Search

The gifts of resurrection

The gifts of resurrection

This powerful resurrection has poured unto humanity the strength of resurrection granting it marvelous donations, that which human beings would never have received hat it not bun for His death and resurrection, thus lifting us up with Him.

From among the gifts of resurrection is that:

  1. It shattered death:

The judgement of death was the outcome of sin; “it is appointed unto men to die one, but after that the judgement” (Heb. 9:27). Death here refers to the physical death, which is different from the spiritual death, which detaches you from God. It also differs from the moral death, as sin humiliates man and drives him a prey to Satan. Even his body dies by disease, disaster or by old age. Again this type of death differs from eternal death which is the ultimate penalty for sin: “the hour is coming in which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall cometh forth, chose that have done good, unto the resurrection of life, and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation. (John 5:28)

Thus, the quadrilateral death is conquered and crushed by the resurrection of Christ for He “hath raised us up with Him and made us sit with Him in Heavenly places.” (Eph. 2:6) For He said, “he who believeth in me, though he was dead, yet shall he live.” (John 11:25) Therefore death is conquered forever and all believers would announce the fact, “O death, where is thy sting?! O grave, where is thy victory?! (1 Cor. 15:55)

  1. It conquered Stan

The Lord said, before His crucifixion, “I behold Satan as lightning fall from Heaven” (Luke 10:18) He also said, “The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.” (John 15: 30) He added, “Now shall the prince of this world be cut out” (John 12:31) Hence this fallen Satan, no longer has any power over mankind unless man gives him the choice to dominate him. Furthermore, the Lord asks us to struggle against the devil; “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you” (James 4:7) God even promised us saying, “The God of peace shall crush Satan under your fat shortly” (Rom 16:20) Thus, it is astonishing when people hand themselves up deliberately to Satan, although they know him to be the “ancient serpent”, “the devil”, “the resistor”, “the evil doer”, “the liar” and the father to all liars” !!! It is also astonishing to find people afraid of him, believing that he can hurt them through his black magic and his devilish duds, thus forgetting our omnipotent God who rules powerfully over the whole universe, all things and all men inclusive. Rather, more astonishing are those who consult Satan to solve their problems in marriage, human relations and everyday dealings, thus, they announce their disbelief in God, and give Satan the place of the worshiped god and consultant, but he is the one who destroys his followers and rejoices in their destruction. Leave aside those miserable people who worship Satan, this modern illusion that swept the world and unfortunately reached up to Egypt.

  1. It put an end to sin

The glorified resurrection is the tool to redeem man, because the Lord Jesus “died for our offences and was risen for our justification” (Rom 4:25)

Through His marvelous salvation:

  1. He died for us thus elevating the penalty of death
  2. He renewed our human nature via His holy spirit;hence, we became children of God. “The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.” (1 Cor. 15:56) This means that when we commit sin, we fall under the judgement of the law that declares that “the price of sin is death” (Rom. 6:23) But “thanks be to God who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Cor. 15:57) This made St. Paul the apostle to announce that; “sin shall not dominate you, for ye are not under the law but under the Grace.” (Rom. 6:14)
  3. It verified the divinity of Christ:

He was risen by His own personal power … He rose with a glorified body .. He rose and did not and will not die forever … All this proved that He is the God “manifested in the flesh” (1 Tim 3:14) God also manifested the power of His divinity in many other places, as when He showed us:

  1. His absolute sovereignty:
  • On death .. when he resurrected the dead even when He died on the cross. (Matt. 27:52)
  • On disease .. when he cured the incurable diseases. (Matt. 9: 18-26)
  • On creating .. when He created eyes from mud and turned water into wine. (John 9:1-34, John 2:1-11)
  • On thoughts .. when He revealed the thoughts of the Jews and the Disciples without being informed. (Luke 22:24)
  • On the future .. when He announced the destruction of Jerusalem and Peter’s crucifixion (Matt. 23: 37-39)
  • On oblivion of sin .. when He forgave that man taken with palsy and the woman taken in adultery. (Luke 6:20, John 8:2-11)
  • On Satan .. when He cast out the devil with one word, or even without uttering a word. (Luke 17:18, Mark 7:29)
  • On nature .. when he rebuked the wind and the sea waves and wlked on the waters of the sea, and even made Peter walk on the seawaters. (Matt. 8:26, Matt 14:28-32)
  • On plant .. when He cursed the Fig tree that withered instantly. (Matt. 21:20, Mark 11:20)
  • On animal .. when He allowed the demons to enter into the pigs. (Luke 17:18)
  • On inanimate things .. when He blessed the loaves of bread and fed thousands of people. (Matt. 14:19)
  1. His absolute Holiness:

“He is without sin, He is non-sinful” (2 Cor. 5:21, 1 Peter 2:22) He even defied the Jews saying: “Which one of you dare reproach me for any sin?!” (John 8:64) and all were speechless. It well known that no human being is without sin. In the old days, Pascal said, “If we find one man without sin, then this man must be God in the form of a man” This proves to be true in the case of the Lord Jesus who is without sin, which proves His Divinity.

  1. His eternal life:
  2. Lord Jesus is “begotten of the Father before all ages; light of light, True God of True God.” (the orthodox creed) After He was incarnated for the purpose of our salvation and died and rose from the dead, He is alive forever. It was never mentioned in human history that any man lived after his death even if a man was resurrected, this would be for some time to glorify god, then would die again. But the Lord Christ is “the life” .. origin of existence. His existence is beyond questioning for “in Him resided the life” (John 2:4) He said “I am the way, the truth and the life” (John 14:6) .. “I am the resurrection and the life”
  3. Opened up the gates of Paradise before us:
  4. When Jesus Christ died on the cross, His human self, which is united with His Divinity, descended into Hell to set free the captives who were waiting for His glorified salvation. St. Paul, the apostle says that: Christ, glory be to Him, “descended first into the lower parts of the earth, then ascended up on high, He led captivity captive and gave gifts unto men” (Eph. 4:8,9) As is mentioned by St. Peter, “He went and preached unto the spirits in prison.” (1 Peter 3:19) That’s why the church enchants on the day of resurrection saying: all ye angels up in heaven chant for our God Note of Prince rejoice with us today happily in the resurrection of Jesus Christ the Lord rose up from the dead waking up from sleep and like a recovering drunkard. Granting us everlasting Grace, thus setting us free from bitter captivity. He shattered the copper gates of Hell and set its captives free. That’s why, on that day the Lord said to the thief on his right hand, “Today, thou shalt be with me in paradise” (Luke 23:42) And the church spends the eve of Easter Saturday, after the paradise was open, enchanting to the Lord, hymns of praise, rejoicing in salvation, reciting hymns of salvation in both testament. The Old and the New. Then the book of Revelation is read to realize what John, the beloved, had witnessed.
  5. It granted us the glorified body:
  6. For God “shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto His glorious body” (Phil. 3:21). This dense body that envelops us now is made of duct, but it will be transcended into a heavenly shape when it is changed and glorified turning into a spiritual illuminated body. It is set before our eyes this glorified painting that St. Paul has drawn for us when he said, “For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a cheer in the voice of the Archangel and with the trump of God’s and the dead in Christ shall rise first; then we who are alive shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” (1Thess 4:16,17). This mystery was also revealed by Paul, the apostle, when he said, “we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in a blink of an eye at the last trump; for the trumpet shall be blown, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed; for this corruptible (body) must put on incorruption, and this mortal (body) must put on immortality. So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, “death is swallowed up in victory” (1 Cor. 15:51-54)

Thus, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.” (1 John 3:2) “With unveiled free beholding as in a mirror the glory of the glory we all are changed unto the same image, from glory to glory by the spirit of the Lord.” (2 Cor. 3:18)

It is very clear that the aspect of similarity is only in the resurrected body and in the glory and the eternity that will be granted by God and in nothing else; for God will remain the God and humans will remain humans only renewed, reformed and mad holy by the Holy Spirit.