Discipleship 101
a beginner's guide to
Christianity
Chapter 10
Alive forevermore!
Jesus did not stay dead
for long. Early Sunday morning, near sunrise, some disciples discovered that the
Son of God had risen. They did not see the resurrection itself, but they saw Jesus,
alive and well. Over a period of 40 days, they saw Jesus on numerous occasions.
Then he rose into heaven.
But Jesus is not taking a
vacation. His ministry continues, even in heaven. He serves and leads the
church, interceding for us, helping us, preparing us for eternal glory. Christ
will return, and after he has subdued every enemy, he will give everything to
the Father. Mission accomplished.
Resurrection
Many people have a hard time
believing that Jesus rose from the dead. In their experience, dead people always
stay dead. They are skeptical of such an extraordinary claim. The disciples must
have been mistaken, they say, or else they made it up.
The disciples were skeptical,
too. When they went to the tomb, they expected to find a body. When they did not
find a body, they first assumed that someone had stolen it. They did not expect
a resurrection. It was only when Jesus appeared to them that they believed that
he was alive again.
Most Jews believed that there
would be a resurrection at the end of the age, when everyone would rise for
judgment (Daniel 12:2). But a resurrection into glory before the end was just as
unexpected as a crucified Messiah. Although Jesus had taught both these ideas
(Matthew 16:21; 17:23; Mark 9:9), the disciples didn’t understand or believe
this (verse 10). They expected him to stay dead.
But if Jesus is the sinless
Son of God, then he is unique among the billions of people, and he did not
deserve death. We should be
surprised if he were not resurrected. We also have evidence that gives us
confidence that Jesus rose from the dead (as we will cover in our next article).
Many of us also have
experiences in our own lives that convince us that God exists, that he sometimes
causes miracles, that Jesus is alive and the Holy Spirit is active in his
people. This gives us further reason to believe that Jesus is alive.
Significance of the resurrection
The resurrection meant life
for Jesus—but a far better life than what he had on earth, the glory that he had with the Father before
his incarnation (John 17:5). By his resurrection, he was powerfully revealed as
the Son of God (Romans 1:4)—the resurrection declared who he had been all along. The
resurrection proves that God will judge the world through Christ (Acts 17:31).
But the resurrection also
means life for us. As Paul says, we will "be saved through his life"
(Romans 5:10). If you "believe in your heart that God raised him from the
dead, you will be saved" (Romans 10:9). "If Christ has not been raised,
our preaching is useless and so is your faith" (1 Corinthians 15:14). Our
salvation depends not just on Jesus’ death, but also his resurrection (1 Peter
3:21).
Even justification, most
commonly associated with Jesus’ death, is also a result of his resurrection
(Romans 4:24-25). Our salvation depends on the entire sequence of incarnation: his
birth, ministry, death and resurrection.
Our baptism pictures our
participation in Jesus’ death and resurrection. Rising from the water pictures
our new life (Romans 6:4) and it pictures our future: "We will certainly also be
united with him in his resurrection" (verse 5). "When he appears, we
shall be like him" (1 John 3:2). Our resurrected bodies will be like his (1
Corinthians 15:42-49).
God has "made us alive
with Christ...raised us up with Christ" (Ephesians 2:5-6). We were
"raised with him" (Colossians 2:12). By faith in Christ, we are spiritually
united to him. Our sins are given to him and paid by him, his righteousness and
life are given to us, and we join him in his resurrection. "He who raised
Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his
Spirit, who lives in you" (Romans 8:11). His resurrection is promise that we
will also live again!
Ascension
After Jesus was resurrected,
he "gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over
a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3). On
the last day, "he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him
from their sight" (verse 9). He did not simply
disappear. He went up bodily into the sky, as a visible indication that he was
going into heaven. His post-resurrection appearances had come to an end. (His
later appearance to Paul was abnormal—1 Corinthians 15:8.)
As the disciples stared at
the sky, two angels appeared and told them that Jesus would return "in the
same way you have seen him go into heaven" (Acts 1:11). What were the disciples to do
in the meantime? They were to wait in Jerusalem until they received the Holy
Spirit (verse 4), and then they were to be witnesses for Jesus throughout the world
(verse 8). They testified that he is alive, that salvation is available through
him.
At the right hand
Jesus did not just go to
heaven—he was "exalted to the right hand of God" (Acts 2:33).
"God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior" (Acts
5:31). Being at the "right hand" is a figure of speech meaning
"in highest authority." Jesus was exalted to the highest place in the
universe, second only to God himself (Philippians 2:9; 1 Corinthians 15:27). He is exalted
above the heavens, ruler of all things (Hebrews 7:27; 1:2).
At least 12 times, Scripture
says that Jesus is at the right hand of the Father. Five of these are quotes
from Psalm 110:1: "The Lord says to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I
make your enemies a footstool for your feet." The picture is that the
Father gives Jesus a throne, even while there are enemies to be subdued. God
will take care of the enemies; Jesus is secure in his authority. Using the Latin word for
"sit," this is sometimes called the "session" of
Christ—being seated on his throne.
Ministry
Using his position of power
in heaven, Jesus continues working for our salvation. He sends the Holy Spirit
to us (John 15:26; 16:7), and the Holy Spirit testifies about Jesus and helps us
understand what he taught (John 14:26; 15:26). The Spirit is the way that the
Father and the Son live within us (14:18, 23).
Jesus is our Advocate (1 John
2:1). He is like a defense attorney who "speaks to the Father in our
defense"—if anyone accuses us, Jesus is there as a perpetual reminder
that our sins have been covered by his sacrifice. It is therefore pointless to
make accusations (Romans 8:33-34) — there is no condemnation for anyone who has
faith in Christ (verse 1).
The risen Christ intercedes
for us, to defend us from accusation and to give us help. "He is able to
save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to
intercede for them" (Hebrews 7:25). "Because he himself suffered when he
was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted" (Hebrews 2:18).
Because he can sympathize with our weaknesses, we can be confident that he will
give us the help we need in our struggles (Hebrews 4:15-16).
The book of Hebrews calls him our high
priest, who sacrificed himself for us and now lives to help us (Hebrews 2:17; 3:1).
Since our sins are forgiven through his death, we can approach God with
confidence (Hebrews 10:19). "And since we have a great priest over the house
of God," we are encouraged: "let us draw near to God with a sincere
heart in full assurance of faith" (verse 22).
Jesus is our mediator, who
resolves conflicts and brings us to God (1 Timothy 2:5). He ushers us into the
throne room of heaven, assuring us that God will hear us with favor. This is
part of the ongoing ministry of Jesus Christ.
Jesus is also our Shepherd
(John 10:11; Hebrews 13:20), implying that he loves, protects and provides for us.
Peter brings similar images to mind when he calls Jesus "the Shepherd and
Overseer of your souls" (1 Peter 2:25). Jesus watches over us. The book of Revelation tells us that we
are shepherded by a Lamb, a gentle guide who sacrificed himself for us (Revelation
7:17). He will supply our needs, because he knows what they are.
God assigned Jesus to be Head
of the church (Ephesians 1:22; 4:15), and the church is to submit to his leadership
in everything (Ephesians 5:24). As head, he has supremacy over all things (Colossians 1:18;
2:10). Jesus already has all
authority on heaven and earth (Matthews 28:18). God has already seated him above
every power and authority (Ephesians 1:20-22; Colossians 2:10).
Through faith, we join Jesus
in his amazing journey. We are crucified with him, we rise with him, we are
joined with him by the Holy Spirit. We will be given glory with him and will
reign with him forever (2 Timothy 2:11-12). Believe the good news!
Michael Morrison
To
the next article in this series:
Evidence of the resurrection |
