RESURRECTION VICTORY!
There have been people who have predicted the time of their own death, but there is only one person who not only predicted the time of His death, but also the day of His resurrection, and that person is Jesus Christ the Lord! In John chapter 2, beginning at verse 19, Jesus revealed to His critics:’Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’ Then the Jews said, ’It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?’ But He was speaking of the temple of His body. Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said."
Through the centuries there have been many victories in God’s dealings with men, but the GREATEST triumph of them all was the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead! In one earth-shattering moment, Jesus conquered the three greatest enemies of mankind:
SIN, SATAN and the SECOND DEATH.
Jesus Christ has won the victory by His resurrection!
I. HIS VICTORY OVER SIN
From the very beginning in the garden of Eden, man has been engaged in a battle against sin. Because we are descendants of Adam, we have inherited from him a tendency to do the things we know are wrong:
Rom. 5:12 "Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all have sinned."
Sometimes we don’t even want to sin, because we know it is harmful to our well-being; and yet we can’t seem to get the victory, because its influence over us is so strong! Paul describes this conflict in Rom. 7:15, 18-19, 24 "For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do....For I know that in me (that is, in my sinful nature) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice....O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?"
The answer to Paul’s question is this: Jesus Christ has triumphed over sin by His resurrection! He and He alone can deliver us! (v. 25 "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord!")
By His death on the cross of Calvary, Christ provided a way by which our sin can be removed; yet it is by His resurrection (together with His blood) that God can declare us perfectly righteous in Him. Remember, our key verse on "Palm Sunday" was Rom. 4:25 "who was delivered up for our offenses, and was raised for our justification." That means God can stamp on the bill for our sins: "PAID IN FULL-PERFECT IN CHRIST!"
Have you ever been justified (declared righteous)? Christ’s death and resurrection have provided the way - now you must believe it and accept Christ’s victorious provision. Rom. 10:9&10 "if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." You can deal with your sin problem right now by accepting the gift of Salvation God freely offers you -Rom. 6:23 "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Not only does the resurrection of Christ deal with our sin positionally, but also practically. As believers in Christ, we can have DAILY victory over sin because of Christ’s resurrection. In
Phil. 3:10, Paul prayed: "that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death," And in Eph. 1:19+20 "and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places,"
The resurrection power of Christ is available to every believer to make us more like Him; if we would but draw upon it by faith!
Phil. 3:9 "and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; "
Praise God, Jesus Christ has "won
the victory" over sin - by His resurrection!
II. HIS VICTORY OVER SATAN
When Christ was crucified on Calvary, Satan thought he had finally accomplished his life-long purpose - to destroy God’s plan of salvation. He had been trying for centuries! For example;
-He caused CAIN to kill righteous Abel
(but God gave Seth!)
-He caused ABRAHAM in unbelief to bear Ishmael
(but God miraculously gave Isaac.)
-He caused JOSEPH’s BROTHERS to sell him as a slave to Egypt
(but God saved his whole family from starvation through Joseph’s faithfulness!)
-He caused DAVID to sin a sin worthy of death
(but God gave him a repentant heart.)
-He caused HEROD to kill all the babies two years old and under
(but God directed Joseph to take baby Jesus to Egypt.)
-Then he caused Judas to betray Christ, leading to the crucifixion of Jesus - and there was the triumph Satan had waited for - 5000 years of diabolical planning had paid off, and for three days Satan and his demons had a victory party! But early on the third morning, Christ rose from the dead, and Satan was defeated!
1 Pt. 3:21b+22 "...through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers [have] been made subject to Him."
1 Jn. 3:8b "For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil."
Col. 2:14-15 "having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it."
Satan is a defeated enemy - he cannot have control over us, as long as we are controlled by the living Christ!
1 Jn. 4:4 "Greater is He that is in you [the living Christ] than he that is in the world [Satan]." Jesus will deliver you from bondage, if you will yield that particular area of your life to HIM!
When a 6’4" muscular Arab man tried to light an explosive in his shoe on Flight #63 to Paris, a flight attendant tackled him and with the help of five passengers, subdued him and saved the lives of the 197 people on board. How could such a little defender subdue such a large opponent? With lots of help! How can we overcome powerful Satan and his dominions? With the victorious Christ in our hearts and the intercessory help of our brothers and sisters in Him. Together in Christ, Satan has no power over us! And think of how many lives an be saved if we tackle and subdue him!
Praise God, Jesus Christ has won the victory over Satan by His resurrection!
III. HIS VICTORY OVER THE SECOND DEATH
We, as followers of Jesus Christ, have no need to fear physical death, because we know that we cannot die spiritually. Jesus said to Martha in John 11:25+26 (our key verse) ’I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die [spiritually]. Do you believe this?’"
Because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, physical death to us is but an entrance into glory! Paul said in 2 Cor. 5:8 "We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord." and
Phil. 1:21+23 "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain....For I am hard pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better."
To the believer in Christ, the grave is but a "flower pot out of which a beautiful Easter Lily will bloom!"
1 Cor. 15:42-44 "So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body."
Therefore Paul concludes in verses 54-57: "So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: ’Death is swallowed up in victory.’ O Death, where is your sting? O Grave, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."
So, for those of us who have received Jesus Christ as personal Lord and Savior, the second death, or eternal separation from God, is not possible.
Rev. 20:6 "Blessed and holy is he who has part in the first resurrection. Over such the second death has no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years." (and then for all eternity! Rev. 21+22)
MAX LUCADO, (as quoted by Bruce Howell) in his book, Six Hours One Friday, tells the story of a missionary in Brazil who discovered a tribe of Indians in a remote part of the jungle. They lived near a large river. The tribe was in need of medical attention. A contagious disease was ravaging the population. People were dying daily.
A hospital was not too terribly far away- across the river, but the Indians would not cross it because they believed it was inhabited by evil spirits. To enter the water would mean certain death. The missionary explained how he had crossed the river and was unharmed. They were not impressed. He then took them to the bank and placed his hand in the water. They still wouldn’t go in. He walked into the water up to his waist and splashed water on his face. It didn’t matter. They were still afraid to enter the river. Finally, he dove into the river, swam beneath the surface until he emerged on the other side. He punched a triumphant fist into the air. He had entered the water and escaped. It was then that the Indians broke out into a cheer and followed him across.
That’s exactly what Jesus did! He told the people of His day that they need not fear the river of death, but they wouldn’t believe. He touched a dead boy and called him back to life. They still didn’t believe. He whispered life into the body of a dead girl and got the same result. He let a dead man spend 4 days in a tomb and then called him out and the people still didn’t believe Him. Finally, He entered the river of death and came out on the other side.
Praise the Lord, Jesus Christ has won the victory over the second death by His resurrection!
Conclusion: The same VICTORY Christ has won over sin, Satan and the second death- can be ours as well through Him!
First of all, if you have never trusted
Him alone for your salvation, you must believe that He died and rose again for you and invite Him to take control of your life. At the moment you commit your life to Him, three things will happen:
-1. Your sin will be removed
-2. The Holy Spirit will come to dwell in your heart as your protection against Satan.
-3. You will have eternal life and will never die spiritually! ("He that has the Son has life..." 1Jn. 5:12a)
WHAT AN EXCHANGE!
~Our sin for Christ’s righteousness!
~Our weakness for Christ’s power!
~Our death for Christ’s life!
Secondly, as believers, we too can enter into the victory of the resurrection by recognizing and reckoning on the fact that we rose with Christ! Thus, we are alive to God through Him!
Rom. 6:4-5 "Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection..."
Col. 2:12 "...buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead."
As Christians we have the privilege of daily walking with the risen Savior, and it is our personal relationship with Him that will provide the necessary power for us to triumph over sin, Satan and our circumstances every day of our lives!
But just what does it mean to be ALIVE in Christ?
Rom. 6:11 "Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but ALIVE to God in Christ Jesus our Lord."
(Resurrection acrostic):
A-cknolwedge your identification with Christ in His death and resurrection.
L-et Him live His life through you.
I-nvite His Spirit to fill you.
V-erify His resurrection by fellowshipping with Him each day.
E-xpect daily victory over sin and Satan.
In just a few moments, we are going to view a short video depiction of the crucifixion of Jesus. As you watch it, picture yourself dying with Christ to sin, Satan and the second death. Then, as you picture in your mind the glorious resurrection, envision yourself rising with Christ to righteousness, freedom and eternal life.
Let this illustration burn into your heart- then go out and live in the light of it!
Jesus Christ has triumphed now, Hallelujah! We will triumph through Him, Praise the Lord!
~Pastor Jim Westervelt, gracefellowship3@earthlink.net
~CHURCH WEBSITE:
http://LovingGrace.net
