Like the narratives of Christ's birth, the accounts of His crucifixion and resurrection are so familiar that we can miss the full intensity of the unexpected event. Though Jesus warned His disciples, they were not at all prepared for the trauma of His death or the shock of His resurrection. Because we know the outcome, it's hard for us to identify with what they must have felt.
Although we may wish we could have been present at Jesus' birth, who wishes to have seen His cruel, torturous death? Few want to read the details of what He suffered. We've sanitized Easter with aromatic lilies and colourful eggs.
But we must know exactly why the Father let His Son hang on the cross and why Jesus chose not to escape it. We need to grasp the glory of His resurrection. What blending of love and power can we see in these events? It's almost as if Jesus could hear the tearful praises of future believers singing:
My sin—O, the bliss of this glorious tho't—
My sin—not in part, but the whole,
Is nailed to the cross, and I bear it no more,
Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, O my soul!1
We hope these resources will help you better understand what really happened when Jesus died and rose from the dead, why there was no other alternative, and why it makes all the difference today!
¹Horatio Spafford, “It Is Well with My Soul.”
What the world shuns as foolishness, the Lord embraces as wisdom—the wisdom of pain to turn mere followers of Christ into disciples of Christ. Jesus called it “the cup.” To Him the cup was the anguish, humiliation, and torturous death on the cross. To us it means “taking up our cross” and following Him daily.
If there’s no hope, there’s no spring. But because there IS hope, the winter you’re enduring will end.
Join Chuck Swindoll in this stirring look at Thomas, the enigmatic disciple who wore on his sleeves an uncertainty about Jesus’ Resurrection. But once in the presence of his risen Saviour, he boldly proclaimed, “My Lord and my God!”
Join Chuck Swindoll in this unique look at Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Find yourself in the story as you come face to face with the King of the world and Saviour of your soul.
Jesus came to earth with a clear mission in mind. Neither pain, betrayal, depravity, disinterest, or sin would deter His focus or sway His steps away from His ultimate purpose.
The shining light of Christ’s gospel is the hope of Resurrection for all who believe in His name. Two principles emerge from Christ’s miraculous Resurrection.
This year, it’s this careful balance of guilt and relief I’m pondering. I’m contemplating the injustice of being saved from my sin without deserving it in the slightest.
Listen as Chuck Swindoll carefully guides you from the Cross to the tomb and from death to the reality of the Resurrection. You’ll learn the true meaning of Jesus’ words, “It is finished!” And discover as John ultimately did, that it was far from over!
Join Chuck Swindoll as he explains how in the cruel brutality of Christ’s death, there is something beautiful; in the rough-cut wood of the cross, there is something golden and eternal for all who kneel before it in repentance and faith.
Listen to Chuck Swindoll's Easter message, Miracle Announced from a Tomb: “He Is Risen!” and relive the moment of discovery when an earthquake shook the ground and a shining angel rolled aside the stone, announcing, “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn't here! He is risen from the dead” (Matthew 28:5-6).
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Insight for Living is committed to excellence in communicating the truths of Scripture and the Person of Jesus Christ in an accurate, clear, and practical manner so that people will come to an understanding of God’s plan for their lives, as well as their significant role as authentic Christians in a needy, hostile, and desperate world.
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