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Death, Resurrection and
Life After Death
Scripture Reading: John 19:28-30, John 20:11-18
If you’ve read anything about what happened on the
cross, you know it was a gruesome scene. It was the type
of death reserved for the lowest of the low, meant to
shame and torture; certainly not a death befitting a king.
Jesus, the Messiah, the person up to this point in the story
who had developed a massive ministry and was seen as
the rescuer of the nation of Israel, is nailed to a cross.
His death was filled with ridicule, disgrace, and violence,
and to add insult to injury, they placed a crown of thorns
on His head. Jesus endured a level of pain that is almost
impossible to empathize with, but it was a necessary part
of God’s plan. This was the weight and punishment of our
sins, but as we know, this was not the whole story. Jesus
changed the narrative and rewrote the story three
days later!
After His death on the cross, Jesus was moved to the tomb
where He was buried. Most thought that was the end of
the story, but three days later, He shattered the grip of the
grave and raised Himself from the dead. This is where the
story gets good. Jesus fully paid the debt for the sins of
all mankind through His death, but then He demonstrated
His power when He broke the chains of hell and came
back to life. This is why we often say that we have victory
in Jesus. Think of it like going into a basketball game
knowing you’re going to win. You still have to play the
game, but your confidence is sky-high because you know
the outcome. The challenge for us is that we often forget
the full impact of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Timothy
Keller writes, “The world is out of joint, and we need to
be rescued. But the root of our problem is not these
‘horizontal’ relationships, though they are often the most
obvious; it is our ‘vertical’ relationship with God. All human
problems are ultimately symptoms, and our separation
from God is the cause.”
It can be easy to view this moment in history as the
moment when Jesus created the “get out of jail free” card
for humans, but that’s not really true. N.T. Wright says
it this way: “Something happened when Jesus died as a
result of which the world is a different place.” By paying
the penalty for our sins, Jesus created a completely new
paradigm built on relationship, faith, and love. The Gospel
is the story of something that was done for us and not
the story of something we earned or deserved. The truth
of God’s love and mercy as demonstrated on the cross is
so profound that it should permeate our souls and shape
how we live life. We share the Gospel not out of obligation,
but out of pure joy, knowing what we know and earnestly
desiring that same thing for those we love.
In your own words, what is significant about Jesus dying on the cross?