Resurrection : Prayer Faith, Living And Experience Made New!!

Resurrection : Prayer Faith, Living and Experience made New!!

Some of you might remember the Latin words we studied on Good Friday. Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi, Lex Vivendi and Lex Experiendi.

We saw on Friday that these four laws of Christian Theology are fulfilled on the cross. How are they relevant to the Resurrection Sunday? That is the theme we will explore this morning. I have titled the sermon “Resurrection : Prayer Faith, Living and Experience made New!!”

1. Lex Orandi: The law of prayer. On the Cross, we saw that Jesus fulfilled the law of prayer in three ways

a. Intercession: By interceding for those who crucified him. “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” Luke 23:34

b. Surrender: Surrendering to God’s will . “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” Luke 23:46

c. Instant answer to prayer: “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.” Luke 23:43

In resurrection Jesus continues to fulfil the law of prayer in all these three ways and more.

a. He continues to intercede for us. 1 John 2:1 says “If anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.” Resurrection lifts him up to a much more influential position. “It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us”. Romans 8:34. He is interceding for us sitting at the right hand of God. On the cross, Jesus interceded for us from a position of suffering. After resurrection he is interceding for us from a position of power and authority. Ephesians 1:20–23 confirms this “He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” That is the power of resurrection. Philippians 2:9–11 further confirms this. “Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name that is above every name…” Because Jesus intercedes from this position of power, Hebrews 7:25 says “Therefore He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them.”. His intercession is even more powerful after the resurrection, to save us completely. It is the highest guarantee we can get for our salvation. His intercession is eternal, as the author of Hebrews says, He “always lives” to make intercession for us. We don’t need to depend on High priests who have an expiry date. Jesus’ intercession is eternal. Jesus continues to fulfil the law of prayer through intercession from the position of power and authority.

b. On the cross, Jesus prayed the payer of surrender. At the resurrection, this prayer gets transformed into a loud praise of “He is/ has risen” Matthew 28:6, Mark 16:6, Luke 24:6. The prayer becomes an occasion for us give thanks as we see in 1 Peter 1:3 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In His great mercy He has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” Because of the resurrection we pray to a living God. We don’t pray as those who hope vaguely — we pray to the living God, who has overcome the grave. Our praise and worship is no longer framed by death, but by victory, joy, and presence. Because Christ is risen, our prayers rise with power. Every “Lord, have mercy” becomes “He is risen, indeed!”

c. On the cross, Jesus answered the prayer of the dying thief instantly. At the resurrection God answered Jesus’ prayer of surrender , not with words but with an empty tomb. In the garden of gethsemane, Jesus prayed that the Father’s will be done , about the bitter cup . To those who did not have an insight into God’s eternal plans it appears that God answered that prayer not by taking away the cup, but through the cross. But the cross was not the complete answer. The complete answer to Jesus’s prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane came when God raised Him up at the resurrection. On Cross we saw Jesus instantly answers an explicitly spoken prayer of the dying thief. After resurrection we see many instances where God answers even unspoken prayers. He answers the unspoken prayers of Mary Magdalene in front of the tomb, transforming her sorrow into joy (John 20:11-18). He answers the unspoken prayers of Cleopas and another disciple on the road to Emmaus. They were confused and longing for meaning, they were seeking in unspoken prayer. The resurrected Jesus answers their prayers by appearing before them, walking with them, opening their eyes to the scripture and breaking bread with them. (Luke 24:13–35). After the crucifixion, the disciples were hiding in fear, confusion and doubt. Their hearts were filled with the unspoken prayers for peace, safety, purpose and meaning. Jesus appears to them and answers their unspoken prayers in John 20:19-22. Jesus allays their fears by pronouncing peace upon them. He gives them purpose by sending them out just as the Father had sent him to the world. He strengthens them by asking them to receive the Holy Spirit. The resurrected Christ is answering their unspoken prayers. Look at Peter. After his denial, his heart must have been longing for reconciliation. His unspoken prayer for reconciliation is answered by the resurrected Christ when Jesus askes him three times “Do you love me?” and calls him to lead the church every time . (John 21:15-19). The resurrection does not just prove God’s power but it gives us the confidence that even our unspoken prayers are answered by our God.