Easter Celebrates That Jesus Is Alive Today

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES The Answer Is Easter

Easter Celebrates That Jesus Is Alive Today By Rick Warren — Mar 20, 2016 “The Good News is about his Son. In his earthly life he was born into King David’s family line, and he was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 1:3-4 NLT, second edition). Although we study the passion of Jesus, his death on the cross, Easter is a celebration of his Resurrection: God brought Jesus back from the dead, proving he’d broken the power of sin and death. After Jesus died, they took his body down and put him in the tomb, and a giant millstone was set in front of the cave. The religious leaders, worried that Jesus’ body might be stolen, asked for Roman guards to be posted in front of the tomb. They didn’t want him coming out! But of course, he did. You know the story. But it’s important to remember that Easter is not some memorial to a nice, good religious teacher who lived 2,000 years ago. It’s a celebration of the fact that he is alive today! I’m living proof — and so are the approximately 1 billion Christians who celebrate Easter. Jesus “was shown to be the Son of God when he was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit. He is Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 1:4 NLT, second edition). Easter is the Good News about God’s Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, who came to Earth as a human baby, born into King David’s royal family line. Four historical records say that after his Resurrection he showed himself to 500 people at one gathering. Can you imagine witnessing his death and then seeing him walking around Jerusalem three days later? What an amazing thing! When Jesus was hanging on the cross, the skeptics and critics mocked him and said, “If you’re the Son of God, why don’t you just pull yourself down from that cross? Why don’t you just come down and show that you’re really God?” Jesus had something more spectacular planned. He said, “I’m going to let you bury me for three days, and then I’ll come back to life to prove that I am who I say I am.” PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >> Talk It Over Why is it important to remember Jesus’ death and his Resurrection at Easter? What did Jesus’ death accomplish? What did his Resurrection accomplish? How do you think it felt for the people who knew that Jesus had been killed but saw him in the flesh a few days later? Our Gift: Choose Joy Devotional Book The secret to being happy no matter what is looking at every experience and circumstance you face from God’s viewpoint. When you go through difficult times joy becomes a choice you make minute by minute. Written by Pastor Rick’s wife, Kay Warren, this Devotional book is the perfect tool to help you stay focused on God’s word and see things from His perspective. LEARN MORE Complete Audio Series (Purchase) Includes all complete sermons from the Rick Warren The Answer Is Easter teaching series. LEARN MORE Series Summary Message 1: The Answer Is Easter Message 2: ​​​​​​​Easter in 3D PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at rickwarren.org. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He’s the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including "The Purpose Driven Church" and "The Purpose Driven Life," read by more than 100 million people in 137 languages. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered across America. This devotional © 2016 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences  |  Unsubscribe