A Resurrected Greeting
Romans 6:4
America is one of the few countries where the customary greeting for Easter has absolutely no connection to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. What we hear is “Happy Easter.” But this is not how the church has greeted one another in times past. The early church would greet one another saying, “Christ is risen,” and the response was, “He has risen indeed.”
Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!
In the first couple of centuries, the church would say, “He lives.”
And in truth, this should be our greeting all the time, because this is our hope and the hope of the world.
You see, Easter has absolutely no connection to the empty tomb and the resurrection miracle. Originally, Easter was a pagan celebration of renewal and rebirth and was celebrated around this same time in England. It honored the Saxon goddess ‘Eastre,’ the mother goddess. But when Christian missionaries converted the Saxons to Christianity, this pagan celebration was merged into the Christian holy day when we celebrate the empty tomb and Jesus rising from the dead.
And so, while it never used to be this way, America soon went the way of the pagan holiday, where today it’s about an Easter Bunny that lays eggs. And so, what we might say is that Easter, or the day we are supposed to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus has gotten a little bit fuzzy in the minds of many.
And so, instead of greeting one another with Happy Easter, which has gotten to be ingrained with so many, we need to resurrect the traditional Christian greeting, “Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!”
And even more, our conversations need to move from Easter brunch, and Easter hats, and all the holiday programing that is on TV, and instead we should be promoting that Jesus Christ is no longer dead, that He lives, that He has risen and is alive.
And this is not only what we need to hear, but it is also something we need to be saying. And what this greeting means is that Jesus is God’s Son and the world’s Savior, and He has defeated sin and death for all time.
Therefore, “Christ is Risen! He has Risen Indeed.”
But if there were one verse that I could choose that speaks to this greeting, besides the angel’s greeting to the women saying, “He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay,” (Matthew 28:6), it would be found in what the Apostle Paul said.
“Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4b NKJV)
What then is the truth behind these words that Paul pronounced, “Christ was raised from the dead?” What is the truth that allows us to make this proclamation that Jesus Christ rose from the dead and is alive?
What I have found interesting is that throughout the entirety of the New Testament we find absolutely no lengthy debate or defense given for this proclamation. The fact that Jesus on the third day rose from the dead was accepted by all as the truth. This, you might say, is the capstone, the cornerstone of our faith.
And the Apostle Paul kind of put the capper on this. He said, “And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty. Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ … For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen. And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins! Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.” (1 Corinthians 15:14-18 NKJV)
Now, Paul is not defending the resurrection, he was simply speaking about its truthfulness.
Unfortunately, many today don’t take the time or the energy to check it out for themselves. Instead, they come with their minds already made up having listened to the critics and not checking their stories or their “speaking points.”
One such person who checked it out was Josh McDowell. As a pre-law student he considered himself as an agnostic and believed that Christianity was worthless. However, when challenged by Christians there on campus to prove them wrong, he undertook the challenge. Through his study he found overwhelming evidence for the Christian faith. He studied the documents and found that the Old and New Testament were the most reliable writings in antiquity.
When asked why he couldn’t disprove Christianity, he responded, “For the simple reason that I was unable to explain away the fact that the resurrection of Jesus Christ was a real event in history.”
Afterwards, he authored a lot of books including, “Evidence That Demands a Verdict,” “More Evidence That Demands a Verdict,” “More Than a Carpenter,” and “Daniel in the Lion’s Den.”
And this has been the record of all those who have tried to disprove the Christian faith over the centuries and ended up writing books at treaties about the truthfulness. Frank Morison, an English journalist from the 1930’s who believed that there was no way that what the Bible said about Christ was true, ended up writing a book that some say is the best defense of the Resurrection entitled, “Who Moved the Stone?”
And then there was the great legal scholar, Dr. Simon Greenleaf, who wrote a three-volume set on legal evidence entitled, “A Treatise on the Law of Evidence,” which has been called the greatest single authority on legal procedure. In fact, I am told that our legal system still relies on the rules of evidence established by Greenleaf.
It is said that Greenleaf initially believed the Resurrection of Jesus Christ was a hoax. And he determined to expose the "myth" of the Resurrection. But the more Greenleaf investigated the record of history, the more evidence he discovered supporting the claim that Jesus had indeed risen from the tomb.
Greenleaf believed that the case for Jesus’s resurrection was so compelling that he had no doubt that it would hold up in a court of law. In his book, “The Testimony of the Evangelists,” Greenleaf documents the evidence and challenges those who seek the truth about the resurrection to fairly examine the evidence.
On page 29, Greenleaf said, “it was impossible that the apostles could have persisted in affirming the truths they had narrated, had not Jesus Christ actually risen from the dead.”
But if truth be known, I don’t think most people even know what they believe, and that their rejection isn’t because any solid investigation on their part, instead it’s an unwillingness on their part to believe.
Reverend Torrey in his defense of the resurrection tells a story that speaks to this. He talked about how a “brilliant lawyer” in New York was presented proof about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. After studying it, he came back to the minister who had given it to him and said, “I am convinced that Jesus really did rise from the dead. But I am no nearer being a Christian than I was before. I thought that the difficulty was with my head. I find that it is really with my heart.”
So, what sort of evidence is there to the resurrection that found these men changing their minds. Now, since I’ve never read their books or treatises, let me share with you what I know, and what I have used to tell others where some have given their lives to Christ.
The first was that if the writers of the Bible truly wanted their audience to believe what they said, and that what they said really was the truth, they would have never used women as witnesses to the resurrection in their story.
And the reason is because back in those days, women were never called as witnesses because they were considered, unfairly mind you, unreliable. And so, using them as the focal point of the resurrection story reveals that the writers were more interested in the truth than in trying to convince anyone.
Next is what Thomas said once he touched the hands, feet, and side of Jesus. And Jesus said, “Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” To which Thomas replied, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:27b-28 NKJV)
And here’s the point, no Jew would ever use these words to anyone, for they would be considered blasphemous. And if you are witnessing to a Jewish person, this is not a story you would tell, because they would immediately stop listening at that point.
But again, the writers of the New Testament were more concerned about accurately putting down what happened rather than worry about what others might think.
And the third thing I’d like to point out is how the disciples died. If they knew that Jesus really didn’t rise from the dead, and that the tomb wasn’t empty, why would they willing submit themselves to persecution and death, and that by some pretty horrific torture to boot. Why not just say they were lying and be done with it? Why not say, “Well we had a good run, got some pretty good stuff out of it, a new car, a house, even a plane, but it was all a lie.”
And the reason is that it was true, and they were willing to die for the truth, rather than live and deny what they knew to be true.
And then there are changed lives. The most telling of all proofs is the changed lives of those early Christians. They weren’t given great rewards, prestige, or power, but instead they were beaten, stoned, tortured, thrown to the lions, and crucified.
The disciples radically changed from cowering men to being fearless in the face of death.
We also see Saul of Tarsus whose names was changed to the Apostle Paul as his life radically changed after his encounter with the risen Christ from being a persecutor of Christians to being a believer and missionary for the very One, Jesus Christ, whom he was adamantly against.
But then there are also our own lives and how we have changed, which is probably the strongest evidence for the resurrection, which is something that stood out to Josh McDowell.
Josh talked about this small group of people, including a couple of professors whose lives were different, not in a weird way, but because of the love they showed not only towards each other but also for others. And that’s what he wanted, so he made friends with them, and the rest is history.
So, with the evidence in place of the fact that Jesus rose from the dead, we can then say without hesitation, “Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!” But the question becomes, what does all this prove?
The Resurrection Proves Jesus is God
The resurrection proves that Jesus has the power over life and death.
Jesus said, “No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of Myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This command I have received from My Father.” (John 10:18 NKJV)
As far as Jesus having the power over life, it is seen in many places. In fact, He was the one who created life in the beginning.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” (John 1:1-4 NKJV)
In the Genesis account it says for each day of creation God spoke the words to create and it was done. And then what we read from John’s gospel we are told how it was done, and that is, it was the Father who spoke the word of creation, and it was then Jesus, the Son of God, the Word, who brought into existence what the Father spoke.
And Jesus’s power over death can be seen in several location, but none more pronounced as when he raised Lazarus from the dead. After lying in the tomb for four days, Jesus had the stone rolled away, and Martha, being Martha, said, “Lord, by this time there’s a stench.” And Jesus said, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?” (John 11:40)
You see, earlier Jesus said to Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.” (John 11:25)
And then Jesus went to the tomb and cried out, “Lazarus, come forth!” and out came Lazarus, with his grave clothes still wrapped around him (John 11:43-44).
The Resurrection Proves the Incarnation
It proves everything that was said about the coming Messiah, that He would be born as the Lord God Himself.
The prophet Isaiah prophesied, “Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel (God with us).” (Isaiah 7:14)
And of this coming child, the prophet Isaiah said, “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given … And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6 NKJV)
You see, the purpose of the incarnation is found in the cross and the empty tomb, and that purpose is nothing less than our salvation.
“If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9 NKJV)
And one more thing that this brings to the forefront, is that God is the God of all eternity, and only God has the ability to alter time, which is exactly what the resurrection did. What we might say is that the resurrection of Jesus divided time itself.
The Resurrection is the Turning Point of History
The resurrection of Jesus caused history to split into two parts: B.C. and A.D.
Now, some of you may have caught a discrepancy in what I just said, because B.C. and A.D. are divided by Jesus’s birth, not His resurrection. But, let me just bring forth this proposition, and that is, if it wasn’t for the resurrection, there would be no reason to record Jesus’s birth. In fact, if it wasn’t for the resurrection, there would be no need to celebrate Christmas, or for any of us to come on Sunday morning to worship Him.
And so, the resurrection brings a newness, both of life and of hope. Because when Jesus rose from the dead, when he exited the tomb, and an entirely new era dawned upon the earth and the human race.
And so, we can say, “Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!” and “He Lives”
And this brings me to the last aspect of the resurrection that I’d like to share with you this morning.
The Resurrection Guarantees Our Resurrection
“And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” (Ephesians 2:1 NKJV)
“If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God.” (Colossians 3:1 NKJV)
I’d like to go back to what Jesus said to Martha at Lazarus’s resurrection.
“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26 NKJV)
Basically, Jesus was saying that He is the resurrection and life, and if we want to live eternally and never die, and not perish for all eternity, then it comes through our belief in Him.
But this is not the only time Jesus said something like this. To his disciples to give them this same resurrection hope and of heaven He said, “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” (John 14:1-3 NKJV)
It is therefore only with this resurrection faith in our hearts that we don’t need to despair when our lives here upon the earth come to an end. And so, when we believe in Jesus’s resurrection from the dead, not only will we be saved, but it guarantees our resurrection as well.
When we believe we move from eternal death into eternal life. You see, knowing that our sins are nailed to the cross, and that Jesus rose from the grave and is our living Savior and not some dead deceiver, we can with all confidence believe that the grave is not the end of life.
Death now is only a change in our living conditions.
The Apostle Paul tells us, “We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord.” (2 Corinthians 5:8 NKJV)
Therefore, we can be assured of that to which our signature verse proclaims, that we can “walk in the newness of life.”
I love what the Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 8:18.
“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” (Romans 8:18 NKJV)
Therefore, whatever our problems and troubles may be, whether they are financial, relational, or health related, we can confidently lay them at the foot of the cross and come to the empty tomb with the stone rolled away and realize that our sins are forgiven and death no longer has any power over us, and there we will find not only newness of life, but the assurance of our salvation and eternal life in Heaven with Him.
This is why we can shout at the top of our lungs, “Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed!”
