erebus-cross

“The wrath of God was satisfied with the suffering and death of Jesus. The holy curse against sin was fully absorbed. The obedience of Christ was completed to the fullest measure. The price of forgiveness was totally paid. The righteousness of God was completely vindicated. All that was left to accomplish was the public declaration of God’s endorsement. This he gave by raising Jesus from the dead.
When the Bible says, “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins” (1 Corinthians 15:17), the point is not that the resurrection is the price paid for our sins. The point is that the resurrection proves that the death of Jesus is an
all-sufficient price. If Jesus did not rise from the dead, then his death was a failure, God did not vindicate his sin-bearing achievement, and we are still in our sins.”

Reflecting on this shows that the resurrection was not just to another event that proves who Jesus claimed to be.  It was not just another miracle of Jesus.  Neither was it God’s best attempt to insert a happy ending in a divine drama that went terribly wrong.    The Resurrection was in fact God’s stamp of approval on Jesus own words, “it is finished”.  It was the perfect fulfillment of what was said at Jesus baptism.  Through it is removed any doubt that what Jesus accomplished by his life and death would be sufficient to save sinners from God’s wrath.

Questions.  Do you see the resurrection as merely a divine “I told you so”, in the face of those who mocked and killed Jesus?  It is more to you than just a happy ending?   Do you take refuge in the fact that the resurrection is a seal of a covenant with God,  a covenant whereby God declares the war between sinners and him over?

Quote from “The 50 Reasons Jesus Came to Die”.

Picture – The cross at Mount Erebus, Antarctica, commemorating the 1979 Air New Zealand Crash near Mount Erebus.

Leave a Reply