Did you ever think what our world would be like if Christ had not risen from the dead? I considered simply pasting a graphic of a smoldering cinder as my assessment of where our planet would be without the Resurrection. I just don’t believe this world would have survived.
If Jesus had not been raised:
No payment for our sins and no forgiveness
No heaven, only hell
No gospel message
No transformed lives throughout history
No apostolic witness and no church
No New Testament, and an Old Testament riddled with false prophecy
No Christian hospitals, orphanages, half-way houses, or homeless shelters
No Apostle Paul, Constantine or Augustine
No Gutenberg, John Wycliffe, or Martin Luther
No William Tyndale, John Calvin, or John Bunyan
No Jonathan Edwards, Wesley brothers, or George Whitefield
No William Carey or D. L. Moody
No C.S. Lewis, Billy Graham or J.I Packer
No peace for the present or hope for the future
But thank God, this is not a day for terrible possibilities. This is the day we set aside to proclaim the central truth of our faith: Our Savior died for our sins and was raised from the dead! And because
Jesus rose,
- We who know Him are indwelt by the Spirit and live in the power of His grace.
- We have the hope of heaven.
- Those who died in Christ wait for us there, and we will be reunited.
- We are redeemed, forgiven, justified, reconciled, and adopted..
- Our lives have eternal value and our actions have everlasting consequences.
- We know that love, truth, justice, and hope will prevail over hatred, lies, oppression, and despair.
- We have a message to share that is supernaturally transforming from a Bible that is absolutely trustworthy.
- We’re part of a band of redeemed sinners that stretches back through the centuries, and marches forward into the future until our King returns to claim all that is His.
Oh, Jesus, how thankful we are that You rose again!
HE IS RISEN, RISEN INDEED!
