He is Risen, Indeed!

Yesterday we celebrated the fact that Jesus Christ, God in flesh, died for our sins and then rose again from the grave (just writing those words gives me goose-bumps)! He is alive and well, and He’s coming soon for us!

But the cool thing about this whole deal is that because Jesus rose again, we now have hope that allows to no longer fear death. It has been said that human beings are the only creatures with an innate understanding that they are going to die. And for most people that fear of death is what drives them to do all kinds of things.

I heard of a guy who was so afraid of dying or of one of his family dying that he did everything in his power to keep them safe. He put up nine foot fences around his home, had the latest in home security, bought guard dogs to patrol the grounds, had his house monitored, put in an air-purification system in the whole house, filtered his tap water, and any other safety feature he could think of...he did it. He felt that his family was safe.

But one day as he was pulling out of the driveway to go to work, he didn’t notice his small boy had run out behind his car to get a ball that had gotten away. He ran over his son, and killed him.

We can do all we want to feel safe, but the fact of the matter is that we all know that one day we are going to die. There is nothing we can do to stop it, and there is nothing that will keep that day from coming upon us eventually.

But there is something that happened nearly 2000 years ago that does give us hope. Not hope in the classic definition of “hope” (which is a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen), but a guarantee that this life is not all there is…that, like Jesus, we will rise again!

When Jesus rose from the dead, He did so by the power of God within Him that even the death of His earthly body couldn’t stop. And we are told that the same power that raised Christ from the dead lives in us through the Holy Spirit. Now, follow me on this: if the power that raised Christ from the dead is in us, why in the world should we be afraid of dying? Death isn’t the end. Even if this body made of dirt and dust should cease to function, there is something far more powerful at work in us…it’s the power that raised Christ from the dead…and it will raise our bodies at the proper time and we will be changed.

Changed? Yes. We will be changed. Look at what Paul said:

Philippians 3:21—“He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.” (NLT)

God’s power at work in us to give us a new body. He is risen, indeed! And we, too, will be risen when we go to be with Him in glory! I hope you know that power today. I hope you have the hope (guarantee) that this life is not all that there is. I hope that you will be so enraptured with Jesus that there isn’t a moment of your life that goes by that you don’t thank Him for what He has done.

Think about that today, and God bless you!

Comment below about how you came to know Christ and the hope that is in you! How have you felt His power changing you even now!?