Let's start here:
"2Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied."
2 Corinthians 15: 12-19
As you fumble your way through the first part of this passage, it may seem a little wordy - But, don't you think Paul is trying to prove a point? I mean, if Christ has not raised from the dead, then YOU/I are dead. We are still living in our sins. We are misrepresenting God. Those are huge implications! Paul is addressing those of us like "Doubting Thomas", extinguishing any idea that God's movement in our earthly lives is nonexistent. But, Christ WAS raised from the dead (yay!)....read here:
20But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. 24Then comes the end, when he delivers(AG) the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. 25For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. 26The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
1 Corinthias 15: 20-26
Christ HAS risen and he WILL destroy death, the ultimate enemy! And if He has not been raised from the dead, then Christianity itself is a bust. A dud. NOTHING. I often think about how as a child I believed in Christ because it was something everyone else was doing. I never faltered in my faith and almost, eek, assumed everyone else felt the same way. I mean, why would you not believe in Jesus? At that time, there was nothing that would cause me to doubt. However, as life moves along and trials come along, I understand how Satan can take hold in your heart and cause a person to truly doubt if this whole Jesus thing is true. And more importantly, how and why does it affect me?
So, thank heavens for Easter. A time when we are reminded that without this resurrection there would be no Christianity - life itself would be meaningless. Vain.
C.S. Lewis puts it so clear in his book Mere Christianity:
“I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Him: ‘I’m ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don’t accept His claim to be God.’ That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said, would not be a great moral teacher. He would either be a lunatic – on a level with the man who says he is a poached egg – or else he would be the Devil of Hell. You must make your choice. Either this man was, and is, the Son of God: or else a madman or something worse. You can shut Him up for a fool, you can spit at Him and kill Him as a demon; or you can fall at His feet and call Him Lord and God. But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about His being a great human teacher. He has not left that open to us. He did not intend to.” (p. 52)
Our God is Lord. And may you fall at His feet. And may you take the time to search your heart and try to understand what the implications of the resurrection means to YOU. And may you know that everyone is different - open your heart and allow Christ to change your mind, soul, and emotions.
I had an incredible experience today at work. There are two women in a room. They both have Aphasia. They both love the Lord. And they both have a spirit from God that seeps through every pore of their being. Even though their language center prevents them from truly saying what they mean (Apraxic, too), the hymns are still there. Christ still lives in their heart and the 23rd Psalm is still memorized. The families were so thankful to have a believer working with their loved ones and I was equally happy to encourage the families that there is life beyond a stroke. May the Lord work through you in your workplace, you never know who needs a little encouraging!
Love Wins!