After
that, He appeared to more than 500 of the brothers at the same time, most of
whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then He appeared to
James, then to all the apostles, & last of all He appeared to me
also."
With that introduction, Paul goes on to present a tremendous testimony to the resurrection of Jesus. Then he turns his attention to us, "Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be
With that introduction, Paul goes on to present a tremendous testimony to the resurrection of Jesus. Then he turns his attention to us, "Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be
changed - in a flash,
in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound,
the dead will be raised imperishable, & we will be changed"
[15:51-52].
PROP. With those words ringing in our ears, let us consider some of the
changes, some of the transformations, that the resurrection of Jesus has
already made.
I. THE TRANSFORMATIONS OF THE CROSS & THE TOMB
To illustrate the transformations that His resurrection has already made, think
about the cross & the tomb.
A. Before His resurrection, the cross was known only as an instrument of
horrible death, rough wood soaked with human blood. So terrible was this form
of execution that the Roman Empire prohibited the crucifixion of Roman
citizens. Crucifixion was only for the worst of slaves & enemies of the
empire.
But today, because of His resurrection, we wear a replica of the cross as a
piece of jewelry, a thing of beauty, for all around the world the cross is seen
as a symbol of hope, & a reminder of God’s love for us.
B. And what about His tomb? Before the resurrection, for most of the world, the
grave was looked upon as the final chapter, the closing of a great door, the
end of everything.
But because of His resurrection, we can rejoice today that beyond death is
where life really begins, & it will never end. That makes you wonder,
doesn’t it, why we spend so much time worrying & fretting about material
things?
ILL. Dale Evans once said, "I spent most of my life searching for the pot
of gold at the end of the rainbow. Then I finally found it at the foot of the
cross."
All our lives, it seems, we work & struggle to accumulate things that we
think are important. But when we’re dealing with death & what happens after
death, then all these things seem so unimportant, so inconsequential. What
difference does it really make what kind of car we drive? Or what kind of house
we live in? Or what clothes we wear? If we’re talking about eternity, then what
difference do things really make?
On one side of the resurrection, everything we see is temporary. Only the
things we cannot see are eternal. What a difference the resurrection makes!
II. THE TRANSFORMATION OF TIME
Then there is the transformation of time. Before the resurrection, time was a
limited thing. The Bible talks about the breath of life that we have in our
nostrils, & then it is gone. And there is no promise that when we exhale
that we will inhale again. Life is brief indeed.
ILL. Sometimes when I’m shaving in the morning, I look in the mirror &
think, "My goodness, I look old, but with a good night’s sleep tonight,
maybe I’ll look better tomorrow." Then I hear a still, small voice saying,
"Don’t count on it. This is the best it’s ever going to be!"
That’s rather discouraging, isn’t it? You see, time is slipping by. It’s going
so fast that it’s hard to hold on to anything, isn’t it? On one side
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