God’s Loud Declaration
“Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the
prince of this world be cast out. And I, if I be lifted up from
the earth, will draw all men unto me.” This He said, signifying
what death He should die (John 12:31–33).
“And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are
yet in your sins. Then they also which are fallen asleep in
Christ are perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ,
we are of all men most miserable. But now is Christ risen
from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
For since by man came death, by man came also the
resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in
Christ shall all be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15:17–22).
THE DIVINITY OF JESUS IS PROVED BY HIS RESURRECTION
Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life: he
that believeth in Me shall never die.”
Peter proclaimed, “Jesus of Nazareth, a man
approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and
signs, which God did by Him in the midst of you, as ye
yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the
determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have
taken and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: whom
God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of death,
because it was not possible that He should be holden of it…
This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.
Therefore, being by the right hand of God exalted, and
having received of the Father the promise of the Holy Ghost,
He hath shed forth this, which ye now see and hear…
Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God
hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both
Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:22–36).
THE SOVEREIGNTY OF JESUS DEPENDS ON HIS
RESURRECTION
Paul said, “For to this end Christ both died, and rose,
and revived, that He might be Lord both of the dead and
living” (Romans 14:9).
OUR JUSTIFICATION DEPENDS ON JESUS’ RESURRECTION
Paul again: “He was delivered for our offences and
was raised again for our justification” (Romans 4:25).
OUR REGENERATION DEPENDS ON JESUS’ RESURRECTION
Peter writes: “We are begotten again unto a lively hope
by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).
OUR RESURRECTION DEPENDS ON JESUS’ RESURRECTION
Romans 8:11 assures us: “If the Spirit of Him that raised
up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies…” And if Christ be not risen, then we shall not rise. But if He is risen, then those who are asleep in Christ have not perished. In their flesh, they shall surely behold their God.
So, what is the verdict? Has Jesus risen? Yes! God has
thundered, and the whole earth has heard: Jesus is Lord! He was “declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:4).
That thunder began as a whisper in the Garden—where
God met Adam and Eve and declared a Redeemer would come. “His heel shall be bruised, but He shall crush the serpent’s head.” David picked up the whisper: “My Lord said to my Lord… [He would] not let Him see corruption, nor leave Him in the grave.” And then God thundered! How He must have anticipated this moment—spoken of for millennia. Now, He did it! No one wouldmiss it. The grave opened her mouth, and Jesus came forth!
What would be the next marvel of God following the
resurrection? Nothing less than the advent of the Holy Ghost and spirit-annointed preaching. What text would the Holy Spirit use on Pentecost? What arrow would He pull from His quiver to
banish the devil’s lies? Even this: “This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses… God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:32, 36).
And what has God accomplished by raising Jesus from
the dead? Peter said it best: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead—
To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth
not away, reserved in heaven for you… Who are kept by the
power of God through faith unto salvation… Whom having not seen, ye love; in whom, though now ye see Him not, yet believing, ye rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory: receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.”
GOD HAS GIVEN US HOPE THROUGH THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS
This divinely ordained hope has entered into
God’s presence for us. Our hope is indestructible because He has an indestructible life. Our hope is now our High Priest, living and interceding for us before the Father.
Our hope is God’s appointed Advocate, who pleads for
us by the merits of His own blood. Our hope is our Brother—Who is not ashamed to call us His own.
The risen Lord calls, “Come, My beloved. I have
loved thee with an everlasting love and have bought
thee—though thou wast a sinner vile. And now I am
not ashamed to confess thee before My holy angels…
Come with Me, and I will take thee to My Father’s face
and confess thee there.” (Spurgeon)
My hope is that all God sees in Jesus—His
obedience, His virtue—will be attributed to me that His
righteousness becomes my own. My hope is that my
failure and sin is not strong enough to prevail over
Jesus blood and advocacy. My hope is His very own
blood, on the mercy seat, and His appeal for my life is
more than sufficient to satisfy the justice of God. My
ultimate hope is not healing, promotion, or wealth—
though He may grant these.
My hope is that I shall see Him—and be found like
Him!
I may be poor and wretched here—
There, I will be rich!
I may wrestle with sin here—
There, I will be clothed in righteousness!
I may groan in this frail body—
There, I shall have a new one!
JESUS HAS BEEN MADE LORD
Satan claimed the jurisdiction of the world.
Jesus did not deny his claim. However, Jesus went to
the Cross crying, “Now shall the prince of this world be
cast out.” And Jesus rose proclaiming, “All jurisdiction
has been given to me in the heavens and earth!”
Jesus’ resurrection says it all! If Jesus is not
raised, then you are still in your sins. If Jesus is not
raised, He is not who He claimed to be: He is not the
Son, He is not God, He cannot provide you with life. If
Jesus is not raised from the dead, then He is not the
Messiah, and He has not fully put away your sins.
However, they are singing in heaven, around the
throne, and on earth: the Lamb that was slain is alive
forevermore!
JESUS HAS DEFEATED THE KING OF TERRORS
By His death and resurrection, Jesus has “freed
those who all their lives were held in slavery by their
fear of death”(Hebrews 2:15).
Job called death the king of terrors (Job 18:14).
But Paul declared: “O death, where is thy sting? O
grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin,
and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God,
which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus
Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:55–57).
Satan’s greatest weapon has become his defeat!
Death has been swallowed up in victory. The grave is
empty. The thief has been spoiled by the Prince of Life!
God put all my sins on the Cross and laid them on Jesus,
my substitute.
I see inflexible justice, holiness, truth, and
righteousness in dealing with my sins and making a
clear and eternal riddance of them. How could one sin
remain if God Himself has taken the matter in hand?
Not one of them is suffered to pass!
Because Jesus is risen, my sins are gone—cast
behind His back, blotted out like a thick cloud. Should I
not have peace? If God shows me the Man who bore
my sins—now crowned in glory—how can my soul not
rest? Everything Jesus gained, everything He won,
everything He now possesses—
The Holy Ghost has come to make it yours!
• He has gained your forgiveness.
• He has obtained holiness for you.
• He has become your righteousness.
• He is your source of provision.
• He has secured your mercy.
• He has given you peace.
• He has purchased your healing.
• He has opened your inheritance.
• He has secured your glory.
Rejoice believer: Neither death nor life, neither
angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future,
nor any powers… nor anything else in all creation, will
be able to separate us from the love of God that is in
Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38–39).
Lee Shipp