2014 RESURRECTION SUNDAY MESSAGE NO RESURRECTION NO CHRISTIANITY

2014 RESURRECTION SUNDAY MESSAGE: NO RESURRECTION, NO CHRISTIANITY I. THE RESURRECTION: CHRISTIANITY’S IMPACT Ø Read 1 Cor 15: 3 -4. ~ These words show the careful and literal way that Christian teachers passed on tradition from one generation to the next. Ø The central theme of the gospel is given here.

Ø The three points that are “of first importance” are as follows: 1. Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures. ~ The phrase “according to the Scriptures” refers to the Old Testament prophecies regarding this event (Ps 16: 8 -11; Isa 53: 5 -6. ) 2. He was buried. ~ The fact of Christ’s death is revealed in the fact of His burial.

3. He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures. ~ Christ “was raised” permanently, forever; His Father raised Him from the dead. Ø Paul restated the gospel because there were unbelievers in the Corinthian church. ~ Most churches contain people who do not yet believe.

Ø The preaching of the gospel, then, accomplishes two purposes: (1) The message offers salvation to those who have not yet responded; and (2) the message challenges believers to remain faithful. Ø Going back to the resurrection, the Jews were split on the issue. Ø THIS WAS THE EARTH-SHATTERING FOUNDATION OF THE CHURCH. ~ The specter of death had lost its power.

Ø It’s impossible for us to understand, two millennia later, how utterly radical the idea of resurrection was. ~ It was not an illusion of prescientific people (1 Cor 15: 5 -8). II. THE RESURRECTION: CHRISTIANITY’S VALIDATION Ø Read 1 Cor 15: 17.

~ We Christians have no reason to have faith if we take the Resurrection out of that faith. ~ If Jesus died and was never raised, then His death did nothing to accomplish justification. ~ GOD RAISING HIM FROM THE DEAD SHOWED ACCEPTANCE OF CHRIST’S SACRIFICE.

Ø Why does Paul say in 1 Cor 15: 19 believers should be pitied if there were only earthly value to Christianity? ~ In Paul’s day, Christianity often brought a person persecution, ostracism from family, and, in many cases, poverty. ~ Christians could not be forgiven for their sins and would have no hope of eternal life.

Ø THE RESURRECTION VALIDATES EVERYTHING WE BELIEVE IN. Ø God gave us the Resurrection – Jesus’ and ours – for a reason. ~ It’s a promise, a pledge, a validation that our life on this fallen planet is but a tiny fraction of the life we were meant to live. ~ While the rest of the world goes about living for the here and now, we live for eternity.

Ø This, in fact, was the point of creation from day one. ~ Genesis is the account of God’s creation, but the cross of Christ and the empty tomb are the account of the re-creation. Ø The Resurrection allows us to live with a sense of risk and adventure, because it makes us part of a new order of creation that ultimately cannot fail – our lives are grounded in Someone who reigns in eternal victory.

III. THE RESURRECTION: CHRISTIANITY’S PROSPECT Ø Read 1 Cor 15: 58. Ø Because of the prospect of all the promises from v. 20 to v. 57, believers have motivation and responsibilities for life now lived in their perishable bodies. ~ Every job done for the Lord is not in vain. ~ Work in the Lord will result in taking part in the great promises and rewards of God’s kingdom.

Ø OUR LIVES ARE GROUNDED IN ETERNITY. ~ The power of eternity will not make us aggressively offensive, but it will cause us to be unmoved in the face of the world’s fickle opinions. ~ It will give us perspective. ~ It will drive us to live our faith with meaning and purpose.

Ø Learn to live with the perspective of eternity. ~ Be faithful in this world, but crave the day this temporal dwelling is shed for heavenly glory. ~ That craving ought to shape everything we do. ~ The power of an eternal perspective changes lives – beginning with our own.

Ø If you think about it, the fact of the resurrection changes everything. ~ C. S. Lewis: “Jesus has forced open a door that had been locked since the death of the first man. . Everything is different because He has done so. ” ~ RESOLVE THIS YEAR TO LIVE A RESURRECTED LIFE!