The Rising: 7 Ways the Resurrection Changes EverythingSample

Day 2

Promise Maker, Promise Keeper

One of the implications of The Rising is that what may be dead today, may not be dead tomorrow. That is to say, God does whatever He wants whenever He wants to do it, and sometimes that means a dead dream, a dead heart, a dead relationship, a dead community can all come to life again. But, sadly, resurrection doesn’t always happen, and when it doesn’t, naturally we’re disappointed. Disappointment comes when what I thought was going to happen doesn’t happen. For example, when someone makes a promise but then they don’t keep it. How disappointing is that? 

What the resurrection teaches us is that God doesn’t work that way. When Jesus died on the cross it was a huge disappointment to his family, friends, and followers. Jesus had promised a Kingdom, He had promised freedom, He had promised salvation, He had promised healing and now all that was dead. But then resurrection happened and all of God’s promises came to life with Him. The Rising reminds us that even when we can’t see it, and even when we can’t feel it, God is with us and He’s working.

Jesus promised that He would rise and He delivered on His promise! (See John 2:18-22) This means that if God promises it in his Word, then we can trust it in our lives! Isn’t that the best news? This means that freedom is available. Salvation is free for anyone who believes. Healing is on the table. Peace is possible. Hope is here. Jesus is not just a promise maker… He’s a promise keeper. And the beauty of this is that not one of His promises is dependent on you, but, all of His promises are for you! 

What’s a promise of God that you struggle to believe? Why? How does the fact that God can’t lie and God can’t fail, change how you view His promises in Scripture?