The Resurrection Is What Gives Us Faith

An Open Letter

Dear Church Member: Don’t wait until the hearse hauls you to church. If you do, you will go, regardless of the weather. You will go, regardless of the condition of your body. There will be beautiful flowers there, but you won’t enjoy them. You will go, regardless of how your family feels. The minister may say many good things, but they will do you no good. There will be beautiful music, but you won’t hear it. There will be heartfelt prayers, but they will not touch your heart. There will be friends and relatives there, but you won’t worship with them. You will go, no matter how many hypocrites are there. You will go, no matter how much you are needed at work or at home. You will receive no blessing from the service. You won’t feel concerned about your clothes. You will never have to decide about attending church again. Aren’t you glad to be alive and well and full of zest and able to choose to go to church?

The Resurrection is what gives us faith I Corinthians 15:1-8

"The Gospels do not explain the Resurrection -- the Resurrection explains the Gospels." --John S. Whale

The truth of being a Christian knows there is one Lord and He is Jesus Christ, who was born, lived in this world, was crucified and was resurrected. The disciples followed Christ for three years and confessed He was the One to save us from our sins. When the devastation of the crucifixion happened, their confession was crushed. This lead to them deserting and denying Him. It was Easter that changed their hearts and the history of the world. It was the risen Lord that changed these men from being aimless wanderers, faith without someone to have faith in and gave them hope that is still alive today.

1 Cor. 15:17 If Christ hasn’t come back to life, your faith is worthless and sin still has you in its power.

A. In Christ, only we find faith with a future. Faith in any other has no future because anything else has no resurrection power.

1. Today, our faith has a future because His life triumphed over death.

Jesus was perfect in all he did and before God even in His thought life. He did what was right all the time and never sinned. He was put to death by those guilty of sin because they did not want have to live under the love He demanded people to give. Teaching of Scripture will come true: "Death is turned into victory! Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting?" Sin gives death its sting, and God’s standards give sin its power. Thank God that he gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. The resurrection proves right the message of Christ. Death cannot defeat life. GEN 3:15 “From now on, you and the woman will be enemies, and your offspring and her offspring will be enemies. He will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." We do not have to fear the threats of Satan for it has been caused to be ineffective and incapable to hurt those who are in Christ Jesus. Those without belief in the resurrection have problem in that they have no future to look forward too. It even says in this chapter that if in this life 1 Cor. 15:19 “And if we have hope in Christ only for this life, we are the most miserable people in the world.” As we put our hope in this world and the things of this world, we are miserable. Only the resurrection of Christ gives us hope that goes beyond this world.

2. Today, our faith has a future because His light shines in the darkness.

John 1:4 “Life itself was in him, and this life gives light to everyone. The light shines through the darkness, and the darkness can never quench it.” Jesus is the Light of the world. When He came, He brought the light but the men of this world did not want that light and shortly after He started giving the light that would bring the truth of God, they set out to put Him to death. They tried to keep Him from teaching and loving. They did their best to keep people from listening and walking in the new light He was giving. (Man born blind). They got their way they felt when they nailed Him to a tree and there was darkness that covered the earth for three hours. Just think for three hours the world was left to itself while evil, hate, the lie and death held its influence. Three days later, He ascended from the tomb and the Light now shines brighter than ever. That lights now shines through all those who declare He lives! Those who tried to stop the light cannot stop what the Bible says in that "Every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord.