Resurrection

“Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying.” Matthew 28:5-6 (NLT) 
God, in Jesus, chose the path of weakness over power. The cross defines God as One who is willing to relinquish power for the sake of love. Power without mercy, tends to cause suffering. Love, being vulnerable, absorbs it. On a hill called Calvary, God renounced power for the sake of love.
          So what difference does it make that Jesus suffered such shame, humiliation and death? The resurrection is the difference. Can you think of someone you were once close to who has died? What would it mean for you if that person actually rose from the dead? If, in utter astonishment, you found yourself facing this person again—what would that be like?
          That image in your mind is a hint of what the disciples felt on that resurrection morning. They had grieved for three days. Suddenly, hope rose in their hearts. Could it be? Could God, against all odds, reverse the irreversible?
          The early church hung everything on the resurrection. Paul told the Corinth church, in I Corinthians 15:14, that “if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith”. The resurrection is the main event. If you don’t believe Jesus rose from the dead, you are not a believer at all.
          The Son of God became a man to enable us to become children of God. By his death, our sin was accounted for, and by his resurrection our new life can begin. Christ is risen; He is risen indeed!
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