Easter – Already Not Yet

April 12, 2023

Why the Resurrection Matters: 1 Corinthians 15:16-17

Sam Storms: Today, the morning after Easter Sunday, 2023, it is just as important as it was yesterday to know why the resurrection of Jesus from the dead matters. Let me tell you what the Christian claim that Jesus literally rose from the dead means. It means that either I am a blubbering fool or I am telling you the single most important truth that you will ever hear. It means that either I am an absolute buffoon, most to be pitied, or I am a blessed man whose destiny is one filled with glory and honor and unending joy. And the same is true of you. Those are the options. There are no third alternatives. The reason I say this is because I’ve staked my life on the reality of an empty tomb. Everything I am, everything I own, everything I’ve done or hope to do hang suspended on whether or not Jesus of Nazareth rose from the dead.

April 16, 2022

One of the Most Overlooked Arguments for the Resurrection

Michael J. Kruger: Well, soon it will be Easter. That wonderful time of the year when we remember (and celebrate) the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. But, not all will be celebrating. There are many that find Easter to be a senseless holiday—apart from, perhaps, the joys of Sunday brunch or chocolate eggs. After all, it is argued, we all know that people don’t rise from the dead. And there are no reasons to think it happened in the case of Jesus of Nazareth. In response to such skepticism, apologists have been making their best arguments for the resurrection. There’s the empty tomb. There’s the fact that women were the first eyewitnesses which was unlikely to be invented. And there’s the larger appearance to the 500 witnesses. But, of course, each of these claims has been contested. As for the empty tomb, scholars have argued that standard Roman practice was to put crucified criminals in a common grave, not

April 3, 2021April 3, 2021

How Does Easter Change Us?

John Piper: The effect of Christ’s resurrection on our present life as Christians is immeasurably great. I mean, none of us has exhausted the possibilities of what God may be willing to do in us and through us because of the power of the resurrection of Christ in us. And I say that because Paul said in Ephesians 3:20, “[God] is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.” And he identified that power in chapter 1 this way: “the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe . . . that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead” (Ephesians 1:19–20). There’s the connection between Ephesians 3:20 and 1:19: the power that makes it possible for us to do far more abundantly than we even dream we could is the very power of God that he worked when he raised Christ from the dead. So, Allison’s

Why Did Jesus Rise from the Dead?

Brian Rosner: Why did Jesus rise from the dead? According to 1 Peter 1:3, his resurrection brings us at least two life-changing benefits: a living hope and a new life. Let’s consider these twin truths—twin promises—from the New Testament’s broader witness. Raised to Provide a Living Hope Death is a terrible thing. Most people face their own death with understandable trepidation. And if human life is about relationships, the death of loved ones rob us of those relationships we value most. The resurrection of Jesus means followers of Christ don’t face death as those who lack hope (1 Thess. 4:13). Paul’s great exposition of the meaning of Jesus’s resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15 climaxes with the words: Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting? (1 Cor. 15:54–55) Through Christ’s resurrection, death has lost its sting. By his resurrection, he destroyed death and brought “life and immortality to light” (2 Tim. 1:10). But

April 20, 2019

How the Old Testament Prepares Us for the Third Day

Justin Dillehay: When I was a church teen in the 1990s, one of hottest new Christian bands was Third Day. The name seemed like a riff on the mainstream band Third Eye Blind, but we all know where it really came from. According to Paul’s gospel, Christ was “raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.” This is “of first importance” (1 Cor. 15:3–5). We all know that Christ rose on the third day. But we probably aren’t as familiar with the latter half of Paul’s statement, namely, that Christ was “raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures” (1 Cor. 15:4). This wasn’t just something that happened in history; it was also prophesied in the Old Testament. Jesus himself says the same thing in Luke 24:46: “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead.” Which raises the question, where? Where is it written that Christ would

April 17, 2019

What makes ‘Good Friday’ good?

Sam Storms: If you plan on being in Oklahoma City on Friday, April 18, I want to invite you to join us for our traditional “Good Friday” service at 6:30 p.m. in our auditorium. I would also encourage you to invite friends and family members who may not know Jesus and his saving love. This will be a wonderful time for them to hear a short and pointed presentation of the gospel. So, why do we speak of the Friday when Jesus was brutalized and crucified as good? It would almost seem as if there could hardly be a day that is worse! In one sense, you are correct. Jesus was unjustly tried, lied about, scourged, and sadistically crucified. But in a far more ultimate sense this was immeasurably good. It was good for two reasons. First, the crucifixion of Jesus, as horrible and unjust as it was, fulfilled God’s plan. Peter declared this in Acts 4:27-28 by reminding us that, in crucifying