This last Sunday marked the what is the greatest event in the history of the world: The Rising of a Man captured & killed by the Romans. Jesus, the first person to rise from the dead; Jesus, God's ultimate demonstration of his commitment to redeem creation, God's demonstration to redeem us.
In most churches Easter builds toward one Sunday; however, as we journey through the liturgical calendar we will be taking a journey through Easter for four more weeks. Jesus' resurrection was just the beginning of what God was doing not the end. The resurrection demonstrated what God had done. Now, in the Biblical story the disciples are left to demonstrate what God desires to do through His people the church. For the next four weeks we will explore one of the greatest theological questions about the resurrection: "So what?"
This week we look at three different sections of scripture:
John 20:19-31 This is the account of what happened after those who followed Jesus discovered He had risen from the grave. What are their reactions? Is their disbelief encouraging to you? How would you have responded? How will you respond now?
1 Corinthians 15:1-34 This is one of the great chapters in the Bible about the resurrection. Who is Paul speaking to & why? What was the church believing that wasn't true? Why is it important for the church in Corinth to believe correctly about the resurrection; why does it matter?
Ephesians 1 Paul again describes why the resurrection is crucial to our faith. Why is the resurrection crucial to who we are? Why does it matter so much?
The resurrection is the center piece of our faith. It may sound weird in a day & age when other aspects of Jesus' life are set as being of upmost importance; however, when we look at the amount of text or dialogue given to the resurrection in the New Testament it become clear: The Resurrection matters & it matter a lot. In fact, it's clear the early church wasn't so eager to "go to Heaven," but they were willing to be eaten by lions because they knew they too would rise again as a part of God's new creation. Do we share the same perspective or convictions? The resurrection is the promise we have as God's church. Too, this is the hope for Santa Cruz, that the church would live out the resurrection before them so they too would have the opportunity to know life.
What does it mean to live the Resurrection? What's it mean to be the church in Santa Cruz?
I love that Easter lasts for 4 weeks. This is totally new to me. I think we should keep partying. :)
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