Easter Sunday
From the same devotional
CHRIST IS RISEN
Death is swallowed up in victory, O death, where is thy stink? O grave, where is thy victory? . . . thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through or Lord Jesus Christ. I Corinthians 15: 54-57
This is a strange and unprecedented message, such as reason cannot comprehend. It must be accepted in faith. The message is that Christ is alive and yet dead, and dead in such a way that in Him death itself has had to die, and lose al its power. . .
And as the Lord Christ has conquered death, He has also conquered sin. For in His own Person He is pure and just; but because He takes upon Himself the sins of others He becomes a sinner. That is why sin can assault Him. And He, the Lord Christ, is very ready to be thus assaulted and nailed to the cross in order that He may die, as if He had Himself sinned and brought His death upon Himself. But there, hidden under the sin of others, His holiness is so great that death cannot overcome Him. Thus sin, like death, attacked the wrong man, and grew so weak and died in His body.
And likewise the devil wanted to prove his power over Christ, and uses all his might against Him, trying to bring Him down. But He meets with a higher power which he cannot overcome. And all this has been wrought in order that our Lord Christ might glory because by being cast down He was lifted up on high, and these three mighty foes, sin, the devil, and death, must low lie under His feet. This great victory we celebrate today. Now all power consists in this, that we take it well to heart and firmly believe in it.
Sermon for Easter Day, 1544
CHRIST IS RISEN
Death is swallowed up in victory, O death, where is thy stink? O grave, where is thy victory? . . . thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through or Lord Jesus Christ. I Corinthians 15: 54-57
This is a strange and unprecedented message, such as reason cannot comprehend. It must be accepted in faith. The message is that Christ is alive and yet dead, and dead in such a way that in Him death itself has had to die, and lose al its power. . .
And as the Lord Christ has conquered death, He has also conquered sin. For in His own Person He is pure and just; but because He takes upon Himself the sins of others He becomes a sinner. That is why sin can assault Him. And He, the Lord Christ, is very ready to be thus assaulted and nailed to the cross in order that He may die, as if He had Himself sinned and brought His death upon Himself. But there, hidden under the sin of others, His holiness is so great that death cannot overcome Him. Thus sin, like death, attacked the wrong man, and grew so weak and died in His body.
And likewise the devil wanted to prove his power over Christ, and uses all his might against Him, trying to bring Him down. But He meets with a higher power which he cannot overcome. And all this has been wrought in order that our Lord Christ might glory because by being cast down He was lifted up on high, and these three mighty foes, sin, the devil, and death, must low lie under His feet. This great victory we celebrate today. Now all power consists in this, that we take it well to heart and firmly believe in it.
Sermon for Easter Day, 1544