Do I Have To Believe The Resurrection?
In Short…
Yes.
Hope to see you back for our next post!
Obviously, this is not how I’m leaving this blog post for today but I wanted to start off answering this question before we even dove into its study due to how crucial this point is. Have you ever heard someone say, ‘I believe in God, just not Jesus.’ Or, ‘I’m a Christian, I just don’t believe the whole resurrection thing.’ Or maybe you’ve even just been told before, ‘I was raised a Christian so that’s what I believe I am, I’m just not a religious person.’ All of these answers and topics are lines that I have heard before and nothing frustrates me more. I would rather have you be honest with me and tell me you don’t believe in God at all or that Christianity just seems like a fluke that your parents forced you into believing rather than lie to my face and honestly, yourself. The gospel of Jesus Christ is our faith’s center and very foundation. All of God’s Word points us to the Messiah who has made a way for us to inherit salvation through faith and repentance because of His finished work on the cross. And part of that finished work is indeed His resurrection. There is no way around this.
If you claim to follow Christ, you must believe this sole aspect. This is the most major of doctrines to agree with if one claims to be a member of Christianity. Not only do I make a big deal of this, but Paul does as well. Look at what Paul says about the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15:14-19 “14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.15 Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we testified against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; 17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied.” It doesn’t get any clearer than this. If Christ is not raised from the dead, then He did not overcome sin. And if He did not overcome sin, then His sacrifice was worthless. And if His sacrifice was worthless, then everything that we believed Christ would accomplish for us has now proven to be false! No wonder Paul tells us that if we have hoped in Christ for this life only, we are the most pitied group on the face of the earth.
A Different Gospel
Make no mistake about it friends, it doesn’t matter if you like going to Christian church, or a majority of your friends are Christ followers, or even if you were raised in a Christian household. If you do not believe in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, your faith is not in Christ, and therefore, you are not a Christian. This is why I greatly encourage many to study God’s Word, especially the gospels, even while they may not be saved, or at least listen to someone who will teach it to them and disciple them. Because without the truth of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, any convert you make apart from this knowledge has just embraced a different gospel entirely. This to me is one of the biggest issues that is happening in our world right now. We don’t see many people coming to Christ because they realize how sinful they are and that Christ is their only hope for salvation. We see people coming in droves to Christ because of the blessings and prosperity that are promised them by preachers who don’t care about the true gospel. Look at what Paul says about such people in Galatians 1:6-9 “6 I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; 7 which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed! 9 As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed!” Anyone who tells you how you can be a follower of Christ without telling you about faith and repentance because of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ hasn’t told you how you can be a Christ follower at all. If you are a Christian, you believe that Christ died for the penalty of your sins and was raised to life by overcoming death. If you claim to be a Christian and do not believe that, you have believed a false gospel.
All In Or All Out
Now I want to take a moment here and be clear. By no means am I shaming those who struggle with the idea of the resurrection and don’t consider themselves Christians yet. As I stated earlier, I would rather you claim you don’t believe in the gospel of Jesus rather than live out a lie. My frustration and worry lie in the people who claim to be followers of Christ, and yet, deny the facts of the gospel. These actions lead others to think they can do the same, all the while they continue to be lost thinking that they are found. Even in the final book of God’s Word, God warns the church in Laodicea not to be people who are lukewarm for Christ, but rather be all in or all out. Revelation 3:16 says, “15 ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. 16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.” Friends, if you or someone you know claims to be a Christian, and yet denies the very foundation of the gospel, I would encourage you to study God’s Word and the gospels of Jesus Christ and put them to the test. I know that my disapproval of the denial of the resurrection has come off strong in this post and maybe even harsh, but this is no light matter. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the only hope that humanity has, and without His resurrection, that hope is gone. As we approach this holiday season, may we continue to pray for the lost and even the lukewarm. May God use this season to bring the lost home and open doors for us to reach the lost for Him as well. Yes, the gospel is 100% true, and that doesn’t just include Jesus’ death, that includes His resurrection.
Sources
[1] “Access Your Bible from Anywhere.” BibleGateway.Com: A Searchable Online Bible in over 150 Versions and 50 Languages., www.biblegateway.com/. Accessed 2023.
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