Implications of the Resurrection

Implications of the Resurrection

One of those texts was the account of Mary and Mary Magdalene encountering the angel at Jesus’ tomb in Matthew 28:1-10.  Stricken with grief, the two women approach the tomb.  There is a violent earthquake, and an angel from heaven comes and rolls away the stone to the tomb and sits upon it.  The angel then says to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.  He is not here; He is risen just as He said.  Come and see the place where He lay” (Matthew 28:5-6).  There is so much being communicated in those 2 verses and its teaching holds many implications for our lives.  The words “just as He said” are a reminder that Jesus predicted His own death, including the details surrounding it.  And His resurrection from the dead is the verification of the authenticity of His teaching.  Jesus was who He claimed to be, the promised Messiah, the only Son of God, and all He has predicted has or will come to pass.

For us as believers in Jesus Christ, the certainty of the resurrection provides confidence for life today and hope for the future.  We know that His claim in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth and the life” is validated in the resurrection, and that we can follow His teachings with conviction and freedom from doubt.  We are also filled with hope, for we know that all Jesus promised for the future will become manifest in His perfect timing.  We look forward to a glorious inheritance knowing that Jesus has prepared a dwelling place for each of us.

In Matthew 25:31-32 Jesus partially describes His return to earth, “when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, He will sit on His throne in heavenly glory.  All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate the people from one another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.”  At Christmas time we remember that Jesus came in meekness and humility in the form of a little child.  But at His second coming, He will come in glory and power, accompanied by the angels of heaven.  It is a day that we look forward to with anticipation, for in that day the Lord will establish a new heaven and a new earth that is described for us in Revelation 21.  It will be a marvelous day for all those who have put their faith and trust in the person of Jesus Christ.  I am told that Pastor Maynard Force, one of the early leaders of the Lutheran Evangelistic Movement, lived with an unusual sense of Jesus’ imminent return.  He would begin each day with the question “Maybe today?”  Oh, that we could live each day with that same sense of expectation and hope.

Yet, there is another truth revealed in the Matthew passage that needs to be considered as well.  That upon His return, Jesus will judge the people of the earth, separating them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from goats.  That separation will take place on the basis of how each one has responded to Jesus, whether it be faith or unbelief.  Matthew also describes this life of faith when he says that those who believe will be characterized by their care for the hungry, the poor, the sick, the naked and those in prison.  It is the kind of faith that the apostle James describes to the Christians of his day.  “This is pure and undefiled religion in the sight of God and Father, to visit widows and orphans in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world” (James 1:27).  In short, it is a life of faith that is active, alive and expresses itself in sacrificial love toward its neighbor

In 1 Corinthians 15:19 the apostle Paul reminds us that “if Christ has not been raised from the dead” we are to be pitied above all men, for if Christ has not been raised there is no forgiveness of sins and our faith has been in vain.  But the historical evidence confirms what the angel declared, “He has risen, just as He said.”  Our profession in the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is not a meaningless theological affirmation but the cornerstone of a life of faith.  The resurrection reminds us of the temporal nature of this life and puts into perspective the challenges, disappointments and frustrations of the daily grind.  The resurrection brings clarity to the discussion about what is truly important in life, for only those who have trusted in the person of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins and are living a life of faith will enter the kingdom of heaven.  The resurrection validates the life of Jesus, and all that He taught, enabling us to pursue the promises of God without fear of disappointment.  The kingdom of God is not the fantasy of some theologian’s imagination but a present reality for all who acknowledge Him.  Jesus Christ is coming again and His return is imminent.  We know this is true because “He has risen, just as He said.”

Author

Bruce Kotila

Pastor Bruce is the Executive Director of God's Living Stones.  He lives in Omaha, NE, with his wife Barb. They have two adult children.