(5) The Meaning of Salvation Through the Death and Resurrection of the Cross

 

(5) The Meaning of Salvation Through the Death and Resurrection of the Cross

God has presented the path of salvation to those who repent. That path is the death and resurrection of the cross. God does not forgive the sins of those who wish to become like Him. The sin of sons rebelling against the Father is precisely this kind of sin. However, the way God forgives sin is by taking on the form of sin Himself and dying miserably to it like a sacrificial lamb. It means to believe that sinners, too, have died in this way. This is the union of faith.

In Romans 6:3-7, God acknowledges that those who possess faith united with the death of Jesus on the cross have also died to sin on the cross, and that those united with the resurrected Christ are also resurrected. Therefore, the Bible (Ephesians 2:5-6) reveals that they are those who have spiritually returned to the Kingdom of God.

It means that although the physical body is in the world, one is spiritually in the Kingdom of God. This Kingdom of God is expressed as Heaven within the hearts of the saints. 1 Corinthians 15:12, “It has been preached that Christ has risen (ekegertai) from the dead (nekron νεκρῶν). Why, then, do some of you say that there is no resurrection (anastasis) of the dead?”

Ekegertai means the spirit coming to life from among the dead. And anastasis means the spirit putting on a spiritual body. It is saying that resurrection is exactly this.

Egegertai (ἐγήγερται) does not mean "to come back to life," but rather "to rise" (arize). Anastasis (ἀνάστασις) means "to be established from above (heaven)." The resurrection of Jesus signifies that He rose from those who were spiritually dead. Being spiritually dead means that one's relationship with God has been severed.

This means that Jesus Christ rose from spiritual death to restore the relationship with God. Therefore, those who have entered into Christ are resurrected together, and their relationship with God is restored.

In 1 Peter 3:18, it says, "For Christ also suffered once for sins, the just for the unjust, to bring us to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit."

Anastasis means being established from above. In other words, through the resurrection of Jesus, God intends to establish those who have entered into Christ as heirs of the Kingdom of God. This is being born again. Being born again is resurrection. Paul asks, "Why do you say that there is no resurrection?" He is pointing out that the believers in the Corinthian church were thinking of resurrection solely as a physical resurrection.

1 Corinthians 15:13-14 states, "If there is no resurrection (anastasis) of the dead, then Christ has not risen either. If Christ has not risen (egegertai), then our preaching is in vain, and your faith is in vain."

Here, too, the terms anastasis (ἀνάστασις) and egegertai (ἐγήγερται) are used. Egegertai does not mean "to come back to life," but rather "to rise spiritually" (arize). In other words, it signifies the restoration of the relationship with God, whereas anastasis means "to be established from above (heaven)," which refers to becoming an heir to the Kingdom of God.

This might lead to the misunderstanding that resurrection is merely a spiritual matter. Resurrection means that the body comes back to life outwardly, but this body is not one received from parents, but one received from God.

Paul speaks of resurrection for the restoration of the spiritual relationship with God. He states that God raised Christ to life in a spiritual body for the purpose of restoring the relationship with Him.

Romans 8:10 says, "And if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is alive because of righteousness." This implies that if Christ had not been spiritually resurrected first and the relationship with God not restored, faith would be in vain, and no one would be saved.

Without resurrection, the phrase "in Christ" would also be meaningless. Resurrection means becoming a life of walking with Jesus. A life that does not walk with Jesus is described as a worldly life. Ultimately, the life of resurrection (being born again of water and the Spirit) refers to the presence of the Ho Logos within the heart of the believer; it means that the believer, too, dies of the physical body and is born again in a spiritual body, entering into the Ho Logos to converse with and walk with Him. Therefore, the resurrection of the saints becomes a present resurrection. Jesus Christ was the first among those who had fallen asleep to be spiritually resurrected, thereby restoring the relationship with God.

1 Corinthians 15:21-22: "For since death came through one man (the first man, Adam), the resurrection of the dead also comes through one man (the last Adam). For as in Adam all died, so in Christ all will be made alive (Zopoiedesontai)."

Adam symbolizes those who are spiritually severed from God. Christ signifies those whose spiritual relationship with God has been restored. This means that all people in this world have inherited death (flesh) from Adam. However, those who are in Christ have inherited life (a spiritual body) from Christ.

Zopoiedesontai means "will be made alive." In "Zopoiedesontai" (to make), the root "zo" of Zopo signifies spiritual life. Christ is the firstfruits, and those who are in Christ are the next fruit-bearers. The fruit is those who possess resurrection life.

The core of the Gospel is the death of Jesus Christ on the cross and His resurrection on the third day. The death on the cross is to free us from sin and transgression, and the resurrection is to give new life. Ephesians 2:5-6 states, "He made us alive together with Christ, even though we were dead in our transgressions (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together and seated us together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus."

Receiving resurrection life means being seated in heaven (eph-uranois) in Christ. The word "heaven" uses the same term as "kingdom of heaven" (uranon) spoken of in the Gospel of Matthew. Matthew 3:2 says, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The kingdom of heaven mentioned here refers to Jesus Christ. It means that Jesus Christ is the kingdom of heaven and is heaven itself.

One can enter the Kingdom of God only through Jesus Christ. This is because Jesus holds the key to the Kingdom of God. It means that those who are dead in sin and transgression cannot enter the Kingdom of God. Only those who possess resurrection life can enter, and they receive resurrection life when the power of the Holy Spirit comes upon them. God pours out resurrection life upon repentant sinners through Jesus Christ, bringing to life those who are dead in sin and transgression.

Those under the power of Satan, the ruler of the world, have no resurrection life and cannot be seated in heaven. Only those who believe that they have died with Jesus Christ and resurrected with Him are seated in heaven.