Last
week, I ended my post by speaking of Jesus Christ’s atoning sacrifice on the
cross for all of humanity. Today I
wanted to bring up the glorious truth that Jesus didn’t stay dead, He
resurrected from the grave; victorious over death itself! Some of you are thinking, “Wait a minute. Kevin, why are you talking about the
resurrection? Why not focus on Jesus’
birth instead? Today isn’t
Easter, it’s Christmas.”
I
understand your confusion. Make no mistake: I am certainly very grateful for the Christmas narrative (and I want to wish all of you a Merry Christmas). I love the plan God had in bringing about the birth of Jesus. But this year, I've decided to convey that Christmas, as wonderful as it is, was really just the beginning;
so much more occurred after Jesus was born in a manger. For instance, Jesus performed astonishing
miracles. He delivered the most amazing
teachings. But the time came when Jesus
voluntarily chose to give His life by means of crucifixion on a cross. Then His lifeless body was placed in a tomb.
But
His destiny didn’t end there. Jesus rose
from the grave; He who was dead was alive again!
Furthermore, Jesus spoke of His post-cross destiny. He repeatedly predicted to His disciples that
He was going to be killed, but that He would be resurrected (see Matthew 20:17-19
for just one example of this). Interestingly,
after Jesus was crucified, the chief priests and Pharisees go to Pilate and
they tell him that Jesus had predicted that He was going to rise again in three
days (read it for yourself; it’s Matthew 27:62-63). Even they knew the predictions Jesus had made!
Let
me shift gears and move to some personal application. Yes, Jesus resurrected from the dead, but
does it make a difference in life? To
put it succinctly, it makes a huge difference!
Regular readers of this blog already know that 2015 has been a year of
pain and loss for me and for the Bauer family.
While the Biblical truths regarding a Christian’s hope after death were
important to me before, they have washed over me in a whole new way this year.
Take
1 Thessalonians 4 for example. In verse
16, Paul writes, “The dead in Christ will rise first.” It’s remarkable to think about this: because
Jesus conquered death, a future bodily resurrection is assured for our dearly
departed loved ones in Christ. Please don’t
misunderstand me. This doesn’t mean that
when a person dies they just go through a soul sleep. The people that teach this concept are
wrong. The Bible says that for the
believer who passes away, to be absent from the body is to be present with the
Lord (2 Corinthians 5:8).
But
one day, that body will be raised again. An article from the website compelling truth.org puts it this way, “In
summary, the dead in Christ are believers who have already died. However, these believers now dwell in God’s presence,
will one day receive a new, glorified body, and will be reunited with all
believers living today at the moment of His return. Though the death of a believer produces
sadness for those who remain, we can take joy in the fact that they live on with
the Lord and that we who believe will one day see them again” (please check out the
full article in the link I’ve included below).
I don’t know how I would have endured the pain, heartache, and sorrow of
this year if I didn’t have this truth to hold onto!
1 Corinthians
15:19 says, “If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied
more than all men.” Because Jesus arose
from the grave, I know that death itself has been defeated. I know that death isn’t the end. I know that I will see my dad one day again
in Heaven. What a glorious reunion that
will be! Later on in 1 Corinthians 15,
Paul writes, “Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where O death, is your victory? Where O death, is your sting?...But thanks be
to God! He gives us victory through our
Lord Jesus Christ” (verses 54-55, 57-58).
Kevin
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