By Mark Grace, CCCNZ Ambassador
Mehemea hoki kahore a te Karaiti i ara, maumau noa ta matou kauwhau, maumau noa to koutou whakapono.
ma ‘āfai fo‘i ‘ua lē toe fa‘atūina mai Keriso, po ‘ua lē aogā la matou tala‘i atu, po ‘ua leai fo‘i se aogā o lo ‘outou fa‘atuatua.
And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.
1 Corinthians 15:14Where I grew up, I’d often see cars in driveways on blocks without wheels, with the hood up and no engine, powerless and going nowhere.
That’s the image of our faith if Christ isn’t raised. Our faith is powerless and pointless and we are to be pitied—if Christ isn’t raised.
Paul’s argument here hinges on the inseparable connection between the resurrection of Jesus and our faith and ministry. It’s the resurrection of Jesus that proves his power and gives us assurance that our sins have been paid for (1 Cor 15:17).
The power source, the content of our message, the fibre of our faith is the death and resurrection of Jesus, proclaimed by the Bible. We are to speak about and live out of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Over 30 years of ministry I’ve appreciated a wide range of methods and models, programmes and products, strategies and structures. But the longer I love Jesus, the more I see the power and significance of ordinary Christians in ordinary churches, pointing each other to Jesus, through the gospel from the Bible in committed community.
Reading the Bible one-to-one and practicing hospitality and mercy amongst each other. Saying “no” to a lot of what is being offered by society in order to have the time to live and model what the death and resurrection of Jesus looks like together. Loving one another through thick and thin, forgiving each other when we don’t deserve it. Doing these simple things puts the message of the resurrection of Jesus Christ on display like no other programme or product.
Living life like this makes no sense if Christ hasn't been raised from the dead. These acts are worthless in the world's eyes.
“But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead,” and because of that we have life and an eternal hope. Our simple acts of faithfulness have enormous value. Jesus’ resurrection is the power source of our ministry.
(Based on a devotion shared in July 2021)
