{"id":62451,"date":"2024-03-02T01:31:03","date_gmt":"2024-03-02T06:31:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/bibleandculture\/?p=62451"},"modified":"2024-02-18T15:47:20","modified_gmt":"2024-02-18T20:47:20","slug":"c-k-barrett-on-the-victory-of-easter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/bibleandculture\/2024\/03\/02\/c-k-barrett-on-the-victory-of-easter\/","title":{"rendered":"C.K. Barrett on The Victory of Easter"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

A sermon given at Bowburn 1984<\/p>\n

A great event.\u00a0 No doubt we all know what we mean. But is it rightly stated?\u00a0 Let me be clear. Many timely and important have been and will be said. I do not question still less contradict them, but a series of puzzles such as this mus provoke questions.\u00a0 And this I am doing. Not on my own account, I start from two texts.<\/p>\n

Col. 2.14f.\u2013 the charge which stood against us with its legal demands this he set aside, nailing it to the cross.\u00a0 He disarmed the principalities and powers and made a public show of them, triumphing over them in the cross.\u00a0 \u00a0Here the victory is in the cross; nothing about Easter.<\/p>\n

1 Cor. 15.25f. He must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is death.\u00a0 So, final victory, is not yet won, though there have been successes on the way.\u00a0 Again Easter is not mentioned.<\/p>\n

Let me repeat, lest you forget, I am not<\/em> <\/strong>saying Easter doesn\u2019t matter let us forget it.\u00a0 I find myself provoked to think and I pose this so let us take this further.\u00a0 The victory of the End (like the winning of the English cup finals) we can understand. It is however not easy to describe. But the NT gives us wonderful hints, necessarily<\/em> in pictures.<\/p>\n

Rev. 7.15-17\u2013 God will wipe away all tears from their eyes. (21.3,4,22-27).\u00a0 Rebellion against God is at an end; nothing contradicts his holy and loving will, not even death.\u00a0 \u00a0Of course all this is full of problems for the philosopher\u2013 life without time? \u2018Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard\u2019 but note how Paul continues in 1 Cor. 2.10\u2014 \u2018these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit\u2019.\u00a0 \u00a0So we can imaginatively understand the final victory, but it has not happened yet.<\/p>\n

The victory of the cross is even easier to understand. Here is the record of the man who won all the battles I have.<\/p>\n

Against selfishness, against fear, against bitterness, against cowardice.\u00a0 And all this\u00a0has already happened.\u00a0<\/em> It is part of history, whatever the TV pundits may say!\u00a0 BUT, it has not happened to me. Hence the definition mentioned above\u2013 he won the battles I have.<\/p>\n

After all this, where does the victory of Easter come in?\u00a0 We can now say something positive.\u00a0 1) It is part of the story of Jesus (but I shall not linger over\u00a0 this). I do not know how to explain it, except that something \u2018out of this world\u2019 happened is as plain as Waterloo and for the same reason\u2014 results!\u00a0 \u00a0As plain as the splitting of the atom\u2013 again because of the results.\u00a0 \u00a02) For us.<\/em>\u00a0 Easter means \u2018distributing the victory of the cross\u2019; that life as HE lived it begins to be possible for us. 3)\u00a0For us.\u00a0<\/em>Easter means the anticipation of the victory of the End. The life of the age to come can be lived now. In practical terms, these two amount to the same\u00a0 thing\u2014 the thing we always know the victory of Easter meant, though we have , I hope, approached it plausibly.\u00a0 \u00a0Paul puts it as \u2018dying and rising with Christ\u2019, reminding us that Good Friday are not just an ancient tale.<\/p>\n

Consider Col. 3.5-17 about crucifixion and resurrection\u2014-<\/p>\n

5\u00a0<\/sup>Put to death,\u00a0therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:\u00a0sexual immorality,\u00a0impurity, lust, evil desires and greed,\u00a0which is idolatry.<\/span>\u00a06\u00a0<\/sup>Because of these, the wrath of God\u00a0is coming.[a<\/a>]<\/sup><\/span>\u00a07\u00a0<\/sup>You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.<\/span>\u00a08\u00a0<\/sup>But now you must also rid yourselves\u00a0of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander,\u00a0and filthy language from your lips.<\/span>\u00a09\u00a0<\/sup>Do not lie to each other,\u00a0since you have taken off your old self\u00a0with its practices<\/span>\u00a010\u00a0<\/sup>and have put on the new self,\u00a0which is being renewed\u00a0in knowledge in the image of its Creator.<\/span>\u00a011\u00a0<\/sup>Here there is no Gentile or Jew,\u00a0circumcised or uncircumcised,\u00a0barbarian, Scythian, slave or free,\u00a0but Christ is all,\u00a0and is in all.<\/span><\/p>\n

12\u00a0<\/sup>Therefore, as God\u2019s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves\u00a0with compassion, kindness, humility,\u00a0gentleness and patience.<\/span>\u00a013\u00a0<\/sup>Bear with each other\u00a0and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.<\/span>\u00a014\u00a0<\/sup>And over all these virtues put on love,\u00a0which binds them all together in perfect unity.<\/span><\/p>\n

15\u00a0<\/sup>Let the peace of Christ\u00a0rule in your hearts, since as members of one body\u00a0you were called to peace.\u00a0And be thankful.<\/span>\u00a016\u00a0<\/sup>Let the message of Christ\u00a0dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom\u00a0through psalms,\u00a0hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts.<\/span>\u00a017\u00a0<\/sup>And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Amen<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A sermon given at Bowburn 1984 A great event.\u00a0 No doubt we all know what we mean. But is it rightly stated?\u00a0 Let me be clear. Many timely and important have been and will be said. I do not question still less contradict them, but a series of puzzles such as this mus provoke questions.\u00a0 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":91,"featured_media":5861,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[14244,14241],"class_list":["post-62451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-and-resurrection","tag-the-victories-in-the-cross"],"yoast_head":"\nC.K. Barrett on The Victory of Easter<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A sermon given at Bowburn 1984 A great event.\u00a0 No doubt we all know what we mean. But is it rightly stated?\u00a0 Let me be clear. 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