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Speaker: Jerry Cisar
In his book, The Theology of the Cross, Daniel Deutschlander writes, “…the day of Christ’s resurrection, is by far the most glorious day in all of time and in all of eternity.” Is that true? I believe it is. In our text this Sunday, Peter declares that God, in His great mercy, caused us to be born again into a living hope, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead (1 Peter 1:3). What does it mean to be born-again? What is the relationship between new-birth and Jesus’ resurrection?
It would be easier to understand had it said that through the resurrection Jesus was given new birth into an inheritance that can neither perish, spoil, nor fade. But Peter said that the resurrection of Jesus gives us new birth into that same inheritance. If a friend of yours had a heart attack and by all accounts should be dead, but since your friend was visiting another friend at the best cardiac hospital in the country when it happened, your friend was still very much alive; one might say your friend has a new lease on life, or a 2nd chance. But why would anyone say that you therefore have a new lease on life?
Peter makes a direct connection between our new birth and Jesus’ resurrection. He is not saying that by believing in the resurrection we are born again, but that the resurrection is the means by which this new birth and living hope come about. Jesus said that without new-birth, we cannot see the Kingdom of God (John 3:3). What do the resurrection and new-birth have to do with seeing the Kingdom of God? Have you been born-again and do you have a living hope? How can the resurrection of Jesus from the dead transform your life?
Join us as we explore the answer to these questions and discover the meaning of the most glorious day in all of time and in all of eternity.