He Has Risen

It's around 5:00 AM in Jerusalem as I write this post, and all I can think about is the women arriving at the empty tomb of Jesus Christ.

The women were terrified and bowed with their faces to the ground. Then the men asked, “Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead!”
- Luke 24 5-6

Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive? Can you imagine that moment? Not even death could keep our Messiah from fulfilling His mission. I think about it all the time. Starting with the moment He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. Two chapters earlier in Luke 22:41 we hear "Then Jesus went about a stones throw away from them. He kneeled down and prayed." This was the final prayer of Jesus before He would be arrested, beaten, tortured, and sent to the cross. What's more remarkable is that He is praying for us. How do we know this? In Luke 22:42, Jesus asks God to take the cup of suffering away — yet when told "No", Jesus is still willing to go to the cross — for us!

Then I think about Jesus on the cross in Luke 23:34 when Jesus said "Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing." Is that not representative of a Messiah that you want to follow? Christ Jesus praying for the men who tortured him, mocked him, and nailed Him to the cross.

Then in the Gospel of Matthew we read the following:

About three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?" (which means "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?").
- Matthew 27:46

This was a verse I used to struggle with. For the longest time I didn't take the time to understand what it meant, or why Jesus would cry out those words, or why God would forsake Jesus. But think about the moment Jesus took His final breath:

When Jesus had tasted it, he said, "It is finished!" Then he bowed his head and released his spirit.
- John 19:30

How was it possible for Jesus to feel that sense of abandonment? In that moment Jesus Christ took on all the sin of the world. Your sin. My sin. All sin. God simply had to look away for that singular moment when Jesus Christ carried the weight of all sin.

It's certainly worth noting that Jesus was also quoting Psalm 22:1, which is just further proof that He matched the prophetic fingerprint from the Old Testament of the coming Messiah . But we have to remember that Jesus was a human being, and this act of calling out to God was representative of our mortal struggle against death. Of course Christ wanted there to be another way. But there wasn't. We know that from Luke 22:42: "Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine." Jesus didn't want to die. But that's what is the most remarkable part of it... He chose to die anyway.

But make no mistake, although God may have looked away as Jesus cried out and took His last breath, there was no separation between God and Jesus Christ. There simply was no other way to pay the debt of our sin. A perfect sacrifice was required. Jesus Christ was the only person who could save us. He lived the life we should have lived. He died the death we should have died. He saved us from the snares of hell and overcame death. Why? One word. Love.

Nothing we do will ever — ever —  and I mean ever, be sufficient to repay the debt that Jesus Christ paid for our sins —  yet He still pursues us relentlessly. He still extends grace and mercy to each of us. He still offers us all the chance to have a personal relationship with Him. Stop and think about that! You have the opportunity to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. All it takes is an invitation. And the invitation isn't from Jesus. It's from you! All you have to do is ask Jesus to be your Lord and Savior. To come in to your heart. It may not be easy. But it's that simple. And here's the best part. You don't have to have it all figured out to put your trust in Christ. It starts with a single act of obedience.

Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.
- Psalm 34:8

As I reflect on the Resurrection this evening, I can't help but think about the lyrics to one of my favorite songs that we sang tonight at church, and when I say "sang", picture a thousand people standing and worshiping in awe, at the grace, mercy, and love that Christ showed for us when death was arrested and my life began.

Death Was Arrested
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1fEJC0JtBw

[Verse 1]
Alone in my sorrow and dead in my sin
Lost without hope with no place to begin
Your love Made a way to let mercy come in
When death was arrested and my life began

[Verse 2]
Ash was redeemed only beauty remains
My orphan heart was given a name
My mourning grew quiet my feet rose to dance
When death was arrested and my life began

[Chorus]
Oh your grace so free
Washes over me
You have made me new
Now life begins with you
It's your endless love
Pouring down on us
You have made us new
Now life begins with you

[Verse 3]
Released from my chains I'm a prisoner no more
My shame was a ransom he faithfully bore
He cancelled my debt and he called me his friend
When death was arrested and my life began

[Verse 4]
Our savior displayed on a criminal's cross
Darkness rejoiced as though heaven had lost
But then Jesus arose with our freedom in hand
That's when death was arrested and my life began
That's when death was arrested and my life began

[Chorus]
Oh your grace so free
Washes over me
You have made me new
Now life begins with you
It's your endless love
Pouring down on us
You have made us new
Now life begins with you

[Bridge]
We're free free
Forever we're free
Come join the song
Of all the redeemed
Yes we're free free
Forever amen
When death was arrested and my life began
(2x)
When death was arrested and my life began
That's when death was arrested and my life began