September 25, 2015

“I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:10-14

“St. Paul knew that it meant, or might mean, a solemn reality. It was this inward power of Christ’s Resurrection, in its ever-increasing fullness, that he chiefly desired to know. Of this power of Christ’s Resurrection lodged in the recesses of the Christian soul, of this moral and spiritual resurrection which issues from, and corresponds with, the literal resurrection of Jesus Christ from His grave, G*d grant to all of us that St. Paul’s desire may be fulfilled, alike in our convictions and in our lives, and that we may know something of what the power of Christ’s Resurrection really is.” A Sermon, “The Power of the Resurrection, Henry Parry Liddon (1829 – 1890) “For All The Saints” volume II (p. 875)

Christ’s Resurrection means something especially important to the Christian — new life now and the possibility of eternal life. The translation I used in August for “eternal life” was “Life Age-Long”. It brings to mind the reality that the Resurrection of Christ means that we have new life in this age and in the age to come.

The catch is this — will you look into your soul each and every day to try to tap into the power of the resurrection? How can you do that? Well, it begins with waking up and thanking G*d for another day. Then as you go about your day, as you continually thank G*d for the blessings G*d has blessed you with, you look for ways to thank G*d in your actions, and in your interactions with others. You see, tapping into the power of the resurrection means that death no longer is something to fear. Death has no power over us because of the power of the resurrection. This, then, should free us to do all kinds of things in the name of Jesus Christ — because we fear nothing.

Pastor Dave