Beyond Today Program - "Saved By His Life"

Does your life seen empty and unfocused? Jesus Christ can fill that hole in your life with genuine hope, courage and purpose.

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Transcript - "Saved By His Life"

[Darris] This is a bottle of anti-depressant medicine. It goes by various names but they all do the same. They help people deal with depression and it helps them cope with everyday life. Millions of people are helped by drugs like these. Millions are given hope for each day of life by taking these drugs.

Someone close to me came to the point of being given some of these pills a few years ago during a challenging time of their life. The doctor opened his closet. He handed a package of antidepressants and he said, "take two of these and call me in the morning." It's that easy...or is it?

People have to do what they have to do to cope with the stresses of modern life, and drugs are just one.

There are many reasons people turn to medication like this to cope with life. One reason is because their lives have become empty and without hope. They lack or they've never found true meaning in life.

But could there be a deeper solution?

On today's program, we are going to look at what the Bible shows to be the solution for every one of us when it comes to a lasting hope in life. Join us on Beyond Today as we look at how we are "Saved By His Life."

[Announcer] Join our host Darris McNeely and his guests, as they help you understand your future on Beyond Today!

[Darris] I use this bottle of pills as an illustration of a fundamental need that each of us has in life. While some prescribe medication to deal with a problem, other people turn to destructive methods to deal with this issue. I could use a bottle of beer, a deck of cards or a set of dice or even a computer to show the problem. Many of us have a big hole in our lives that we fill with legitimate medications, or even harmful addictions.

It is a need for hope. It's a need for meaning and understanding of who we are and what life is all about. We need to understand that there is a God. We need to see why human life is on this earth. And we need to understand who we are as individuals and what our purpose and destiny can be.

That purpose is not found in any bottle or through any chemical or any other common addictive pursuit. Life's meaning is found in the Bible--in the Word of God. And there is hope in that purpose. There's enough hope there for a lifetime of meaning and fulfillment.

So in today's program I am going to walk you through a passage of Scripture that shows this hope and gives us understanding to maintain hope even when life throws us a curve that could turn us upside down.

It comes down to knowing we have hope in salvation through the life of Jesus Christ. Because Jesus Christ came as the Son of God and lived a perfect life in the flesh, died for our sins and was resurrected, we have the assurance of hope for eternal life as a Son of God--sharing in the glory of God. Here, in this knowledge, is enough hope for a content life of purpose and meaning.

Let's understand.

In previous episodes of Beyond Today we have laid out the biblical teaching that shows God's purpose and His plan for human life on earth. We've shown God's will to redeem our lives through the death and the life of Jesus Christ. That Jesus Christ died and that He rose from the grave three days and nights later--it's the most important news you can have.

The resurrected Christ can change your life.

His life in you today can lift the discouragement and the emptiness from your life.

His life can fill you with positive life, real hope and enduring courage. It's our choice whether we will let Him live in us today.

Now you may be thinking, this is not reality--at least not your reality. You may be either too turned off to a religious message or feel that you are too far gone to deserve God's love and attention. Either way, you would be wrong.

Because every one of us must have hope so that we can live a stable life with purpose and meaning. Without hope, we feel helpless, empty, without focus and meaning, life can't go on. And when we feel that empty--with that big a hole in our life--we are setting ourselves up for something or someone to fill the gap…and that doesn't always go well. When we have no hope we are tempted to slip into an addiction. But you don't have to take that path because God has provided a better way.

In the Bible, we have an encouraging passage that shows us this road to hope. It was written by a man who had learned just how big a hole he had in his life. He then dedicated his life to helping others fill theirs.

Look at what the apostle Paul writes in the book of Romans in the New Testament as he conveys this truth. He says, "God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation" (Romans 5:8-10).

This passage gives us something to talk about. We need to have a balanced, proper perspective that focuses on both Christ's death and His life.

There is focus in this passage on His passion and His death. Christ's suffering and death is a very important part of God's plan. Christ's death provides us with the sacrifice that's necessary for the reconciliation with God and the forgiveness of sin. Both very important!

But this only begins the process. That Christ lived again, was resurrected from the grave and lives today is necessary for us to have any hope of eternal life. We are saved, and salvation--or eternal life--is a gift of God by grace.

This is the foundation for hope in our life--that Christ rose from the dead and lives today as the Son of God at the right hand of God as our High Priest. His life makes possible our hope for an eternal life with God.

The Bible tells us God's purpose is to bring "many sons to glory"--to share His spirit life with the human creation. That's what this life is about. Life has a purpose and it is to inherit glory as a joint heir with Jesus Christ.

This is why Christ was born of a virgin, why He lived and why He died as a sacrifice for you. That you might share the glory of a spirit life with God for eternity, and that is what eternal life is. God by becoming flesh, dying and being resurrected paved the way for your future eternal life. And this then is the bedrock anchor of the hope we have in this life.

Now, how is this quality of hope developed? Well the answer is right in front of us every day. You see the circumstances of our life are designed to help us develop hope.

We will look at that in a moment. But I want to mention our special supplement to this program. We have prepared a special study aid as a help to your understanding of this subject.

As I've discussed so far, one reason many people turn to drugs today is because their lives have become empty and without hope. They have never found true meaning in life. So what's the solution? It comes down to knowing that we can have hope in salvation through the life of Jesus Christ.

To help you discover how an enduring relationship with Him can instill in you real joy and purpose, I'd like to offer you a free copy of our Bible study aid: Jesus Christ: Saved by His Life. This vital publication will provide you with important details about this serious and absorbing subject, and will only be available in print for a limited time. To order your own free copy of Jesus Christ: Saved by His Life call us toll free at: 1-888-886-8632. That's 1-888-886-8632, or go online to BeyondToday.tv. Or, you can write to us at the address that is shown on your screen throughout the program [Beyond Today, PO Box 541027, Cincinnati, OH 45254].

Author Eugene Peterson says that "Hope is when you buy into what you believe." This is a true statement.

What do you believe? Is it based on the Word of God? Is it grounded in spiritual reality? When something bad happens to good people, how do you react?

Even closer, when you and I pass into a serious and trying event, whether it is of health, a financial stress, or emotionally challenging--how do we react? Does our faith hold? Does our faith keep us buoyed in hope? Or do we crumble at the first signs of distress and abandon our faith and our love for God?

How do we react when life throws us a curve? In baseball what separates the big leaguers from the up-and-comers is the ability to hit the curve ball. A batter who can't hit the curve ball in baseball is in trouble.

Life's going to throw us curve balls. Can we hit them? As a pastor, I have worked for years with good people who face the challenges of life.

I have sat by the bedside of the dying. I've taken the 2 AM phone call of distress. I have counseled the addicted, the destitute and the down-and-outers.

I have had people come to my door, dripping wet in the rain in the middle of the night and needing help to put their marriage back together.

I have stood by the grave with parents and watched as their stillborn child was lowered into the grave.

And even now, I pray for and counsel people dealing with cancer, stricken children and depressed lives. Let's be honest. Bad things happen to good people every day and when it does, there is one place I take them to explain what God is doing. I take them to the passage in Romans that we read earlier.

Let's look at another portion of this scripture. It will show us why hope is built upon the truth that we are saved by the life of Jesus Christ. Let's go back, let's look at what it says.

In Romans 5:1, it begins this way, "Therefore, since we have been made right in God's sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done…"

Peace with God. Think about the level of anger, of strife, hatred and division that exists in the world today. We see it all around us: political division, religious strife, and racial division. Look at any moment on television or the internet and you see the examples.

It affects each of us. Do you find yourself restless? Agitated? Angry for no reason? Suspicious? Well, look around at our environment--the talk we hear, the feelings we have. It all affects us. It keeps us from being at peace.

A few years ago, someone came to me who was having some emotional problems and as we discussed the situation it came out that the solution that she came up with really would help. She decided to turn off the talk radio that she listened to each day on her commute to work and home. The argumentative polarizing talk of talk radio was causing her distress. She turned it off. How about you? Are you at peace?

Paul in this passage is showing how deep inner peace begins when we see that we have in God a Father and in Jesus Christ a brother--a real brother. And that changes our whole life.

Paul goes on in Romans again and he says, "Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God's glory" (Romans 5:2).

What he means is that once we enter a real relationship with God we have His favor and His good will. God looks at us like a good father, humanly would look at his own son and that is with affection and love. We don't need to fear that we might somehow be thrown out of the house if we are bad in our homes. God doesn't work that way either. God is not abusive.

My wife was telling me a story recently where she was discussing with a woman about how the other woman had packed up her stuff one night and left her home because her mate was upset over the fact she'd packed up a number of items, and one of them was a cherished cookie jar. And she had sent them off to the Goodwill store. Well he got upset. Now he didn't get physically abusive or whatever but he was upset. He just didn't want his cherished cookie jar given away. It meant something to him, didn't mean anything to her. But, because this woman had been in another abusive relationship in the past, she interpreted his disfavor as personal and she packed up and left that night. When he came after and apologized and explained that his love really hadn't changed, he was just upset she had sold his cookie jar, she realized she had overreacted.  When my wife heard this she told her that, look, you need to learn that in some relationships you are going to hit times of disagreement but you don't have to run away. You stay and you work it out.

Well, we stand in God's grace today. And when trials hit, when difficult things happen, even when we know that we might be at fault, it doesn't mean God has left us, or forgotten us or turned His back on us.
Now let's go back to what Paul says because he gets down to the hard part. He says, "We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials" (Romans 5:3). 

Rejoice in trials. I don't know of a single person who is happy when something bad happens to them. Personally, I like a peaceful uncomplicated and settled life. But we all know that bad things happen every day. And sometimes they happen to us or someone close to us.

Recently I was spending some time on Facebook and a post came up about someone that I had known many years ago--a single parent with 2 children and now battling cancer. My heart went out to them. I hadn't seen this person in well over 20 years, and it was a tragic situation.

Recently another friend came along and spent some time talking to me about the prospect of losing his job. Have you ever faced that kind of trial? Sure you have. It's a part of life. Creates fear, uncertainty, knowing that your life is going to dramatically change.

What are you facing?

God does not promise us a life without challenges. This life is a preparation for another life to come and when we understand this, we have a key to life that leads to hope.

Paul continues in Romans, he says, for we know that they help us develop endurance. "And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation" (Romans 5:3-4). Trials work endurance, that's what he's saying. And when we hang in there the endurance then will work and build character with us; and that character works hope.

Here in short form is the biblical answer to how we work our way through a trial without giving up on life, without giving up on others, or without giving up on God. We have to be patient knowing that we still have God standing with us. Remember, we have God's favor. We stand in His grace. God's not left us but we have to remain around and we have to find out what He has for us to learn. And we will learn through the experiences of life.

We cannot escape this fundamental part of life. No matter how "good' we are. No matter what we believe or don't believe. We are going to pass through challenging, difficult experiences.

The key is to face them with grace and with God. Face them and determine to work through them to the end, whatever that end might be.

When we are patient we will then develop positive experience. Trials will end. Illness can pass, we continue on. We find another job. The difficult moments pass with time and we heal. It's then that we have learned something about ourselves, about God and about life.

We have therefore, experience. And with that experience, we will be better able to know how to work through the next period of difficulty. With that experience we will also be prepared to help another person going through the same thing.

Paul concludes this thought. He says, "And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love" (Romans 5:5).

What can we do with hope?

We can meet each trial with determination and get through it. God uses our trials to fulfill His promise, to perform His salvation. We can see each trial to its end. And if the end is tragic, hope can pick us up and move us down the road; help us get back into the game.

With hope, we can encourage those who are going through trials. Our hope then becomes a beacon for others. With hope, we can honor God by enduring and not turning tail and running from Him. Hope keeps us from anger and denial.

That's what it means to be saved by His life. Through a relationship with God, we can have a deep and lasting hope in this life. Now we have prepared a valuable study aid to help take you into a deeper study of this topic. It's called, Jesus Christ: Saved by His Life. It will give you vital keys on how to find great hope in this life with Jesus Christ and the spiritual salvation that He offers.

Remember, we only have a limited number of copies available in print. Once we run out--Jesus Christ: Saved by His Life will be available only as an electronic download. If you request it now you can have this limited-edition booklet in print.

And when you order, Jesus Christ: Saved by His Life we'll also send you a free subscription to our bi-monthly magazine. This valuable publication will give you exceptional insight into the practical teachings of the Bible. It will also help you comprehend the significance of Bible prophecies which will aid you in preparing for the thrilling future that lies beyond today.

To order your free copy of Jesus Christ: Saved by His Life and to receive your free subscription to our magazine, call: 1-888-886-8632 or go online to BeyondToday.tv. Or, you can write to the address shown on your screen [Beyond Today, PO Box 541027, Cincinnati, OH 45254].

Now we're joined by our Beyond Today panel, fellow hosts Steve Myers and Gary Petty.

This is a very intense subject--it was for me to prepare this and go through it--very personal as you could tell as well. Talking about being saved by His life, and salvation and kind of a thick, dense type of topic, I recognize. But it really does come down to our personal lives and these things that impact us every day if we understand that through that understanding of salvation and Christ's life we do have that hope. How does all this fit together?

[Gary] You know, hope is a positive expectation. You expect something to happen. When we turn to Jesus Christ, we accept that He died for our sins and when He died for our sins we have this freedom--we realize we can have a relationship with God. But you know, it's more than that. It's more than just Jesus hanging on a cross. I think people see Him in that way and there's cross crucifixes that people have.

He is resurrected and He is working right now to keep us reconciled to God. God did not send His Son--Jesus Christ did not go through all that pain and heartache and suffering and then go through a resurrection--to throw us away very easily. God the Father wants us as children.

[Darris] We have value to God.

[Gary] Every human being has value to God. And therefore we can hope, we can have this expectation that He is going to work in our lives and He is going to work things out for our good.

[Steve] It puts a whole different perspective on our lives when we understand what God's doing. You think about that title with this whole concept of "Saved by His Life." It puts the context in a plan that God has. There is a plan for our life, so it's not just about today. You know if He inspired Scripture to say, if we only hope in this life we are most miserable, we are most pitied.

And so God says there's more than just what's going on right now. So it gives us a perspective on our difficulties and our trials and the challenges that we face. That God has a plan, and it's an eternal plan. That this physical life is just a temporary existence. That God has certainly a hope for the future that we can all look to.

[Darris] You look at a common church symbol today of Christ hanging on a cross--crucifix, symbolizing His death, which for some people that's as far as they go. Now also, Scriptures tell us that He was resurrected and He lives today and as we've talked out of Romans 5 here, we are saved by His life. You just quoted 1 Corinthians 15 that that resurrection is critical. But then the real impact for us in our personal lives is that He is a living High Priest. As you said, God values that sacrifice and He values what it is applied for us and done. So He's not going to let us go easily. That offers probably a key to success in life that helps us to build that hope, doesn't it?

[Gary] Oh yes. And realize that people forget sometimes or don't even know that Jesus pre-existed that birth. Jesus is God in the flesh. And so He came here and lived that life, died and was resurrected as part of a plan. In the New Testament it says, He was slain from the foundation of the earth. This is God's plan from the very beginning on how to reconcile human beings, bring them back to Him, and that means we can have this incredible relationship with God right now. Right now. Every person can because of the work that He--Christ--is doing right now to bring us to the Father. So this is a key to just everything that life is all about.

[Steve] There is a word in Scripture that is used to describe that very idea. It describes Christ as our "forerunner." That He led the way. And so because He died and was resurrected, we have that opportunity too. He paid the penalty for our sins so we can be there with Him. And so when we dedicate our lives to following Him and serving Him, we have that hope.

[Darris] 1 Corinthians 13:13, Paul says that faith, hope and love are--but the greatest of these is love. But he mentions these three and hope is one of those. Faith and love at times can be developed I understand through reading a Bible, through prayer, looking at the examples. As I was showing, hope can be a little bit different type of commodity to develop because when it's gone in one's life they tend to go to some other physical substitute for it as I was showing. And, that can be a problem, this hope is so--I think that shows the importance of hope.

How do we come to this hope? Arrive at that, much like we would with either faith or love?

[Gary] Hope is different than faith and love, because even though faith and love involve emotions, hope is very much an emotion. And so when we lose hope and we all do, we all hav e times in our life when we just lose hope. We don't have a positive expectation of what God is doing. And those cases, first of all we get on our knees before God and ask for it. We have to accept there are things that we don't do and can't do ourselves. God has to give it to us. And then once He gives it to us, we have to go out and do. We have to live like Jesus lived. We have to go out and love our fellow man.

[Darris] It takes action.

[Gary] It takes action and when we take that action, the emotion comes from the action.

[Steve] And where do we place that confidence. Where do we find that hope? Sometimes I think we feel we have to work it up, but in reality God does give it to us. He grants us that hope and so when we have the confidence and the trust that God believes what He says, He is going to honor what He says, He is going to follow through with His promises--that can give us the hope that we need.

[Darris] I think that as we develop that patience and endurance, we come to hope.

Please don't forget our free offers today: our Bible study aid, Jesus Christ: Saved by His Life and our bi-monthly magazine. Both are yours completely free of charge. To order your copies call us toll free: 1-888-886-8632. That's 1-888-886-8632, or go online to BeyondToday.tv.

Also, while visiting our BeyondToday.tv website we invite you to watch BT Daily. Now these are short daily videos on important Bible topics, prophecy and breaking news. And, you can watch Beyond Today and BT Daily anytime on YouTube or Roku channel.

And, if you'd like to discover even more about the genuine truths of the Bible, we invite you to tune into our live, bi-weekly, Wednesday night Beyond Today Bible Studies. To find them, simply go to the Beyond Today website and click on the "Bible Studies" link on the top-right of the page. Join us as we cover a variety of biblical subjects which offer you real help for today and hope for tomorrow.

This life is filled with challenges. Sometimes these challenges will push us to our very limits--physically, emotionally and spiritually.

It's when the burden feels too great to bear that we are in danger of losing hope. You can fill that hole with a new hope that only a relationship with Jesus Christ can provide. You are created in God's image, and He can help you in any challenging trial and difficult period of your life. These challenges are opportunities to grow in the undeserved favor of Christ.

The hope that's maybe missing in your life, comes through the knowledge and assurance that we are saved by His life--the life of Jesus Christ. Be sure to request our free Bible study aid today and begin learning more about God's chosen way of life for you.

For Beyond Today, I'm Darris McNeely. Thanks for watching.

[Announcer] For the free literature offered on today's program, go online to BeyondToay.tv. Please join us again next week on Beyond Today!

Introduction

A Christian's walk is challenging, and trials can be overwhelming at times. But through the birth, perfect life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we have hope in the ability to overcome life's challenges. Find out how we are saved by His life.

The central series of events for the Christian faith is the story of Jesus Christ. His miraculous conception, His sinless life, His sacrificial death, His prophesied resurrection and His ascension to the Father—without any one of these aspects of Jesus' life, mankind would have no hope.

But through these events, foretold by dozens of ancient biblical prophecies, we have hope of life beyond our temporary physical existence. Through our Savior, we have hope of a resurrection and an end to death itself. For a believer, the focus on Christ's resurrection is a central tenet of faith. What the disciples saw after three days and three nights was a tomb without a body and then the risen Christ in recognizable bodily form. They saw and touched Him. Their mourning was indeed turned to joy. Christ was raised from the dead and appeared to His disciples multiple times over the coming days before finally ascending to heaven. Because of His acceptance by the Father, Christians have the opportunity to receive eternal life.

Understanding the miraculous events surrounding Jesus' resurrection is the first step in understanding His role in your life today. As you'll see, the ongoing life and work of the resurrected Jesus Christ is what enables Christians to have a rich, living relationship with their God in heaven. We are forgiven through Christ's sacrifice and saved by His life.

"He has risen!"

Two men ran through the streets of the city, trying to see if it was true. Over the final sprint one outran the other and arrived on the scene first. Stopping, he stooped down and looked into the space and noticed the linen cloths that had once wrapped a body. Astounded, he didn't immediately enter.

His friend, not hesitating, tucked his head and went inside. He also saw the same linen cloths, with a separate piece lying nearby. He too was stunned.

Then the other joined him inside. Staring at the empty, rock-carved room, they came to realize something beyond human belief had occurred.

These two men, Peter and John, were standing in the empty tomb where a little more than three days and nights earlier the dead body of their Master and Teacher, Jesus of Nazareth, had been placed (see John 20:1-10).

They had come to an empty tomb and, on soon discovering what this meant, their lives were transformed. Jesus was not there. He had risen from the dead.

Everything had changed.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ: Miracle of the Ages

After the sudden arrest, illegal trial, conviction and crucifixion of Jesus, His disciples were in shock. Everything they knew was turned upside down—their Master dead, their fellowship in hiding and their hopes crushed. Their time of rejoicing was at an end, and a funereal fog descended on the earliest disciples.

Certain women among them—including Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome—approached the tomb while it was still dark to anoint the body of Jesus with spices, following the custom of the time.

Finding the heavy stone that covered the tomb entrance rolled away, they entered and were shocked and afraid when they saw "a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side." The man told the women, "He is risen!" and instructed them to go and tell Jesus' other disciples (Mark 16:1-8).

Mary Magdalene and the other women went to tell Peter and John, who then rushed to the tomb. But the only things they found there were Christ's burial wrappings. After they left, Mary stood weeping and confused, then "turned around and saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus" (John 20:14). She did not recognize someone she knew well. She assumed He was the gardener. What followed next was a startling recognition.

"Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!' She turned and said to Him, ‘Rabboni!' (which is to say, Teacher)" (John 20:16). The impossible dream came true—the unbelievable had happened!

This particular moment of recognition is perhaps unsurpassed in all of history. A weeping, distraught woman who thinks everything is lost suddenly realizes her Savior is alive and well and standing before her! The wave of emotion that swept over her must have been indescribable. Jesus simply addressed her in the same way He had so many times before while He was still a human being.

Most of us have had the experience of unexpectedly seeing someone we know well whom we have not seen for a long time. The emotion we experience is difficult to adequately describe. But imagine if it were a loved one over whose brutal death we had just been mourning!

And here He was alive again, though no longer as a man of flesh. When God resurrected Jesus to spirit life, He apparently passed right through his burial wrappings as though they were not there.

The apostle Paul tells us that "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God" (1 Corinthians 15:50). So Christ's resurrection to eternal life was as a glorified spirit being (Philippians 3:21), of the same divine essence as the Father. Yet Christ's resurrection appearances took a wonderful variety of forms. The Gospel accounts show us that no one recognized Him unless He wanted them to see Him as He was.

And so it was that this woman—Mary Magdalene, out of whom Jesus had cast seven demons—was the first human being in history to see the resurrected Christ in person and recognize who He was. What an honor!

For us today, what is the real significance of Christ's resurrection?

Christ's Resurrection: Bigger Than Easter

The life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is the key historical and spiritual reality for a Christian. Without His resurrection, "your faith is futile" (1 Corinthians 15:17). Christ's resurrection is the culmination of the most important series of events that ever happened.

It's surprising then, that the day most people celebrate to remember this most important of events actually obscures the truth of Christ's suffering, death and resurrection. Easter customs not only have non-Christian origins, they actually change the story and keep Christians from fully understanding the truth of salvation. To learn more about the truth of Easter's origins and how it obscures the simple truth of the Bible, read our free study aid Easter: The Rest of the Story online.

A defining teaching

Have you looked into that tomb and considered what it means? Have you seen that Christ has indeed risen from the dead? Have you allowed your life and your thinking to be transformed by this event?

Jesus Christ's resurrection is a defining teaching of the Bible. So let's examine it directly from Scripture, without traditions that were added later.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ formed a central part of the announcement that the apostles took to the world. Peter stated in his first recorded sermon: "Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a Man attested by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs which God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves also know—Him, being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by lawless hands, have crucified, and put to death; whom God raised up, having loosed the pains of death, because it was not possible that He should be held by it . . . 

"This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear . . . Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ" (Acts 2:22-36).

Over the next 40 days some of these men and women personally saw the resurrected Christ and heard His teaching about the Kingdom of God. They saw and accepted this as a fact that confirmed their faith and enabled them to take the gospel to the peoples of their day.

Their testimony, written in the book of Acts and the epistles of Paul, is firsthand evidence—eyewitness testimony of Christ's resurrection.

The apostle Paul showed that the resurrection is central to the Christian hope: "For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures . . . Now if Christ is preached that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?" (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, 12).

Did it really happen?

The chief priests and Pharisees went to the Roman governor Pontius Pilate to request security guards at the tomb so that Jesus' disciples would not come and steal the body to claim He had been resurrected. They remembered that Jesus said He would be raised after three days and nights in the tomb. Pilate gave them a guard detail, and the stone that had been placed in front of the tomb entrance was shut with a seal (Matthew 27:62-66). The authorities knew this, both Roman and Jewish. Precautions were taken.

Matthew's account goes into detail to show there were eyewitnesses to an earthquake and that an angel had rolled back the stone covering the tomb entrance. The guards shook with fear to the point of being frozen into inaction (Matthew 28:2-4).

These same guards—and keep in mind they were not Christ's disciples—went and reported what had happened, what they saw with their own eyes, to the authorities. They were bribed by the officials to keep quiet. This was a commonly known fact among the Jews for many years (Matthew 28:11-15).

People knew about the resurrection of Jesus. There were multiple eyewitnesses.

Paul reported that the risen Christ was seen by all the apostles and that He was also seen by more than 500 others (1 Corinthians 15:5-8)—these in turn having given eyewitness testimony to thousands!

The point is that this was not done in a corner, covered up and then dragged out to dress up an effort to create a new sect the disciples wanted to start.

Think about this. These unlearned fishermen, tax collectors and women were the least likely of people to start a new religious movement—especially one built on the story of a man who had been crucified as a criminal and then raised from the dead!

Paul makes the case to the Christians in Corinth that they have a Savior and a hope of salvation. He wanted there to be no doubt in their mind of this truth. For you and I there can be no doubt as well. "But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty . . . And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable" (1 Corinthians 15:13-19).

Either Jesus Christ rose from the dead or He didn't. This is a deep issue of faith for a believer. Our modern world is geared to rip from our mind and heart any belief in God or that Jesus of Nazareth was the divine Son of God, sent to earth, born of a virgin, who died and was resurrected to life eternal and sits today at the right hand of God the Father, waiting for the time to return in all power and glory.

This is the most important of matters in this life for you and me to resolve!

Sign of the Messiah

Mainstream Christian tradition holds that Jesus was crucified on Good Friday and resurrected on Easter Sunday. But if Jesus were in the tomb only from late Friday afternoon to sometime early Sunday morning, then the sign He gave that He was the prophesied Messiah was not fulfilled. The claim of His Messiahship rests on the fulfillment of His words.

When we allow the Scriptures to interpret themselves, all four Gospel accounts accurately harmonize and attest to the validity of Jesus' promise that He would be in the grave a full three days and three nights (Matthew 12:40, Luke 11:29)—not just part of that time.

Several Bible translations recognize that more than one Sabbath is discussed in these events. In Matthew 28:1 some Bible versions, including Green's Literal Translation, Ferrar Fenton's Translation and others properly translate a phrase occurring here as "after the sabbaths."

Some stumble over Mark 16:9, not taking into account that there is no punctuation indicated in the original Greek. Therefore, to be in harmony with the material presented in the other Gospels, a better translation of the verse would be: "Now having risen, early the first day of the week He appeared first to Mary Magdalene . . . " So it's not saying that Jesus rose early on Sunday morning, but that He appeared early on Sunday morning to Mary Magdalene, having already risen some time earlier.

Christ our Passover

There is a site in Jerusalem called the Garden Tomb. Years ago some proposed it as the tomb where Jesus was laid after His death. Further study has proven this to not be the case. Nevertheless, it does give an idea of what a rolling-stone tomb of the first century A.D. looked like—and it sits in a beautiful garden setting, as Christ's tomb did. Today you can visit that empty tomb in Jerusalem and get a good idea of what the disciples saw.

If you walk down the garden paths around the tomb it's hard not to think about the impact of the resurrection. In a rock-cut tomb like this you can imagine all the events described by the Gospel writers.

Christ's body was carried in and laid on a rock-cut bench inside the tomb. Oils and special herbs would have been applied to the body, which was then wrapped in linen cloth. The round stone was then rolled across the entrance, sealing the room in darkness.

Three days and nights passed in silence and darkness. And then a flash of light penetrated the dark, and life returned to the body—not the same physical life but a spirit life beyond what any human being had ever experienced. The fullness of God energized the lifeless form, and it was transformed into spiritual glory. Jesus Christ had risen from the dead, and mankind had a Savior!

Without a resurrection, Christianity is nothing more than a human philosophy on par with all other creeds and teachings. With the resurrection, all of that is made nothing by this central fact and truth. With it everything becomes possible.

Symbolism in Jesus' last meal before dying and the festival that followed

On the final evening before His death, Jesus had a meal with the disciples. Commonly called the Last Supper, it was actually a Passover meal. But on that evening Christ made some significant changes.

Notice what Paul tells us: "For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘Take eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.' In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it [i.e., every Passover], in remembrance of Me'" (1 Corinthians 11:23-25).

The events of Christ's death and resurrection took place at the time of the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. These festivals are first described in the Bible in Exodus 12 at the time Israel departed from Egypt under Moses. Christ's death and resurrection breathed new meaning into these festivals.

The apostle Paul eloquently summed up these festivals to the group of believers in Corinth. He was drawing to the attention of this non-Jewish, mostly gentile congregation the fact that God's festivals are to be observed with new meaning and relevance.

Notice what he told them—and, by extension, us today: "Your glorying [a reference to their pride in tolerating sin in their midst] is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth" (1 Corinthians 5:6-8).

Jesus Christ, our Passover, fulfilled the symbol of the lambs killed each year for centuries as part of the Passover service. His sacrifice, once for all time (Hebrews 9:28), was part of God's plan of salvation from the outset.

Christ's sacrifice paid the penalty of death for sin (Romans 6:23). That judgment is lifted from us when we repent and accept His sacrifice for the remission of sins. This begins the process of salvation for us. But our hope of eternal life as part of God's family in the Kingdom lies in receiving the life of Christ within us. Understanding this vital key is critical. Look at what Paul writes in Romans as he conveys this truth:

"But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation" (Romans 5:8-11).

"We shall be saved by His life"

Paul's statement that "we shall be saved by His life" in Romans 5:10 is something we should understand. Many times devout and well-meaning people focus only on Christ's death for salvation and do not bring into proper perspective His life.

His passion and death are very important aspects of God's plan. His death provides us with the sacrifice necessary for the reconciliation with God and the forgiveness of sin.

But this only begins the process. That Christ lived again, was resurrected from the grave, and lives today is necessary for us to have any hope of eternal life. For it is the risen Christ who helps us to continue in obedience to God and intercedes with the Father when we fall short.

Yes, God forgives us and saves us through His grace—the gift of His divinely bestowed favor. We do not earn salvation (eternal life) through obedience. Nonetheless, God requires as a condition of His gift of salvation that we cease from practicing sin as a way of life and start obeying Him. Follow on in Romans 6: "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?" (Romans 6:1-2).

Sin is a word that many don't like to use today. People do not want to accept the idea of conduct that violates the law of God. Our physically saturated world dulls our sensitivities to a spiritual dimension of life that is real. So many tend to think the physical is all there is to life.

As a result, the existence of spiritual laws that govern how we live is a foreign concept. Man is a physical being but with a spiritual dimension that allows us to connect with God and have a relationship with Him. The spiritual laws He revealed, when obeyed, enable us to live free of a lot of the pain and suffering brought on by bad decisions and behavior.

This is what Paul meant in Romans 12:1-2 when he wrote: "Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will" (New International Version).

Most people don't realize that a wonderful, blessed life, a new standard, is in store for them if they are open to the transformation God offers. As Christ described it: "Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together [to make room for more] and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you" (Luke 6:38, NIV).

Christ's resurrection paved the way for us to experience, to taste and see, to know God better and to live the abundant life He has for us (John 10:10). We begin to think differently, and our lives have the potential to be more than we ever imagined—for they can be what God imagines!

Our eternal salvation depends on the resurrection of Jesus Christ. He had to live again to serve as our High Priest who intercedes for us with the Father. He had to live to send the Holy Spirit and live in us through that Spirit to help us stop sinning and keep obeying God. He had to live to later return as intervening King to save the world from destroying itself—and to at that time "raise [us] up at the last day" (John 6:44). Without a risen Savior, we would be doomed. But the wonderful reality is that He lives—and that we shall be saved by His life.

Conclusion

This life is filled with challenges. Sometimes these challenges will push us to our very limits—physically, emotionally and spiritually.

But thankfully we are not limited by our own strength. As Paul wrote, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (Philippians 4:13). In fact, Christ lives in the hearts and minds of believers to help us succeed (see Galatians 2:20).

When the burden feels too great to bear and you are in danger of losing hope, take heart that hope remains alive because Jesus Christ is alive. You can fill the hole in your life with a new hope that only a relationship with God through Christ can provide. You are created in God's image, and through His risen Son He can help you in any difficult period of your life. These challenges are opportunities to grow in the undeserved favor of God in Christ.

The hope that's maybe missing in your life comes through the knowledge and assurance that we are saved by His life—the awesome, invincible life of Jesus Christ.

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