It doesn't end at the Cross

The Gospel. The Good News. If we had to summarise the Gospel in as few words as possible we might just say “Jesus died for our sins.” There’s nothing incorrect there. It’s essential. It’s a single event in which we were bought, by innocent blood, and freed from slavery.

Just as God’s rescue of His people from Egypt shaped culture and history throughout the whole Old Testament, Jesus’ death on the cross has done the same since. And not only that, but the Passover and the Exodus and all of God’s promises in the Old Testament foreshadowed Jesus – all of history, both before and after Christ, points to the cross (2 Corinthians 1:20)!

But it didn’t end at the cross.

Jesus didn’t stay dead. And I know you know this, but let’s talk about it. Jesus didn’t stay dead! This is huge. This is earth-shattering stuff. Jesus lived again on the third day, and He hasn’t stopped living ever since! Jesus is King over all. He rules right now. And He will return in glory and power. He may even be saddling His horse right at this very moment (Revelation 19:11-16), getting ready to return right as you finish reading this.

This means the Gospel is not just an event for us to acknowledge happened long ago in order to punch our ticket to eternal life. The Gospel is a King for us to acknowledge and submit to today and forever. Living in light of the Gospel is not living in memoriam of Jesus Christ. It’s living in relationship with Jesus by His Spirit, in love for Him, in obedience to Him, for His glory which (praise God) is also our good (Romans 8:28).

Because we serve a living God

Because we serve a living God, we can confide in Him, lean on Him, and depend on Him. We aren’t just doing our best to honour a past kindness, but living daily in the mercies of God (Lamentations 3:22-23) – the intentional, personal, purposeful mercies of our living God! Do you depend on our living God?

Because we serve a living God, we have a permanent intercessor vouching for us at all times (Hebrews 7:23-25). He has already paid the price for us, and will not let that go to waste. Do you trust in the continued work of our living God to bring us into eternal life with Him?

Because we serve a living God, we can desire and expect to be changed by Him. By His Spirit, He is at work in each of us, making us more like Him. We’re called to participate in this and to pursue even greater love and knowledge of King Jesus (Philippians 2:12-13). Do you ask our living God to make you more like Him?

Because we serve a living God, we can look forward to a true physical transformation – to have resurrection bodies just like He already has, far greater than these perishable vessels (1 Corinthians 15:42-43) – and to kneel before the very same Jesus who stood among the disciples with pierced hands and feet. Do you look forward to living transformed in the presence of our living God?

Let’s not just be believers in the death of Jesus, relieved to have an impossible debt paid. Let’s be believers in His resurrection, born again, raised with Christ (Ephesians 2:4-7), eager and ready for the return of our eternal King.