By Dr. David Rose

“These people need hope.”

Those words settled deeply into my heart as I visited with two men who would soon become my partners in ministry.

As my wife Rachel and I considered whether God might be moving us to Trinity Baptist in Lake Charles, I sat down with Greg Bath and Rick Ellis, executive pastors at Trinity, to explore how God was at work and what the needs were in the Lake Area. It was October of 2023, so the Lake Area was still in certain stages of recovery from the misery of 2020 and 2021 — COVID-19, Hurricanes Laura and Delta, the flood, and the snow.

After all that trauma, recovery was slow in coming. Physical issues were certainly a problem, but so were underlying mental, financial, social, and spiritual needs.

“These people need hope.”

These first 15 months have been a wonderful opportunity to invest our lives in Lake Charles and to begin sharing the hope that comes only in Jesus.

This weekend, we celebrate the high point of that hope as we gather to remember Resurrection Sunday. On the first day of the week almost two millennia ago, the disciples found Jesus’ tomb to be empty. They were amazed because Jesus had risen from the dead. Christians, their families, friends, and guests are gathering to celebrate His victory over the last enemy to be defeated — death itself.

Paul reflected on the significance of the resurrection when he wrote to his friends in Corinth. In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul said the resurrection provides hope in at least four ways. It is historical. It is logical. It is eternal, and it is practical.

Historical hope

God had spoken through the Scriptures that He would send Jesus to die and rise again. Paul said twice “according to the Scriptures.” This was not salvation the Jews had earned by good behavior or the Greeks had earned through superior intellect. God had promised to save the faithful and fulfilled the promise according to His own mercy and grace.

After His resurrection, Jesus appeared to individuals and groups over the following 40 days. He could have simply returned to heaven, but He gave living proof of God’s miraculous work. He gave eyewitnesses the testimony they would need to turn the world upside down. He had defeated death and provided hundreds of eyewitnesses to its historicity.

Paul himself was proof. The murderer was redeemed. The rebel was adopted. The dull became enlightened. Paul said it was by God’s grace he had become who he was. All of these eyewitnesses had testified to Jesus’ grace, and the Corinthians believed as a result.

The resurrection is a historical fact that gives us hope.

Logical hope

Paul knew this message of resurrection and transformation was difficult to accept. The Jews who believed in resurrection believed it would happen at the end of time. The Greeks did not believe resurrection would happen at all. Modern minds cannot comprehend a story that speaks of returning to life after death.

Paul walked through the need for the resurrection logically. It was historical fact, but it was also logical necessity.

If Christ did not rise from the dead, Christians face several problems:

First, sharing the Gospel is a waste of time. Our story is powerless.

Second, believing in Jesus is also a waste of time. Our faith is in a dead man.

Third, Christians are liars because they say God raised Jesus from the dead. We are sharing fake news.

Fourth, and more importantly, faith is worthless because sin has not been addressed. We have no standing before God.

Fifth, those who trusted in Christ and have died will have discovered a horrible reality. We have no forgiveness of sin.

Finally, if we hope in Christ and actually have no hope, we should be pitied above all. We hope in something hopeless.

Paul shows the logical breakdown of Christianity if Jesus did not rise again. He is confident, however, in verse 20 to declare that Jesus has been raised. Paul says death came through Adam, and now life comes through Christ. God raised Jesus from the dead to demonstrate that His death was not for His own sins but for ours. He died because sin brings death. He rose because righteousness brings life.

The resurrection is historical.

The resurrection is logical.

The resurrection is also eternal.

Eternal hope

God raised Jesus to reign at His side, and He will reign until He puts all His enemies under His feet. On that day, Jesus will come back to judge the guilty and to make all things new. In verses 50-57 Paul sees a day coming when Jesus turns the mortal into the immortal. The temporary becomes eternal.

Just as a seed has to be put into the ground before it can break open and transform into a living plant, so those who are transformed by Christ through faith will see Him transform them into something eternal. Flesh and blood cannot inherit what is spiritual. He has to transform them so they can live.

The resurrection of Jesus heralds the resurrection of all who believe.

In verse 56, Paul says the sting of death is sin. Why does death hurt? It hurts because it is so final. There is nothing that can stop it. Why is it so powerful? Death is powerful because it separates man from man and from God. The sting of death is sin.

Why is sin so powerful? The Law declares the holiness of God and, therefore, indicates the failures of man. The Law shows just how sinful we are.

Thanks be to God who gives us victory through Jesus!

Practical hope

The resurrection is historical.

The resurrection is logical.

The resurrection is eternal.

The resurrection is also practical.

Because we know Jesus will one day come to make all things new, we don’t try to make this our eternal home. We are simply pilgrims passing through.

Because we know Jesus will one day come to judge the living and the dead, we don’t worry ourselves with trying to be the judge and bring vengeance. We seek to be salt and light, as He has commanded, until He returns.

Paul gives us practical advice for what to value, what to think, and what to do. We are to value the Kingdom and the ways Jesus has instructed. We are to be steadfast, immovable in those things. They are our bedrock principles for life.

We are to excel in the Lord’s work, doing His Kingdom activities for the rest of our lives.

We are to think clearly—knowing that none of what we do for Him is wasted. Our faith is not in vain. Paul established that at the beginning of the chapter. He concludes with that same reality. Jesus rose from the grave. We can walk in faith and hope.

Risen hope

His resurrection is historical. People saw Him and testified to Him.

His resurrection is logical. Without the resurrection, we have no hope for forgiveness and eternal life.

His resurrection is eternal. What God did for Him He will do for those who have faith in Him.

His resurrection is practical. His certain victory and return to resurrect believers gives hope and purpose for each day.

Resurrection Sunday gives us hope.

Hope has a name—Jesus.

Hope has risen!

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Dr. David Rose is senior pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Lake Charles.