The Lutheran Pioneer St. Louis — 1902, Page 13

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Che Autheran Pioneer.

A MISSIONARY MONTHLY.

Pususuep BY THE Evancriicat Luraeran SynopicaAL ConFErence or Norra AMERICA
R. A. BISCHOFF, Editor.

Entered at the Post Oftice at St. Louis, Mo., as second-class matter,

Vol. XXIV. No. 4.

are rent, the gates of hell are overpowered.
The keepers have fled; the stone is rolled
away, the seal is broken; Christ has gone
forth from the grave, Victor and Conqueror
over all His foes. But by His resurrection
Christ ‘‘is declared to be the Son of God with
power.” By His resurrection Christ has proved
Himself to be the Resurrection and the Life.
Had Christ remained in the grave, our faith in
Him would be vain, for then it would be plain
that He could not be the promised Saviour,
yea, then His own words would prove Him to
have been a liar and an impostor. But now
that He is risen, we may not only, nay, we
must believe that He is Christ the Lord, the
Son of God, and the Redeemer of the world.

But Christ’s resurrection has also impressed
upon our redemption the seal of absolute cer-
tainty. Our sins had laid Christ into the grave,
as our Substitute He had died. His suffering
and death was the ransom paid by Christ to
free us from the thraldom of sin and the slavery
of the devil. Was this ransom sufficient? To
this question the angel gives the answer:
“Come, see the place where the Lord lay.”
He is risen; but by His resurrection Christ
deprived death of its power. And if death
is conquered, then also sin and devil and hell
are overcome; God is reconciled and heaven
is open for us all.

‘‘Come, see the place where the Lord lay.”’
It will some day have to be our bed. The
cold grave will sooner or later receive us, too.
But into the gloom of the grave this word of
the angel sheds a ray of brightest light. The
Lord lay there! Should we fear to lie where
the Lord lay before? By His burial Christ
has sanctified our graves ahd made them sweet
chambers of rest, where we are sweetly to
slumber till the resurrection morn. Not long
are we to lie in the tomb. It is the place
where the Lord day, not where He lies. He
is no longer there; and where He is, there
shall also His servants be. Come, see the
Lord’s tomb; itisempty. ‘The stone is rolled
away, the seal is broken, the keepers have fled.
So it will be with our graves. True, we shall
have to descend into the grave, but it will only
be to slumber there for a little while. On the
glorious day of resurrection we shall step forth

The Lord is Ris’n Indeed.

“The Lord is ris’n indeed.’’

And are the tidings true?

Yes, we beheld the Saviour bleed,
And saw Him living too.

“The Lord is ris’n indecd.”
Then justice asks no more;
Mercy and truth are now agreed,
Who stood opposed before.

“The Lord is ris’n indeed.”
Then is His work performed;
The captive surely now is freed,
And death, our foe, disarmed.

“The Lord is ris’n indeed.”
Attending angels, hear;

Up to the courts of heav’n with speed
The joyful tidings bear.

Then take your golden lyres,
And’ strike each cheerful chord,
Join all the bright celestial choirs
To sing our risen Lord. ~

Kelly.

— oo

“Come, See the Place where the Lord Lay.”

‘Come, see the place where the Lord lay,”
thus did the angel invitingly say to the women.
So he also says to us. We shall, first of all,
consider who lay in the tomb. Who? The
Lord. Oh, what humiliation, that He, the
Lord, should permit Himself to be placed in
the tomb! He whom the whole world cannot
contain, He lay ina narrow grave. The Crea-
tor of light slept in the darkness of a tomb.
The Fountain of life lay in the bonds of death.
The Lord dies, the Lord descends into the grave.

‘Come, see the place where the Lord lay,’’
and then reflect upon what put Him there.
What laid the Lord into the grave? What
caused the Prince of Life to become the vic-
tim of death? Alas! our sins were the cause.
Yea, our iniquities bore Him down into the
grave. Our disobedience caused His stripes,
our pride brought upon Him shame; in short,
our sins nailed Him to the cross and laid Him
intothetomb. He, the Lamb of God, became
our Substitute, took upon Himself our guilt,
bore our punishment, and permitted Himself
to be imprisoned in the cold and dreary grave.

“Come, see the place where the Lord lay.”
He is no longer there; ‘‘He ts risen.’’ The
load of sins is removed, the bonds of death

from our tombs without hindrance to bask for-
ever in the sunshine of His presence who by
His resurrection has brought life and immor-
tality to light, and with Him we shall then live
in endless Easter. F. J. L.

_— a

Lessons from the Resurrection of Jesus.

1. The resurrection of Jesus is the crown-
ing proof that He is the Sonof God. By con-
quering death and triumphing over hell He
gave evidence of divine power, for God alone
is mightier than death and hell.

2. In raising up His Son God proved that
He was well pleased with Christ and His work.

. 8. The resurrection proves that we have a
living Saviour, sitting at the right hand of God.

4. It proves that our Saviour is a Cham-
pion whom we can trust and absolutely rely
on, for as long as He is for us nothing can be
against us.

5. It is the proof of an immortal life be-
yond the grave. Death does not end all, but
body and soul will finally be reunited.

6. It therefore is the assurance of our own
resurrection, with spiritual bodies like His
glorious body.

7. Hence we know that our loved ones that
have gone before are in good hands, and that
we shall see them again.

8. Ittakes away the darkness from the tomb,
and makes it the gate of life.

9. It teaches us that, being dead to sin, we
should be alive unto God. K. K.

—> +o ee

‘He Rose Again from the Dead.”

If we desire to be true Christians it is neces-
sary for us firmly to establish in our hearts
through faith this article, that Christ, who bore
our sins upon the cross and died in payment
of them, rose again from the dead for our jus-
tification. The more firmly we believe this,
the more will our hearts rejoice and be com-
forted. For it is impossible not to be glad
when we see.Christ alive, a pure and beautiful
Being, who before, on account of our sins, was
wretched and pitiable in death and in the
grave. We are now convinced that our trans-
gressions are removed and forever put away.

Luther.