Romans 5:6-11

⁶ Because while we were still helpless, at just the right time Christ died on behalf of the ungodly. ⁷ (Because rarely will anyone die even on behalf of a righteous person, though someone might possibly dare to die for a good person, perhaps.) ⁸ But God proves his own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ⁹ So he did so much more, because we have now been declared righteous by his blood, we will be saved by him from God’s wrath. ¹⁰ For if while we were his enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, how much more, since we have been reconciled, will we be saved by his life? ¹¹ Not only this, but we also delight in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received this reconciliation.

resurrection reconciliation

Paul draws a beautiful distinction here between what Christ accomplished and what Christ demonstrated. His death on the cross secured our reconciliation—he bore our sin, absorbed our judgment, and removed the barrier that stood between us and God. But it is his resurrection that reveals that reconciliation to the world. The empty tomb is God’s public declaration that the sacrifice worked, that sin’s penalty has been paid, and that death’s dominion has been broken.

Christ did for us what we could never do in our sinful state. We could not reconcile ourselves. We could not cleanse ourselves. We could not raise ourselves. But now, because he is raised, he gives us hope that we too will share in a resurrection unto eternal, sinless life. His resurrection is not merely proof of his victory—it is the preview of ours.

So when we feel helpless in our brokenness, when sin feels like a weight we cannot lift, we look to the cross. And what we see is not a crucified Savior still hanging there, but an empty cross—the work finished. And we look to the tomb, and we see an empty tomb—the victory secured. It was necessary that Christ die, but it was not necessary that he remain dead. His rising is the unveiling of God’s eternal plan for all who trust in him.

The empty cross tells us our sins are forgiven.
The empty tomb tells us our future is secure.

Thank you, Lord, for the empty cross and the empty tomb.