Jesus Is Risen: What Does It Mean for Our Resurrection?

Perhaps because we get carried along by the festivity of year-end events, as Christians we may unknowingly focus more on Jesus’ birth than on the other events in His life, especially when Jesus rose again. After all, Christmas does indeed become the focal point of salvation for every believer.

But what about the event of Jesus’ resurrection?

Jesus focused on His mission, namely that His resurrection would transform the lives of those who believe in Him and carry out His commands. So then, have we understood the meaning of Jesus’ resurrection as we should? What impact does Jesus’ resurrection have on the resurrection of the lives of Christians?

Jesus Is Risen = Sin Loses Its Power

"Death has been swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" – 1 Corinthians 15:54b-55

Some time ago, a brother confessed to me that he was already tired of being a Christian. The reason was that he was struggling intensely with one of his greatest weaknesses. Always falling into the same sin made him ashamed every time he had to confess his sin or make sure of his repentance. He wanted to stop being a Christian because he felt he could not change.

If you feel you cannot change, that may be true. When you depend more on your experience or knowledge as a Christian, you will never be able to change.

Why?

Because you are up against sin, which has long ruled your life and made you its slave. You want to repent, but you always fall into the same sin. You want to do good, but what happens instead is the very thing you do not want to do. You love the word of the Lord, but the desires of your flesh are too strong (Romans 7:22-23).

“Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God! through Jesus Christ, our Lord .” – Romans 7:24-25a   As a result of sin, there is nothing good in us (Psalms 14:3). Paul calls himself a wretched man: because what is in our body, mind, and heart all brings misery. So indeed, we cannot change and cannot overcome sin by our own strength. But remember this: when Jesus died, He also crucified and removed our sins. And by rising again, Jesus proved that He is more powerful than sin.

“For we know that Christ, having been raised from the dead, will never die again: death no longer has power over Him.” – Romans 6:9

Through Jesus’ resurrection, death no longer has power over us, the children of God. Be assured that you can triumph over sin—no matter how bad or how heavy it is—because its power over your life was defeated when Jesus rose again. Through His resurrection, you have been set free. You are no longer a captive of sin, but a victor!

 We Have New Life

“… so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may walk in newness of life.” – Romans 6:4a.

One regret that most people often experience is that they cannot erase the past. How they wish they could turn back time so they could repair their lives.

As a Christian, we do not need to worry. After Jesus rose again, He ascended in glory and returned to heaven. In the same way, after you put your sins to death and crucify the desires of the flesh, you will rise into new life. Your old self has been buried. You are the new you, a new person, a new creation.

“And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still living in your sins.” – 1 Corinthians 15:17

When Jesus rose again, you also rose and have a new life. Your past has been done away with. You now have the opportunity to shape your life again in the best possible way. Your life is no longer futile, because you are not a servant or captive of sin. You are free. You are a person liberated from the slavery of sin.

 We Live in Hope

If the Jesus we worship did not rise again, then our faith would be in vain (1 Corinthians 15:14). We would be the most pitiable people in the world (1 Corinthians 15:19).

But because Jesus rose again, we have full hope that He will also bring us to life again (Romans 8:11). And one day we may dwell in heaven together with Him.

“… who by His great mercy has caused us to be born again through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, into a living hope, to receive an inheritance that can never perish, can never be defiled, and can never fade, kept in heaven for you. – 1 Peter 1:3-4

Therefore, because Jesus rose again, sin loses its power and we have a new life full of hope. Let us not waste, much less forget, His resurrection. Use and receive the power of Jesus’ resurrection so that you may become a person set free from the slavery of sin.

Thanks be to God!