Page Name: A Theological and Devotional Reflection
Jesus is alive and He is not in the grave!
- By Rameshwar Yadav
Jesus’ Death and Resurrection from the death are for our Living relationship with God to obtain the righteousness of Jesus (which is equal to the righteousness of God) for the forgiveness of our sins and for our right standing before God through faith in Christ, which changes us in the image of His Son Jesus Christ.
Do we know the LORD JESUS CHRIST? What does HIS RESURRECTION mean to us? Do we know the SCOPE and POWER of JESUS’ RESURRECTION? If we do not know Jesus and His works then we are shortsighted about our LORD JESUS CHRIST as well as His Works for us, which are for our new and eternal lives. Therefore, to know the power and the meaning of His resurrection is very important for us in this universe. Otherwise, everything is meaningless because the resurrection is basically the visible proof that Jesus is the Son of God and did everything necessary for us to be justified and accepted by God.
The Power of His Resurrection
Philippians 3:10 of the Bible says ‘to know Him and the power of His resurrection’. It means that Jesus has power to save us and His resurrection has power to change us. In other words, Jesus came on the earth, he died and rose from the dead. He is now able to work in us because Jesus is alive. We have a living relationship with God in Christ through faith, which develops holiness in us. However, all of this depends on Jesus’ works for us on the cross. It is because of the cross that we receive God’s forgiveness and are clothed in Jesus’ righteousness. Because of the cross, we are justified and accepted by God. In other words, the righteousness of Jesus is the righteousness of God, which is necessary to count anyone holy and acceptable before God. Our salvation and acceptance with God depend on the works what Jesus did on the cross. Thus, we must never forget that. Similarly, the resurrection of Jesus is important, and we should not devalue it.
Jesus’ resurrection was an amazing event. People did everything so they could to stop it, even putting guards at the tomb and a huge stone across the entrance. Even Jesus’ own disciples didn’t believe that it could happen although they didn’t try to stop the resurrection. They acted as people who have had all their hopes destroyed.
But what happens? The grave of Jesus becomes a place of light, not darkness. The grave of Jesus becomes a place of hope instead of despair. The angel comes and moves the stone. There is an earthquake when Jesus died. The guards were so terrified that they became ‘like dead men’ (Matthew 28:4). To the women, however, the angel says, ‘Do not be afraid.’ Why not? Because Jesus is alive. This is still the message for us today.
The angel of the Lord gives the women the good news about His resurrection in this way: ‘He is not here’ (Matthew 28:6). Usually, good news says ‘Jesus is here!’ When Jesus was born in Bethlehem that was the good news. When Jesus went around preaching the gospel and healing, wherever Jesus was, that was good news for people. Now there is the new way to share the good news that Jesus is not in the grave (Jesus is not here). It is wonderful news for us!
The Meaning of His Resurrection
From this point onwards the disciples had a relationship with a risen Christ. It is the same for us. When we believe in Jesus, we are connected to a risen Saviour and Lord. What does this mean for us?
- We are secure.
The resurrected life of Jesus is a life that is stronger than death. This means that nothing can destroy this life. Having faith in Jesus, we join to him. Now we are described as being raised with him (Col. 3:1). We share in the indestructible life of the risen Christ. Thus, we are secure for all ages in the hand of God by the powerful works of Jesus on the cross and the power of Jesus’ Resurrection.
- We have power.
Chapter one of Ephesians says Jesus was given power over all things after his resurrection (Vv.19-23). He showed this power when he rose from the dead. He showed this power when he went up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God the Father. One day he will come again with power. Right now Jesus is using this power to build his church. Right now Jesus is using this power to save and to keep his people. Right now this power is ours to use, whenever we are tempted or weak. It is his power that makes us strong.
- We have encouragement.
His resurrection does not mean that Jesus is now different from us. It is true that Jesus is sinless, and we are sinners. In other words, after his resurrection, Jesus was still completely human. Jesus’ resurrection from the dead did not change his humanity. Also it did not make him less able to identify with us. It did not make it more difficult for us to know him. Actually, the opposite is the truth. Jesus is closer to us now and even more able to sympathize with us.
This is a great encouragement to us in our daily life. It also encourages us when we think about the future. The more we realize that we will die one day, the more precious it is know that Jesus lives forever, and we will rise to be with him.
- We have joy.
Jesus took our sins to the grave, and when he rose again, he left them there. He also left all his sorrows in the grave, and rose to a life of complete joy. We can read about this in many of the Psalms. The resurrection of Jesus is prophesized in Psalms 16. We read in Vv. 10-11 of Psalms 16, ‘You will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. You will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasure at your right hand.’
After Jesus’ resurrection, he experienced complete joy. He experienced it in the way that only a risen person can. Right now we experience some of that joy by faith in this life, but greater joy is waiting for us, when we will be with Christ forever.
- We have hope.
1 Peter 1:3 says that we have ‘a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead’. As Christians what we have now is wonderful, but we have more to come – a kingdom, a city, an inheritance, a glory. All this belongs to us. In other words, we know that we will receive it because Jesus rose from the dead and lives forever.
Conclusion
On this earth, there are ups and downs in our life. Because of this, sometimes, we are happy and sometimes, we are sad. But the demand is to be a Christian in our hearts and live a life, which is pleasing to our Saviour and God. For this, we have to think often about Jesus’ resurrection. By remembering Him and His resurrection, we will be more conscious of the truth we are risen with him. As we believe this, we will be more spiritually healthy, more holy, and full of joy.
Also to be a Christian in our heart and live a holy life on earth, we need motivation. But the motivation comes from thinking more about Jesus’ resurrection. It also motivates us to share the Gospel with others because the empty grave says to sinners, ‘God accepted the work of Jesus as Substitute, and through him is forgiveness of sin, righteousness and peace with God.’ The resurrection means that we are sure of our message. God is completely satisfied with the sacrifice of Jesus. Right now, we can take the good news of forgiveness and righteousness to sinners everywhere – no restrictions, no conditions! We are equally sure that any sinner who comes to Jesus will immediately exchange life for death, freedom for slavery, joy for sorrow and certain hope for doubt and despair. Now the good news of the Easter is: Jesus is alive and He is not in the grave! Therefore, be merry and celebrate the Abundant Life and the Living Relationship with the Saviour and God. [1]
[1] While preparing this article, I have taken some shelp from Horatius Bonar’s book “The Everlasting Righteousness”.
