The Resurrection: Does it really Matter?

[stephen]

Among world religions, the resurrection of Jesus Christ stands unique. Easter is not about colored eggs or bunnies or Spring Break. It is about an empty tomb and a risen Christ.

After the crucifixion the followers of Christ were devastated and defeated. But only days later they stood in downtown Jerusalem fearlessly preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They continued to preach Christ even though they were imprisoned and beaten. They turned the world upside down. Why this transformation? What had happened? They had seen the risen Christ.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the greatest and most important event in the history of the world and is based on the strongest of historical evidence. No one has ever produced the body of Jesus. If someone had, Christianity would have been stamped out in a moment. But Christ is risen!

Read the rest @
https://www.billygraham.org/DMag_article.asp?ArticleID=952

 

[Faithful Son]

1 Corinthians 1.

Christ the Power and Wisdom of God


18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written:


“ I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
And bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.”[a]

20 Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe. 22 For Jews request a sign, and Greeks seek after wisdom; 23 but we preach Christ crucified, to the Jews a stumbling block and to the Greeks[b] foolishness, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.


If people ask me what is the Gospel? I tell them it's Jesus crucified and risen alive. That's the Gospel.

Sometimes, we ask ourselves, why does our Gospel not change people? Well it does, to the most hardened of heart, the message of the Cross, the simplicity of that message pierces through, without a doubt in my mind.

God bless

 

[Word of Life]

I give thanks to Our Father through our Lord Jesus Christ, whom is my Lord and Saviour, for doing the will of our Father in Heaven.

(Act 13:30-37) But God raised him from the dead: And he was seen many days of them which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto the people. And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the promise which was made unto the fathers,
God hath fulfilled the same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee. And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the sure mercies of David. Wherefore he saith also in another psalm, Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:
But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption.

I thank you for sending your Son to us.

 

[jiggyfly]

Amen Jako Amen. The Gospel is simply Christ, oh but how deep, high, wide and vast is Christ. As simple as it is, Paul who preached the good news of Christ crucified and resurected for almost two decades, towards the end of his ministry while imprisoned in Rome said "I must know Him".

 

[Faithful Son]

Amen Jako Amen. The Gospel is simply Christ, oh but how deep, high, wide and vast is Christ. As simple as it is, Paul who preached the good news of Christ crucified and resurected for almost two decades, towards the end of his ministry while imprisoned in Rome said "I must know Him".

Amen brother Jiggyfly God bless you

 

[cerebus]

So if Christ's resurrection was so momentous in the universe, what was accomplished by it? His crucifixion accomplished an eternal redemption from the enslavement of sin and from every negative thing between man and God. What was the real significance of His resurrection?

 

[Faithful Son]

Brother Cerebus, I would say the real significance of Jesus' resurrection is that He is God, without a doubt. I think without the resurrection, if Jesus just died, who would really be willing to believe in Him?

The Cross is no mystery, He died and rose on the third day, that's all we need.

God bless you

 

[cerebus]

amen Jako that's absolutely right. The resurrection of Jesus was a testimony for our belief. Without His resurrection we would have no strong assurance that God had accepted His act of redemption. But in raising Him from the dead, God made a declaration that Christ's sacrifice was sufficient to meet all of His and our requirements. Praise the Lord!

Acts 2:36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you have crucified.

What else?

 

[Faithful Son]

A promise brother. A promise of a return as stated in Matthew 24, a hope for the future and a way for me as a Christian to keep having faith that I will see my Savior one day.

I think the main thing which the Cross means to me as well is that no matter what I have done and no matter who I am, nothing can remove me from God's grace of Redemption.

A small quote I read one day said. Only the Christian God was man enough to become a man, no other "supposed" god had the gutts and only the Christian God pardons, no other god does that either.

God bless

 

[cerebus]

Amen what a strong assurance we have!

 

[jiggyfly]

How about victory over death and the grave, abundant life.

 

[stephen]

Paul said "If Christ be not raised.....we are the most miserable of men"

1 Corinthians 15

 

[cerebus]

Furthermore, in resurrection, Christ's form was transfigured from the physical into the spiritual.

1 Cor 15:44 It is sown a soulish body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a soulish body, there is also a spiritual one.

In this form, He is now a life-giving Spirit:

15:45 So also it is written, “The first man, Adam, became a living soul”; the last Adam became a life-giving Spirit.

Thus on the day of His resurrection He was able to appear to the disciples to breathe the Spirit into them, regenerating them and making them sons of God, men in the new creation:

John 20:22 And when He had said this, He breathed into them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit.

In other words, without Christ's death we could not be forgiven, and without His resurrection we could not be born again.

 

[rjones]

One of my favorite passages is Eph. 1:17-24

"I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.

The power of the resurrection is now available to us who are in Christ and enables us to now live a new life! Life is worth living now because He lives.