Resurrection, Asension, Session, And Second Coming. Series

SO GREAT A SALVATION - RESURRECTION, ASENSION, SESSION, AND SECOND COMING

I. Resurrection.

The suffering of Christ would have been of no value had it not been for the resurrection. The resurrection is the proof of the worth of Christ's offering for sin. It is definitely related to the gospel.

"1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures," 1 Corinthians 15:1-4

A. Resurrection is Proof.

1. Of Jesus Christ's Deity (Ac.10:40-42; 13:33-39/Rom.1:4). There are other proofs, but without this one, the others wuld be useless. Only Deity could save or suffer for others. If there were a perfect man, this one could, perhaps, die for another but only for one. Christ died for all.

2. Of our Delivery (Rom.4:24). The verse could be translated, "Who was delivered on account of our transgressions, and raised on account of our justification" that is, because we sinned, He had to die in our place; and because He accomplished our justification, He rose.

B. Resurrection is Power.

We are united with Christ in His death, even so we are in His resurrection (Rom.6:1-11; 7:4). The power of resurrection is the power of our new life; it is a life of resurrection (Rom.7:4). God wants us to believe and reckon this power in our daily lives (Eph.1:18-20).

II. Ascension.

When we compare John 20:17 with John 20:27, it indicates that Jesus ascended on the day He was resurrected; and then again40 days later.

A. First ascension of Christ.

1. Fulfillment - He entered heaven by His blood (Heb.8:6-10:18), fulfilling thus the promise of redemption made before time (Tit.1:2). Fulfilling the type of the high priest who entered the tabernacle with the blood, on the Day of Atonement (Heb.9:7,12).

2. First-fruits - He became the first-fruits of all believers, fulfilling thus the type of the wave-offering (Lev.23:10-11), and His body in heaven is the model for that of every believer in the resurrection (Phil.3:21).

B. Second ascension of Christ.

1. Head - He was made head over all things to the church (Eph.1:19-23).

2. Highly exalted - He was given a name above every name (Phil. 2:9-10).

3. Happiness - He was given mega joy! (Heb.12:2).

III. Session.

A. Gifts Presented.

He confers gifts the church (Eph.4:7-14) and is the director of the activities of His people (1 Cor.12:4-11). All Christians are appointed to serve (Rom.12:1-8/1 Cor. 12:1-13/Eph.4:7-14). A gift in these passages is not a natural capacity but a special God-given ability within the Body of Christ. Manifestations of the Spirit (1 Cor. 12:7).

B. Intercedes in Prayer. Heb. 7:25

1. Expressed for believers - He does not pray for the world but for His own (Jn. 17:9,20).

2. Example of His Praying - Lu. 22:31-32.

3. Advocates for our Protection - In 1 John we see how sin effects the believe, bring about a loss of fellowship. Restoration is by way of confession (1 Jn.1:9). In 1 John 2:1-2, we see the effect of our sin upon the Father. Notice no confession is mentioned in this passage, the focus is not on us but on our advocate, Jesus Christ the righeous. He justly defends us because He has shed His blood which paid the penalty of our sins. Satan the accuser of the brethren is always at work (Rev. 12:10), but Jesus response to these accusations is not our innocence but His shed blood.

IV. Second Coming.

His second coming completes salvation. For the church our focus is on the rapture of the church when we will see the redemption of our bodies. This will be followed by 7 years of Tribulation, which will end in Christ coming back to this earth to set up His earthly kingdom.

Con:

Thus we have briefly looked at the Savior, this is obviously not a detailed study but just an overview of this doctrine. Some will complain that it is too brief, yes it surely is, but I feel that it is important to get the big picture. Next we will look at the Salvation itself.

Johnny Palmer Jr

StrugglingThruScriptures.ning.com