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1 Cor. 15:12-28
We invite you to join us for worship each Sunday morning at 9:30. You can download our service on iTunes or tune in for “The Good Word” each day on AM 1230 WSAL or on Hoosier Country 103.7 FM just after 8am. To those who know Him intimately, God is a God of hope. Hope to God’s redeemed, His adopted children, is not uncertainty! Hope for the Christian is exactly the opposite. Hope, for true Christians, is the knowledge that God will keep and fulfil all His promises to His own. God is compelled to keep and fulfill all His promises because of His faithfulness. For all those who have come to Christ, confessing to Him they have stopped trying to work their way into God’s heaven on the merit of their own sin-stained works, and have place their faith in His perfect finished work, i.e. His sinless life, His tortuous death, and His glorious resurrection – heaven and all God’s other blessings and benefits are absolute certainty. For all those who don’t come to Him for salvation, eternity in a bottomless pit of fiery darkness in hell is absolute certainty! And not believing that it doesn’t work that way, doesn’t change the absolute truth—it does work that way! Today we celebrate His visible, bodily resurrection from the grave! It is His own resurrection that guarantees our resurrection when Christ returns in the clouds to call us to be with Him forever! What a celebration that will be! Have you ever thought of how the resurrection of Christ affects our daily life as Christians? There are at least 3 truths that explain the answer to that question. I am using an outline from one of my favorite writers. 1st the resurrection affects our daily life as Christians in:
- OUR OBEDIENCE. Paul’s statement in 1 Cor. 15:58 is a statement of practical application. He is saying, therefore, or, because the truth of Christ’s resurrection is applied to your own life, make it your business to always be doing the work of the Lord…” Someone might ask, “exactly what is the work of the Lord? The Lord Himself tells us exactly what He means in John 6:25-29. Jesus is clearly explaining to them, us, and all people that our good works are not “good” to God. The “work” that God wants us to do is to believe in Christ as The Savior of the world, and more than that – to accept Him as our own Savior. The practical application is that living daily according to what is written in Scripture makes us become more like the Savior, and at the same time draws others to Christ. The resurrection also affects our life as Christians in:
- OUR OUTLOOK. Read Col. 3:1-4. It is important to remember the entire view of the NT is eschatological- or toward the future. Paul is transitioning from dealing with false teachers to instructing Christians to live as their new life in Christ demands. It is important that we understand, in His resurrection, Christ was raised to an entirely new life. There are three truths we are to see here. First we are to pursue heavenly things. Paul told the Philippians to “forget what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” The writer of Heb. tells us to “leave the elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity…” Nowhere does the NT or the OT for that matter, ever give the idea a person can come to Christ for salvation, and never expect to put forth all the effort required to grow to spiritual maturity! So what is your spiritual age? Does your spiritual IQ and stature match your spiritual age? As part of our resurrection life we are to B. ponder heavenly things. In Rom. 12:2 we are told to “renew our minds so we can test and discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” In Phil. 4:8 we are told to think on things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, commendable, excellent, and praiseworthy.” Christ’s resurrection was to new life in every way. Our salvation teaches us to think the best about Christ and our relationship to Him; but it also teaches us to think godly thoughts toward all others. We are to forgive as we want to be forgiven. Is that how it is with you? Third our outlook in our new life is to cause us to: C. Prepare for heavenly things. Rom. 8:18 “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Turn your head and heart toward heaven and let God show you a more perfect outlook! Finally, the resurrection of Christ affects our life as Christians in:
- OUR OBLIGATION. Rom. 6:5-14. The obligation Christians have is to stop sinning. Our obligation to quit sinning is stated in vs. 5-10 of Rom. 6 which is the result of our resurrection. We are now free from the bondage and dominion of sin over us. We are now free – not to sin! Our obligation to stop sinning is grounded in our response to our resurrection – 11-14. Believe that the resurrection of Christ affects your obedience to Him, your obedience affects your outlook from earthy things to heavenly things; and those two affect how you see your obligation to obey! If you don’t now believe that, believe it beginning today!
If we can help you with your spiritual questions, call us at 574-643-9419.
