“That a man would lay down his life and take it back again is the greatest miracle that has ever happened in history. The natural mind just cannot take it. As a result, it is also the most attacked because its consequences are far-reaching. It is life to many and death to some. The simple truth is that the resurrection of the Lord Jesus is a well-attested fact in history.”
This was contained in a sermon delivered by the Chairman of The Church of Pentecost, Apostle Eric Nyamekye, on the evening of Resurrection Sunday [April 4, 2021] as part of his weekly televised service on PENT TV dubbed ‘Sunday Special Evening Service With The Chairman’
Speaking on the topic: “The Legacy of Jesus’ Resurrection,” Apostle Nyamekye explained that the death and resurrection of Jesus divide history into two parts – it ends an era and begins another.
The Chairman observed that during the Easter celebration, little or no attention is given to the Saturday as compared to the other days, “The day between Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday is the toughest in history. It was the difficult day between the battle of heaven and hell.” He added: “The Saturday was the real battle.”
Explaining why, the revered theologian read Matthew 27:62-66 and Acts 2:23-24 to emphasize that the chief priests, the Pharisees and the forces of hell determined to keep Jesus in the grave and prevent Him from rising from the dead.
However, he said, God exerted incomparably great power to raise Jesus from the dead (Ephesians 1:18-28).
“So, Paul is trying to give us the impression that the raising of Christ from the dead was a really tough thing to the extent that God had to exert power. God who stood in the darkness and called light out, when He had to raise Christ exerted power because forces of hell did not want Him to rise,” he said, adding, “But God raise Christ from the dead and seated Him at His right hand.”
Reading from Matthew 28:11-15, Apostle Nyamekye pointed out that there are so many conspiracy theories disputing the resurrection of Christ.
He mentioned some of them as “Jesus never really died, instead, He lost consciousness and regained it after being laid in a cool tomb (swoon theory); the disciples of Jesus stole His body and then lied about His resurrection; the disciples had hallucinations and dreams that they mistakenly confused with physical a resurrection; resurrection is the personal experience in the heart by faith but not an event in history and that the resurrection has already taken place already (2 Timothy 2:16-18).”
Amid all these conspiracies and myths, the Chairman was emphatic that Jesus is the resurrected Saviour.
“Christ has indeed risen from the dead. He is the first fruit of all those who have fallen asleep. The simple truth is that the resurrection of the Lord Jesus is a well-attested fact of history,” he said.
He added: “Scripture depicts the personal and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Ghost. It is supported by evidence of the empty tomb, His grave clothes, He presented Himself severally to the disciples on many occasions, and the women’s testimony and the likes.”
Substantiating the resurrection of Jesus Christ beyond any reasonable doubt, Apostle Eric Nyamekye read Luke 24:44-49 and Acts 1:8 to expatiate on what Jesus Himself said would be the real proof or legacy of His resurrection.
According to the Chairman, the real proof or legacy of the resurrection came after the resurrection. These, he said, include the preaching in the name of Jesus for the repentance and forgiveness of sins, the disciples’ primary role as witnesses to the fulfilment of scripture in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
Touching on the outpouring of the Holy Spirit as timeless proof of Jesus’ resurrection, Chairman Nyamekye stated: “But for the coming of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost, the story of the resurrection would have been like any other story.”
He further noted that “the rumours would have died down and the conspiracies would have prevailed. But when the day of Pentecost came, the story turned around, God trumpeted the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”
Buttressing his assertion, Apostle Eric Nyamekye quoted Acts 2 and explained that the coming of the Holy Spirit stresses the fact that Jesus Christ indeed resurrected.
“For as long as the Holy Spirit remains on earth, we will remember that Jesus came to die and He rose from the dead, and He gave us the Spirit when He went to be with the Father.
“Anytime people hear us speaking in tongues, what that means is that some time ago, a certain man called Jesus came on this planet earth; He died, He was buried, and on the third day, He rose again and ascended to heaven, and from there, He gave us this gift,” he reiterated.
Report by Emmanuel Nana Nsiah