Jesus' Resurrection
QUESTION: Jesus' resurrection - Why is it important?ANSWER:Despite all the progress made by mankind, man is yet to successfully eradicate death. Death is an ill-fated consequence of sin. Romans 6:23 declares, "For the wages of sin is death. . ." Indeed no man, through his own efforts, can omit himself from this unfortunate outcome. "Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all men, because all sinned" (Romans 5:12).
This inescapable situation makes Jesus' resurrection important.
The rest of Romans 6:23 reads as follows,". . .but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."
Romans 5:17 also states, "For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God's abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ."
A wonderful opportunity has been provided to obtain God's free gift of eternal life and righteousness as a result of Jesus' death on the cross followed by Jesus' resurrection.
In John 11:25 we read, "Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies." It seems almost like a paradox. However, what we need to realize is that besides the physical death which has come upon us because of sin there is the greater distress of spiritual death (inability to fellowship with God and being under His condemnation and punishment for sin).
Jesus was put to death for our trespasses and raised (resurrected) for our justification (Romans 4:25).
He has given us the opportunity to be at peace with God (Romans 5:1). We are also no longer under God's condemnation, "Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men" (Romans 5:18).
Jesus' resurrection means that we are no longer under the dominion of death and more importantly the power of sin. We are now alive in God through what Jesus did. "For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, he cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. The death he died, he died to sin once for all; but the life he lives, he lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus" (Romans 6:9-11).
Therefore, we can walk uprightly after accepting what Jesus has done for us. "Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness" (Romans 6:12-13).
Jesus' resurrection allows those in Christ's to be raised in glory and power with a spiritual body (1 Corinthians 15:42-44).
"And just as we have borne the likeness of the earthly man, so shall we bear the likeness of the man from heaven" (1 Corinthians 15:49). Indeed this is something to eagerly anticipate in the future.
But for now, Jesus' resurrection means that he is alive interceding on your behalf before God the Father (Romans 8:34) Why not go to Him and make your request for a life free from the power of sin and death - a resurrected life.
