THE MESSAGE OF THE RESURRECTION is the most important message in the Word of God.
Some of the clearest scripture concerning salvation, shows that belief in the resurrection of Christ is necessary if one is to be saved.
• Romans 10:9 states, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, THOU SHALT BE SAVED."
• Romans 4:25 says of Jesus, "Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification."
• 1 Cor. 15:3-4 says, "For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures."
The Bible teaches that everything we believe about Christ hinges on THE MESSAGE OF THE RESURRECTION.
• If He did not rise from the dead, we do not have a Savior, and we still remain in our sins.
• If He did not rise from the dead, He is the biggest deceiver that has ever existed in the history of mankind.
• If He did not rise from the dead, every nickel and dime we ever gave toward the spreading of the gospel was a waste.
• If He did not rise from the dead, every missionary that left his home to carry the gospel to the four corners of the earth, wasted his time.
• If He did not rise from the dead, every church building that has ever been built for the preaching of the Bible, and for worship, was a waste of time and money.
• If He did not rise from the dead, then every hour that ministers have spent studying God's Word, and preparing messages, was a waste of time.
The grand news is that Jesus DID die for our sins, and HE DID RISE FROM THE DEAD.
The Devil knows that if he can stop the teaching of the resurrection, everything this Bible says about Christ would make Him no more than an ordinary man.
Illus: The denial of the bodily resurrection is considered to be the first heresy of the early church. The devil knew the significance of the resurrection, and wasted no time in getting his prophets to deny that it ever happened.
Those who do not believe in the bodily resurrection of Christ, do not believe in the gospel of Christ.
You cannot believe in the gospel of Christ unless you believe that:
• HE CAME
• HE DIED
• HE WAS BURIED
• HE WAS RAISED TO LIFE AGAIN
All these things about the life of Christ are summarized in one word - GOSPEL.
Just what is it that makes the resurrection so important, that all over this nation there are churches like this one that are celebrating Easter?
It is the fact that the resurrection fulfills JESUS' CLAIM.
He said He was the Son of God, and that He had come to die in our place, for our sins, and then three days later be resurrected.
And, long before He said it here in person, it was prophesied.
He said in John 11:25-26, "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die..."
He made the promise to everyone who would believe in Him, that they would never die.
He said in John 14:19, "Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also."
Now, if He had died and remained in the grave, how could you and I place our faith in Him to do something for us that He could not do for Himself?
Since the gospel is the MOST IMPORTANT MESSAGE in the Bible, Paul tells us in Galatians 1:8-9 that any person who alters it in the slightest, is cursed.
Look what Paul told the Galatians, "But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed."
These liberal preachers, and liberal churches, do not know what kind of trouble they are getting into when they preach and teach anything other than the DEATH, BURIAL AND RESURRECTION OF CHRIST JESUS.
It is the most important message in the Word of God, and we need to consider some things as we remember what Jesus did for us.
I. CONSIDER THE FACTS OF THE RESURRECTION
Let’s look at three facts concerning the resurrection. First-
A. THE PROPHETIC FACT
Look at Mark 14:58, "We heard him say, I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and within three days I will build another made without hands."
Jesus was speaking of His body, and that he would be killed, and raised to life again in three days, but they thought He was talking about the temple that they worshipped in, that had taken so many years to build.
When Jesus was dying for our sins on the cross, remember what they said, in Mark 15:29-30, "And they that passed by railed on him, wagging their heads, and saying, Ah, thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, Save thyself, and come down from the cross."
They had not gotten it yet! He had not come to save Himself! He came to die, be buried and resurrected so that the whole world might know the Savior had come.
The thing that had been prophesied happened just the way He said it would! We need to consider...
B. THE HISTORICAL FACT
Look at 1 Cor. 15:4, "And that he was buried and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures."
Paul did not say, "I HEARD that He was resurrected," or "I THINK He was resurrected." He EMPHATICALLY stated that Jesus died and rose again, "...ACCORDING TO THE SCRIPTURES."
Illus: Some would object, saying that they do not believe in the Scriptures, so they do not believe in Jesus, or anything about Him, because they did not see Him.
It is always interesting that they should use that argument, because it reveals ignorance.
Illus: We always wonder if they do not believe the historical report of Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, Napoleon, Winston Churchill, etc., because they have never personally seen any of these people. The only way they know these people existed is because someone made a record of them, and how they lived, and what they accomplished in life. But, you do not hear people say that they do not believe in Columbus, or Benjamin Franklin, etc., because they have never seen them.
They do not reject what is written in the history books about these people, yet they will take the Bible, proven to be the inerrant Word of God, and discount it’s record of the Savior, and how He came, died, and was resurrected.
Whether people believe it or not, the fact is, it is a historical account.
The inerrant Word of God teaches this as a historical fact. We also have to consider...
C. THE TESTIMONIAL FACT
Look at 1 Cor. 15:5-8, "And that he was seen of Cephas, and then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also, as one born out of due time."
Illus: Any court in this land will convict a person if three people will testify, "I saw him do it!" If you were on a jury, and three people took the stand, and all three said they saw a person do something, that person would be convicted of the crime he had been charged with.
Paul wrote that five hundred people saw Jesus alive, after His death and burial, and most of those five hundred people were still living at the time of Paul's writing.
Anyone could just ask them if they saw Jesus, and every one of them could testify that they did.
If Paul had said, "Five hundred people saw Jesus, but they all have died so you cannot ask them, you will just have to take my word that they saw Him," that would not be convincing evidence.
Illus: That would be like trying to convince people that Joseph Smith, who they claim founded the Mormon church, copied the Mormon bible from some golden tablets that he claimed an angel named Moroni brought down from heaven. No one saw this happen, so we just have to take his word for it. Thanks, but no thanks!
We could not build our faith on the testimony of one man, especially when his own family denounced him as a liar.
What is amazing is that anyone would believe this, especially since the Mormon church has had to make over a thousand corrections due to contradictions etc..
Paul said that all those people had seen Christ, but that he did not have to take their word, he saw Christ himself. Any attorney would love to take such a case to court, for with such overwhelming evidence, there could not be any doubt as to Christ's resurrection.
Illus: Thank God we do not have to rely on the word of people, like some today who claim that Elvis has come back. There is not a shred of evidence to substantiate that claim.
But, when Christ was resurrected, there was no doubt. People saw Him, and the scars where the nails pierced His hands. They talked to Him, touched Him, and there was prophetic and historic testimony.
All of this was evidence of His resurrection.
II. CONSIDER THE FRUITION OF THE RESURRECTION
The resurrection produced some things then, that are still being produced today. What does it produce?
A. THE RESURRECTION PRODUCES INSTANT JOY
When Christ was crucified, all seemed lost. There have been some sad days in Christianity, but none ever sadder than the day they crucified the Son of God.
• Men and women had forsaken their religions, jobs, and families to follow Him.
• They had seen him perform great miracles everywhere He went, and they heard Him speak as no other man had ever spoken.
• They had seen Him nailed to a cross.
• They had seen the crowd mock Him as He hung on that cross.
• They had hoped, as long as there was breath in His body, that He would come down off that cross. I can see some in that crowd, almost anticipating that at any time He might do just that.
Then, when He raised His head, took that one last deep breath, and said, "It is finished," they thought He meant that His enemies had won.
What they did not know, was that He was telling the world that He had come, and fulfilled all prophecy, and paid the price for sin for every lost person, so they could be saved.
We can do nothing to earn our salvation.
Jesus came, He was the sinless sacrificial "Lamb" that God would accept, so that we might be set free.
He was telling the world that the job He had come to do was FINISHED!
Those who had loved Him, and had forsaken all to follow Him, did not know that was what He meant.
They did not know if they might be the next ones to be killed. Their leader was dead, so they, like frightened animals, went and hid behind closed doors.
But, THREE DAYS LATER, JESUS AROSE FROM THAT GRAVE!
He began to make Himself known to some individuals, some groups, and then to as many as five hundred on one occasion.
The word began to spread, and as the word spread that Christ had risen from the dead, IMMEDIATELY JOY FILLED THE HEARTS OF THE BELIEVERS.
What a day that was for God's people! Only three days before, they were the most depressed people who had ever lived, but now, they were the most excited people on this earth.
Probably some ran the streets announcing, "He's alive, He's alive, He has risen from the grave!"
From the Lord's resurrection came instant joy.
B. THE RESURRECTION PRODUCED PERMANENT JOY
• Every year, weeks before Easter arrives, churches like ours start getting music programs and activities together, to celebrate Christ's resurrection.
• Every year, Christians go to stores and buy new clothes to wear, because they feel the need to wear something new for this special occasion. This is not an ordinary Sunday - this is a very special Sunday.
• Every year, people from churches like this will wake up early, before the sun rises, and have a "Son-rise" service to reenact what took place many years ago, when some of the Christian women went early to where Jesus had been buried, and had the thrill of discovering the tomb was empty, and hearing the angel say, "He is not here for He is risen!"
Conclusion: We still experience the joy and thrill of what they discovered so many years ago!
WE ARE TO -
I. CONSIDER THE FACT OF THE RESURRECTION
A. THE PROPHETIC FACT
B. THE HISTORICAL FACT
C. THE TESTIMONIAL FACT
II. CONSIDER THE FRUITION OF THE RESURRECTION
A. THE RESURRECTION BROUGHT INSTANT JOY
B. THE RESURRECTION BROUGHT PERMANENT JOY
