Jesus is Alive

Luke 24:1-7

Very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb, carrying the spices they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away from the entrance to the tomb, so they went in; but they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. They stood there puzzled about this, when suddenly two men in bright shining clothes stood by them. Full of fear, the women bowed down to the ground, as the men said to them, “Why are you looking among the dead for one who is alive? He is not here; he has been raised. Remember what he said to you while he was in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be handed over to sinners, be crucified, and three days later rise to life.’”

Devotional

This past Sunday was Easter Sunday and it was the day that Jesus came back to life after dying on the cross. Over the years, I have wrestled with this when I was in highschool because I really wanted to find the answers for myself. How can a dead person become alive? That made no sense at all. The amazing thing is that the more I searched, God really worked in my heart. I came to believe the evidence before me that this event did happen.

But why does this all matter? I’m living in 2020 and this happened almost 2000 years ago! Why did it matter that Jesus came back to life?

• All Jesus claimed to be was true -He was the Son of God
  (John 10:30, John 14:9, Romans 1:4)

  • He told his disciples that he would have to die, but will also rise to life

  • If Jesus did not resurrect, then what he said about himself was not true, which means that if we believed in him, it would mean nothing at all

  • BUT everything Jesus said happened and he in fact died and rose again

• Your sins are forgiven. Really!
  (Matthew 20:28, Hebrews 10:4, Romans 3:23, Romans 6:8-11)

  • His payment for my sins and your sins was enough. If it was not enough, his body would still be in that tomb

  • You are free from sin

    • Sin = the stuff we do that God doesn’t want us to do. Basically anything that is not loving to other people and God.

    • Sin leads us to death. We are also separated from God because God and sin do not mix.

    • Back in the super old days, God offered a temporary way to cover over your sins where you would have to sacrifice an animal that had no flaw to die in your place for sins. Remember sin = death. You are trading an innocent life of animal so that you may “live freely” again Jesus was the ultimate sacrifice that takes on all of your sin from past, now, future, and died

    • Jesus’ resurrection means that death and sin could not win against Jesus

• Free from death
  (John 14:19, Hebrews 2:14-15)

  • Jesus’ resurrection means that death is not the end of life.

  • Just like how Jesus was resurrected, you will as well in heaven with God where sin does not exist

  • This means you don’t have to be afraid of death