World affairs are usually dominated by powerful people. Between them, they have different kinds of power. Some have political power, others economic power, still others military power. Some have two of these powers; a few have all three. What we know of world affairs is often decided by those who have influential power. And sometimes—maybe often—we question the motives and goodness of those who exercise these powers.
Science is powerful and can be used for good or ill. Medical science is amazing. And because medicine has made such advances, I am reluctant to predict that something seemingly impossible today will never be achieved. However, one thing that is impossible now is to take the corpse of someone who has died a violent, traumatic death a couple of days previously, and bring that person back to life.
No scientific power can do this; no political, economic, military or influential power can do this. To do this would require a power of life over death that is beyond our earthly, human powers.
The claim of the Bible and the Christian church is that God does have this kind of power. The New Testament tells us that Jesus was crucified. Sadly, many people were crucified by the Romans. After being nailed to a cross for several hours, you died. And in Jesus’ case, they made sure by sticking a spear into his side. It is not hard to believe that a Jewish man might have been killed by the Romans in that way nor that his friends might have wanted to give him a decent burial by placing his body in a tomb.
But then comes the part that is outside our normal experience and would require a power beyond any that we or anyone possesses. God raised Jesus from the dead. On the third—the day we celebrate as Easter Day—the tomb was empty. It was quite literally extra-ordinary.
Is it incredible, though? Well, if you are convinced that there is no such thing as a creator God who gives us life, it probably does seem beyond your credibility. But if there were a God who had invented this world and given life to all living things, would it not be reasonable to think that he had this sort of power as well?
God invites us to trust him so that when the time of our death comes, he can to exert that same power to raise us to new life too. In the midst of all the human powers wrestling one another in our world, I am so grateful that there is a good and faithful God who has an even greater power.