• The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. (Luke 4:18-19).
  • Friday 29 March 2013

    THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST

    "Why is the resurrection of Jesus Christ important?"

     The resurrection of Jesus is important for several reasons. First, it witnesses to the immense power of God Himself. To believe in the resurrection is to believe in God. If God exists, and if He created the universe and has power over it, He has power to raise the dead. If He does not have such power, He is not a God worthy of our faith and worship. Only He who created life can resurrect it after death, only He can reverse the hideousness that is death itself, and only He can remove the sting that is death and the victory that is the grave’s (1 Corinthians 15:54-55). In resurrecting Jesus from the grave, God reminds us of His absolute sovereignty over life and death.

    Second, the resurrection of Jesus is a testimony to the resurrection of human beings, which is a basic tenet of the Christian faith. Unlike all other religions, Christianity alone possesses a founder who transcends death and who promises that His followers will do the same. All other religions were founded by men and prophets whose end was the grave. As Christians, we take comfort in the fact that our God became man, died for our sins, and was resurrected the third day. The grave could not hold Him. He lives, and He sits today at the right hand of God the Father in heaven.

    In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul explains in detail the importance of the resurrection of Christ. Some in Corinth did not believe in the resurrection of the dead, and in this chapter Paul gives six disastrous consequences if there were no resurrection: 1) preaching Christ would be senseless (v. 14); 2) faith in Christ would be useless (v. 14); 3) all the witnesses and preachers of the resurrection would be liars (v. 15); 4) no one would be redeemed from sin (v. 17); 5) all former believers would have perished (v.18); and 6) Christians would be the most pitiable people on the earth (v. 19). But Christ indeed has risen from the dead and “has become the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep” (v. 20), assuring that we will follow Him in resurrection.

    The inspired Word of God guarantees the believer's resurrection at the coming of Jesus Christ for His Body (the Church) at the Rapture. Such hope and assurance results in a great song of triumph as Paul
    writes in 1 Corinthians 15:55, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?”

    How do these concluding verses relate to the importance of the resurrection? Paul answers, “...you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (v. 58). He reminds us that because we know we will be resurrected to new life, we can suffer persecution and danger for Christ’s sake (vv. 29-31), just as He did. We can follow the example of the thousands of martyrs through history who gladly traded their earthly lives for everlasting life via the resurrection.

    The resurrection is the triumphant and glorious victory for every believer. Jesus Christ died, was buried, and rose the third day according to the Scripture. And, He is coming again! The dead in Christ will be raised up, and those who remain and are alive at His coming will be changed and receive new, glorified bodies (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). Why is the resurrection of Jesus Christ important to salvation? It demonstrated that God accepted Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf. It proves that God has the power to raise us from the dead. It guarantees that those who believe in Christ will not remain dead, but will be resurrected unto eternal life. That is our blessed hope!



    Read more: http://www.joyalministries.blogspot.com

    1 comment:

    1. THE WILL OF THE FATHER?

      It is the will of the Father that all men be saved. The question is can men reject what the words of Jesus and still be saved.

      John 6:40 For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day."

      The Father wants all men to be saved. Can men say God only wants a select few to be saved and claim to believe the words of Jesus?

      John 12:48-50 He who rejects Me and does not receive My sayings, has one who judges him; the word I spoke is what will judge him at the last day........

      Can men be a true believer in Jesus and at the same time reject His word?

      How many times can men say, "Jesus did not mean what He said." Can men proclaim their creed books and other denominational teaching takes precedent over the words of Jesus and still be saved?

      THE WORDS OF JESUS

      Mark 16:16 He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.

      Can you reject the fact that Jesus said "Has been baptized shall be saved?" Are you receiving the sayings of Jesus when you proclaim that water baptism does not precede salvation?

      Matthew 24:10-13 At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another.......13 But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved.

      Can men oppose what Jesus said and declare that men that are once saved are always saved? Will they still be saved?

      John 3:5 Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

      Can men proclaim that Jesus was saying, in order to enter the kingdom of God you have be born by natural child birth. Can you imagine Jesus saying that a requirement to enter the kingdom of God is being born of amniotic fluid?

      John 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no one comes to the Father but through Me."

      Can believers in Christ say that Jesus is just one of many roads to salvation and remain saved?

      John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son , that whoever believes in Him shall not perish , but have eternal life.

      Some say, that John 3:16 actually means that whoever God has preselected, will believe and be saved and all others will burn in hell for all eternity.

      Can men give their private interpretation of Scripture and still be saved?


      CAN MEN REJECT THE WORDS OF JESUS AND STILL BE SAVED?

      (Scripture from: NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE)



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