Sharing in the Resurrection of Jesus

April 2, 2024

The resurrection of Jesus Christ means everything to us as Christians.  Our faith is meaningless without it.  As Paul wrote, “… and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.” (1 Corinthians 15:17 NASB95) But Jesus has been raised from the dead, and He is alive forevermore!  And because of His resurrection, amazing things have happened—and will happen—to those who belong to Him.

Because Jesus was raised, you have been raised with Him.  When you were baptized into Christ, you died with Jesus, were buried with Him, and were raised up with Him (Romans 6:3-4).  At the moment of your baptism, through faith, you were made alive with Him!  As we read in Ephesians chapter two, “But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus…” (Ephesians 2:4-6 NASB95) Not only were we raised with Jesus, but God seated us with Him in the heavenly places.  This is a current reality for those in Christ—a spiritual reality which must be understood through the eyes of faith.

Because Jesus was raised, we have been raised spiritually, and we will be raised bodily.  There is a glorious day coming when Jesus will return and resurrect our mortal bodies.  Our bodies will be raised in power and in glory (1 Corinthians 15:43).  They will be raised imperishable. (1 Corinthians 15:50).  They will be changed in the twinkling of an eye(1 Corinthians 15:52).  Our bodies will be transformed to be like His glorious body. (Philippians 3:21) “Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear his voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.” (John 5:28-29 NASB95)

May we praise God with all our hearts this day for the resurrection of Jesus Christ—a resurrection which He has graciously allowed us to participate in.    

—Scott Colvin

Leave a Comment » | 1 Corinthians 15:13-19, Ephesians 2:4-6, John 5:28-29, resurrection, resurrection of Christ, resurrection of Jesus, resurrection of Jesus Christ, Romans 6:3-4 | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Scott Colvin

The Fury of God’s Fire

April 2, 2024

I am so very thankful that we serve a God who is full of love, mercy, and patience for mankind.  I am very thankful that we have a God who invites us to come near to Him and who has made it possible for us to call Him “Father.”  What joy, what comfort we can take from these truths! 

But in our reflections upon God’s love and mercy, we must never lose sight of the totality of His nature that He has revealed to us.  God is love, and God is also holy.  God is full of mercy, and He is also a God who rains down His judgement and wrath when He sees fit.

We must never forget the fear of God.  Many of the problems that we see in the church collectively, and in the individual lives of Christians are due to the fact that we have forgotten the fear of God.  When we do not have the reverence and awe for Him that He deserves, we can quickly get off track.  A lack of fear of the Lord leads to taking His word lightly and disregarding what He has said.  A lack of the fear of God leads to carelessly fooling around with sin.  It leads to treating our worship assembly as common and unimportant.  Afterall, if we see God as harmless and safe—as sort of a kindly old grandfather—why would we take Him all that seriously?

God is not “harmless.”  He is not “safe.”  He is a terrifying God who takes vengeance on His adversaries.  He is a God of judgment.  He is a God who consumes His enemies with a furious fire.  He will not be trifled with, ignored, scoffed at, or taken lightly.

We must have a healthy fear of God!  As the Hebrews writer states, “For if we go on sinning willfully after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a terrifying expectation of judgment and THE FURY OF A FIRE WHICH WILL CONSUME THE ADVERSARIES.” (Hebrews 10:26-27 NAS95) And it is said in the same passage, “For we know Him who said, ‘VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY.’ And again, ‘THE LORD WILL JUDGE HIS PEOPLE.’ It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” (Hebrews 10:30-31 NAS95)

Let us maintain a healthy fear of God.  And let us forever be thankful for Jesus Christ who saves us from the wrath to come. 

—Scott Colvin

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Posted by Scott Colvin