One For Israel

Dr. Erez Soref: Shalom everyone, I am excited to discuss together the meaning of the resurrection, from burial to life. I am also excited to be joined by my wife, Sisi, who is the director of the Eve Center Women’s Studies here at One For Israel. Shalom Sisi and welcome. Thank you so much for joining me today.

Many people around the world at this time commemorate and celebrate the resurrection of the Messiah. It's called Easter in the Western world. I think the key question that many times people miss is, what does the resurrection of the Messiah have to do with our lives today?

Sisi: Resurrection in Hebrew, *t'chiya*, has the word "life" in it. That is what the resurrection means to us. It means not only a new life but completely a new creation.

It says that anyone who is in Christ is a new creation; the old has passed, behold the new has come. It's a real challenge to understand what that means, and this is the perfect time to talk about it because resurrection means that something was dead and then it became alive.

Dr. Erez Soref: You mentioned something interesting: death. Death and resurrection. Who died and who was buried?

Sisi: We died and we were buried. When Paul speaks about the figures of death and burial, he's talking about it in Romans 6. He says that in some way we were united to Jesus in his death, in his burial, and in his resurrection.

From Adam, we inherited what he gave us: a sinful nature. That's why it says that we are sinners. Everything that we were in Adam had to die.

Jesus told Nicodemus that everything from the flesh is flesh and everything from the spirit is spirit. You must be born again; you must be born from above. Why do we bury people? Burial is an ending. It provides closure. It's an ending of who we are in Adam.

You're raised up to a completely new creation, and that's why the word is "creation out of nothing." It's a completely new creation. We have a new heart and new desires that enable us to live for God. That's what the resurrection is: a new creation, a new heart, and a new nature that wants to please God.

There's more. We have a new citizenship. In Ephesians, it says that we were resurrected and seated with him, in Christ, in the heavenlies. That citizenship is our major or the most important one that we can hold today because it means two things.

In Hebrews, it means rest. We entered his rest. In Ephesians, it talks about authority because we're seated above all principalities and powers. We are seated in him.

Dr. Erez Soref: That is truly amazing to think about. When we celebrate the resurrection, we also remember who we are in the Messiah, as you say. We are in his rest; we are in this place of authority.

Sisi: He finished everything and all we do is enter into everything he did.

Dr. Erez Soref: I think a lot of people listening to us may ask the question: I want that new life, I want that rest, I want that position of authority in my own life. What must happen so that we will enjoy this resurrection that we've just discussed?

Sisi: Nothing. We must do nothing. In Christ, he already blessed us. He already gave us everything. He already forgave us. Everything that was possible to do, he did.

I have nothing to add to what Jesus did. I don't have to earn God's blessings. All I have to do is believe and enter because he already gave it. It's there. I enter into his peace. I enter into his rest.

Dr. Erez Soref: Thank you so much, Sisi. Is there something special you would like to say to our viewers, maybe pray for them and encourage them?

Sisi: Some of you listening might be wanting that resurrection life, wanting to be able to have that rest. It's for you that Jesus actually said in Matthew, "Come to me all that labor and need rest, all that labor and are weary and burdensome, and you shall find rest for your souls."

He was talking to people that were so tired of doing the right things, trying the right things, trying to find ways to please God, trying not to do this thing, yes to do that thing, and always having that guilt upon them. There is that heavy guilt that we're never good enough.

For you, these are the words of Jesus: "Come to me. Come to me and find rest." The rest is by believing. Do you believe that he did everything that you do not have to do anything to receive that resurrection life but come to him and rest?

Dr. Erez Soref: Thank you so much, Sisi. We pray that you will experience the power of the resurrection life in your life this year, this week, this day.