”
For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance:
that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he
was buried, that he was raised on the third day
… and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After
that, he appeared to more than 500 … Then he appeared to James,
then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me …
”
– 1 Corinthians 15:3-8
“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day … and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than 500 … Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me …” – 1 Corinthians 15:3-8
This brings me to this last thing Paul says is part of the gospel – the good news. Jesus came for me! Jesus didn’t just come for people in general sense. He didn’t just come for others. No! Paul also says this: “… and last of all, he appeared to me.”
It’s here that the good news gets personal. You see, up until this point the good news is something you can agree or disagree with. Jesus came – true or false. He died for our sins – true or false. He was raised on the third day – true or false.
Here’s something you may not have known. We don’t have to convince very many people about the events of Easter. An overwhelming majority of Americans already believe them. Close to 100 percent believe in God, and nearly all of them believe Jesus is His Son. And here’s something else: almost nine out of 10 already believe that Jesus rose bodily from the dead. Nine out of 10!
Unfortunately, many of us leave the resurrection as just this –a belief. What do I mean? I mean that while we believe that Jesus was God’s Son, who died for our sins and rose from the dead – we do so only in an impersonal kind of way.
Which is the one thing we should never do! The truth of Easter is not a truth like “George Washington was the first president” – something we believe that doesn’t personally affect our lives. No! The gospel a truth that is meant to impact each of us personally – for like with Paul, Jesus wants to become personal to each one of us: “and last of all, He appeared to me.”
Let me illustrate what I’m trying to say. I remember the night I proposed to my wife, Beth. We were at a retreat center, and I invited Beth to go with me to the prayer chapel. We looked at the beauty of the coast, sang some songs, and then spent some time praying together. Since I was already on my knees … I decided to take advantage of the moment.
“Beth,” I said, “I love you. You are the most important person in the world to me. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”
Now how do you think I would have felt if Beth had responded, “True?” You see, true or false doesn’t answer the question. The only proper response was “yes” or “no” – actually Beth got it wrong – she said, “you’re kidding.”
Do you see what I’m trying to say? The facts are important. It is true that sin and death no longer reign because Jesus died for our sins and rose again from the dead. But the gospel – the good news – is more than this.
Here’s the rest. Jesus comes to each one of us and says: “I love you. I died for your sins. I rose from the dead and because of it you can have eternal life. I want to spend eternity in a relationship with you. Will you commit your life to me?”
The answer to this question cannot be true or false. Jesus is asking us to respond personally to Him. And when we say “yes” to Him – commit our lives to Him, we will find that what is true about the gospel will become true in us – we will personally know the salvation that comes by grace because sin and death no longer reign!
That’s the good news! May it be true for each of us … may each of us be able to say, like Paul, “and last of all, he appeared to me.”
Morgan Hill Presbyterian Church is located at 16970 DeWitt Ave., Morgan Hill, (408) 779-2820.
