Acts 2:22-39

The Christian hope is not just about life after death. Our hope is in a resurrection from the dead. This is an understanding which has really been lost and a result of this has been the diminishing of the glory of our eternal existence with the Lord. If we speak of our hope as that of disembodied souls floating around the cosmos with our halos, harps and wings we as creatures today have a difficult time looking forward to that because we are physical creatures. The solution is not a matter of convincing ourselves that this false vision is somehow really going to be ok; we must simply read our bibles.

The Christian hope is the bodily resurrection from the grave. There will come a day when souls will be reunited with their bodies and raised to everlasting life. This resurrection will either be to a glorious, eternity in the presence of the Lord or it will be a sorrowful eternity of suffering out of His presence. It is a simple scenario.

• Because Jesus rose from the dead those who die with Him, receive justification

Romans 4:19-25

19 And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah's womb. 20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. 22 And therefore "it was accounted to him for righteousness." 23 Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, 24 but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification. (NKJV)

• In the atonement of Jesus Christ, there were five distinct accomplishments; three in His death and two in His resurrection. Although it is possible to distinguish these five things, we cannot separate them. If any one item is lost then we are not saved.

• The first thing accomplished in His death was the propitiation of our sins where the wrath of God which was headed for us, was taken on upon Himself. Secondly, Christ paid a price (a ransom) which purchased out of the slavery to sin and brought us under the dominion of His Spirit. This is known as redemption. And finally, because Christ died, we died when our old man was crucified.

• The two things accomplished in His resurrection were the justification of the elect and the reconciliation of the relationship between them and God. Justification is the standing that we have been given whereby we stand faultless before the Father. This is true not because we have done mighty works to make it so but rather it was Christ who was righteous and by the sheer grace of God the righteousness of Christ has been imputed or given to me. It is as if I had never sinned. God will look at the elect and only see the perfect obedience of Christ.

• Because Jesus rose from the dead we have hope.

1 Corinthians 15:20-23

20 But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. 23 But each one in his own order: Christ the firstfruits, afterward those who are Christ's at His coming. (NKJV)

• We know that we will also rise from the dead someday. The reason we know this is because Christ was raised from the dead. It will happen to us because is has happened-to Christ. He was the firstfruits of the resurrection. Because He was raised, so too will the elect.

• A puzzling thing may cross your mind, "Didn't Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead?" Yes. There were those who were raised from the dead by various means but there is one fundamental difference between the resurrection of Lazarus and the resurrection of Jesus Christ-Lazarus rose, only to die again. Jesus lives forever and because He does, we will.

• If the same Spirit of Him who rose Jesus from the dead now dwells in us we are confident that He will give eternal live to our mortal bodies (Romans 8:11)

• Because Jesus rose from the dead our bodies will be raised as well.

1 Corinthians 15:47-58

47 The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.

50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption. 51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed -- 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: "Death is swallowed up in victory." 55 "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?" 56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord. (NKJV)

• Scripture is extremely clear on this point: we will live forever in a physical body. We know that we will be changed in an instant to be like Christ (1 Cor 15, 1 John 3:2). After His resurrection, we know that Christ did many things indicative of someone with a physical body, eating, talking, walking and other things. But we also know that this body was very different from His natural body. See also 2 Corinthians 5:1-5, Phillipians 3:20-21

• This new body will be glorious for it will not be subject to decay and aging. It will be our dwelling forever. As Paul says in this verse, the corruptible body must put on the incorruptible.

• Because Jesus rose from the dead we have liberty.

Romans 6:1-11

1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (NKJV)

• Those who do not have the Spirit of Christ (who are not His, Romans 8:8-9) will frequently believe that they are the ones who are able to experience true liberty. They believe that they were born free and are able to do all things as they choose to do so. But the Scriptures say that we were slaves of sin. We were in bondage to our sin and our sin had made us enemies of God. Because of the condition of slavery, there is nothing that could have been done to restore the relationship with God. Being in a position of enmity toward God is by no means peaceful and is certainly not liberty.

• But we who are Christians have been bought with a price and risen to new life. Where we once were slaves to our sin, we are now slaves to righteousness. But most importantly we have been saved from our sins. Christian liberty is not that we are somehow now permitted to sin but rather that we are now free from sin. We are no longer in bondage to sin.

• This is not to say that Christians will not sin. But when we do sin, it is not because we were in bondage to it. We forgot about the sovereignty of God and we sinned. But we are not bound to sin.