ICS Daily Devotions
He is Risen!
Jesus literally resurrected from the dead on Easter Sunday, having died on Good Friday. This is an important fact to appreciate and understand. Our conviction that Jesus suffered, paid the price for us and was resurrected will dictate the way we look at life and determine whether we live with eternity in perspective or not.
Jesus said, “Blessed are those who do not see and yet believe.”
Luke 24:45-47 And He opened their understanding, that they might comprehend the Scriptures. Then He said to them, “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
Why is it “necessary” for Jesus Christ to suffer?
Genesis 2:17 But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.
The punishment of sin is death. It is sin that made it necessary for Christ to suffer in order to satisfy the divine judgment on sin. There are two kinds of death – the physical death and the spiritual death which means to be separated from God eternally. Since we all have sinned, Jesus Christ, the spotless Lamb of God and the only person in history who did not have any sin on Himself, took our place and borne all our sins on the cross. Jesus tasted death for every man or as a substitute of every man and was made the penalty for sin because of the curse of spiritual death.
As a result, Jesus satisfied the demand of justice and the debt paid to the Father. When just was satisfied, the devil lost his legal right to reign over us through death. There is no way to stand before God purely based on one’s religious fervor, works, disciplines or philosophical teachings. It is purely the work of Christ alone!
When Jesus’ death and suffering fully met the divine justice, God raised Jesus from the dead on the third day. Jesus’ resurrection shows us the triumph of life over death, the triumph of forgiveness over sin, and the triumph of grace over law. What wonderful news! Let us make known this Good News to all our relatives, colleagues, neighbours and the world!
Sermon Series: He is Risen
