Hello everyone, it's Good Friday today, but we are making our way quickly to Easter, my favorite holiday of the entire year. So why do we celebrate Easter to begin with? It's a great question that takes us back to the very roots of our confession and to the very basis of our faith.

The question arrived recently in the inbox. "Hello Pastor John, my name is William. I'm a 15 year old new believer of about 7 months. Your podcast has been a wonderful help for my journey of faith and I thank God for your online ministry. Truly the Lord has blessed me through the wisdom he has given you." My question is this, what is the importance of Jesus' resurrection?

Since Jesus died on the cross for all of our sins, why does it matter that he rose again? Is it essential for salvation to believe so? I've heard people deny that he physically resurrected, saying he only spiritually resurrected. What difference, Pastor John, would this make? It's a great question and there are great answers in the Bible.

This is not a hard question to deal with because the resurrection is the greatest event, along with the death of Jesus in the universe. It is greater than any galactic event that may embrace light years of distance and brightness, a million times greater than our sun. The resurrection of Christ is greater.

So before I give three reasons from the New Testament that the resurrection is essential to God's purposes in creation and salvation, let me just say clearly, affirming the bodily resurrection of Jesus is essential to being a Christian. Paul says in Romans 10:9, "If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you'll be saved." Now I know Acts 16:31, it says this, "Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved." But when he said that, "Believe on the Lord Jesus and you will be saved," he did not mean believe on a dead man.

When he said, "Believe on the Lord," he meant he's Lord. He's Lord. You can't read Paul's letters and think, "He was Lord and now he's in the grave." He said in 1 Corinthians 12:3, "No one can say Jesus is Lord, is Lord, except by the Holy Spirit. He is Lord." You can't be a Christian if you only believe in a dead human being who was Lord.

You can't. He is Lord, and Jesus is Lord, is the fundamental early church confession. So here are three reasons why the resurrection and consequently Easter is so important. It's important because of, one, the connection between Christ's resurrection and his death. Two, it's important because of the connection between Christ's resurrection and our resurrection.

And three, it's important because of the connection between Christ's resurrection and his present and future ministry. Let's take this one at a time briefly. The connection between Christ's resurrection and his death. Consider two key passages, Romans 4.25. Christ was delivered up to death on account of our trespasses and raised on account of our justification.

That means that the resurrection was God's sovereign act to emblazon the triumph of Christ's death across the universe. The death of Christ successfully completed the foundational work of our justification. Nobody would be saved without God's declaring us just and righteous before his throne of justice. And Romans 4.25 says that the death of Christ so completely and successfully secures this justification that God put his omnipotent stamp of approval on it by raising Jesus from the dead.

The bodily resurrection of Jesus vindicated the saving success of the bloody death of Jesus. And here's the other text, 1 Corinthians 15.14-18. If Christ has not been raised—and he's talking bodily resurrection here because you can see that in the rest of the chapter—if he's not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.

If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile. You are still in your sins. Now get that because Jesus died to remove the guilt of our sins, and Paul is saying if he's not raised, you're still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep have perished.

In other words, Paul's preaching of the cross—cross, death—is pointless if Christ was not raised from the dead. Futile, he says. And we know it means bodily resurrection because the rest of 1 Corinthians 15 makes that clear. That's the kind of resurrection he's talking about. You are still in your sins.

They are not forgiven. The blood of Jesus is powerless, useless, a failure. It aborted if Christ was not raised from the dead. Verse 20. In fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. So the resurrection is important because of its connection to the death of Christ. Number two, the resurrection is important because of its connection between Christ's resurrection and our resurrection.

First Corinthians 15.20. Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. That means the resurrection is viewed as a one great harvest, and Christ's resurrection is the first fruits, the first stage of the resurrection that guarantees our resurrection. Or Romans 6.5. If we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.

Our resurrection will be owing to our union with Christ who was raised. If he wasn't, we won't be. Or 2 Corinthians 4.14.He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus. So Christ's resurrection is important because ours depends on his. If he wasn't, we won't be. Finally, number three, the resurrection of Christ is important because of the connection between Christ's resurrection and his present and future ministry.

The death of Christ was the purchase of our salvation, not the application or consummation of it. The Bible describes much more to be done for our everlasting enjoyment of the glory of God and the fellowship of Jesus. His saving work goes on in his resurrection body as he intercedes for us and when he comes again in glory to establish his kingdom.

The goal of our eternal life is to enjoy and magnify the living Christ as he rules over his church and gives himself in service and fellowship to his bride. It is a salvation of living fellowship. If he weren't alive, we wouldn't have any salvation. There would be nothing to enjoy forever and ever that is supremely satisfying.

So no resurrection, no fellowship, no salvation, no joy. So consider these texts. Romans 6.9. We know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again. Death no longer has dominion over him. Romans 8.34. Who is to condemn us? Christ Jesus is the one who died. More than that, that's really important.

More than that, who was raised, indeed, who is at the right hand of God, who is interceding for us. Ephesians 1.20. God raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, above all names that are named.

He put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. That's his present ministry today as all-supplying guide and head for the church. Acts 17.31. God has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed.

So judgment is coming. Jesus is going to be the man who does the judgment. And of this, he has given assurance by raising him from the dead. And finally, Colossians 1.18. He is the beginning of the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. So the resurrection of Jesus is all-important because his death would be ineffective without it and because we would have no hope of resurrection without it and because the ministry of Jesus that he is performing right now and will perform forever for our everlasting joy would not exist without the resurrection.

Together with the death of Jesus, his resurrection is the all-important event in the history of the world. No overstatement there. Amen. Thank you, Pastor John. May we celebrate his death and resurrection this weekend in particular. And on behalf of Pastor John and the entire team at DesiringGod.org, we're praying that you would have a wonderful, incredible weekend reflecting on the implications of Jesus' cross and his resurrection.

Everything for us, everything for us hinges on these precious realities. Have a great celebration weekend. We'll see you back here on Monday. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.