City Life Starter

Written by Aisha Darwesh

The Word

^51-57 But let me tell you something wonderful, a mystery I’ll probably never fully understand. We’re not all going to die—but we are all going to be changed. You hear a blast to end all blasts from a trumpet, and in the time that you look up and blink your eyes—it’s over. On signal from that trumpet from heaven, the dead will be up and out of their graves, beyond the reach of death, never to die again. At the same moment and in the same way, we’ll all be changed. In the resurrection scheme of things, this has to happen: everything perishable taken off the shelves and replaced by the imperishable, this mortal replaced by the immortal. Then the saying will come true:

Death swallowed by triumphant Life! Who got the last word, oh, Death? Oh, Death, who’s afraid of you now?

It was sin that made death so frightening and law-code guilt that gave sin its leverage, its destructive power. But now in a single victorious stroke of Life, all three—sin, guilt, death—are gone, the gift of our Master, Jesus Christ. Thank God!

⁵⁸ With all this going for us, my dear, dear friends, stand your ground. And don’t hold back. Throw yourselves into the work of the Master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort.

1 Corinthians 15:51-58 (MSG)

Aisha’s Analysis

On the heels of Easter, I wonder: aside from Easter Sunday, how often do believers truly celebrate the victory Christ has won for us? Christ’s triumphant resurrection is more than a slate wiped clean. Don’t get me wrong, while that is in itself amazing, it’s only the beginning. 

The resurrection life in Christ is more than simply trying to avoid sin. It’s about living according to God’s original design–living empowered by the Holy Spirit, pursuing God’s great exploits, and giving Him glory all the way. 

The resurrection life is so much greater and completely other than the form of life we previously lived. Before Christ, we were the walking dead. While our bodies may have been alive and kicking, our spirits were dead and completely unresponsive to God. 

By believing and receiving Christ’s resurrection life, our spirits were regenerated in Christ–born anew. Now we are not only alive in our bodies, but also in spirit. We have access to God by way of Christ. He stands ready to receive us with arms wide open. If you don’t realize the magnitude of what that means, just think back to your life before Christ. You may not have even realized how lost and despondent you were before you became alive to God’s ways.

As believers, we left behind a lower form of life to come up higher. Similar to the metamorphosis of a caterpillar to a butterfly, we have been totally transformed. With that in mind, let us celebrate this new resurrection life that powers us every moment! Not just one Sunday a year!  

Application

Do you ever find yourself stuck in a rut? Life goes through ebbs and flows and reasonably so, but we don’t have to just go through the motions. We can decide to live in wonder and amazement regardless of our current circumstances. 

No matter what you’re going through right now, take a moment to celebrate the simple, yet life-changing truth that the tomb is empty. He is risen! He is risen indeed! Relish Christ’s resurrection, and let it be a constant encouragement to you. 

Prayer

Father God, thank You for paying the ultimate price to win me back. Lord Jesus, You didn’t have to go through the horrors of the cross, but You chose to. You are now risen from the dead, victorious over sin and death. I want to celebrate Your great victory and experience the joy of my redemption every day! You did it!! In Jesus’ name, amen.