Christian Reflection and Prayer

Jesus is my hope and trust

Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory?
O death, where is your sting?
For sin is the sting that results
in death, and the law gives sin
its power. How we thank God,
who gives us victory over sin
and death through Jesus Christ
our Lord!
1 Corinthians 15:55-56 NLT

Jesus lives, and so shall I:
Death, thy sting is gone forever!
He for me hath deigned to die,
lives the bands of death to sever.
He shall raise me from the dust:
Jesus is my hope and trust.

Jesus Lives, and So Shall I
Christian Furchtegott Gellert (1715-1769)

Just a happy ending?

What difference does Christ's
resurrection make? Is it just a
happy ending to an otherwise
tragic tale? No, of course not.
Jesus had to rise, as Peter
eloquently stated at Pentecost.
It was impossible for death to
defeat the Lord of life. The
Resurrection proves that Jesus
was the Son of God. Our faith
is built on this solid foundation.
As Paul wrote, "If Christ has not
been raised, your faith is futile;
you are still in your sins.…If
only for this life we have hope
in Christ, we are to be pitied
more than all men" (1 Corinthians
15:17, 19). But He has risen! And
as Jesus promised His disciples,
"Because I live, you also will live"
(John 14:19).

Without Christ, human life is merely
prolonged death. Everything is
decaying. But Jesus gives us eternal
life, which radically changes our life
on earth. Not only do we have eternity
to look forward to, but we have the
power to live in right relationship with
God and others right now in our daily
lives. Jesus is our hope for the future
and our trust for each day. Praise Him!

Our "Resurrection Week" readings are
adapted from The One Year® Book of
Hymns by Mark Norton and Robert Brown,
Tyndale House Publishers (1995).
Today's is taken from the entry for April 2.

Scripture:

But the fact is that Christ has been
raised from the dead. He has become
the first of a great harvest of those who
will be raised to life again.
1 Corinthians 15:20 NLT

Hymn:

Christ the Lord is risen today, Alleluia!
Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!
Raise your joys and triumphs high,
Alleluia! Sing, ye heavens, and earth
reply, Alleluia!

Love's redeeming work is done, Alleluia!
Fought the fight, the battle won, Alleluia!
Death in vain forbids Him rise, Alleluia!
Christ hath opened paradise, Alleluia!

Soar we now where Christ has led,
Alleluia! Following our exalted Head,
Alleluia! Made like Him, like Him we rise,
Alleluia! Ours the cross, the grave, the
skies, Alleluia!
Christ the Lord is Risen Today
Charles Wesley (1707-1788) and others

Reflection:

Christ has won the final victory

The grave has been "boasting" of its
power since Eden. But now it has
finally met its match. It wraps Jesus
up at the Cross and "forbids him to
rise," but our Champion, Jesus Christ,
fought and won. Where is your sting
now, O Death? Christ has won the
final victory.

We know that whatever boasting we
do is not in ourselves, but in the power
of Christ. He has won the victory, and
now we're just soaring where Christ has
led. We bask in the benefits of the Cross,
and we look past the grave to our heavenly
reunion with Him. Alleluia!

Our Easter Week readings are adapted from
The One Year® Book of Hymns by Mark
Norton and Robert Brown, Tyndale House
Publishers (1995). Today's is taken from
the entry for April 3.

Digging Deeper/Telling Others: For more on
the meaning of Easter, read Why the
Resurrection by Greg Laurie (Tyndale, 2005),

I Know My Redeemer Lives

Scripture:

But as for me, I know that my Redeemer
lives, and that he will stand upon the earth
at last. And after my body has decayed,
yet in my body I will see God. I will see
him for myself. Yes, I will see him with my
own eyes. I am overwhelmed at the thought!
Job 19:25-27 NLT

Hymn:

I know that my Redeemer lives; what joy
the blest assurance gives! He lives, He lives,
who once was dead; He lives, my everlasting
Head!

He lives, all glory to His name; He lives, my
Savior, still the same; what joy the blest
assurance gives: I know that my Redeemer lives!
I Know That My Redeemer Lives
Samuel Medley (1738-1799)

Reflection:

One of those verses

Every once in a while, a verse jumps out of the
Old Testament and takes on a new meaning.
Job lost his fortune, family, and much of his
health. In a stunning display of faith, he expresses
his only remaining hope: "I know that my Redeemer
lives, and that in the end he will stand upon the
earth" (Job 19:25). The words find an uncanny
fulfillment in Jesus.

Jesus gave His life to redeem us, to buy us
back from our slavery to sin. His death was the
price of our freedom. But that's not the bottom
line, thank God. As the sun rises on Easter
morning, we can say with Job, "I know that
my Redeemer lives." He lives! Death could not
hold Him. He lives, to finish salvation's work in me.

Hymn writer Samuel Medley often repeated words
and phrases in his songs. Here, what's repeated is
the most important concept: "He lives…He lives…
He lives."

("Resurrection Week" readings are adapted
from The One Year® Book of Hymns by Mark
Norton and Robert Brown, Tyndale House
Publishers (1995). Today's is taken from the
entry for April 2.)