resurrection

After the Resurrection

Carol Purves Carol's Blog , ,

We were discussing the other day as to whether Jesus was fully human and fully divine after the resurrection. We thought about the fact that He was eating breakfast with His disciples showed that He was fully human. We also remembered that Jesus appeared inside locked rooms, something He didn’t do before His death.

When we thought about the human side we considered how He would feel knowing the crucifixion and resurrection were behind Him and that He had completed the work that He had been sent to earth to do. He didn’t primarily come to earth to do miracles, though this was something He did. He came to die for the sins of the world from the beginning of time to the very end. His cry on the cross is actually one word in the original Greek of the Bible ‘tetelestai.’ It says it all.

‘Save Yourself’

Carol Purves Carol's Blog , ,

It is completely beyond belief that Jesus, the Son of God, the creator of the world should hang helpless, bleeding and dying on a cross. The crowd who passed by shouted, ‘Save yourself, come down from the cross.’ The scribes jeered at Him, ‘He cannot save himself.’

That was the irony of the situation. The all-powerful Jesus could so easily have saved Himself. He had the power and way beyond to do that. His real power and strength lay in the fact that He didn’t save Himself. He knew He had to die and rise again to be able to save the sins of the world. No wonder He said ‘Father forgive them. They know not what they do.’ His life, His miracles and His teaching were not the important thing about Him. His dying and resurrection signified who He was and what He was about.

It is so sad for the people who regard Easter time as just another holiday or an interruption in their working week. They know about Ramadan and the Passover as religious times but fail to understand the significance of Easter. It is not just another Bank Holiday.

The Empty Tomb

Carol Purves Carol's Blog ,

Such a great event deserves to be remembered even after Easter. What does the empty tomb mean to me? Everything; His birth, life and death were momentous but needed His resurrection to complete His work here on earth.

Can I explain what it means to be a ‘new creature’ in Christ? For those with faith no explanation is needed, for those without faith no explanation is enough. Why did the disciples doubt when Jesus had told them that He would rise again? I wonder when God is talking to us today are we hearing and understanding?

Getting Nearer

Carol Purves Carol's Blog , , ,

Each day this week and next week we are getting nearer to the time to when Jesus dies on the cross for our sins and then rises on the third day. We know what is going to happen on the 15th of this month; the disciples didn’t. These men didn’t know that their time with Jesus was down to a few days. They imagined Jesus their Master would continue preaching and healing and some believed He would then conquer the Romans. It was outside their imagination that He would be crucified and their dreams would come crashing down. From where they were standing they didn’t know the concept of substitution and redemption.

Matters are so different for us. We are the other side of the crucifixion and resurrection. We know Jesus dies and rises from death. We know it was for our sins. Their incomplete picture is made complete for us. We can rejoice and not weep. Hallelujah Christ has risen.