Risen With Christ

From our Easter Sunday service on April 20, 2025, Romans 6. Watch the full message: Risen With Christ on YouTube.

Today we’re going to talk about what the resurrection means to us. Someone said to me this morning, “It’s an easy message, right? It’s Easter. It’s the same thing every year.” The joke is that you’ve heard this one before. But I don’t want you to think of it as a story you’ve heard before. I want you to see it as what it truly is.

The Bible tells us that the angels rejoice before the throne of God day and night, singing, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.” Do you understand that? The angels in the presence of God have been saying the same thing for thousands and thousands of years. Sometimes people say old songs are too old. Well, the angels have been singing the same song for thousands of years. I think that also applies to the story of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Every Easter we may go to the same account and read about the same story, but just because it’s “holy, holy, holy,” it isn’t any less true or any less important. It’s not a story to entertain us. It’s who the story is about. This is the most important story of all time, because it’s not just something that happened. It’s something that transformed everything.

Today we celebrate the day Christ rose from the grave, declaring his victory over death. Jesus himself says:

…Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death.
Revelation 1:17–18

That’s what we celebrate every Easter Sunday: the Lord did not stay in the tomb. He rose with the keys of death and hell, and because of his resurrection and his sacrifice, we too have hope and life.

A week ago on Palm Sunday, Jesus sat down with his disciples and said, “Guys, I need you to understand something. As the Messiah, I’m going to have to suffer some things. I’m going to have to go through some difficulty, but I don’t want you to be discouraged, because this is not the end.” He told them he might be cut off from his people, but in three days he would rise again, just like Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale. Then he rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, declaring peace to Jerusalem and signifying that he was the King of Kings come to save them. That week went by, and on Good Friday Jesus walked up to Golgotha as the suffering servant and was crucified under Pontius Pilate on a Roman cross to die for our sins. That our Lord was crucified that Friday is a fact of history that historians do not debate.

But that was not the end of the story. While people waited silently on Saturday, defeated and wondering what would happen now that their God and master was gone, suddenly, early that Sunday morning, women went to put perfume on Jesus’s body. When they got there, they found the stone rolled away, the guards gone, and Jesus nowhere to be found. The same man who was crucified was no longer in the tomb, because he had risen. The stone was rolled away by an angel, but not so that Jesus could get out. It was so that humanity could look in and see what had been done. The resurrection wasn’t just about raising Jesus from the dead. It was to prove his claims of salvation and invite us to share in his victory.

The resurrection was not a myth, a legend or an analogy. It was a historical event that changed everything for us. Paul himself said:

But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. … And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.
1 Corinthians 15:13–14, 17

So today we celebrate that we are not worshiping Christ in vain. Our worship and our religion are not pointless, because we don’t serve a crucified and dead savior but a crucified and living savior. The good news is that Christ is risen.

Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Romans 6:4

Today I’d like to share how we can enjoy the blessings of Jesus’s resurrection in our lives, not back then, in the past, but today. If you get anything from this message, I want you to know that the resurrection of Jesus Christ should completely change how we live our lives. Because Jesus has conquered death, a new power is now at work in every believer. We no longer have to live in fear of tomorrow or be mastered by our past mistakes. Today we can walk in the same victory that raised Jesus Christ from the grave.

We’ll look at three points. First, dead and buried: how we are spiritually dead. Second, the resurrection: how we are raised to life. Third, our response.

Dead and Buried: Slaves to Sin

Each of us, when we are born into this world, is spiritually dead. That means the Spirit of God is not within us and does not convict us, and we are at the whims of our flesh and the desires of our body to make us choose one option over another. The Bible teaches that we’re not just spiritually dead but enslaved to our sinful desires. In Romans 7, one page over from where you are now, Paul says:

For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.
Romans 7:14–17

Paul talks about a struggle that’s relatable to every one of us. He says, “I am a slave to my sinful desires, a slave to this body that is trying to convince me to do things that are not right. There are things I don’t want to do. I wouldn’t allow or permit them. Yet I find myself doing them over and over and over. And the things I want to do, I don’t do. I want to be a good person. I want to help people, but when the opportunity comes, I sit there frozen and it passes me by.” He says, “I consent unto the law that it is good.” In my heart I know, legally speaking, that these things are good to do, but I can’t convince myself to do them, because my flesh is selfish, prideful and stubborn. Then Paul separates the sinner from the sin: “It is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.” In my flesh, I want to be a good person and do what is right, but I can’t, because of the sin nature I was born with. The good news is that Christ died on the cross so that sin nature can be separated from us and we can regain control over our bodies.

We are all sold to our desires. Here are some symptoms of our slavery to sin. “I told them I wasn’t going to explode at them anymore. Why did I? I love them.” “I said I was done with the alcohol. Why did I go back to the bottle for comfort?” “I said that was my last drink.” “I said I wasn’t going to go to that website anymore. Why did I open it again? I just feel so empty.” “I said I was going to stop wasting all this money on luxury. Why did I buy that? I have to do better. I’m behind on my bills. I’m destroying my life.” “I told myself at the beginning of this year I was going to do something meaningful to make a difference. Why do I find myself constantly binging music, TV and other media? I’m just avoiding the silence, afraid of what I’ll hear if I listen to myself a little longer.”

These experiences are deeply relatable, and they reflect the truth that we are slaves to our own bodies, addicted to hits of dopamine in our brains at the expense of our entire lives. Romans 6 tells us that we will all serve someone, and it will either be God or sin.

For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.
Romans 6:14–18

Whatever you do in life, you will be enslaved by something. Whatever you choose to give in to, you will become the slave of. If you surrender to whatever your flesh says, you’ll be a slave to your flesh. If you surrender to whatever your political party says, you’ll be a slave to that party. If you surrender to whatever a rich, famous or successful person says will make you successful, you’ll be a slave to them and to your money as well. But if you surrender to Christ, yes, you become his servant, but once you are in the household of God, he promises to adopt you as a son or daughter, and you’ll share in Jesus’s inheritance.

All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.
1 Corinthians 6:12

“Expedient” means beneficial. There are a lot of things we can do that aren’t inherently wrong. But if we allow parts of our lives to bring us under their power, and they begin to control how we live, we become slaves to whatever that area is.

The title “Christian” literally means belonging to Christ. Do you know the term was originally an insult from the Romans? They called us Christians to mock us. Before then we called ourselves people of the Way, because Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” The Greeks thought it was so funny that we didn’t believe in multiple gods. They said, “You only have one God, and you say you’re his servant, his slave? Then we’ll call you belonging to Christ. You’re Christians.” And Christians said, “You can insult us with that, but it’s actually a compliment. That’s what we’re supposed to be. We’re supposed to surrender to Christ. Call us Christians.” From Antioch onward, we called ourselves Christians. The question is, Christian, do you belong to Christ, or do you serve another master?

Christ’s death and resurrection mean we no longer have to be slaves. We can walk in victory instead of defeat. “Sin shall not have dominion over you, for ye are not under the law, but under grace.” That’s because of Jesus and his death on the cross. Jump back up to Romans 6:3:

Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection: Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin.
Romans 6:3–7

When Jesus died on the cross, our old lives were to be nailed to the cross with him. Christ died in our place so that our old, broken self could be nailed to that tree. When we die, our work contract with sin is broken. Jesus died so that we could break that enslavement contract and be liberated from the captivity of sin.

But just because Jesus died doesn’t mean it’s all said and done. We still have to accept his gift to enjoy the benefits he’s offering. In Mark 8, Jesus tells us we must put ourselves to death:

…Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel’s, the same shall save it. For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
Mark 8:34–36

If you want to truly follow Jesus, you’re going to have to take up your cross. Just as Jesus carried his own cross up that hill to die for us, we need to take a cross and be willing to surrender our flesh to die on it with him. “Whoever tries to protect his life is going to lose it.”

Many of us may think we are good enough to make it into heaven. “I’ve done a lot of good in my life. I was never really bad in school. I didn’t cheat. I didn’t bully other kids. I didn’t steal. I wasn’t involved in any huge scandals or immorality. I’m a pretty good person. I’ll make it there.” The Bible tells us that whoever is trying to save his own life by his own efforts is going to lose it. The truth is none of us is perfect, and all of us have sinned. One day each of us is going to stand before God and give an account, and God is going to say, “Are you guilty?” And you’ll say, “Well, I did this good thing. I gave to charity. I helped at the soup kitchen. I talked to those in need and gave advice and counseling to those who wanted it.” And God will ask, “What about your sins?” “What about my sins?” “In school you bullied someone. Do you know they went home and cried themselves to sleep? They had self-confidence issues for decades just because of that one thing you said. Did that ever get fixed?” “No, but I did other good stuff.” “What about the time you stole from the store, and you said, ‘They’re a big corporation. It doesn’t matter. I’ll just keep it’? That was a sin. Was it paid for?” “Well, no.” “What about that relationship you had in college? It’s for marriage. Did you ever ask for forgiveness?” “Well, no.” And Christ will say, “Then you’re guilty.” “God, I may have committed those, but I did good, too.” And he’ll say, “What would you have said on earth if somebody had accidentally run over a child in the street, stepped into my courtroom, and said, ‘But God, I didn’t mean to. It was an accident’? Would you be mad if I didn’t serve out justice for that child just because they said they did community service?” When we stand before God, revealed as we are, we will have no choice but to say, “I’m guilty.”

But the good news is that Christ gave us a way out of condemnation and into grace. Jesus died on that cross to pay for our payment. A sinless man had to make a sinless sacrifice, and Jesus himself, God in the flesh, came to make that sacrifice for us. But he says we need to put ourselves to death. Jesus has given us the gift of eternal life, but only to those willing to put to death their own ego and pride, not physically, and die to themselves, admitting that we need a savior.

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
2 Corinthians 5:17

Being resurrected to new life does more than allow us to survive. It transforms us. But being buried with Christ is only half the story. The same power that nailed our old self to the cross is now alive and working to raise us to new life.

Raised to Life: Risen With Christ

So we’ve looked at death and burial. Now let’s look at being risen with Christ. Hebrews 9 talks about how Jesus puts to death our shame and our guilt.

How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
Hebrews 9:14–15

“Purge your conscience from dead works” means all those good deeds you thought made you a good person, put them to death. Nail them to the cross. Your guilt from your sin, nail it to the cross. The old man is dead. And through his resurrection, God promises us an eternal inheritance that goes beyond death. Our guilt was buried when the blood was applied, and we no longer live under condemnation.

There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
Romans 8:1–2

Those who ask Christ for forgiveness and recognize his sacrifice are no longer condemned. When they stand before the judgment seat and God says, “Why should you get into heaven?” the answer is simple: “Because Jesus Christ paid for my sins, and I accepted that gift.” And God will say, “Enter, child, into the glory of the Lord.” At that moment of salvation we’re also no longer bound by the slavery to sin that controls our lives. We’re given the keys to free ourselves. “Made free from the law of sin and death.”

Jesus puts to death sin’s power over us. Romans 6 says:

Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. … For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
Romans 6:11, 14

Isn’t that an encouragement? All those things we struggled with, how sin controlled us time and time again: if we put our trust in Jesus, those struggles don’t have to be there anymore. We are assured that we can win those fights. And Christian, if you’re not winning those fights, it’s not because Christ hasn’t empowered you to. It’s because you don’t want to win. Christ has liberated us from sin’s power.

In fact, Jesus didn’t just put to death our guilt, our shame and sin’s power. He put to death death itself. This is what Jesus says in John 10:

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. … My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
John 10:10, 27–28

Peter also tells us about this in 1 Peter 1. With death defeated, we have a living hope:

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
1 Peter 1:3–5

Though we struggle in a sinful world, one day God will wipe away all tears from our eyes and give us a body free from the bondage and temptation of sin. Though we may die in this world, and some of us will be spared at the second coming, that death is not a final death. It’s a temporary death. In the moment we die, we will be in the presence of God in heaven with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We will sing with those angels, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty,” with joy and enthusiasm. But our story isn’t done, because God promises that one day he will come and bring a new heaven and a new earth. Though we die for a moment, eternal life will blossom in a new era, and no longer will we be enslaved by sin, struggling against the urges that drive us in the opposite direction from the one we want to go. Instead we’ll find peace, hope and joy in the new heaven and new earth. And we’re given comfort that we are kept by the power of God. The grace and power that originally saves us is the same power that will preserve us until we meet again in heaven.

Our Response: The Gospel Invitation

We’ve seen the death and burial, and we’ve seen the resurrection. Now let’s look at the gospel invitation. First Corinthians 15 gives us a short statement of the gospel from Paul, and this is what Paul was taught:

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:
1 Corinthians 15:3–4

These are the facts of the gospel that we must believe to accept the gift of salvation. We must believe that Christ died for our sins. Christ means Messiah, the anointed one of God, God in the flesh, who came to man as was prophesied in the Scriptures. We must believe that he was buried, which means he truly died on that cross. It wasn’t an analogy, a metaphor or a myth. Jesus Christ came to this earth, died, was nailed with real nails to a real tree, and paid the penalty for our sins. And we must believe that he rose again the third day, that God raised him up, fulfilling all prophecy about him and identifying him as truly the Messiah and the ultimate sacrifice for our sins.

But the gospel requires a response from us. The Bible tells us even the demons believe and tremble. Satan believes that Jesus is who he said he was. Does that mean Satan is going to heaven? No. You can believe that Jesus is the Messiah, that he died, that he rose again and that he paid for your sins, but unless you accept it, it doesn’t do you any good. Romans 10 tells us the response we should have:

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
Romans 10:9–10

Two responses are needed: confess with your mouth and believe in your heart. First, belief from the heart means we truly believe it. A person can say they believe in Jesus without believing it in their heart, and that does them no good. Some people go to church every Sunday and play the part of a Christian because they want to look good in their community. In America, Christians are a majority. Maybe someone comes every Sunday, or just Easter and Christmas, and says, “I’m a Christian. I believe it.” They’ve made the confession with the mouth, but they haven’t believed in their heart. If that’s you, it’s not enough. You must have twofold belief in Christ.

Second, it also says to confess with the mouth, which means to identify with Christ. A person can believe that what Christ said is true but not accept it, out of pride. Some people won’t accept salvation because they think it’s wrong for God to condemn them for their actions. They go through life saying, “I’m a good person. I don’t think anybody deserves to go to hell.” Maybe they even say, “I believe God is real, but I want nothing to do with him.” If that’s the heart of the person, salvation is not accepted. You must believe in your heart that it is true, and you must confess with your mouth your need for it. If we believe those things and do those two things, “thou shalt be saved.” Shalt is an old English word, but in modern English it would be “you will be,” not “might be,” “could be” or “should be.” You will be saved. It’s that simple. It’s all it takes.

After salvation comes responsibility.

If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.
Colossians 3:1–3

Some of us may have made it through salvation. We may have nailed the old man to the tree and be a new creation, but we haven’t set our sights on things above. We’ve been stuck here on earth, worried about the news, our jobs, this and that and the other, and we’ve lost sight of our heavenly purpose. What does it look like to seek the things above?

Study the Scriptures. Take time to read the Bible. Be familiar with what it teaches about justice, morality, patience, kindness, love and joy. Know what God says about those things.

Spend time in prayer. I don’t mean praying for God to give you a Lamborghini or make your raise at work go through. I mean talking to God about what he wants for you. Prayer is not a one-way street. It’s a conversation. Pray and wait for a response. God will speak to your soul and tell you what you need to do. I believe deep in our souls the Spirit will tell us, and sometimes we know in our hearts what we need to do even before we pray. We need to take time to listen. Don’t just pray asking for things every day.

Serve the Lord by volunteering where you can. There are opportunities to serve everywhere in life. Serving God is simple. He doesn’t ask for big, complicated things. Some people may be missionaries and take years to get to the mission field, and some may go to Bible college, but what God calls us to as Christians is so simple. The biggest impact can be made through some of the simplest actions. Show kindness to your coworker. Go mend a broken relationship. Give to the needs others have when you’re able. I think we can all do something. We make excuses about how hard and difficult it is, but if we’re honest with ourselves and look around, we know that’s not true. Every day we can do something that shows the love of Christ to those around us.

Closing

We’re here because of an empty grave, and that empty grave means more than Jesus being risen. It also means we can have a full life. Jesus said he came so that we can have abundant life: life free from slavery to sin, freedom to serve others in the joy of the Lord, and freedom to find grace every morning. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is not just a historical event to remember once a year. It’s a present power to live by. Because Jesus lives, we’re no longer bound by sin, no longer buried in our shame and no longer hopeless in the face of death. The same power that rolled away that stone now resides in every believer. We have been crucified with Christ, buried with him and raised to walk in newness of life.

So the question today is not just, do you believe in the resurrection, but has the resurrection changed you? If you’ve never truly believed in the risen Christ, today is the day of salvation. Confess with your mouth, believe in your heart, and receive the gift of eternal life. And if you’ve already trusted him, then live like it. Seek the things that are above. Set your affection on eternal things. Christ is risen, and because he lives, you can, too.

So what in your life today needs to stay buried with Christ? What habits do you have that need to be put to death? What attitudes need to stay in the grave? Believer, what is in your life that should not be there? And a similar question: what needs to rise with Christ in his resurrection? The good works, are they there, or do they need to be raised with Christ? The passion, love and patience, do they need to rise with Christ? And again, if you’ve never received that resurrection life, will you receive it today? Today is that day.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ should completely change how we live. So will you allow the reality of Christ’s resurrection to change you today?