Page 2 - Contact Spring 2021

Christus Victor
We have reached the sad anniversary of one
year experiencing the corona virus pandemic
with a worldwide total of almost 2.3 million
deaths at the time of writing. Over the past
year we have been brought up close to death in
daily news bulletins more so than at any time
since the world wars. For a society which treats
death almost as taboo for polite conversation,
it has been a sobering time.
It is perhaps appropriate then as we approach
the Christian celebration of Easter to
recognise the wonderful hope that we have in
Jesus Christ who is victorious even over death.
Easter reminds us that we have a great hope to
proclaim; death is not the end, but the doorway
into an eternity that awaits us.
The devil does as much as he can to delude
people into believing that this life is all there is
and we should just invest in what we can see
and touch and totally ignore what we cannot.
This is a dangerous lie which more and more
people are swallowing. The Apostle Paul was
a believer in what he called the principalities
and powers of the world – these are demonic
powers which fuel the world’s philosophies and
which wage war against God and right thinking.
But at the cross of Calvary God “disarmed the
powers and authorities…triumphing over
them by the cross” (Colossians 2:15).
In the midst of doom and gloom we will again
sing and preach about a risen saviour, He is the
victorious Jesus who has overcome sin, death
and the devil. At times such as these we are
tempted to lose sight of the victorious Christ
who has defeated the enemies of darkness and
who has drawn the sting of death. At the cross
we see the death of death and resurrection
Sunday proved that Jesus was the real thing,
He was no false messiah.
As John Stott notes, the cross and
the resurrection always go together –
“we are not to regard the cross as defeat
and the resurrection as victory. Rather the
cross was victory won, and the resurrection
the victory endorsed, proclaimed and
demonstrated. It was impossible for death
to keep its hold on him, because death
had already been defeated.”
This Easter, with gloomy statistics coming at us
every day, and especially at such a time as this,
we will celebrate the victorious Christ, the King
of kings in whom we have the victory over sin
and death. In that lovely modern worship song
(What a Beautiful Name) we recognise:
You have no rival, You have no equal
Now and forever,
God you reign
Yours is the Kingdom, Yours is the glory
Yours is the Name, above all names
What a powerful Name it is
What a powerful Name it is
The Name of Jesus Christ my King.
As we reflect on what a difficult and sad year it
has been for many people we go forward with
hope in the only One who has the answer to
death. Jesus proclaimed on the day He raised
Lazarus “I am the resurrection and the life.
He who believes in me will live even though
he dies, and whoever lives and believes in
me will never die.”
This year has forced us to reconsider our
priorities in life and to recognise that our
confidence in death is in Christ our victor and
that we “are more than conquerors through
him who loved us and nothing will be able
to separate us from the love of God in Christ
Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:37,39).
May you know His presence and
assurance as we approach
this Easter.
Norman