He is risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia! This morning we rejoice as we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection and especially as we hear Him in His Word proclaiming Himself as the Resurrection and the Life.
When God called Moses and sent him to deliver His people, the Children of Israel from their bondage of slavery in Egypt, “13Then Moses said to God, ‘If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, “The God of your fathers has sent me to you,” and they ask me, “What is his name?” what shall I say to them?’ 14God said to Moses, ‘I AM who I am.’ And he said, ‘Say this to the people of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.”’” (Exodus 3:13-14). This year during the season of Lent through to Easter morning have been exploring the “I AM” words of Jesus, especially as John expounds on God’s telling Moses that His name is “I AM.” This morning we are looking at Jesus’ words as He declares, “I AM the Resurrection and the Life.”
Again, as we have been doing, we begin with God’s name as He tells Moses, His name is “I AM.” His name declares Him to be God from eternity, living outside of time, in the eternal present. This morning as Jesus declares Himself to be the resurrection and the Life, so He says He too is “I AM,” in other words He proclaims His divinity, from Exodus.
And again let me reiterate that Jesus is true God in the eternal present. Jesus is not a God who was as He has no beginning. He is not a God is to be as He has no tomorrow, at least not in the same sense of time which He created for us, yesterday, today and tomorrow. Rather He is God who is I AM such that He lives in the eternal present thus all things with Him are concurrent and outside of time as you and I sense time.
When God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the Garden of Eden He gave them one rule, to not eat of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the Garden, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, with the threat that if they did eat they would die, that is they would begin to die a physical death and ultimately, apart from His salvation they would die an eternal death in hell. This morning as we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection we celebrate both His physical resurrection and His saving us from an eternal death in hell meaning giving us an eternal resurrection.
At the moment of our conception we begin dying a physical death. Our bodies are beginning to die. Certainly, as we grow in the womb, as we are born, as we grow and mature this dying is not something we truly realize until we get older and our bodies begin the processes of aging and dying begin to set in. Of course, this aging does not negate the fact that we have no guarantee of length of life as people do die at all ages, from the moment of conception all the way through old age. However, when we are conceived, we begin to die. Thus, as we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection and His defeat of death, we celebrate that we too will rise again, as He gives us a physical resurrection.
After our physical birth, hopefully, prayerfully, our parents bring us to the Lord’s house where we are baptized and in baptism the Lord forgives us, puts faith in our hearts, writes our names in the book of life and makes us His, freeing us from eternal death and hell. Thus, as we celebrate Jesus’ defeat of sin, death and the devil, we celebrate that we too have eternal life as He gives us forgiveness and eternal life, earned and paid for by Himself, on the cross.
We know that Jesus is the resurrection. We know that while living in this world He gave life, that is He raised some from the dead, as mentioned in our text. As true God He had this power and although He did not always nor fully use His divine powers we do know there were some that He did raise from the dead. As true God Jesus has power over death and He used that power in raising Himself from the dead.
And we know that Jesus is the resurrection to eternal life. To the thief on the cross who professed his faith Jesus said, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” Jesus gives eternal life in heaven.
Jesus says, “I AM the resurrection and the life.” Jesus is true God. He was with the Father and the Holy Spirit at the creation of the world. All things were created through Him and indeed, He is the one who gives life to all things. He gives life while we live in this world, that is here in time, which I might remind you, He created time for us as He is God and lives outside of time, in the eternal present. And the fact that He gives life here in time reminds us that there is life outside of our time in this world.
As Jesus proclaims Himself to be the life, not only does He proclaim the giving of life in this world, but also the giving of our forever life in eternity. As God created time for us, and as He defeated death on the cross, so He gives us His defeat of sin, death and the devil, meaning He gives us eternal life in heaven as well.
What does this mean? Jesus is true God, begotten of the Father from eternity. He is perfect, holy, sinless, and able to give life. He was true God and had to be true God in order to be born in perfection. The demand of God has always been to be perfect. God commanded Adam and Eve to obey His one Law, which they broke. God called Israel to be His people and to obey His Laws, which they failed to do. God gives us faith and demands we live as His people, which we, in and of ourselves are unable to do. Jesus was born as true God, perfect and holy so that He could be perfectly obedient, which He was.
Not only is Jesus true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, but He is also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, the human woman. Jesus was born as a human so that He might be our substitute. Remember, the price for disobedience, for sin has always been death, and not the death of an animal, not an animal sacrifice, but human death for human sin. The sacrificial system of animal sacrifices in the Old Testament were simply a reminder that the price for sin was death, that blood had to be shed, but the sacrifices pointed to the one ultimate sacrifice of the one ultimate human, Jesus. Jesus was born, true God in human flesh to do what Adam and Eve could not do, to do what the whole nation of Israel could not do, and yes, to do for us, for you and me, what we are not able to do. He was born to live the perfect, obedient life commanded and demanded of us, for us, in our place. And He did live a perfect life obeying all of God’s Laws and Commands perfectly. Then, He took all our sins and the sins of all people, of all places, of all times upon Himself and He paid the price for our sins, the price of physical death and most importantly the price of eternal death and hell. Which is why we come today, to rejoice in Jesus’ defeat of sin, death and the devil.
Today we celebrate that God gives. For each one of us He has given us our life at our conception. At our conception we are called to life and given physical life in this world.
Today we celebrate that God gives new life through the waters of Holy Baptism. As we are reminded, if we have only one birth then we have two deaths, but if we have two births, then we have only one death. If we only have our physical birth and no spiritual birth, no baptism, then we die not only a physical death, but also an eternal death. However, if we have two births, our physical birth and our spiritual birth, through Holy Baptism, then we only die a physical death, because our eternal death has been taken care of by Jesus on the cross.
Today we celebrate that God gives forgiveness in Holy Absolution. We rejoice in Holy Absolution. We rejoice that we can confess our sins and hear God’s most precious words, “Your sins are forgiven.” And those are the most precious and wonderful words we can hear because we know that with forgiveness is life and salvation.
Today we celebrate that Jesus gives His body and blood in His Holy Supper. As we celebrated last Thursday, Maundy Thursday, so we rejoice that in the bread and wine we eat and drink Jesus’ body and blood so that He becomes a part of us, marking us so that the angel of eternal death passes over us, so that we are forgiven and strengthened in our faith.
Today we celebrate that God gives gifts through His Holy Word. God’s Word is a Word with power, the power to give the gifts it proclaims and to do the things it proclaims to do. As we read and hear God’s Word He pours out on us and lavishes us with all the good gifts and blessings He has to give, which is what motivates us, stirs in us, moves us to make regular and diligent use of His means of grace, which is why our desire is always to be where the gifts of God are being given out, as often as we can be there, that is to be in divine service and Bible Class.
Today we celebrate that God gives and we are given to. God is love. God is gracious and merciful. God gives life, new life, forgiveness, faith, eternal life. God gives and He moves in us and stirs in us to rejoice and to respond, though imperfectly, living lives of faith, living as priest in the priesthood of all believers, living our lives as living sacrifices for Him.
We have come a long way through this Lenten season. We have heard Jesus declare Himself to be truly God, I AM. We have been strengthened and forgiven and today we are moved to respond with joy as we continue to declare, He is risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia! To God be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
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