.
Romans 10:9-10
“That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.”
We who believe in Jesus Christ will personally experience the resurrection, because having the life that Jesus gives to us, we will overcome death just like He did. In other words, Jesus leads the way in “life after death.” This is the power of God! The resurrection of Jesus is important because it becomes a testimony to our own resurrection. His life gives us “new life.”
Every other religion in the world is founded by man, and the end result is always the grave. Without Christ, they are cast into outer darkness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.
The importance of Christ’s resurrection impacts our life today, which equates to living a life of service to God.
I Cor. 15:58
“Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”
Because we know we will be resurrected to new life, we can endure persecutions and all the trials of life, no matter what. The resurrection gives us the hope that resides in our hearts… the resurrection is the proof in the pudding. The expression “the proof is in the pudding” means that the value, quality, or truth of something must be judged based on direct experience with it, or on its results… we have the truth of God’s Word to give us the proof.
I’ll close with this…
The resurrection is the triumphant and glorious victory for every one of us. Jesus Christ died, was buried, and rose on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3–4). And the great news is, He is coming again! Scripture teaches us that the dead in Christ will be raised up first, and those who are alive at His coming will be changed and receive new, glorified bodies (1 Thessalonians 4:13–18).
Why is the resurrection of Jesus Christ so important? It proves who Jesus is. It demonstrates that God accepted His Son’s sacrifice on our behalf. It shows that God has the power to raise us from the dead. It guarantees that the bodies of those who believe in Christ will not remain dead, but will be resurrected unto eternal life. The resurrection doesn’t simply mean there is a Christ, it means that Christ is alive forever and that He gives us peace with the Father and peace within ourselves, today and forever. Amen.