On the last day of this month, we’ll celebrate the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ—the wonderful and world-altering event that matters as much today as it did 2,000 years ago.
As the day approaches, we hope you’ll ponder all it means for you as one who belongs to the Savior. We selected these thoughts from Dr. Stanley to help you get started, and pray you’ll be filled with fresh confidence in God’s profound love for you.
Everyone makes choices in life—how to live, what to believe. There are numerous religions to choose from, each with their own holy books and teachings. Yet followers of Jesus Christ are different from all others in a crucial way: We follow the only resurrected Savior there has ever been.
Jesus is not a dead god, but our living Lord.
In Matthew 28, two grieving women came to the Lord’s tomb to prepare His body for burial. An angel appeared to them with the news that Christ had risen from the dead. In verse 8 we read, “And they left the tomb quickly with fear and great joy and ran to report it to His disciples.”
They ran with great joy. Why joy? Because the events of the previous days had left the Lord’s followers discouraged and disillusioned. They thought Jesus was the Messiah, yet they saw Him die. Everything they’d hoped for had been dashed to pieces. But now, He was alive, and they had renewed faith and assurance that Jesus was God, just as He’d always said.
Because He rose from the dead, we too have assurance.
That’s the difference between those who believe the gospel of Jesus Christ and those who are dedicated to other ideals and perspectives.
We can have unwavering faith for this life and eternity beyond because of the assurances given in the resurrection of Jesus:
First, Christ’s resurrection assures us that we serve a living God.
If Jesus had not risen from the dead, we would have no more assurance of this than all the other religions in the world. But when He rose, Christ validated everything He taught. So we can believe Him when He says, “The one who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9) and “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30). We can learn and know about God through the person of Jesus Christ.
Second, Christ’s resurrection assures us that we have eternal salvation.
Most world religions have a plan of salvation, but they rely on each person’s performance. With our God, salvation is not the result of our works, but a gift from the Father. It is the unconditional love of God shown in the sacrifice of His own Son, Jesus Christ, that makes possible our place in heaven.
Third, Christ’s resurrection assures us of life beyond the grave.
The two women ran with joy because they realized there was more to life than they had ever seen or imagined. The future holds more than any temporary comfort or pleasure we may experience. We can believe with confidence that there’s eternal life because the Lord Jesus Christ paved the way.
Fourth, Christ’s resurrection assures us that we too will be resurrected.
Paul describes the death of the believer as being “absent from the body … home with the Lord” (2 Cor. 5:8). And when Christ returns, our bodies, and the bodies of all who died in Christ, will receive resurrection life, as body and soul are reunited in a glorified body.
Fifth, we can be assured that we’ll know our believing loved ones who’ve passed on before us.
In the transfiguration (Matthew 17), Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up on the mountain where they are met by Moses and Elijah. How did the disciples know who they were? My friend, it’s because we’re going to know each other in heaven. “Then I will know fully, just as I also have been fully known” (1 Cor 13:12).
Sixth, the resurrection of Jesus Christ assures us that we can face all our tomorrows triumphantly.
Jesus said to Mary and Martha, “The one who believes in Me will live, even if he dies” (John 11:25). Though none of us know the future, we have the blessed promise of His comfort and strength as we face it. Because Jesus rose from the dead and the Holy Spirit is living on the inside of us, we are fully equipped for every challenge.
Our hope lies in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
This is where we find our assurance, in the power of the One living inside of me and you. God has designated you as a trophy of the atoning work of Jesus. Rejoice in this hope and live with thankfulness, knowing your eternity with Him has already begun.
We hope you’ve been encouraged today. Dr. Stanley explained that even the greatest human fear, the loss of life, has been eliminated for us by Jesus.
Death could not hold Him. And by His grace, it won’t hold us either. On Easter morning, we pray you’ll wake with full assurance of all He won for you—and that you’ll be full of the Spirit’s peace.
Till next time, God bless you.
For His Glory,
Your Friends at In Touch Ministries