The resurrection foretold.

Jonah 1:17
& Hosea 6:1–2
Psalm 16 10
Mathew 12:40
Genesis 3:15
Proto Evangelium
1. enmity between the seeds,
(2) the source of the enmity,
(3) the identity of the serpent,
(4) the meaning of ‘seed,'
(5) the identity of the woman's seed,
(6) the doom of the serpent's seed, and
(7) the suffering of the woman's seed.
8. Victory of the Savior - the woman's seed
THE PURPOSE AND POWER OF HIS RESURRECTION - 1 Corinthians 15:17-19, Philippians 3,
4-11

There is a purpose for which Christ rose from the dead, and there is a power made
available to us through His resurrection. We need to know both the purpose and the
power for us to enjoy maximally our relationship with God with the accompanying
benefits in this world and in the world to come.

- "I want to know Christ. I want to know the power of his resurrection." This is Paul's
primary desire, this is what Paul wants more than anything else in this life:

- To know the living, the resurrected Christ, and to know the power associated with that
resurrection.

- Furthermore, if he is not raised from the dead, then he has no power today. He is dead.
His words might have some influence -- but he himself has no power.

- This is why the resurrection is so central to Christians: Christianity is not a religion based
on abstract principles. Christianity is a relationship with a living Savior, a Savior we can
know, a Savior who infuses our life and empowers us, who transforms us into his likeness.

- But what does Paul mean when he says he wants to know Christ? And what is this power
of his resurrection?

KNOWING CHRIST

Jeremiah 9:23,24

- Knowing God is more important than wisdom, or strength, or riches. Think about the
people who are most admired in this world. They are admired for these three qualities,
aren't they?
- We tend to admire those who are bright, intelligent, and knowledgeable; or those who
are physically gifted in strength, talent, or beauty; or those who have amassed great
wealth.

- But the Lord says through Jeremiah that none of those are of great importance. What
matters more than anything else is understanding and knowing the Lord, the covenant
God who delights in kindness, justice, and righteousness.

- And this prominence of knowing God carries over into the gospels. Jesus himself, on the
night prior to his death, prays for his followers, saying:

Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ,
whom you have sent. (John 17:3)

Eternal life is what? Knowing God, knowing Jesus! Without knowing him, there is no true
life.

So Old Testament, New Testament, gospels, letters, Paul, Peter, John all agree that
knowing God, knowing Jesus, is central. But what does knowing God mean? We get to
know a person in part by being in his physical presence.

KNOWING THE POWER OF THE RESURRECTION

- The second part of Paul's desire is "to know . . . the power of his resurrection." Note that
Paul does not ask God for more power. Instead, he asks God that he might know the
resurrection power he already has.

- Paul's first prayer for the Ephesians parallels this idea. In chapter 1 of that letter, he prays
that the Ephesians might know three things. The third is:

his incomparably great power for us who believe . . . which he exerted in Christ when he
raised him from the dead (Ephesians 1:18,20)

- All Christians have this power; all Christians have access to this incomparably great
power, this resurrection power. Our task is to tap into it.

Let us consider five aspects of this power.

(1) The Power to Have Sins Forgiven

- Sin has a hold on all of us. Without God, we are slaves to sin. But Christ, through his death
and resurrection, frees us from the power of sin.

He was delivered over to death because of our sins, and raised to life because of our
justification (Rom 4:25)
- Christ died as the necessary sacrifice for our sins. But his being raised to life, his
resurrection is absolutely vital! As Paul says, he was "raised to life because of our
justification."

- When Jesus died, God laid on him the iniquity of us all, the punishment that all of us
deserve for all our sins.

- Had there been anything lacking in Jesus' sacrifice, if his blood had lacked the power to
cancel the penalty for anyone's sin, God could not have raised him. In that case, God's
justice would not have allowed him to raise Jesus from the dead.

- But the very fact of the resurrection shows once and for all that Jesus' sacrifice is all that
is necessary to pay the penalty for my sin, for yours.

- Whenever Satan accuses us -- saying, "God could never forgive you for what you have
done -- Think how terrible you are!" -- we can say, "Jesus rose from the dead! Jesus rose
from the dead because I am justified; having believed in Jesus, I am righteous in God's
eyes." That is the power of the resurrection.

(2) The Power to Conquer Sin

- But resurrection power doesn't end with our forgiveness. Christ's resurrection also
empowers us to conquer sin in our lives.

put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. (Ephesians
4:24)

- In Christ we are a new creation; his Spirit lives within us. We have been renewed, we have
a new self -- and the purpose of that new self is to be conformed to the image of Christ, to
become like him: truly righteous, truly holy -- to become what God intends humans to be!

- So if this is the case, why do Christians keep on sinning? Paul gives us the answer in
today's verse in Philippians: we don't know the power!

- We have all this power, but we continue to act as if we are weak, as if we are still slaves to
sin. Satan tries to deceive us, making us think we are still his -- and he uses habits
ingrained in us over years to make us believe him.

- God gives us the power to break those habits -- but we must first know we have the
power! That is why Paul has such a strong desire for this knowledge.

(3) The Power to Be God's Agent

- But Christianity is not just about forgiveness and overcoming sin. Christianity is not
simply a solution to our problems. God has a positive purpose in our salvation. He has
determined that we are to be his agents of change in the world.
- God empowers us not only to defeat sin but also to share and display his loving message
to the world. Jesus says, "You are the light of the world." Paul says,

He has committed to us the message of reconciliation. We are therefore Christ's

my power is made perfect in weakness (2 Cor 12:9)

- That is the idea. God shows his power by working through us, by working mightily
through us, even though we are weak and unworthy.

(4) The Power to Be Conformed to His Likeness

- Finally, resurrection power's greatest accomplishment is conforming us to the likeness of

are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the
Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Cor 3:18)

(5) The Power to Overcome the Devil and his Kingdom

3I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have
many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”

- It was through His death and resurrection that Jesus was given a name above every other
name, and this means a power above every power. Phil 2:5-11.

- Jesus gave us this power to tread upon serpents and scorpions and over all the power of
the devil.

- Knowing this power will make us to exercise our rightful authority over the powers of
darkness and we will not be afraid of them.

CONCLUSION
So the fact of the resurrection is central to true Christianity. The resurrection must be true
if we are to know, to have a relationship with our Savior; the resurrection must be true if
we are to have access to the power which raised Jesus from the dead -- power to:
• Be forgiven from sin;
• Overcome sin;
• Be God's ambassadors;
• To be conformed to Christ's likeness
• To overcome Satan and his kingdom