So, what do a hole in Earth’s ozone layer and Jesus Christ’s resurrection have in common? Read on.

Now that Holy Week is over, what are we left with besides a lingering sugar high from all that candy?

One could look back and legitimately ask, “What was that all about?” And further, “what’s it got to do with me?”

Could we be missing the whole point? The Bible describes that Easter morning 2,000 years ago as the most stupendous transformation of God’s created order since time began. And that’s why the Devil has tried fanatically to obscure its true meaning ever since.

So, what’s the big deal?

Suppose one day you woke up, poured a cup of coffee, went outside to pick up your paper, and right in front of you was a shining golden stairway leading skyward that hadn’t been there before.

The stairway had a sign, “This way to Heaven” pointed upward. You rubbed your eyes, but it remained. This was no illusion.

This is essentially what the world experienced on Easter morning, only the stairway was invisible but no less real.

From the moment of Adam and Eve’s rebellion in the Garden of Eden until Christ’s resurrection, there was no way sinful man could directly connect with his holy God.

Humanity had become trapped under an invisible “ozone layer of sin,” surrounding the earth.

Scripture describes it this way in Romans 8:20-22:

“For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth together until now.”

Creation trapped under a global blanket of sin.

When Jesus emerged from the tomb alive, He had effectively punched a hole in the “ozone layer of sin” and formed a spiritual “stairway of life” connecting heaven and earth.

Thereafter, any person willing to believe in Christ and follow Him could spiritually climb aboard Christ’s own resurrection, escape the gravitational pull of Satanic opposition, and ascend to Heavenly glory unhindered.

That was what Jesus meant when He made the astounding declaration in John 14:6, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.”

The cost to God to provide that heavenly stairway was beyond imagining.  The sins of humanity were imputed (transferred) to Jesus and as a result, His Heavenly Father poured out His wrath upon His own Son, who was acting as our Substitute, killing Him.

All of this was a necessary beginning, a doorway, to the resurrection which followed.

You can’t have resurrection without a death first. In my March 28 column about Good Friday, we reviewed all that Jesus accomplished in His death on the cross (i.e. substitution, satisfaction, ransom, redemption, propitiation, etc.).

The above actions by Christ addressed mankind’s “sin problem.” This paved the way to addressing man’s “righteousness problem.”

If Christ had stopped at paying our debt of sin, we would still not be fit for Heaven with God. That brings us to the genius of Christ’s resurrection, as explained in Romans 4:24-25:

“… but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, to us who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, He who was delivered over because of our wrongdoings (cross), and was raised because of our justification (resurrection).”

Just as our sins were imputed to Christ on the cross — drawing God’s wrath — Christ’s righteousness (His perfection) is imputed to all believers who come to Him in faith, drawing God’s eternal blessings.

How About You?

In my book, My Origin, My Destiny, I wrote: “Jesus understood that he would have to personally endure a terrible journey through suffering, death and burial before he could open the path to resurrection, first for himself, and then for every person who would follow him to eternal life. And just like Jesus, we who embark on that path must go through a death of sorts, an identification with Christ’s death, even though it happened more than 2,000 years ago.

Romans 6:5-7 explains:

For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall also be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin.

Are you still relying on your own righteousness to make yourself fit for Heaven (works) in the face of all that Jesus has done FOR you?