The Necessity of the Resurrection

Introduction

Last Sunday we began and focused upon the necessity of the gospel message and in closing we examined the evidence for the resurrection.

Many would say that to believe in the resurrection of Jesus is to lay aside logic and reason, yet there is more than sufficient evidence to prove that Jesus Christ did indeed rise from the dead.

The resurrection is the central truth upon which the Christian faith rests. What if, as many have claimed, Jesus Christ did not rise from the dead? What impact would this have upon our faith and our hope of eternity?

Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ:

We Have No Message Worth Proclaiming

How could we begin to preach a gospel where our savior remains in a tomb?

If we remove the resurrection from the gospel we have rendered it ineffective. Without a risen savior Christianity becomes just another dead religion.

There are a great variety of religions who worship those who have long ago been laid in a tomb and if Jesus Christ did not rise again we are become no different.

Our proclamation of the gospel serves no purpose without the resurrection, for how can a man in a tomb change anyone’s life much less secure for them eternal life.

In addition to the ineffectiveness of the gospel message, if Jesus Christ did not rise again Paul, Peter, Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, and many of the other disciples who heralded Christ’s resurrection are nothing more than petty liars.

If Christ did not rise from the dead then I am also a liar for proclaiming that He did.

We Have No Advocate With the Father

Without a living savior how can our sins be forgiven? We know that Jesus Christ died for our sins but what benefit is that to us if He is yet in the tomb?

You and I need a mediator with God one who will plead our cause with the father and the only one suitable for the task is Jesus Christ.

- Jesus Christ our mediator

Without a risen savior we remain hopelessly lost in our sins. We have no one to intercede on our behalf at the throne of God.

We Have No Hope Beyond this Life

Without a living savior what expectation do we have beyond this life?

If there is no resurrection of the dead then what hope do we have beyond this life?

If Jesus Christ did not rise again, all of those who have died believing in Him have now perished without hope and we shall never see them again.

If Jesus Christ did not rise again, the only hope we have is in this present life. There is no hope of eternal life or any hope of heaven.

1 Corinthians 4. Christ’s Resurrection Is Fundamental to Salvation and All Else that Relates to Christian Experience (15:12–19)

The thought of the verse is that if hope in Christ is limited to this life, then Christians are a people above all others to be pitied. They have renounced this world for the world to come, only to discover in the end that there is no world to come.

- if there is no resurrection then let us eat and drink for tomorrow we die and that is the ultimate end.

Conclusion

The greatest news in all the world is found in the beginning phrase of - BUT NOW IS CHRIST RISEN FROM THE DEAD!

Because Christ is risen:

We Have a Message That We Must Proclaim

The gospel is a powerful message because Jesus Christ is alive forevermore and has conquered death and hell! - alive for evermore

The gospel message has the power to change lives and to make every one who believes a “new creature” in Christ! - old things passed away

Millions of lives, including mine, have been utterly transformed by the preaching of the simple gospel message!

We have an Advocate With the Father Who Will Secure Forgiveness For Us

- our advocate with the father- Our risen savior is our advocate with the father and is the one who secures for us the forgiveness of sins!

- The risen Christ is presently seated and God’s right hand making intercession for everyone who believes!

Our justification before the father is absolutely dependent upon His resurrection- - peace with God comes through Jesus Christ!

If Jesus Christ did not rise again we would be forced to stand before God on our own, but because Christ is risen we will not stand alone but with Jesus Christ to plead our case!

We Have a Hope That Extends Beyond This Life Into Life Eternal

How miserable we would be if this life were all that there is! How hopeless to think that we should never again see our loved ones who died believing in Jesus.

Yet because Christ is risen, you and I have access into eternal life. Because Christ is risen, we will one day be reunited with those who have gone on before us.

Because Jesus Christ rose from the dead we have a hope for the future of our own bodily resurrection to life eternal!

Because Christ is risen we can live our lives with eternity in view, in wisdom living not for temporal gain but for eternal reward!