Many say that the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth was a miracle, but it really wasn’t. Was it amazing? Certainly. Was it so awesome that even His closest friends struggled to believe it? Yes – even though He told them about it on at least three occasions! Was the resurrection of Jesus terrifying? Absolutely. Just ask the guards at the tomb! Was it embarrassing? For sure, to the Sanhedrin. That’s why the chief priests and the elders had to bribe the soldiers to spread a false narrative to explain it away. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is many things – chief of which is the foundation of our faith. And yet, while it may look like a miracle to us, in God’s sight, it was justice.
When God created man, He meant for him to live forever in relationship with Him. So, He put him in a beautiful garden and gave him everything he needed to thrive, with one caveat: Man had free access to all the trees in the garden, except one. If he ate from that tree, he would die. The relationship would be severed, and eventually, man’s body would return to the dust. Well, short story shorter… he ate and he died. Worse, Adam’s disobedience opened the door for sin to enter the world and be passed down to all of us!
So, there we were, no longer living forever, overcome by sin, living apart from God, and under an eternal death sentence – until God sent His Son, Jesus to rescue us. That is what Easter is all about – the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. However, that’s not the whole story. The only way that Jesus could rescue us from sin and eternal death was to live a sinless life and die in our place. Think about that. If Jesus had ever sinned – even once – He would have become a sinner like we are. If that were the case, His death and eternal separation from God would simply be the just penalty for His own sin – and we would still be lost.
However, that was not the case! Jesus was God’s Spotless Lamb, the perfect sacrifice for the sins of the whole world, because He lived a sinless life of loving obedience to the Father. Jesus lived a holy life, completely free from sin. That is what qualified Him to die for ours – and His resurrection proved it. That is why Romans 1:3-4 (NKJV) tells us that the good news is about “Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead.”
Death could not hold God’s Spotless Lamb! It had no legal right to retain Him, because He never sinned. So, of course, He had to rise from death! It wasn’t a miracle; it was justice. It was the same justice that allows God to forgive us of our sins, if we count on what Jesus did to save us from His wrath. Since Jesus paid for my sins on the cross, it would be wrong for God to hold them against me. The penalty has been paid by the sinless blood of the Lamb – and He rose from the grave to prove it, never to die again!
The resurrection of Jesus was many things, but it was more like gravity than a miracle. In the same way that God has built physical laws into our world, He has also created spiritual laws to shape it. He has put order in His creation that we can count on. Sometimes, however, He interferes with His own natural laws, supersedes them for a purpose. That is what a miracle is! Parting the Red Sea was a miracle. God did that, so the Israelites could escape to the Promised Land. When Jesus raised Lazarus from death, that was a miracle, too. Lazarus was like us, a sinner who died, but Jesus raised him to life again…for a little while. Amazing!
However, Jesus never sinned, so it was wrong for Him to die – even for a minute. Justice was served through His resurrection. “According to the spirit of holiness,” that wrong was made right, declaring “Him to be the Son of God with power.” His resurrection not only displayed God’s justice but proved that He was the Messiah and that His sacrifice for us worked. That is why believing in His resurrection is essential to our salvation. God’s mercy through Jesus’ sinless life and sacrificial death pronounced us “not guilty” in the courts of heaven – and His resurrection proved that to be true. Hallelujah!! Thank You, Jesus, for your amazing grace…
