Resurrection Lessons
Do you realize We ALL have to experience a death and resurrection of our own life through the power of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Maybe you have "said THAT prayer." Maybe you attended an Easter service a few weekends ago as Christian churches all across America celebrated the resurrection of Jesus Christ! This is our favorite holiday. Our favorite celebration. This is more special than Christmas! This celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ is every single thing the Christian walk is all about. One of the main things that sets Christianity apart from all other religions - we don't serve a dead God! No other religion claims to have a resurrected God. Our Lord is Risen! He conquered sin and death for us!
For we know know that since Christ was raised from the dead, He cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over him. Romans 6:9
When you say THAT prayer - that sinners prayer, that prayer of salvation, you are saved!
Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Romans 10:13
So, what is this resurrection experience I am talking about? Jesus died, Jesus rose. I don't have to do anything other than say that prayer, the Bible tells me so. Yes, while this is true, I would ask you to consider a few more things. Jesus tells us in John 10:10 that He came to give us an abundant life. According to dictionary.com, abundant means:
1. present in great quantity; more than adequate; oversufficient 2. well supplied; abounding 3. richly supplied
Consider the synonyms for abundant - abounding, ample, bountiful, brimming, copious, exuberant, fertile, fruitful, galore, generous, lavish, lush. Of these synonyms, my favorite is exuberant. Let's take a look at the meaning of exuberant so that I can get us where we are going here...
1. effusively and almost uninhibitedly enthusiastic; lavishly abundant 2. abounding in vitality; extremely joyful and vigorous 3. extremely good; overflowing 4. profuse in growth or production; luxuriant; superabundant
Let's laser focus on that word, and more importantly on the meaning of that word. Remember this word, exuberant, is a synonym of abundant. Remember, Jesus came to give us an abundant life. He said so Himself in John 10:10. The Amplified Bible says, "...I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows)." For you Old Schoolers - the King James reads, "..."I came that they may have life, and that they might have it more abundantly." More abundantly than what? More abundantly than anyone has life without Christ! That is the what! But, back to the laser focus of exuberant, forgive my ADHD - it is difficult to have laser focus even when I am the one writing. If we take what Jesus said to us literally, that He came to give us life more abundantly, then that means he came to give us a life of exuberance! I challenge anyone reading this to find a negative connotation to the word exuberant! You can't! There is nothing negative about the word exuberant.
Living an exuberant life means to live an extremely good life overflowing in effusive and almost uninhibited enthusiasm, abounding in vitality, extremely joyful and vigorous and lavishly abundant, superabundant, luxuriant, profuse in growth and production! Does this describe your life? If it does not, then something is wrong. You said THAT prayer. Did you mean it? Okay, yes, you meant it. So, what is the problem? Why is your life no different than it was? Why is your life no different than those who haven't said THAT prayer? May I suggest that it might just be because you haven't died yet? Died? Does that mean we don't get this abundant life until heaven? No!! It means maybe you haven't died to some things here on earth yet. AND, if you haven't died to those things then you haven't had a resurrection experience.
What do you need to die to? Well, we all need to "die to ourselves." But that sounds like one of those church phrases you have no idea of what it is talking about. You figure you must have had to grow up in church to get that one. Well, it isn't that difficult. Let's take it down a bit and see if we can throw out some ideas that grab your attention, better yet, let's see if we can throw out some ideas that grab your conviction! What do you really need to die to?
Your career?
Your addictions? 
Sex outside of marriage?
Your dreams? Your foul language?
Your friends who continue to pullyou away from your relationship
with your Lord and Savior?
hobbies? Your pride? 
Yes! You need to die to anything on the above list that might be a part of your profile. Anything that is hindering you from living this abundant life Jesus told you He came to give you. The beginning of that verse, John 10:10, Jesus tells us our enemy, that Devil of old, comes only as a thief to steal and kill and destroy. The enemy is using all of the things on that list as well as many other temptations to do just that in your life. He is out to steal your abundant life! He is out to kill your exuberance, your overflowing life of joy! He is out to destroy your witness! If you said THAT prayer, he can't take your soul, he no longer has claim to it and there is no access for him to get to it, BUT he wants to keep you from taking anyone to heaven with you. Your job is to take as many people as are placed in your path to heaven with you! The war is on!
Jesus didn't come to give us an abundant life so we could just live one big party on earth. And, by the way, there is nowhere in scripture claiming that Jesus came so we could be happy all the time! Happiness and joy are two different things. Living a "happy-go-lucky" life is not the same as living an abundant life. Jesus came to give us this abundant life because He knew it was the most effective tool we could place in our ministry bags! He knows that if we walk out our relationship with Him in total abundant living then the people placed in our paths will want to know who this Jesus is. What is it that makes us so joyful all the time. What is it that makes us so exuberant, so vigorous, so enthusiastic? Our goal is to create a desire in others to want what we have.
If we are living out our relationship with Jesus Christ in constant negativity - grumbling, complaining, fear, anxiety, aimlessness, envy, strife, anger, bitterness then what kind of witness is that? Who wants that? You don't have to say any special prayer to live like that . What good is this Jesus and His abundant life offering if that is the end result? I can live like that all on my own, thank you very much.
If we are living out our relationship with Jesus Christ in a morose, sullen, down-trodden, gloomy manner then again, who does that attract? Where is the joy in that? Where is the abundant living?
If we are allowing the enemy to steal our abundant life then we are producing fruit that is rotten to the core, 
So, you said THAT prayer and you certainly aren't producing some of those hellish fruits mentioned, but you are producing a few - anger, jealousy, dissensions, then still a death needs to happen in your life.
You still need to
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While the death is painful, the thought of it, the anticipation of it frightening and anxiety filling, the next step is the most beautiful thing you will ever experience!
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The Resurrection!
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 6:23 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. Romans 6:4
Sources cited:
"abundant." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Random House, Inc. 12 Apr. 2009.
"exuberant." The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary. Houghton Mifflin Company. 12 Apr. 2009.
posted by Rona Davis at
4/19/2009 01:47:00 AM
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