John 11:23-27
(23) Jesus said to her, "Your brother will rise again."
(24) Martha said to him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day."
(25) Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live,
(26) and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?"
(27) She said to him, "Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world."
Phillipians 3:10-11
(10) that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,
(11) that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.
EOLS: The Resurrection is the power that enables the Christian to live a productive and abundant daily life.
It was the fulfillment of thousands of years of prophecy. It was the culmination of God’s plan, the very fulcrum on which human history turns. It was the most extraordinary demonstration of power in human experience.
It’s controversial, it’s a matter of both fact and faith. It’s an intensely theological issue and it has been fodder for debate for over two-thousand years. It can be summed up in two words:
Christ Arose. It’s profoundly simple. It’s the very heart of the Gospel.
It’s at the very core of the Christian confession; as a matter of fact if you are a Christian, the Bible says that you are by definition persuaded in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead:
Romans 10:9
(9) because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
At the grave of Lazarus, about three months before his own death, Jesus declared to the sister of Lazarus and the crowd standing there : “I AM the Resurrection and the Life” His sister was inquiring about what was to happen to her dead brother. She told Jesus “Lord, if you’d been here, he wouldn’t have died.” By now he’s been in the grave for four days, long enough to start stinking.
Jesus tells Mary her brother will rise again. She affirms that she very much believes that he will do so at the Resurrection, on the “Last Day.” Her comments set Jesus up perfectly to utter the words that would define Resurrection; words that would reverberate throughout the course of time…
I AM
He is God incarnate, the I AM, God in the flesh. The same God that is the self-existent, all sustaining one. The same God who answered Moses from the burning bush fifteen hundred years before Lazarus declaring I AM THAT I AM.
I AM…The Resurrection and the Life
You see Jesus does not just hold the power of Resurrection or wield it temporarily or on some limited basis. HE IS I AM …He IS the Resurrection, and the Life. He defines Resurrection and Life flows and follows wherever He goes. He IS and ever shall He BE.
Lazarus was not the first man to ever stop breathing, the heart stop pumping and the skin cold, to come back to life. It happened in the Old Testament according to God’s will. Elijah raised the Widow of Zarepath’s son from the dead. It happened again in the New Testament, even after Christ in the ministry of Paul. It’s an unusual occurrence, but it has and does happen by God’s will.
Such occasions would be better termed Resuscitation or Re-Animation. They were dead alright, stone cold dead. The power of God came upon them by faith through God’s man and as God willed, life re-filled their bodies. There’s even been some modern examples of this happening by faith and prayer. Occasionally for His own glory, God himself will break into human existence in extraordinary ways.
The downside, and why I differentiate the terminology is that, resuscitation is only temporary. Lazarus was raised to life by the Son of God himself after four days being dead, but to my knowledge he’s not around today. In about thirty, maybe forty years following that day Lazarus died, again. Jesus himself said the miracle was so that God might be glorified. But something was still missing in Lazarus’ life.
On the first Easter Sunday, something unprecedented happened.
Matthew 28:1-6
(1) Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.
(2) And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.
(3) His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow.
(4) And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men.
(5) But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.
(6) He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.
He was seen by over five-hundred eyewitnesses, many of whom were still alive as the Apostles wrote of his life, death and resurrection. His enemies could not produce a body, or a filled tomb, ever.
He didn’t rise from the dead only to die again in a few decades after living out a normal lifespan.
The Bible calls Him the “Firstborn From the Dead, The First-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
1Co 15:19-26
(19) If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
(20) But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
(21) For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
(22) For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.
(23) But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
(24) Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power.
(25) For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
(26) The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
So, Jesus Christ, God in the Flesh, the Great I AM tasted death for every man, and He arose not just to enjoy a few more years on this earth in life as a miraculous occurrence, He set the standard and the future for ALL who would believe in Him.
John 1:12-13
(12) But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
(13) who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
So today, we come to the Empty Tomb on Easter Sunday and we hear the angel say “He is not here, for He has risen. This day there is no grave on earth that holds Jesus Christ!
He has risen, and He lives forevermore!
Easter is Resurrection Power, it is new life in a way that we have never experienced before. The Kingdom of God is here, and in Him we live and move and have our being. We live in this Kingdom even now; eternal life begins the moment you become a child of God, and the Hope of the Resurrection becomes your trust, your own inheritance.
The greatest evidence of the resurrection is not the eyewitnesses, the cover-up, the prophetic record, the seven interval, the empty tomb, or the witness of the early church. The greatest evidence is in the words of the hymn:
“I serve a risen Savior, He’s in the world today. I know that He
is living whatever men may say... You ask me how I know He lives, He lives within my heart.” Dr. David Cooper
Resurrection Power means that although your body is still subject to decay, your Spirit lives. We’re all going to grow older, and we all will likely die at some point. The difference is: the same Spirit that raised Jesus Christ from the dead dwells in you, works through you and out of you, like a flow of living water!
Romans 8:10-11
(10) But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
(11) If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
Christ IS the Resurrection, and that means when you are in Him, you are indwelt with Resurrection Power!
It still sounds a little religious. I am a theologian and I love Greek language, I love research and I love Bible doctrine. But I want you to understand that the theology, the depth of this thing is entirely practical. The Resurrection Power of Christ is not just for a seminary classroom or an in-depth Bible Study, it’s for every day life!
Approaching this day I asked several people in my own home, along with Facebook friends just what the Resurrection Power of Jesus Christ means to them in their daily lives. It’s given that you believe it, of course you believe it if you are a Christian! But when you wake up on Monday morning and head to school, work, whatever it is that you do, why does it matter that Jesus Christ rose from the dead? How is knowing this and celebrating this going to help you live in a chaotic, sin-filled and problem wearied world?
Resurrection Power means:
The second chance, the God of Grace and Mercy who fixes broken people-everything is fixable! (MJ-my daughter)
The Resurrection is the power of intercession: Jesus is alive and speaking on my behalf (A. my wife)
Satan and Death are defeated enemies (Ruth)
A Living Lord separates Christianity from Religion (Grace)
I can walk in His Kingdom TODAY (Mike)
Sin and Death no longer can hold me in bondage (Tracie)
Agreeing and hollering GLORY to all the above, I’ll add a couple of my own!
Whatever is messed up in this world, will be right one day! (me)
Everyone will get what’s coming, every wrong will be made right. (me)
It aint over, till it’s over! (Rocky Balboa and Yogi Bera)
and we got a ways to go yet! (me)
just imagine . . . those who are physically disabled today will one day dance in beautiful coordination and leap in ecstatic joy. Those who spend their lives absorbed in total darkness will see every color in the spectrum of light. In fact, the first face they will see will be of the One who gives them sight. And those precious souls whose minds and emotions are limited by mental disability, disease, or old age will enjoy to the full unhindered and uninhibited relationships. It's enough to put a smile on any weary face. There's nothing like the hope of resurrection to lift the agonizing spirits of the heavyhearted. (Chuck Swindoll)
The hope (the absolute assurance of a future event in Biblical terms, not just a dice roll) of a bodily resurrection…is what raises me from my bed in the morning! It’s the only reason that I can go on. (me)
When I take it in to the marketplace with me:
I can know that Christ is alive and helping me daily, I realize that His presence is real and it surrounds me.
Problems may seem insurmountable but my perspective in Christ tells me that they are temporary and will soon pass, and as I encounter those trials, His peace and guidance, grace and mercy are with me every step of the way!
No man will ever beat it out of me, or turn my head. I know that my Redeemer lives and that He shall stand on the earth in the last day! I’ve seen too much, I’ve come too far.
I can face the future with confidence, knowing that He is able and that through Him I can do everything I need to do to fulfill my destiny!
I can work, even in the mundane tasks understanding that there is a holy and eternal purpose to my life!
I can face the later years of my life with great joy and excitement, understanding that the best is yet to come!
I can understand sacrifice now for future great reward.
When I am frustrated and everything seems pointless if not futile, I can stop and I can rest in the fact that His plan is in full force. He is fully engaged all around me and working circumstances in my life for the good.
Celebrate the power of His Resurrection with me this Resurrection Day! Glory in it, take your stand in it. Walk in your new life THIS DAY!
