WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW.
The real message of Christianity is a message of
(1) FORGIVENESS OF SINS
(2) RESURRECTION TO ETERNAL LIFE
(3) HOPE, SPIRITUAL LIFE AND ASSURANCE.
1st Corinthians 15:20, “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.”
If Christ had not risen from the dead, Christianity would be no different than a fairy tale like little Red Riding Hood.
We must accept the explanation of the Bible which is that Jesus Christ really did RISE from the DEAD and that He now LIVES.
Jesus made many claims to be divine. He declared that He was the ONLY son of God.
Jesus made this claim clearly in words.
He suggested it in His teaching. He symbolized it in His works. Romans 1:4, “And who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by His resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.”
The resurrection of Jesus Christ is then, the basis of our Christian faith. Upon it rest Christ’s claims to be the ONLY son of God and upon it rests the fact that God, the Father accepted His sacrifice for our sins.
Jesus rose from the grave with the same body as before, but now there was no possibility of Him ever dying again. It was the same body but it was now transformed. Let compare Jesus’ resurrection with those occasions when Jesus raised others from the dead. In both the case of Lazarus and of Jairus’ daughter, those who were raised from the dead eventually died a second time.
This was because, although they were raised from the dead, their bodies were not yet transformed. It is very important for us to understand the difference between Lazarus’ resurrected body after Jesus had raised him from the dead and Jesus’ own body after His resurrection. John 20 : 19, “On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you !” Luke 24:31, “Then their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, and He disappeared from their sight” Obviously, it was the SAME body which Jesus had before His death; it was completely transformed and no longer subject to normal natural laws. 2nd Corinthians 4:14–15, “Because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in His presence. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God.” Philippians 3:21, “Who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body.” We will be raised with the same body but it will be completely transformed. 1st Corinthians 15:20–26, “But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own turn: Christ, the first fruits; then, when He comes, those who belong to Him. Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.”
Jesus was limited to His physical human body while He was on earth ministering in Palestine (in the then Israel) though His ascension into heaven this physical limitation was removed. When Jesus poured out His Holy Spirit from heaven upon the church, He Himself came to live WITHIN every believer for the FIRST TIME with all of His power and blessing. Romans 8:34, “Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died:- more than that, who was raised to life :- is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. » 1st John 2:1, “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense: - Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.” Hebrews 7:25, “Therefore He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them.” Colossians 1:19–20, “For God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross.”