Devotionals

By the Way

by Robert Beames
03/08/14
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Hopefully, somewhere in the sea of Cadbury eggs and marshmallow bunnies, we'll have time to focus. In order to do so, we may be forced to carve time out of our busy schedules filled with molding Rice Krispies treats into the shapes of eggs, hard-boiling, painting and hiding real eggs—only so they can easily be found again. Somewhere in the middle of all of our fond traditional moments, perhaps we'll remember the reason we have such traditions. Oh, by the way, all the symbolisms of new life which Easter Sunday offers, not only exist because Jesus died around this time of year, but also because He rose again. Jesus didn't stay dead, and that's kind of important.

We read that soon after Jesus died, His grave was found empty: "So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus’ head. The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen. Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)" (John 20:3-9). What should we make of the parenthetical last verse?

It seems much too important to be mentioned in passing. Since there was no punctuation in the original language, perhaps this verse doesn't read as, "Oh, by the way, the disciples still didn't get it." Maybe it should be read more emphatically, such as, "The reason they acted strangely was because they still didn't understand that Jesus came, not only to die for sinners, but also to conquer death." It's why Paul could announce that Jesus was the fulfillment of Hosea's prophesy, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:55). Of course, the answer to these rhetorical questions is that Jesus robbed death of its victory over us and removed its sting by His power.

However, John points out that those closest to Jesus failed to grasp this concept. We don't want to miss it either. Although, we may know Jesus rose from the tomb, we often live as those without the hope and joy the resurrection was meant to bring. John felt the need to explain why the two who went to the tomb acted in the way they did. Apparently, he considered their hesitancy to believe somewhat surprising given the years they spent with Jesus. Perhaps John was confessing his own lack of faith. Either way, most of us should be able to relate. Our lack of focus on the resurrection of Christ can cause us to behave in surprising ways, too. Discounting this epic event can negate the indescribable benefits Jesus obtained for us. We tend to fixate on our sins which made the cross necessary but disregard the implications of His resurrection. Grieving over sin is appropriate and necessary, but only to the point we experience the eager embrace of our Father.

Because of Christ's death and resurrection, He has already forgiven us. We only do damage when we focus on our own efforts or on the lack of genuine response to God's grace. When we look to Him, we find the favor we seek. So we keep in mind that our faithlessness made it necessary for Christ to die, but always remember that His resurrection proves we are already considered absolutely perfect in our Father's eyes. We are new creations by faith! As Paul explains, "And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" (2 Corinthians 5:15, 17). Paul taught a great deal about Christ's death and what it means to us, but he concludes that it all is worthless if the body of Jesus was found still in the tomb, "And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith... And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins" (1 Corinthians 15:14-17).

Paul also wrote a great deal about the importance of living by faith as opposed to trusting in our works to save us. Yet, Paul implies here that our faith is a waste of time if a certain falsely convicted criminal failed to get up and walk away. If the most famous death of all time happens, but the last resurrection ever doesn't follow, then we are lost. It would mean Jesus lacked the power to heal us to the depth we require or to forgive us to the degree we need to be saved. The bottom line is this: a dead Jesus leaves us in our sin. Although, that would be just because we deserve it, it would be sad because we would remain slaves to evil, and once we die, it would all be over. There would be nothing left: no hope, no salvation, no point to this life and nothing after this one ends. We would live only to fulfill the mysterious purposes of mother evolution granted to us since we swam out of that first geothermal pool—whatever those might be. So why’s it so important? Well, everyone dies, even the great ones.

For example, Mother Teresa lived a life of incredible love, but confirmed she was only a servant of Jesus when she died. She had no unique power within her. Martin Luther King, Jr. did some amazingly selfless acts and died a hero of mankind, but he still died. Everyone one of the disciples of Jesus died, many of them directly involved in pushing back the gates of hell even as those gates attempted to consume the early church. So we see, Jesus had to rise from the dead to prove His words true, along with all the prophecies regarding Him.

The resurrection proved He is more than a man from Nazareth. It proved He is the only Son of God and heir to His kingdom. He had already demonstrated that He possesses the power to heal and to forgive, but the resurrection proved He is more powerful than death, both physical and spiritual. So the resurrection is sort of important, by the way. It's the essence of our faith, "If you declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9). Yes, remember His death, but don't forget He still lives!

(I believe He wanted me to remind you of this.)

Copyright 2014, Robert Beames.

Rob Beames is the author of the book, Cornered by Grace.  For details or to read his blog visit www.robertbeames.com.  Get the book at kalospress.com or Amazon.com