50 Implications of the Resurrection (Part Two)

God did something so beautiful through the resurrection that we must see it through a prism to grasp its glory fully.

If the tomb is empty...

1. We have confidence that Jesus speaks the truth.

• Matthew 16:21, 20:17-18, 26:32, Mark 16:7. Jesus kept telling of His death, burial, and resurrection. Why does He keep telling them over and over? It increases your faith. Jesus did what He said He would do then; therefore, you can believe it when He says He's coming back, that the Father loves us, etc.

2. David is a prophet.

• Acts 2:22-36. This is Peter's first sermon after the resurrection. Standing near David's tomb, he used him as an illustration. The Jewish belief was that the body would decay after three days, but David said that the Holy One would not see corruption. David knew that one of his descendants would sit on the throne forever. Jesus is a descendant and did not see corruption. So, David was a prophet. Why does this matter? It tells us that we can trust the Old Testament. All of God's words are true and can be trusted. If we can trust what He said in the Bible, we can trust what He is saying to us in our lives.

3. God kept His word to the fathers.

• Acts 13: 23, 32-35. Out of David came the Holy One, and Christ fulfilled hundreds of promises made in the Old Testament.
• Acts 13:36-40. The promise is that there is life after the grave. God kept giving clues throughout the Old Testament: born of a virgin in Bethlehem, hailed from Nazareth, etc. So when all these things come to pass in Jesus, we know we can believe it.

4. In Jesus, all of us who believe are freed from what the law could not free us from.

• The law is not just lighting the way; it leads us to the One who can solve the problem. Sin is leading us to death, but Jesus, who died, was buried, and rose again, came to set us free from death. The law is good, but it cannot give you life.
• The law is like a tutor to lead you to Christ. Just like an x-ray shows you are broken, but it cannot fix you. You have to go to a doctor and ask him for help.

5. The Holy Spirit has been poured out on believers.

• Acts 2. This is Peter's sermon after people became filled with the Holy Spirit. He calls them back to Joel to remind them of this promised day. In Hebrew, Spirit, breath, and wind are all the same words. One of the greatest tragedies in Genesis is that God created humanity, breathed life into the dirt, and brought us to life. It's intimate and animate. We, Adam, sin against God; God says you are dust, and to dust you'll return. What left? The wind of God is gone. The Old Testament promises that one day, the Spirit will return. Isaiah 53 says that the descendant of David would bring the wind with Him. Peter explains that's what they were seeing: the Spirit of God returning. Jesus brought the wind back. See John 16:7-8.
• There is a big difference between forgiving someone and marrying them. If you forgive someone, that doesn't make you married to them. Jesus forgave us, but the Spirit in the intimate and animating experience that binds us together. We get both in the resurrection.
• Yes, the Cross is about the forgiveness of sins, but that's where the Gospel starts. Jesus moved sin out of the way so that the Spirit would return to an intimate relationship with us to bring us life.

6. God will give life to our bodies through the Spirit that dwells in us.

• Romans 8:10-11. If the Spirit raised Jesus, the Spirit will raise you. The Spirit is so strong that even though your body is decaying, He is bringing you to life.
• Ephesians 1:13-14. We are marked with a seal guaranteeing what is to come. The Holy Spirit is like an engagement ring, promising what is to come but not enjoying all the benefits quite yet.

7-9. We can walk in the newness of life now because we are united in a resurrection like His, and we will live with Him.

• Romans 6:4-10. Where Jesus goes, you go. You will rise like Him and live with Him.
• There's a difference between rescuing someone and adopting them. Just because you save someone from getting hit by a car doesn't mean they get a room in your home. Yet because of the resurrection, Jesus saved you, and you get to live with Him. The resurrection has knit you together forever.
• We walk in newness now, and because of that, it changes how we live right now. Engagement changes how you live now because you know marriage is coming.

10. We are dead to sin and alive in Christ Jesus.

• Romans 6:11. It's not wishful thinking. Because Jesus rose from the grave, we go where He goes. When Jesus Christ beat death, you consider yourself dead to sin and alive in Christ.

11. Our bodies now belong to the Lord, not sexual immorality.

• 1 Corinthians 6:13-18. The body is not meant for sexual immorality or "pornea," a junk draw term for all sexuality outside of God's intention in the covenant of marriage. The Church in Corinth believed in the Gospel but also believed that their body was disconnected from their soul. Just feed your body's appetites because the rest of your body is separate. Who really cares about the body when your soul goes to God?
• Well, God does...a lot. That belief portrays a pagan view of the body. In Genesis, God didn't create disembodied souls. He made all of creation, including our bodies, and even though it is subject to frustration, He redeemed all of creation. That's why Jesus came in human form, physically died, physically rose, walked around, ate, and drank with real people. He didn't just redeem your spiritual life; He redeemed your whole life. You didn't just commit your soul to Him; you committed your whole life to Him. There are no separate categories. They are bound together with Him, so they can't be bound to anything else. When you sin sexually, you sin not just against Him but also against your own body. Your body matters to God, and how you treat and take care of it speaks volumes to Him.

12. We can approach the throne of grace with confidence.

• Hebrews 4:15-16. We have a High Priest who has been tempted in every way we are. He knows the pit you are in, yet He was without sin. So, He can sympathize with our pain, but He also gives you a solution out of it. Because of the resurrection, the throne is not one of judgment but of grace that we are welcomed into. Not because we are worthy but because Jesus is. The standard He sets is high, but His grace is so much more.

13-14. We live for Jesus. We do not see people the same anymore.

• 2 Corinthians 5:14-17. Paul is explaining why he doesn't lead a self-indulgent life anymore. Why? Because the love of Christ compels him. We don't see people by anything other than if they know Jesus or not. His love propels you to be an ambassador and ask people if they know the grace you have in Jesus.

15-16. Jesus will judge the living and the dead. Whoever believes in Him will receive forgiveness in His name.

• Acts 10:40-43. Jesus did good, yet He was killed. God vindicated Him by resurrecting Him from the dead and made Him appear in front of witnesses. Those witnesses were to go and tell everyone that Jesus beat death, so that makes Him the authority to judge all things, the living and the dead. He also offers forgiveness to those who believe.
• Jesus isn't just a motivational teacher or the guy who works for you. He is the Lord of all living and dead things and will judge them both. While being judged by a Holy God is serious, He offers forgiveness through His name.

17. We will be brought into the presence of God by Jesus.

• 2 Corinthians 4:14. This is what Jesus is most excited about. He cannot wait to have us be in the presence of the Father. The problem is He is Holy, and we are not. Jesus solves that for us.

18-19. Our life is hidden in Christ in God.

• Colossians 3:1-4. When Christ appears, we will appear with Him in glory. How can you stand before a holy God? Because you are with Jesus Christ. He is the One who gives us the right to stand there. Our life is tucked away in Him, and He will lead us to the Father.

20. We are delivered from the wrath to come.

• 1 Thessalonians 1:10. We have a deep and universal desire for justice. We're not graded on a scale, though; we are judged on a standard of purity. Therefore, we are all in trouble and not worthy of Heaven. There is judgment coming for sin; no one gets away with anything. Jesus said that the wrath of God's judgment will come. It will either fall on you, or you will step behind Jesus, and He'll take it on for you. He has provided a way to justify sinners like you and me.

21-22. We are not positionally seated and raised in Him, and in the coming ages, He will show the riches of His grace and kindness towards us.

• Ephesians 2:5-7. It's not like Jesus saved us and then put us on an installment plan of steps for further forgiveness because we barely made it in. We are already raised and seated with Him. As we are there, He'll lead us to the Father and display His riches of grace and kindness towards us. Heaven is God putting on a show of how inexhaustible His kindness is. How? By pouring out on you and me. We didn't slip in the door; He will lavish us as though we always belonged.