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We have all played the game "what if". What
if this happened, or what if I could do this or that.
You could spend endless hours working through myriads
of hypotheses based upon what ifs. That is one of
those mind games to occupy a spring afternoon lying in
a hammock when you have absolutely nothing else you
have to do.
With the beauty of spring comes the most
significant day on the Christian calendar, Easter. And
though the term Easter does not appear in Scripture,
the subject of the day certainly does. Which brings us
back to the "what if". Paul puts this very
question before the Christians in the Corinthian
church in dealing with the all important subject of
the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the very cornerstone
of our faith. What if there was no resurrection he
asked?
It seems as though there were those in the
Corinthian church that postulated that perhaps there
was no resurrection. So Paul runs that line of
thinking with them and his conclusions slam the door
on their heresy pretty quickly. If in actuality there
was no resurrection then, of course, Jesus Christ is
not risen. And if Jesus Christ is not risen, then look
where we end up: our preaching is in vain, we are
found to be false witnesses, our faith is futile, we
are still lost in our sins, and we of all people are
the most pitiable. Why? We are hopeless. All is lost.
Without the resurrection we have no hope. (1
Corinthians 15:12-19).
But in the very next verse Paul victoriously sounds
a triumphant note for all Christians, "But now
Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the
firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." Let
there be no doubt, Christ has been raised from the
dead and with His resurrection, there is hope for all
who believe in Him.
That is the true message of Easter. Though we
celebrate Easter but once each year, we actually
celebrate the resurrection of Christ every Lord's Day,
every time we celebrate Christian worship and in
truth, every moment of our Christian experience. The
essence of the Christian faith is the truth of the
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
But since we stake so much of our faith on the fact
of the resurrection of Christ, are we really that sure
of its existence? Actually, there is a great deal of
proof behind the faith. Let me point out some of it
for you.
After His bodily resurrection, Jesus Christ
appeared to the following:
- To Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-18)
- The other women (Matthew 28:8-10)
- To Peter (Luke 24:34)
- To ten disciples (Luke 24:36- 43; John 20:19-25)
- To the Eleven disciples, including Thomas (John
20:26-29)
- At His ascension (Luke 24:50- 53; Acts 1:4-12)
- To disciples on road to Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35)
- In Galilee (Matthew 28:16-20; John 21:1-24)
- To five hundred people (I Corinthians 15:6) To
James and the apostles (I Corinthians 15:7)
- To Paul on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1-6;
18:9-10; I Corinthians 15:8)
The testimony to the bodily resurrection of Christ
was very much a public display so that there could be
no doubt as to its authentication. Even those in
Jesus' day who tried to come up with a plausible
deniability could not muster a reliable story that
would hold. The only conclusion was the fact of the
resurrection.
But here is the real authentication of the truth of
the resurrection of Christ. Yes, all the appearances
give positive testimony, yes the Scriptures make it
abundantly clear that the resurrection took place, and
those would be more than enough. But, they are not end
of the proof. The continued proof is that for nearly
2000 years lives continue to be changed, transformed,
by the power of the resurrected Jesus Christ.
That is what makes the "what if" a
reality. The reality that those who confess faith in
this Jesus Christ who was raised from the dead have
their lives changed forever by the power of His
resurrection. That is the true Easter message. That is
when the "what if" becomes a reality.
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