THE IMPORTANCE OF THE RESURRECTION
The resurrection of Jesus is at the heart of the Christian message. It is the hinge on which the truth of our faith turns, and without it nothing else would really matter. Without it, one can only pity Jesus as a dead martyr whose lofty ideals were sadly misunderstood. With it, one must stand in awe of the exalted Messiah, the Son of the living God, who gave His life as a ransom for many, who presently sits at God’s right hand, and who will one day return in glory to rule and reign on earth. Paul bluntly stated that apart from the resurrection, our faith and message are in vain (1 Corinthians 15:12-19).
Without the resurrection, none of Jesus’ promises would be trustworthy. If Jesus did not rise from the dead after promising many times that He would do so (Matthew 12:40; 16:21; 17:9, 23; 23;20:19; 26:32), He should be pitied or scorned, not believed and obeyed (1 Corinthians 15:16-19). Without the resurrection, we would miss the bold declaration of the deity of Jesus Christ. The resurrection amounts to the Father’s clear signal that Jesus is the powerful Son of God who has conquered death and reigns as Lord of all. Jesus was “declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 1:4).
Without the resurrection, we would still fear death. 2 Timothy 1:10 said that by His resurrection, Jesus “abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.” So when we die in Christ, we go straight to Heaven. In John 11:25-26, Jesus encouraged Martha, whose brother had just died, by proclaiming, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?”
Without the resurrection, we would still be under the authority of Satan. “Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He, Himself, likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives” (Hebrews 2:14-15).
The cross disarmed Satan. Jesus defeated Satan and Jesus' resurrection demonstrated his victory over sin and death and Satan. Paul said in Colossians 2:13-15: “You, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This He set aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in Him.” Thus, the authority of the Devil and his demons has already ended. Matthew 28:18 makes it very clear that Jesus has all authority now, which means that Satan has no authority over Christians.
Without the resurrection, we would not have God's power available to us and in us to be His ambassadors to share the “good news” that can change the eternal destiny of people. “I pray that you will begin to understand how incredibly great His power is to help those who believe Him. It is that same mighty power that raised Christ from the dead and seated Him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in heaven (Ephesians 1:19-20, Living Bible). The resurrection is a call to action for every believer to share Jesus' message of victory and hope with every non-believer.
“He is not here! He has risen from the dead, just as He said” (Matthew 28:6).
GO AND TELL!
