Who is the “Ever-Living?” Let’s find out from the Holy Scriptures. The apostle John “was on the island called Patmos, on account of the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Revelation 1:9). John gets a divine vision of “seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man” (Revelation 1:12,13). John continues, “When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore” (Revelation 1:17,18). And so declared the Lord Jesus Christ—the Son of the eternal God. The Lord Jesus is alive. We have infallible proofs in the Scriptures that Jesus rose from the dead and is “alive for evermore.”
Observe the tenses of Jesus’ words. “the living one” is in the present tense. “I died” is in the past tense. Then He says “I am alive for evermore.” This means Christ is alive both now and for all eternity. We can rejoice that today there is an empty cross, an empty tomb and an occupied throne in heaven. Jesus lives no more to die. “For the death He died, He died to sin, once for all, but the life He lives, He lives to God’ (Romans 6:10). “Yesterday He died for me . . . this is history. Today He lives for me . . . this is victory. Tomorrow He comes for me . . . this is mystery” (Don Wyrtzen, 1942 – ?). What a glorious thought, and a blessed hope!
The Gospel of Matthew chapter 28 records all the events of Christ’s resurrection. In the early morning of His resurrection, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. They discovered that the stone had been removed. The angel assured them that Jesus was not there. “He is not here, for He has risen, as He said. Come, see the place where He lay” (Matthew 28:6). As they left the tomb to tell the disciples, Jesus himself met them on the way and greeted them. Then they worshipped Him. (Mat. 28:8,9). Paul also wrote “that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then He appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time” (1 Corinthians 15:3-6). The Scriptures provide many other instances and proofs of Christ’s resurrection.
The believer is united with Christ in His death and also in His resurrection. The apostle Paul writes, “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His” (Romans 6:3-5). This means that when a person trusts Christ as Savior, he is “baptized into Christ Jesus”and is identified with Christ both in His death and in His resurrection. The Christian is dead to sin, and alive to God. We also know, as Paul wrote to the Corinthians that “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has past away; behold, the new has come” (2 Corinthians 5:17). This means a new beginning takes place because all past sins have been forgiven and God’s Holy Spirit now “resides” in us and lives Christ’s life through us.
The apostle Paul stresses the importance of Christ’s resurrection to the Christian faith. Paul argues “Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:12-14). “If Christ is not risen,” writes William MacDonald, “then the preaching of the apostles was empty, or having no substance. Why was it empty? First of all, because the Lord Jesus had promised that He would rise from the dead on the third day. If He did not rise at that time, then He was either an imposter or mistaken. In either case, He would not be worthy of trust. Secondly, apart from the resurrection of Christ, there could be no salvation. If the Lord Jesus did not rise from the dead, then there would be no way of knowing that His death had been of any greater value team than any other person’s. But in raising Him from the dead, God testified to the fact that He was completely satisfied with the redemptive work of Christ. Obviously, if the apostolic message was false, then faith would be empty too. There would be no value in trusting a message that was false or empty” (Believer’s Bible Commentary, p. 1805).
Paul also points out that “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” Then he joyfully exclaims, “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead” (1 Corinthians 15:19,20). Christians the world over, can find great comfort and a strong living hope in the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, lives. With blessed assurance, Job confidently expressed his faith in his living Redeemer and his expectation to see God. He said, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been thus destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God, whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another” (Job 19:25-27). My brothers and sisters in the Lord, this should certainly inspire us as we await the return of our risen Savior.
Can you personally say like Job, “I know that my Redeemer lives?” You can if you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. God loves you and has a plan for you. Jesus came that you may have life and have it abundantly. (John 10:10). The fact is “all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory” (Romans 3:23). But “God demonstrates His own love toward ups in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day, in accordance with the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:3,4). All you have to do is believe that you are a sinner, that Jesus died for your sins, and ask Him to come into your heart and forgive you of your sins. And He will. May God grant it for His name sake.