My Pulpit Message - notes The Resurrection My Pulpit Message Notes are extracted from the sermon preached at the Nairobi Baptist Church (NBC) Ngong Road on Sunday 17th April 2022. Preacher: Reverend Majid Ochieng, Deputy Senior Pastor - NBC. Topic: Is the news over? Scripture: 1 Corinthians 15:12-34
The surety of the resurrection
He is risen. He is risen indeed!
1.
There was crucifixion Friday, but we thank the LORD that there is also Easter Sunday. They crucified our Saviour, buried Him and thought that they had dealt Him a blow. That all was done and dusted. But we thank God that after crucifixion Friday, there is an Easter Sunday. That Jesus Christ overcame.
“12 But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.”
When talking about the surety of resurrection, we are talking about the certainty. Being convinced without any shadow of a doubt that Therefore Easter comes with great symbolism to us as Christians. Easter Jesus Christ indeed resurrected. The believability that Jesus Christ indeed comes with great significant as far as our faith is concerned. Easter is so rose from the dead. central to our Christian faith, because if Jesus did not resurrect, then all Paul wanted to prove the resurrection of Christ not because the that we do is an exercise in futility. Corinthian church/Christians did not believe that Jesus rose from the dead. 1 Corinthians 5:11 Paul makes it clear that they believed that Jesus Christ rose from the dead. What they were denying is that as believers/ Christians/children of God, there 1 Corinthians challenges will be no resurrection. They deus as believers to examine every nied our resurrection. They were area of our lives through the lens influenced either by the Greek “ of the gospel. Specifically, Paul May the truth about the power of resurrection quicken us to re- philosophy which considered the addresses divisions among believresurrection undesirable, thinkalise and to put into practice the fact that He died for me/you. ers. He addresses issues to do with ing that the state of pure spirit was food offered to idols and wheth- He died for our sins and there is a hope and a hope beyond the so much superior than the physer to eat those foods or not. He grave. ical state that we are in. If they addresses issues of morality that were not influenced by the Greek ” need to be viewed from the lens of philosophy, then most likely they the gospel. He talks about worship were influenced by the Sadducgatherings and propriety in worcees who actually thought that the ship and in this particular text he world beyond this life was wishful talks about the resurrection and how central it is as far as our faith is con- thinking. cerned. The bottom line is that the Corinthian Christians believed we live There was this little boy with his father and they were driv- forever, but not in the resurrected bodied and that is what Paul is trying ing on a nice beautiful Sunday afternoon.Suddenly a bumblebee got into to connect, that because Jesus Christ rose from the dead there is hope for the car and there was a buzz in the car. This young boy was allergic to the you and I. Resurrection is not a merely life after death, but is actually life bee sting and started crying hysterically. The father then took the bee and that will continue in eternity. squeezed it a little bit and let the bee fly again. And the boy started crying The Corinthian Christians did not think carefully. Some of them again hysterically because he did not know what the father had done. The denied the reality of the resurrection while at the same time believing that father then caught the bee again and showed that boy on his finger, this is Jesus Christ actually rose from the dead. the sting of the bee and because this sting has been taken out of the bee, Paul is telling them that if Jesus Christ rose from the dead, then the bee cannot sting you anymore. those of us who know Him, there is hope for us. If there is no resurrection To a larger extent that is what Jesus Christ did in this text of the dead, then Christ is not risen as He says (verse 13) “13 If there is no and in verse 55, Paul says, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.” death, is your sting?” 56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Surety of the resurrection Lord Jesus Christ.” Jesus Christ had taken away the power of death, the pow- - The empty tomb. John 20:1 - We are told that Mary Magdalene er of sin because Jesus Christ died on Friday and by the grace of God, He went first and found an empty tomb and very fast ran back to the othrose again. er disciples, “Looking for the ones that Jesus loved,” and she was said to them, “where have they taken away, my King and my Lord?” If there was 1. The surety of the resurrection. 1 Corinthians 15:12-13 an eye witness in those particular days, you cannot argue with an eye 2. The significance of the resurrection. 1 Corinthians 15:14-32 witness and especially so close to the happenings. If that was not true 3. The steps that we need to take as believers. 1 Corinthians 15:33 then that story would not have gone on for generations to the one that we have today. Then the story of the empty tomb gives us the assurance that indeed Jesus Christ rose from the dead.
The Resurrection
TT 149 | April 19th - April 25th | 2022
