Jesus lives!

The reason my Father loves me is that I lay down my life—only to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father (John 10:17-18).

He is risen! Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has proven His power over sin, death and Satan! Our Savior lives, and the victory is His!

Jesus has proven His power over death. Christ raised several people back to life during the years of His earthly ministry—a grieving father’s little girl, a poor widow’s only son, and Lazarus the brother of Mary and Martha. Raising others from the dead is incredible enough—but God enabled His prophet Elisha to do the same. It’s another matter entirely to raise yourself from the dead—how can someone who has died do anything to revive himself? Yet Jesus did—and by doing so, He proved without all doubt that He has the power to rescue us from our graves as well.

Jesus has proven His power over the devil. During the 40 days that Jesus spent in the wilderness preparing for His ministry, Satan tried hard to get our Lord to sin, but Jesus withstood every temptation. When our Savior was dying on the cross, the devil tried to goad Jesus into saving Himself by walking away from Calvary; but Jesus knew that the only way we could be saved from hell was for the Lord of Life to suffer the punishment for our sins, so He stayed on the cross and died. Then the Son of God went to visit the devil and proclaimed His victory over the prince of darkness. Jesus became the only person to ever visit hell and leave.

Jesus has proven His power over sin. When our Lord suffered alone on that bloody cross, He was enduring the punishment from God that our sins deserved. When Jesus finally died, He said it is finished (John 19:30). Some people thought that Jesus meant His life was over. But that is not the message Jesus wanted us to hear. When He said it is finished, He meant that His work of salvation was finished—every sin had been atoned for. Anyone who wants forgiveness can receive mercy from God instead of judgment. Jesus’ resurrection proves that His work was complete—if Christ had failed to complete God’s plan for our salvation, His Father would not have given Jesus permission to return to life.

Jesus lives and He is victorious over sin, death, and Satan. And praise God that the Lord of Life shares the benefits of His victory with everyone who loves Him!