Reflection on Easter

Happy Easter!

Or is it?  The phrase 'Happy Easter' and the tone of season, paint a pleasant innocuous picture of the world, made that much gladder by bright pastels and candy. Likewise Good Friday - ultimately a very good day for us, was the most torturous day in the history of mankind. In a class I'm taking at Rockbridge we're discussing the gospel message, and one point stuck with me as so obvious it's easy to miss. The resurrection is absolutely central to the gospel - without the literal resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, our faith is junk, utterly worthless, and in fact we're false witnesses and fools who should be pitied above all others. Those are not my words, those were spoken by the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians 15.

Ken Schurb, co-author of The Anonymous God, identified several Gospel-aspects of Christ's resurrection:

1. The resurrection confirms that Christ made a full and acceptable sacrifice to God as our Substitute.

2. The resurrection assures us that the devil, sin, and death can have no power over us, since they have no power over Christ, who bore them for us but triumphed.

3. The resurrection constituted God's absolving His Son from our, sins which were imputed to Him, and thus God's absolution on us.

4. The resurrection means that Jesus lives to impute the righteousness of His obedience to us.

5. The resurrection underscores the reality of the forgiveness which Christ won for us in the atonement.

6. The resurrection enables us to have a continuing fellowship with the Christ who made our Peace.

7. The resurrection is God's gift of life resurfacing now that Jesus has paid for the guilt of sin in the atonement.

8. The resurrection assures us that the God-Man, our Mediator, lives as He must. 

As I reflect on the hope of the resurrection, I'm listening to the following song - "Mighty to Save". What a great modern day hymn! Check out the lyrics, or enjoy the video below.

He can move the mountains, My God is mighty to save, He is mighty to save
Forever, Author of salvation, He rose and conquered the grave, Jesus conquered the grave...