The Benchmark Of Our Faith

And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.

1 Corinthians 15:14

The Christian apologist and author C. S. Lewis made an interesting observation about Jesus’ practice of saying to people, “I forgive you.” It is natural for us to forgive people for things they have done to us. But what would you say if someone cheated you out of ten dollars and I said, “That’s all right; I forgive him”?

When a person goes around forgiving people who haven’t done anything to harm that person, something seems amiss. The Pharisees caught the problem immediately when they once said to Jesus, “Hold on there—who are you to say, ‘I forgive you’? No one but God can forgive sins” (Mark 2:7, paraphrased). Exactly. So Jesus was saying He was God.

Now, anyone could make that claim, and many have. What’s needed is something to back up those claims. Jesus did many such things, all of which led up to the greatest proof of all: His resurrection from the dead. There are some things only God can do—like forgiving sin and conquering death. And Jesus did them all. The Resurrection is the ultimate, historical benchmark for your faith. Jesus is God—the Resurrection proves it.

Your faith can remain full because Jesus’ grave remains empty.