WHY ISN’T THE RESURRECTION OF OUR LORD AS BIG OR BIGGER CELEBRATION AS HIS BIRTH?

Every Easter, I am reminded that I am alive only because Jesus is alive and rescued me. I am convinced that we short change ourselves by not making Easter as big or bigger celebration than Christmas. I don't care what you call the day, it's the celebration of the reality that Jesus is alive.

Rev 2:8b       And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna write; “These things saith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive…

 What an appropriate place to be in the scripture for Resurrection Sunday and Pasach (Passover). The reality of the Resurrection is something we must always cling to with all of our heart and mind. This next quotation is from the Message Bible and is self-explanatory. No doubt you will hear this verse preached about in your pastor’s Resurrection Sunday sermon, read ahead and be ready.

1 Cor.15:12-15            Now, let me ask you something profound yet troubling. If you became believers because you trusted the proclamation that Christ is alive, risen from the dead, how can you let people say that there is no such thing as a resurrection? If there's no resurrection, there's no living Christ. And face it—if there's no resurrection for Christ, everything we've told you is smoke and mirrors, and everything you've staked your life on is smoke and mirrors. Not only that, but we would be guilty of telling a string of barefaced lies about God, all these affidavits we passed on to you verifying that God raised up Christ—sheer fabrications, if there's no resurrection.

16-20               If corpses can't be raised, then Christ wasn't, because he was indeed dead. And if Christ weren't raised, then all you're doing is wandering about in the dark, as lost as ever. It's even worse for those who died hoping in Christ and resurrection, because they're already in their graves. If all we get out of Christ is a little inspiration for a few short years, we're a pretty sorry lot. But the truth is that Christ has been raised up, the first in a long legacy of those who are going to leave the cemeteries.

21-28               There is a nice symmetry in this: Death initially came by a man, and resurrection from death came by a man. Everybody dies in Adam; everybody comes alive in Christ. But we have to wait our turn: Christ is first, then those with him at his Coming, the grand consummation when, after crushing the opposition, he hands over his kingdom to God the Father. He won't let up until the last enemy is down—and the very last enemy is death! As the psalmist said, "He laid them low, one and all; he walked all over them." When Scripture says that "he walked all over them," it's obvious that he couldn't at the same time be walked on. When everything and everyone is finally under God's rule, the Son will step down, taking his place with everyone else, showing that God's rule is absolutely comprehensive—a perfect ending!

There is a certain emphasis that the Message Bible misses that we need to get a hold of today, which is the misery of life without the resurrected Christ..

1 Cor 15:17     And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.

18        Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.

19        If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. (KJV)

Could you imagine pouring out your life for a lie? Could you imagine the apostle Paul’s lifestyle all based on a lie? The sad thing is that there are many in our world today that are doing just that. Our hearts should cry out for the thousands that are giving their lives, often at young ages, for the lies of the cults, especially Islam. Think of those who have given up everything to live a horrific life of war against people that love them, against the God that gave His Son so that they might have an abundant life. The scriptures exhort us to pray for our enemies. This is a season of great rejoicing, remembering the Resurrection of our Lord, remembering the Deliverance from Egyptian bondage and the analogy of the Exodus to deliverance from sin. In our rejoicing let us also remember to pray for those who would give their lives to destroy Judaism and Christianity. We are in the midst of a very real war; it is both spiritual and temporal. Victory is ours only in the Risen Christ. Jesus died for those lost to the cults as well.

Won’t it be wonderful when millions of Muslims come to Christ and mosques are converted to churches; when Mormon tabernacles echo with the reality of Jesus as Lord of all; when Catholics cast away their worship of Mary and dead saints and embrace salvation by grace through faith? The list goes on and on and I do not want to glorify these evil works of the enemy of our souls who uses the lies these cults profess to keep people from Christ. Let us lift up Jesus, our Risen Lord and Savior. Let us pray with faith and Holy Spirit birthed expectation, for world wide revival bringing in the millions currently lost in these lies and used of the devil to keep others from salvation.

HALLELJJAH, JESUS IS ALIVE !!!!!!!!!!!