- Death does not have the final word. The resurrection of Christ assures all believers that we will some day be raised and that something better does indeed lie beyond our existence here on earth (Rom. 8:11; 1 Cor. 15:54-57; Philip. 3:21).
- Not only the guarantee of our future resurrection, but we will be reunited with our believing loved ones (1 Cor. 6:14; 1 Thess. 4:14).
- The world is not merely a product of mundane principles of cause and effect, physical laws of nature, and purposeless social interaction, but an open system where miracles of God are possible in history!
- Our right standing before God is guaranteed (Rom. 4:25; 1 Pt. 3:18-19).
- We now participate in a new quality of life empowered by the same energy that God used to raise Christ from the dead (Rom. 6:4-8; Eph. 1:18-19; Philip. 3:10).
- Because Christ rose and ascended the bestowal of spiritual gifts for authentic Christian service empowers the us to serve the Church and the world (Eph. 4:7-10).
- God displayed the power to transform history’s greatest injustice (the crucifixion) into its greatest good. How much more can God transform our lives, our circumstances, our relationships, and our hardships into a blessed end that makes perfect sense?
“Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits at God’s right hand in the place of honor and power. Let heaven fill your thoughts. Do not think only about things down here on earth. For you died when Christ died, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. And when Christ, who is your real life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory” (Col. 3:1-4, NLT)