If Jesus Rose from the Dead, then (#39) He Left and Turned It Over to Us

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most important event in history. It is the most important truth claim in a biblical worldview. It is the key apologetic for Christianity. Over the next seven weeks, I would like for us to think through forty compelling arguments and implications that are true if Jesus, indeed, “rose from the dead”. This will take us through Ascension Day and Pentecost. Both are important days of remembrance following the Resurrection and we will highlight them. But more importantly, I want for us to see the tremendous significance of the Resurrection by looking at not only the many proofs, but also the many implications. And this, I pray, will lead to deep contemplations in our hearts and minds. Paul states that without the resurrection, our faith would be in vain and we would still be lost.  “… if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.”      1 Corinthians 15:17 This is not a minor statement, and it should cause us pause, for it puts this unique historical event into sharp perspective. Without the Resurrection, we are hopelessly lost. We are without a true faith and we are unforgiven, still condemned in our sins. We should probably read that verse over several times before plowing forward. It is easy for me, and possibly you, to treat Easter as another Christian holiday marked by multiple, and possibly extensive, preparations. Church choirs rehearse diligently and on overtime, special services are prepared (think Good Friday and sometimes Sunrise Services), thousands of lilies are tended and provoked to bloom at the right time and are purchased to line sanctuary rails, special meals are planned and prepared and joyously consumed, treasure hunts are created, painted eggs are hidden and Easter baskets are filled with chocolate bunnies, peeps, and who knows what else the market has, and will, come up with.  The point here is that just like Christmas and Thanksgiving and every other holiday, including birthdays, anniversaries, and the multitude of “take-your-boss-to-lunch” kind of days, they are preceded with much preparation, happy execution, and then forgotten except to toss the wrappings into the trash and press on with life as usual. When I was at the White House, the annual “Easter Egg Roll” on the south lawn was a big deal with weeks of preparation, followed immediately by a massive clean-up and the Secret Service hustling folks out of the “compound”. For the Resurrection, however, Paul implies that it is something so critical to our faith that it should be an ever-present reality. The astounding cry, “He lives!” should be ongoing, not a one-and-done holiday. I believe it is important for us to frequently ponder and meditate upon the deep implications that the tomb was really, truly empty and the resurrection of Jesus from the dead is absolutely true… a historical fact that has everyday implications. So, we will look at not only these implications, but also the apologetic propositions and the incredible truths that logically follow this unmatched historical assertion. We will not go through these in any particular order. We are not going from the least to the greatest or vice versa, although we will generally lay down the apologetic arguments first and then deal with the implications. And hopefully, after seven weeks, we will have imprinted these truths deep in our hearts such that they will help us with our walk into the darkness we call future. Because it is the Resurrection of Christ that stands at the forefront in the apologetic reality of who Jesus is and what God has done for us. As a famous hymn states: "Because He lives, I can face tomorrow." [Next: The Seal Was Broken]

I have rafted down the Grand Canyon twice and been to the rim numerous times, but it still takes my breath away. This is our third day here and we finally made it up to the eastern end of the South Rim. Tom is manning one camera out on the point. We are with Dr. Steve Austin, an incredibly smart geologist who has spent years below the rim studying nautiloid fossils and other features in this amazing place. Beyond the beauty, however, the Grand Canyon gives us the unique opportunity to see a stark display of sedimentary layers…layers that are found all over the world. They sit on top of a bed of metamorphic rock and extend, in some places, upward for three miles. The odds are you are standing on massive layers of sediment right now. The conventional story that is told in our schools and universities and even the signs in the National Parks is that all of this was formed over millions and millions of years by slow, gradual processes. The problem is that the evidence doesn’t match that story. We saw at Mt. St. Helens how complex geological formations can appear in a matter of hours or days. Even conventional geologists are beginning to look more toward a “catastrophic” answer to what they see, not only in the Grand Canyon, but around the world. Dr. Austin is one of many scientists that are finding that the history recorded in Genesis is accurate and gives us a true basis for understanding the geological story that is recorded in the earth. In the next few days, we will look at a some of that evidence. [Previous] [Next]