In Accordance With The Scriptures

1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand,

2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you-unless you believed in vain.

3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures,

4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, - 1 Corinthians 15:1-4

You are being saved, by Christ alone.

In accordance with the scriptures, by Christ alone.

He was buried.

He was raised on the third day.

He conquered death.

He has risen!!!

Christ is God's Son sent to save sinful man.

The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! - John 1:29

1 Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? 

2 For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. 

3 He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. 

4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 

5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. 

6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned-every one-to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. 

7 He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. 

8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? 

9 And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. 

10 Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 

11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. 

12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.  - Isaiah 53

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed. - 1 Peter 2:24

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. - John 14:6

When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken. - John 2:22

Do you believe?

He is Risen!

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“He is not here: for He is risen.” Matthew 28:6 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

It is a disturbing truth that Jesus Christ literally came out of the grave. You just can’t be neutral about the resurrection. If you are a thinking person, you’re going to have to face the fact of the resurrection. 

Either it is true or it is not true. Either He came out of that grave or He did not. Now which side are you on? 

You can’t just ball it all up and say, “It doesn’t really make any difference. Let’s just put our arms around everybody. We all believe the same thing.” No, no, no! When you take a stand for truth, you’re going to have a head-on collision with the darkness that doesn’t want the light shining in! 

ACTION POINT:

Pray for those in fulltime ministry as they proclaim the truth to a lost world. Pray for God’s protection as they go to the frontline and battle for souls!

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Emptied Himself

5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,

6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,

7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.

8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name,

10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth,

11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:511

For Christ did not please himself, but as it is written, "The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me." - Romans 15:3

"I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me. - John 5:30

35 Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.

36 But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.

37 All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.

38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.

39 And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.

40 For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day." - John 6:35-40

In obedience to God the Father, Jesus offered himself as a living sacrifice to give man eternal life.

After His death on the cross, God raised Him from the dead!!!

Do you know what this gift means?

Do you believe in the power of the resurrection?

Without it there is no redemption!!!

Without repentance there is no forgiveness!!

He demands you bow before Him!!

He is King of Kings!!

He is Lord of Lords!!

You have forgiveness which only comes through His holy blood!!!

God demands an answer!!!

God is calling you!!

31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.

32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself." - John 12:31-32

He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. - 1 John 2:2

5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus,

6 who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time. - 1 Timothy 2:5-6

No Resurrection, No Savior

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain…. ye are yet in your sins.” 1 Corinthians 15: 14, 17 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

It’s an unthinkable question: what if there had been no Easter? Suppose Jesus had not risen from the dead? Our faith would be futile, death would have dominion, sin would be sovereign and the future would be fearful. His death without His resurrection cannot save anybody. Our faith is worthless if He is still in the grave. 

How do we know that Jesus Christ was not just a religious fanatic, someone with a martyr complex who happened to get crucified? How do we know He is the Son of God, God incarnate? Romans 1:4 says He is “shown to be the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead.” 

How do we know that God accepted the sacrifice of Calvary? By the resurrection. The Bible says He was delivered for our offenses and raised again for our justification. No resurrection, no Savior. No Savior, no forgiveness. But Jesus went into the tomb and three days later walked out like a butterfly bursting from a cocoon. He is a risen Savior. 

ACTION POINT:

Read 1 Corinthians chapter 15 and meditate on all it means for your salvation.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

The Lamb of God—Your Substitute

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows; yet we did esteem Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed.” Isaiah 53:4-6 

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

Jesus Christ did not die as a martyr. He was not a helpless victim. He said, “I lay down my life, No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself.” (John 10:17-18) The cross was not an accident or an afterthought; it was in the heart and mind of God before the world was framed. Jesus was born in the shadow of the cross. 

John the Baptist announced, “Behold the Lamb of God who taketh away the sins of the world.” The Lamb of God died on the same day as the Passover lambs were being slain on Mount Moriah, the very limestone ridge where long ago God had told Abraham, “God will provide Himself a lamb.” Jesus said, “Abraham saw My day, and was glad.” (John 8:56) 

To the priests on Mount Moriah, Jesus Christ could say, “Your work is over. Put away your knives. We need no more lambs, no more sacrifices. The Lamb has died and has paid in full.” 

ACTION POINT:

Meditate today upon that! Upon the price that was paid for your salvation. Read Matthew chapters 26 and 27. Thank Him for the price that was paid.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

Jesus Was Perfect

BIBLE MEDITATION:

“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?” Hebrews 9:14

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT:

What an amazing life the Lord Jesus lived. Do you realize that Jesus never corrected, withdrew, or amended any statement He ever made? I wish I could say that! Jesus Christ never apologized for anything He ever did or said. Jesus Christ never sought advice from anyone, never had to ask for forgiveness. 

Jesus Christ doesn’t have any strong points. For Him to have strong points, He would have to have weak points. Robert Clark has rightly given this assessment of his character: 

“There was meekness without weakness, tenderness without feebleness, firmness without coarseness, love without sentimentality, holiness without sanctimoniousness, lowliness without lowness, truth without error, enthusiasm without fanaticism, passion without prejudice, heavenly mindedness without forgetfulness, carefreeness without carelessness, service without servility, self exaltation without egotism, judgment without harshness, seriousness without somberness, mercy without softness.” 

What a person was the Lord Jesus Christ! 

ACTION POINT:

The greatest question that can be asked was the question Pontius Pilate asked the crowd when Jesus stood before him: "Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus, which is called Christ?" Now I'm going to ask that question of you. What will you do with Jesus? No greater question could be asked.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers

The Just for the Unjust

“For Christ also died for sins once for all, the Just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God …” - 1 Peter 3:18

A Roman soldier walked down a narrow corridor in a Roman prison. He held the torch up, and back in the shadows was a man. The guard with his key opened the door and said, “Barabbas, get up and come with me.” Barabbas began to plead, “No, wait, don’t take me! Have mercy!” The Roman soldier said, “You’re not going to die; there’s somebody else who’s going to die in your place. Come here. Look over on that hill. That’s the cross we made for you. But there’s someone else on it. He has taken your place.”

In what happened to Barabbas, God arranged a perfect picture of substitution — the just dying for the unjust that He might bring us to Himself.

Take time today to tell the Lord Jesus Christ how much you love Him and how grateful you are that He stepped out of glory and became obedient unto death—even the death of the Cross—for your sake and mine.

LWF Dr. Adrian Rogers