Message for April 4, 2015 from Pastor Jerry

 

“For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen.  And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!” I Cor. 15:16-17(NKJV)

    The greatest truth of the Christian Gospel is that Jesus is risen from the tomb.  He is alive and seated at the right hand of the Father.  If this truth is in question, there is no other reason for Christianity to exist and be promoted as the hope of mankind.  It is not worth living for much less dying for.  The most prolific writer of the New Testament said it directly in the Scripture above.  Do away with the resurrection and you have successfully killed the Christian faith.

    Some truths in the Bible can be misunderstood by people, and they do not change the basic truth of salvation.  Believing or not believing in healing will not affect your salvation experience if you have truly trusted in the Grace of God and the shed blood of Jesus.  You can believe what you want about prosperity, and it will not affect the outcome of your eternal life.  It is true that correct beliefs will bring the blessings of God upon the believer in every area.  Even our belief about baptism will not change our security in Christ.  

    I am not saying that these beliefs are not important in our lives.  They will make a difference in our day to day life on this earth.  You need to know and believe the Biblical truth about every issue of life.  Only then can you walk in all the covenant blessings Jesus bought for you at Calvary.

    But, there is no compromise about the resurrection.  Jesus either rose from the dead or He is still dead.  If He is still dead, then so are we.  We are still lost in our sins and there is no hope for us in this life or the next.  Actually, if Jesus is not risen there is no other life to look forward to.  It is not a matter of opinion about whether or not Jesus rose from the dead.  His resurrection is an essential element of the Christian faith.  You cannot believe it any other way and be saved.  That is a very important issue is it not?

“But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.” I Cor. 15:13-14 (NKJV)

 

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