Part 1 of 6 of the theme 'On Easter-resurrection-resurrection by Gijs van den Brink
Sunday is Easter. We celebrate that Jesus rose from the dead!!!
What does this mean for us today? The resurrection proves that Jesus is the Son of God (Rom. 1:3-4).
The resurrection of Jesus is unique. People often become alive again after they die, but in the same mortal body.
Jesus rose in a new body, immortal body. That is unique, happened only once in history.
Jesus is the Son of God, God Himself who brings us salvation. But from what? We are redeemed from sin. But what does that mean? There is still sin and sickness in the world, even among Christians. So how is that possible?
This is because Jesus accomplishes our deliverance in three stages. Compare it to a war being won. That doesn't usually happen in one hour either.
It is important to know what happens in these three stages of liberation. Because otherwise we are going to be disappointed very quickly. And then we keep shouting: if God is all-powerful, why does this happen and why does that happen? These are the three stages of deliverance:
- We have been freed in the past from the punishment for sin. This happened once and for all through Jesus' death on the cross and for this we can only give thanks.
We continue to give thanks that we are sure we will not be lost, but may live forever in His kingdom. Jesus did that for us on the cross. He died in our place. - We are freed from the power of sin in the present. This happens through Jesus Christ who is risen. He lives and gives us His Spirit.
- We will be freed in the future from the presence of sin. This will happen when Jesus comes back. Then He will remove all sin and wickedness from the world. Then all sin, all sickness, all war and evil will disappear.
We are now living in liberation stage 2, in the time between the resurrection of Jesus and his return. We now live in the time of deliverance from the power of sin.
That deliverance happens to us who believe in Jesus and put our lives in his hand every day.
If you do not, you will not experience His deliverance, because He is a kind loving God and not a dictator. He does not force anyone. He desires to work in you with His Spirit every day. But only if you come to Him with open hands every day to receive, can the Holy Spirit set you free.
Free from what? From the power of sin! More on that next time.
Author: Gijs van den Brink
This is part 1 of 6 of the series "On Easter-resurrection-resurrection" Some of which we will be posting online in the near future. We hope this will help you understand the Bible better!
