For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied. But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.
A Prayer For Belief
Father, we read the accounts in Scripture about our Lord’s death and His resurrection three days later. He appeared bodily to many eyewitnesses in His divine, immortal body for forty days before He ascended to heaven. It was written long ago and in a culture foreign to us in our modern world. But Your Spirit quickens this essential truth to our hearts and it is imperative to our Christian belief that Jesus rose from the dead and is very much alive today. We accept it by faith and receive it into our hearts. And one day, like the disciples, we too will see our Savior face to face.