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Reaction To Resurrection
Monday, April 9, 2007
By Tom Barrett and Jim Collins
All over the world today the joyous cry has rung out from hundreds of thousands of pulpits: “Christ is risen!” And millions of people in congregation on every continent have shouted the traditional response with great joy, “He is risen indeed!” For those who know deep in their hearts the truth of the Resurrection of Christ, the response is always joy. But many respond with doubt: “Is He really risen?” This week we will discuss the four stages people go through as they come to the realization that Christ has indeed risen from the dead.
When I heard Pastor Jim Collins talk about these four stages, I knew that this was what I wanted to share with you today. I asked if I could use his outline, and he was happy to allow me to use the insights that the Lord had given him. Perhaps you are stuck in one of the first three stages. If so, I pray that this will help you find the joy that millions of Christians have discovered in the fourth stage.
Let’s start with the story of the Resurrection, as related by the Apostle Luke in chapter 24, verses1-12 of his gospel:
“Very early on Sunday morning the women went to the tomb…They found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. So they went in, but they didn’t find the body of the Lord Jesus. As they stood there puzzled, two men suddenly appeared to them, clothed in dazzling robes. 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! Remember what he told you back in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be betrayed into the hands of sinful men and be crucified, and that he would rise again on the third day.’
“Then they remembered that he had said this. So they rushed back from the tomb to tell his eleven disciples - and everyone else - what had happened…But the story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it. However, Peter jumped up and ran to the tomb to look. Stooping, he peered in and saw the empty linen wrappings; then he went home again, wondering what had happened.”
Two important phrases stand out in this passage: “The story sounded like nonsense to the men, so they didn’t believe it.” And: “He went home again, wondering what had happened.”
People who hear about the Resurrection for the first time often need some time before they can comprehend this amazing story. Like the disciples, they may need to pass through four stages of belief before they can fully embrace the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
These four stages build upon each other. In other words, for spiritual growth to happen, a person must move from one stage to the next with the goal of ultimately arriving at stage four. Once in stage four, a person continues to live his or her life in deep, intimate, fellowship with God.
Everyone falls into one of these four groups. As we discuss them, think about which group you fall into, and what it’s going to take for you to move into the fourth group.
The first stage is when people think the resurrection of Jesus Christ is a fairy tale. They think that it never happened and that it’s ridiculous for a rational human being to believe in it.
This is where the disciples were when the women told them what had happened. They didn’t believe it. To move through this stage, we need logical information about the source of the Resurrection story. We need logical proof about the resurrection.
The New Testament contains the most detailed account of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. But in order to trust the New Testament account, we need to know that the New Testament is a true, reliable, and accurate source of information regarding the resurrection of Jesus. So what do we know about the New Testament? Consider these facts:
First, there is more manuscript support for the Holy Bible, and specifically the New Testament, than for any other body of ancient literature. 5,686 Greek, 10,000+ Latin, and 24,970+ current existing manuscripts attest to the integrity of the Holy Bible and the New Testament.
Next, the New Testament has been proven historically, scientifically, and archeologically. Among many other types of evidence, there is the eyewitness evidence, the documentary evidence, the evidence of Jesus’ appearances following the Resurrection, and the evidence of the missing body (which has been confirmed by non-Christian historians of the period). There have been many attempts by skeptics to discredit the resurrection story, but none of these attempts is able to account for or explain away the overwhelming evidence.
Finally, the magnificent detail of the Old Testament prophecies fulfilled by Jesus prove that the New Testament is accurate and reliable. The Old Testament, written hundreds of years before Jesus’ birth, contains over 300 prophecies of the Messiah, every one of which Jesus fulfilled through His life, death, and resurrection. Only God could know and accomplish all that was written about Jesus Christ. This historical accuracy and reliability set the Bible apart as the Word of the Living God. Therefore, the New Testament is a true, reliable, and accurate source of information regarding the Resurrection of Jesus.
The people in stage two are like Peter in Luke 24:12; they may check out the facts, but still be unsure about how to respond to those facts. In other words, they’re not sure how the Resurrection fits into their situation.
This is the stage where logical proof must be transferred into emotional proof; a decision must be made. Have you ever hear the phrase, “People evaluate based on logic, but they decide based on emotion?” For example, we all know that regular exercise is good for us. But how many reading this are involved in a regular exercise program?
In the second stage of belief, people hear the Gospel message, but they don’t respond to it. This is where the facts must lead to a personal decision. In other words, what does the Resurrection mean to me personally, and what am I going to do with it?
It is in the third stage where a person receives Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. Only when a person encounters Jesus personally are they able to accept the fact of the Resurrection. The people in this group respond by saying what has commonly been referred to as “The Sinner’s Prayer.” In most instances the reason they do this is that when they die, they want to go to heaven instead of to hell! Sadly, only a small percentage of these people ever move into stage four.
This is mainly because they have never been told about the love of God. They’ve been taught that God is an ogre and a tyrant just waiting for them to make a mistake so He can whack them over the head and leave them wallowing in the mire of their guilt and shame. They have never been told that God is no longer just God to them; He is now their heavenly Father who loves them beyond human comprehension. In Ephesians 3:19 Paul says that the love of God is so great we’ll never fully understand it.
What does it mean to in Christ? It means to be in the family of God. If you’re in Christ, you’re a child in God’s family. And as a member of the royal family, the family inheritance belongs to you, and that inheritance includes an earthly benefits package, which includes the protection and provision of the Creator of the Universe, Who is your heavenly Father! Any good father protects and provides for his family, doesn’t he? The difference is that God the heavenly Father guarantees it!
The fourth stage is where a person makes Jesus Christ the Lord of every area of their life.
Can you imagine the reaction of a bride if the minister were to change the words of the ceremony and say to the groom, “Do you take this woman to be your housekeeper and cook?” Many want to accept Jesus as Savior (their fire escape from hell), but they do not want to accept him as the Lord of their lives.But it is only as they commit themselves to the Lordship of Jesus that they will begin to fully embrace and experience the reality of His presence and His power within them.
Many have made a decision to receive Jesus Christ as their Savior, but they have never made the commitment to make Him the Lord of every area of their lives. A true believer is one who has done just that.Which stage of belief are you in when it comes to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ?
Will you be attending the marriage supper of the Lamb mentioned in Revelation 19:9? If you know that you are born again you’ll be there. But is Jesus the Lord of your life? The goal of every believer is to one day hear Jesus say, “Well done good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of your Lord.” If you want to hear Him speak those words, make Him your Savior AND Lord.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE: Rev. Jim Collins is the Pastor of Victory in Christ International. He preached the sermon on which this column is based on Easter, 2007. Jim is a well-known author and speaker, whose materials (including a free newsletter) can be found at www.BeyondPositiveThinking.org. The archives of his previous articles published on Conservative Truth are at http://www.conservativetruth.org/archive.php?author=Jim%20Collins. Jim is ordained by the Gospel Crusade Ministerial Fellowship (www.GCMF.org).
Tom Barrett has been an ordained minister for over 30 years. He pastors a church in South Florida. Tom has written for local and national publications for most of his life, and has authored several non-fiction books. He has been interviewed on many TV and radio programs, and speaks at seminars nationwide. Tom is the editor and publisher of Conservative Truth, an email newsletter and website. His articles, which focus on moral and political issues from a Biblical viewpoint, are read by over a quarter million people each week on websites and in print newspapers.
Jim Collins is the founder of Beyond Positive Thinking Ministries. Jim embraces the truth that positive thinking is simply the world’s term for what God calls “Faith.” Through his books, CD’s and power-packed speaking engagements Jim teaches the timeless principles of God’s Word concerning success and motivation in the Scriptures. The mission of Beyond Positive Thinking Ministries is to teach people how to tap into the force that created the universe by showing them who they are, what they have, and what they can do because they are in Christ Jesus. Jim is also the Pastor of Gateway Community Church at Abacoa in Jupiter, Florida.
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