What would have happened if Jesus never went to the cross? He didn’t have to go – in fact He had to fight a battle to go to the cross. He was under such great pressure that He sweat blood! He knew what awaited Him – the scourging, the crown of thorns, the humiliation and shame. The heaviest weight of all, however, was knowing that He needed to endure a separation from the Father.
If He chose not to go, then there have been no sin offering and no forgiveness. There would have been no good news. There would be no Christianity, church or salvation. We would all eventually die and spend eternity in hell.
What if Jesus went to the cross but didn’t rise again? If He never rose from the grave, then our faith and preaching would be empty and in vain. Our witness would also be lie.
However, Jesus did go to the cross and He did rise from the dead. Therefore, we too will be resurrected and restored. When the resurrection happens, our bodies will be transformed and glorified. We don’t get new bodies – the Lord will restore and glorify our existing bodies. He will make our bodies like His. We will still have flesh and bone – we won’t be purely spirits. After Jesus rose from the tomb, He didn’t appear all that differently than any other man. Jesus also sat and ate with His disciples – we’ll be eating and drinking. We’ll be close to one another and have relationships with one another, just as we do now.
Key Scriptures: 1 Corinthians 15:12-19, Hebrews 6, Philippians 3:20-21, 1 John 3:2, 1 Corinthians 15:49, Luke 24:13-18; 36-39, 1 Thessalonians 4:14, John 20:13-16, John 21:1-13
