“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead
The resurrection of Christ from the dead is the foundation for the Christian’s hope. It is the assurance of our own resurrection. Jesus’ resurrection and our resurrection are inseparably connected (Colossians 3:1).
“From the dead” means “out from” the dead. Jesus was the first to come out from among the dead. Those who believe in him will come later. Daniel 12 and John 5 speak of the resurrection of believers from the dead. At that point, God inducts the Christian into the eternal state.
The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead sets apart Christianity from all the religions of the earth. The sequel to the death of Christ is his resurrection. He died but rose again. He would be better than no other religious leader had he come and gone.
Acts 1:3, “To whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.”
Jesus predicted that he would rise again (John 2:9, 21; 10:17,18). The New Testament emphasizes the resurrection as the sequel to his death (Acts 2:23, 24; 3:15; 4:10; 5:30; 17:30, 31; 26:22, 23; Romans 6:4; 7:4; 8:11,34; 10:9; 14:9; 1 Corinthians 6:14; 15:20; 15:3-5). This is what gives us hope.
The grave is not the bleak, barren terminus of all human existence for the Christian. Death is not a leap into the dark. For the Christian, death is a servant that leads us into the presence of the Lord of Glory. People may place our bodies into caskets and graves. We are in neither (2 Corinthians 5:8). Our soul goes instantaneously, automatically, as soon as death strikes our body, into the presence of the Lord. That is why we do not sorrow as those who are not Christians (1 Thessalonians 4:13). God grounds our future life with him in the resurrection of Christ (Luke 24:9; Romans 6:10; 14:9; 2 Corinthians 13:4). Jesus brought life and immortality to light (2 Timothy 1:10). He is the author of life (Acts 3:15). We are saved by his life (Romans 5:10). He is the resurrection and the life (John 11:25). He is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). He is the true and eternal life (1 John 5:20).
God’s gift of eternal life is by an act of grace (Romans 5:15). Our hope rests on this (Romans 1:17). When we believe in Jesus Christ, we have eternal life (John 3:15-16). The gospel destroys death and gives immortality (2 Timothy 1:10). The gospel is God’s power to salvation (Romans 1:16).
Christ’s substitution has already effected our future life for our sins. Our resurrection from the dead is simply the consummation of that work. It is grounded in a completed act and therefore living and sure (I Peter 1:3).
PRINCIPLE:
We do not worship a dead man.
APPLICATION:
Because Jesus rose from the dead, we will rise from the dead as well. Because Christ was raised from the dead, so will we. His resurrection guarantees our resurrection. The personal significance of the resurrection of Christ for us is that we have hope. He will usher us into his presence one day. This is the crown of the Christian experience.
