Or maybe you’re been working on a jigsaw puzzle, and you have all the border pieces in, and you've separated the other pieces by color. The sky is put together, and the trees, and the windows in the house. Hours later, you’re almost done. But when you get to the end, there’s a piece missing! I hate that!
Sometimes life is like that. You work hard to achieve something, but when you get to the end, it doesn't seem worth it. Whether it’s getting an education, or getting married, buying a house, getting your dream car (or truck), starting a family, taking a trip to
That’s how Jesus’ followers must have felt on Good Friday. They had seen Him perform miracles, walk on the sea, multiply the loaves and fishes, calm the storm, heal the sick, even raise the dead.
They had laughed with Him, learned from Him, been amazed by Him, and followed Him for three years. Their lives would never be the same.
But then it all seemed to come crashing down. His enemies finally caught up to Him and He was taken into custody. The forces of darkness seemed to completely overwhelm the truth and beauty that was Jesus Christ. He was subjected to a series of clandestine, illegal trials. Lies were told about Him, and He wouldn't even defend Himself. He was condemned to death.
And when it looked like there was maybe a way out, when the Romans governor offered a pardon of sorts, the hateful crowd, Christ’s enemies, shouted him down and demanded Jesus be crucified.
So He was stripped, humiliated, and beaten almost to death. And then forced to carry His cross, and finally nailed to that cross.
He died. No question about it, He died. For the ones who loved Him, Friday was like getting to the end, and finding a piece missing.
But by Sunday morning, they had found the missing piece. The stone that had sealed Jesus' tomb, and their hope, was rolled away, and the tomb was empty. Jesus Christ was raised from the dead! That’s the missing piece for everything!
Christ’s Resurrection is more than a date on the calendar. It’s the foundation of our faith, the hope of our future, and the key to our salvation. In this post, and the next one, I want to just walk through the book of Romans to show how Jesus' resurrection is the missing piece.
Romans 1:1-4 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.
Jesus’ resurrection is the piece of the puzzle that proves His claim to be the Son of God. Between Friday and Sunday on that first Easter, everything Jesus ever taught or claimed hung in the balance. Because if He just died and that was it, why should anyone ever believe anything else He said? But His resurrection put an exclamation point at the end of every sentence He ever spoke.
Romans 4:23-25 But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification. Paul says that the idea of being right with God by faith wasn't just a gift to Abraham. It is for anyone who believes “in Him who raised Jesus from the dead.” The resurrection is the piece of the puzzle that puts us right with God. Justification means to be declared righteous, and that happens only because of the resurrection.
Romans 6:4-5 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. Jesus’ resurrection gives us new life, and hope for the future. When we put our trust in Him, we are filled with His new life, with the very power that raised Him from the dead.
Today is the the greatest day in our calendar, the best day in the history of our planet. We call it "the Lord's Day," and it is. We have come to see that Christ's resurrection touches every part of our lives, and completes what had always been missing, but never will be again. HE IS RISEN, RISEN INDEED!
