In teaching Evangelism I start by asking this question, “Why did Jesus have to die on a cross?”  

Most people know the answer to that one– to pay the price for our sin.  

I follow it up with a second question, “Why did he have to rise from the dead?”  

Usually it’s crickets…no one has an answer.  

Or someone might answer “so we can go to heaven when we die.”  Which, if you’ve ever listened to my teaching on evangelism, you’ll remember is never mentioned once in the Bible.  We’ve been trying to get people to go to heaven when Jesus said the purpose of our lives should be to bring heaven here.  

So why did he have to Rise?  

Yesterday was my Grandma’s funeral.  Death is never easy because people weren’t meant to experience death.  It hurts so bad when we lose a loved one because in the beginning, death wasn’t in God’s plan.  

He said, “but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.” Gen 2:7

The result of Adam and Even’s sin was they welcomed death into this world.  

Death is God’s greatest enemy because it plagues every human that walks this earth.  

So why did Jesus have to rise?  

He came to destroy the works of the devil.  (1 Jn 3:8)  So death had to be destroyed.  

The devil thought he won when Jesus died that day on Calvary…

But 3 days later, out walks Jesus!

Not even death could hold him down.  

He’s alive and since he’s alive he is King of the Universe.  

And the Gospel says this “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” Rom 10:9

As you share the Gospel with people this week declare a risen victorious Jesus who is worth submitting your life to!

Can I get an amen?