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Death is a fact of life that many people don't like to talk about.

The British novelist William Boyd wrote in his book Stars and Bars , "We all want to be happy, and we're all going to die....You might say these are the only two unchangeably true facts that apply to every human being on this planet. " Boyd was right;; we are all going to die. But two thousand years ago, the resurrection of Jesus Christ occurred, bringing hope to this rather gruesome fact of life.

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is among the most important of all biblical doctrines. The Apostle Paul strongly emphasized this when he wrote, "If Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless,and you are still under condemnation for your sins " (1 Corinthians 15:17 nlt ). But Christ did rise from the dead, conquering sin and death and giving us the hope of eternal life.

On April 11, a day we call "Easter," we celebrate this hope found in our Savior. It is also a day when many people, who normally never go to church, attend a church service. They come to church. A majority of these people have never been educated about the real meaning of Easter. This is the perfect opportunity for Christians to share the true message of Easter: the Resurrection! So let's make a commitment to share God's love by inviting an unsaved loved one to church this Easter Sunday. To help you in sharing God's love, here are three points of hope from the Resurrection.

First, the Resurrection assures us that anyone who believes in Christ will live beyond the grave (see 1 Corinthians 15:20–22). Because Christ conquered sin and death, we too can have the hope of eternal life. As the Apostle Paul said, "All who are related to Christ ...will be given new life " (1 Corinthians 15:22b nlt ).

Secondly, the Resurrection is evidence that God can overcome all obstacles. During Jesus' earthly ministry, He healed and even brought people back to life (see Mark 15:21–24,35–43; Luke 7:11–17; John 11:1–44). But nothing proved Jesus' lordship over illness and death like His own resurrection from the dead. Jesus rising from the dead proved that there is truly nothing too hard for God (see Jeremiah 32:17).

Lastly, the Resurrection gives us power to live the Christian life. The Apostle Paul wrote, "The Spirit of God,who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as he raised Christ from the dead, he will give life to your mortal body by this same Spirit living within you " (Romans 8:11 nlt ). So the Resurrection says God will not only give you life beyond the grave, but will empower you to live life on earth.

We at Harvest Ministries pray that this Easter will be a time for you to reflect on God's love and all that He went through for us. May it also be a time for you to share the Resurrection's message of life beyond death with the people in your life.

To further encourage you in your faith, here are three lines of evidence that attest to the truth of the Resurrection:

The Empty Tomb:
All four Gospel writers agree that Christ's tomb was empty (see Matthew 28:5–6; Mark 16:6; Luke 24:1–3; John 20:1–2). Some claim the body was stolen, but this argument only helps prove the resurrection of the Lord. Jesus' disciples would not have stolen the body, because they did not expect a resurrection (see Matthew 27:64). In addition, Jesus' tomb was heavily guarded, something the disciples would not have easily overcome (see Matthew 27:65).

The idea that Jesus' enemies stole His body is more unlikely. The religious leaders put Christ to death, because His teachings posed a threat to their way of life. The last thing they wanted was stories spreading about Jesus rising from the dead (see Matthew 27:62–66). If they had stolen the body, they undoubtedly would have produced it in order to disprove that fledgling group of believers who began winning people to Christ. But Jesus' enemies never produced His body, because they had no body to produce. The tomb was empty because Christ rose from the dead.
The Appearances of the Risen Lord:
Jesus Christ not only appeared to His disciples on a number of occasions, He also appeared to 500 people at one time (see 1 Corinthians 15:6). In addition, all four Gospels agree that the first people to receive the angelic announcement of the Resurrection were women. This would not have been the ideal detail to include if you were someone creating a story you wanted society to believe. Why? Because the testimony of women in Jesus' time was not accepted in Jewish legal situations (see Josephus, Antiquities 4.8.15 [219]). Therefore, if the disciples wanted to create a story to deceive society, choosing one based on the testimony of women would have convinced very few people. A truly fabricated story would have only included men.
The Martyrdom of the Apostles:
Consider this, every one of the apostles of Jesus (with the exception of John) went to an early grave because they could not and would not deny the resurrected Christ. If the lives of these men would have been spared, don't you think at least one of them would have suddenly exposed such a lie? Of course! But none of them could deny what was true.

He Has Risen! The empty tomb, the appearances of Christ, and the martyrdom of the apostles all help prove the reality and the power of the risen Christ. He has risen indeed!