The Greatest Day In The Morning

I recall many years ago we used to have an annual "high attendance" push that culminated in a Sunday morning we called "Great Day in the Morning." The point was it would be a great day if on that Sunday morning we broke our single service attendance record. But on the evening prior to Easter Sunday my thoughts have turned to another Great Day in the Morning event. I am talking about that Sunday morning when a group of women approached the grave where Jesus had been placed after his crucifixion and to their utter astonishment found it empty. That was and is the Greatest Day in the Morning in the history of the humanity. Here is what that day means to me:

First, It Means I can Trust The Scripture. The Bible had predicted that he would die and that on the third day he would rise again . . . and Jesus did just that. No one has yet been able to disprove the resurrection.

If the resurrection is true, and I believe that it is, then it validates the Scripture and that being the case then Scripture should play a large role in our lives. If this book is true, and the resurrection of Christ validates it's reliability, then it ought to be a major part of our lives. Because of the resurrection its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding, its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. We read it to be wise, believe it to be safe and practice it to be holy. It should allow it fill our memory, rule our heart and guide our feet. If the resurrection is not true, throw the Bible away, use it for kindling. But if the resurrection is true, embrace the Bible with all your heart.

It Also Means I can Have Forgiveness of Sin. In First Corinthians we read that if Christ has not been raised . . . you are still in your sins. There can be no forgiveness of sin apart from the resurrection of Jesus Christ. If Jesus died on the cross but didn't rise from the grave, then, at best, He died for His own sins and was never qualified to die for ours.

The assurance of our forgiveness is based on a voluntary, sacrificial and vicarious death of a sinless Savior and only the resurrection can validate that Jesus was and is that Savior. In Acts 2:24 we read that God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power. Why? Because there was no sin in His life to require His death. He laid down His life of His own accord and He took it up again.

The resurrection of Christ proves that our forgiveness is real. As there was no sin to hold Jesus in the grave, there is no sin in our lives which is not covered by His precious blood. When Jesus instituted the Lord's supper, He took the cup and said, this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins (Matt. 26:28). The resurrection says, "amen, it is so, it is so."

There are sins in my life that I can never forget, but God can. There have been times when the greatest struggle of my soul was to forgive myself, but long before I managed to, God already had. The fact of forgiveness is validated by the resurrection of Christ because it proves that Jesus could and did lay down His life for my sins.

The Resurrection Validates Our Faith In Jesus. Paul writes, "If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless." Romans 1:4 says of Jesus that He was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness.

Why should we believe in Jesus and not Buddha? Because Buddha's grave isn't empty. Why should we believe in Jesus and not Confucius? Because Confucius' grave isn't empty. Why should we believe in Jesus and not Mohammed? Because Mohammed's grave isn't empty.

If I can't believe in the resurrection of Christ, then I can't believe anything else Jesus taught or promised because it means He lied about the most important thing He ever promised. But if I can believe in the resurrection of Christ, I must believe everything else Jesus taught and promised.

The Resurrection of Jesus Validates Our Faithfulness as Servants. In 1 Cor. 15, Paul concludes his great treatise on the resurrection of Christ and those who believe in Him by saying, "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord" Why not? Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, regardless of what the evidence seems to say, our faithfulness and service is never in vain. I see a lot of people who take lightly these matters of faithfulness and service. Unfaithfulness always reflects a negative mindset about the things of God.

Being faithful to the Lord means something. It means something because the One we serve and the One to Whom we're faithful is the One who rose from the grave. If Jesus Christ had the power to conquer death, then Jesus Christ is all the incentive we need for our service and faithfulness even when we can't see where it's making any practical difference anywhere or in anyone's life. It is He who promises, Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life (Rev. 2:10). The resurrection validates our faithfulness, even until death.

And Finally, The Resurrection Validates Our Future. Jesus said in John "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. In John 14 Jesus promised to prepare a place for us and to come again to receive us to Himself that we might be with Him in the Father's house forever. And in verse 19 of that chapter He said, because I live, you shall live also. The resurrection is the guarantee of these promises.

I believe in heaven and the longer I live in this crazy world the more precious heaven becomes and the more excited I get. Paul says that if Christ did not rise from the dead; If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.

Easter is truly a great day in the morning for Christ is risen from the grave - and today, I rejoice.

One of my favorite old hymns says it all for me . . . . .

"I serve a risen Savior, He's in the world today;
I know that He is living, whatever men may say;
I see His hand of mercy, I hear His voice of cheer,
And just the time I need Him He's always near.
He lives, He lives, Christ Jesus lives today!
He walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way.
He lives, He lives, salvation to impart!
You ask me how I know He lives: He lives within my heart."