Our Lord was once rejected by mankind, crucified so that He died upon the cross. Kind men took Him down and buried Him in a new tomb, but then, Jesus rose again on the third day. He resurrected; He's alive!
Lies were told though, that the disciples stole His body away. Praise the Lord that God had already thought ahead to sinful man's schemes. In 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 we find eyewitness proof of our living, loving Savior's resurrection.
Jesus was seen alive, walking and talking with Peter, the 12 apostles (a new disciple had been instituted to replace Judas Iscariot). He also appeared to more than 500 people at the same time. These were not visions but real-time, person-to-person encounters. James and Paul also had the wonderful priviledge to see their resurrected Savior.
In Old Testament times, two or three witnesses were required to establish truth and/or to be creditable witness. So there is ample proof established here for Jesus' being alive. He is risen and I'm forgiven. God is so good to us.
Why is Jesus' resurrection so important to the Christian faith though? If Jesus hadn't risen, our faith would be in vain. Dead men don't talk. They cannot do a single thing for anyone. Can you believe in a dead man?
Look at 1 Corinthians 15:17 which argues,
"And if Christ has not been raised your faith is futile, you are still in your sins."
Thank God for our risen Savior, forgiveness of sins, and the gift of being in Heaven with Him some day in the future. He is there now preparing a place for all who believe in Him (see Acts 1:9-11).
We have His promise He'll come back for us someday. This is why all need to repent and accept Jesus now. There is no second chance after we die. Do not reject Him like the people of old did.
Giving Jesus' statement about "going to prepare a place for you in Heaven" and for the hearts of the disciples to not be troubled when Jesus ascended back into Heaven, I recalled as I was writing about the ancient Jewish custom regarding bridegrooms and brides. In fact, there's a Chinese cultural custom, at least as practiced in Malaysia, that is remarkably similar.
In Bible times, after a man and woman were betrothed, the man would go home and begin to build a place (home) to which to bring his bride. It was usually an extension of his parental home. When he had completed these preparations, he would bring his friends and go to his betroth's house to bring her to his.
She would not know exactly when this would happen but she had to be ready and waiting at every moment for him to come for her.
For Chinese wedding customs, usually each side would know the arrival date; however, the bride still needed to be ready. This correlates with what Jesus is saying to His disciples that He'd go away to prepare a place for them and then come for them. This promise extends to us nowadays.
All who have accepted Jesus Christ as Savior are now "betrothed" to Him. He paid the bride price with His blood shed on the cross for all who believe. He has now gone to prepare the home in Heaven. Let us be encouraged and take heart that He is working on our behalf, and praying for us whilst we are still on Earth, in our home. He's coming back for us soon.
I'm not exactly sure of all the preparations Jesus is making as He did not elaborate. I'm thinking the focus is that He has not forgotten about us and He is still actively looking out for us. He has His plan, which He'll reveal in His good time. His assurance is His word, "He'll be back."
"For the Lord himself will come down from Heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we shall be with the Lord forever" (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17, especially vs 16 & 17 NIV).
These are words of comfort and encouagement for each of us who are betrothed, via our salvation, to Jesus. He is our bridegroom and we, His bride.
This is His great promise as seen in John 14:3, that He'll come back for us. How does this make you feel? It gives me joy and peace. We have a rich and "glorious inheritance" waiting for us in Heaven (Ephesians 1:18). He is there.
While we await His return, we can have every confidence in Him. Earlier in this article, it is mentioned that since His ascension into Heaven, Jesus is working on our behalf.
He uses His great power and mighty strength showing us the level of power that was exerted, which allowed Jesus to resurrect. It's a bit difficult for our minds to comprehend but just know He puts His all into helping us.
Nothing stands in His way because He has been given all power and authority in Heaven and on Earth. He'll move mountains for us. Satan and his minions are a powerful evil force that work against all who believe in Jesus, and all those contemplating believing in Him.
Know this that Jesus is God and is greater than all humanity, and angelic and demonic forces. As believers in Jesus Christ, each one has the Holy Spirit's indwelling. He is the Holy Spirit of God! He works for us, in us and with us.
Look at 1 John 4:1-6 NIV, but especially verse 4.
"You, dear children,are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world..."
When Satan attacks us in any way, we can have confidence to declare "I'm a child of God and you have no right to mess with me." We can command, "in Jesus name" for Satan and his demons to be gone and to go wherever Jesus sends them.
This is because we have Jesus' authority backing us up. Saying, "in Jesus' name" is the authority by which we can command Satan to leave us alone.
There is an anecdote I'll borrow from the pastor who spoke at my church recently.
He was talking about how when he visits certain people to explain the gospel of Jesus Christ to them, that some one of the hearers may try to use black magic against him. One day he went to a particular home but he became mute. The Holy Spirit impressed upon him that if he did not speak audibly within the next ten seconds he'd be dead.
At about the six second mark he was able to say, "Hallelujah!" This means "praise the Lord". Although not exactly saying, "in Jesus name," it was praise for Jesus.
The man of the house asked, "How did you know?" Meaning how did this pastor realize black magic was being used against him. This is how God works through the Holy Spirit on our behalf.
Each believer has this access and therefore authority to use the name of Jesus with authority and reverence. This is also part of how Jesus is working for us, praying for us from His home in Heaven (see Ephesians 1:18-23).
There are many situations in which we can use Jesus' name. You hear it after almost every prayer to God is finishing, "In Jesus' name we pray." When we are tempted to do wrong, we can call on Him and His name for help to resist. In times of fear or possibly being harmed or mocked, we can whisper or shout, "Jesus help me" or "In Jesus name I command you to stop", and so on.
'Jesus' is a powerful name so we must be careful how we use it. He knows your name too. Come to Him in faith and trust. Become His child. Accept Him as your Savior and Lord.
I feel great triumph in knowing Jesus. To know He is in control and has authority over me but also thoughout all Heaven and Earth. I'm thankful for all the work He has done on the cross, through His death, and resurrection. Without this our faith would be useless and powerless. I'm glad He ascended back to heaven getting ready for our "marriage" and feast when He'll call all of us who believe up to be with Him there, forever.
Until then let's all patiently await His return for us, working on His behalf here too, to be ready. let's bring many others to know Him too.
It is an honor and privilege to use our Lord and Savior's name for our protection from our enemy Satan, but also in making our prayers and petitions to God.
In Jesus' name, I am so thankful for all He has done for me and for all the "whosoever" who accept His gift of salvation.
~ERC may 2023~
Based on Navigator Ministries, Inc. Book 1 - Knowing Jesus Christ; Chapter 2 - The Work of Jesus Christ; His Resurrection and Ascension Questions 13-19.
Sing, In the Name of Jesus, along with Shiloh Worship Music.
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