by Jor-El Godsey, President, Heartbeat International

“He is not here, for He has risen, just as He said.” – Matthew 28:6

These words were spoken by no less than an angel of the Lord to the women who came to visit the tomb of Jesus.  Heaven’s messenger spoke of the most central reality of the Good News – that death was overcome. He is risen! Death had no power to hold Him,¹ and He, through His grace, extends that same power to all who call upon His name.²

And it was just as He told them, and us. 

So, what else did He say? 

Well, He said that we’d suffer on account of Him.³ That the world would hate us because of Him.⁴ In fact, He promised that they would persecute us for His name’s sake.⁵

Ouch! 

We suffer. We get persecuted. We’re hated. 

But that’s not all He said.

He said that we would be blessed when others persecuted us because of the works of righteousness we do.⁶ Oh, and we definitely do works of righteousness. We stand in the gap for those who are contemplating a life or death decision. We actively oppose the deeds of darkness that attempt to obscure the light of truth, the power of God, and the promise of heaven.  

He also said that we are more than conquerors. 

Indeed, He promised that we would not be left alone or forsaken. We can trust He will be with us in every situation. Whether in the counseling room with a client, or in front of students in the classroom, He promises to be with us. That is true for the boardroom table or the banquet podium. His Spirit is with us at work for His good and perfect will, in us and through us.⁷

And He has empowered those who believe in Him to do the works He did, and even greater, He said.⁸ 

Think about it. Jesus showed works of mercy. We can do that also. Jesus moved people from death to life. In our way, changing a trajectory from hurtling to imminent death to the choice of life, and even life everlasting, follows that pattern. The part about “greater works” doesn’t seem possible when we’re talking about Jesus as God. We are not God, after all, which may come as a surprise to a leader or two we’ve known. But certainly, the greater works show how we, collectively, are reaching more people than Jesus did during His precious moments on earth. His Word flows through us into all our situations, empowering a greater reach than they could have been imagined in the days Jesus walked the earth. 

He said that He would take care of our needs.⁹

That’s important to relay to the woman who can’t see a way to support the child in her womb. We know that He will provide for His creation. But it’s equally as important to speak to our own hearts during a discouraging report from the finance committee or when wondering how we’ll find that key staff person we need so desperately. 

Another thing Jesus said was that He gives us peace.¹⁰

Yes, that’s right. Peace, even knowing we’ll be persecuted. Peace when we are hated. Peace when we know that the temporal world is aligned against us, just as it was, and is, aligned against Him. 

So, take heart.¹¹ Because he also said, in that same scripture, “Do not let your heart be troubled; nor fearful.”  

Yes, take heart.¹²

Jesus spoke these powerful words, too, when He said that He has “overcome the world.”12 We can take heart that He is with us, and for us, in this great work of pregnancy help.

¹ 1 Corinthians 15:55-57
² Romans 10:13
³ Romans 8:36
⁴ John 15:18
⁵ Matthew 10:22-24
⁶ Matthew 5:10-11
⁷ John 16:7
⁸ John 14:12
⁹ Matthew 6:26
¹⁰ John 14:27
¹¹ Psalm 31:24
¹² John 16:33