Centrality of the Key
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God--the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. Through him we received grace and apostleship. Rom. 1:1-5, NIV.
The words we want to focus on are "through the Spirit of holiness [Jesus] was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead." The Message renders verses 3 and 4 helpfully: "His descent from David roots him in history; his unique identity as Son of God was shown by the Spirit when Jesus was raised from the dead, setting him apart as the Messiah, our Master."
If Jesus had come to earth and merely lived a good (even perfect) life and died a violent death, He would have been just one more noble and heroic person. But still dead like the rest of them.
The good news, Paul reminds us, is about not merely another good man who came to an unjust end. To the contrary, His resurrection demonstrates Him to be the powerful Son of God. The good news is that Jesus lives to continue His work for those who have accepted Him. Thus His resurrection also stands at the center of Paul's gospel message. "Before that" event, Anders Nygren points out, Jesus "was the Son of God in weakness and lowliness. Through the resurrection He became the Son of God in power."
Christ's resurrection, as I noted before, is the hinge of history. Without it Christianity would have never existed. It would have ended in a Palestinian grave, with a few frightened disciples trying to keep the memory of Jesus of Nazareth alive until they finally died or gave up in discouragement. William Barclay is right on target when he asserts that "one thing is certain--if Jesus had not risen from the dead we would never have heard of Him."
But Jesus did arise. And that single fact transformed and energized His followers. His was a victory over death. And in the long run it signals the end of death itself. The Resurrection is the great victory of God the Father and Jesus over Satan and the forces and power of death. It demonstrates that God is truly in control.
Without the Resurrection, Christianity would have nothing to offer the world but a few nice ideas. But with the Resurrection came power to the disciples and hope to a lost and suffering world.
Praise God that Jesus has risen!
Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God--the gospel he promised beforehand through his prophets in the Holy Scriptures regarding his Son, who as to his earthly life was a descendant of David, and who through the Spirit of holiness was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord. Through him we received grace and apostleship. Rom. 1:1-5, NIV.
The words we want to focus on are "through the Spirit of holiness [Jesus] was appointed the Son of God in power by his resurrection from the dead." The Message renders verses 3 and 4 helpfully: "His descent from David roots him in history; his unique identity as Son of God was shown by the Spirit when Jesus was raised from the dead, setting him apart as the Messiah, our Master."
If Jesus had come to earth and merely lived a good (even perfect) life and died a violent death, He would have been just one more noble and heroic person. But still dead like the rest of them.
The good news, Paul reminds us, is about not merely another good man who came to an unjust end. To the contrary, His resurrection demonstrates Him to be the powerful Son of God. The good news is that Jesus lives to continue His work for those who have accepted Him. Thus His resurrection also stands at the center of Paul's gospel message. "Before that" event, Anders Nygren points out, Jesus "was the Son of God in weakness and lowliness. Through the resurrection He became the Son of God in power."
Christ's resurrection, as I noted before, is the hinge of history. Without it Christianity would have never existed. It would have ended in a Palestinian grave, with a few frightened disciples trying to keep the memory of Jesus of Nazareth alive until they finally died or gave up in discouragement. William Barclay is right on target when he asserts that "one thing is certain--if Jesus had not risen from the dead we would never have heard of Him."
But Jesus did arise. And that single fact transformed and energized His followers. His was a victory over death. And in the long run it signals the end of death itself. The Resurrection is the great victory of God the Father and Jesus over Satan and the forces and power of death. It demonstrates that God is truly in control.
Without the Resurrection, Christianity would have nothing to offer the world but a few nice ideas. But with the Resurrection came power to the disciples and hope to a lost and suffering world.
Praise God that Jesus has risen!
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