The Empty Tomb
Early in the morning, the tomb was already empty. The grave clothes lay folded. The stone was rolled away—not to let Jesus out, but to let the disciples look in and believe. That moment changed everything. The resurrection of Jesus Christ was not the end of the story—it was the beginning of a church movement and global mission that is still unfolding today.
The risen Christ did not send His followers to sit and ponder but to go and proclaim. And ever since that resurrection morning, the call has gone out to every tribe, every tongue, and every nation: “He is not here, for He is risen, just as He said!” (Matthew 28:6)
That’s why we do what we do. The resurrection is not merely a doctrine to defend. It is the breath in the lungs of our mission. It fuels Bible translation. It revives the broken places of the world through community development. And it gives birth to churches in every language where there were none before. If Jesus had not risen, these efforts would be empty. But because He lives, our labor is not in vain.
The Resurrection Proves the Message Is Worth Translating
“If Christ is not risen, our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.” (1 Corinthians 15:14) These words are an articulated reality. If Jesus had remained in the grave, then all of our Bible might as well be myth.
But He rose and that is why we translate. Because the gospel is true. The empty tomb validates every word Jesus spoke. Every language deserves to hear that news—not secondhand, not in a foreign tongue—but in the words they learned and spoke on their mother’s knee. The resurrection is a message too good not to be shared, too important not to be understood, and too life-giving not to experience.
Bible translation is not simply a scholarly pursuit. It’s a rescue operation. People need to hear that the grip of death has been broken and that sin no longer has the final word. That’s what makes every translated verse worth the effort. We are not preserving dead texts and just trying to survive. We are delivering living truth to overcome and dominate the darkness.
The Resurrection Creates New Identity and Hope for Communities
Peter called it “a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” (1 Peter 1:3) Not just any hope. A living one. The kind that takes root in communities where despair once reigned. In places where war, addiction, poverty, or oppression have swallowed generations, the resurrection proclaims, “There is restoration and healing”.
When we engage in community development, we are not just digging wells or teaching sanitation. We are, in a deeper way, proclaiming that the God who raised Jesus from the grave is still restoring what’s broken. We are saying, “There is hope here. And His name is Jesus.”
Because Christ is alive, we can walk into the darkness of forgotten villages or broken families with confidence. We are not merely improving lives—we are planting the seeds of a new creation. One where old things pass away and all things become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
The Resurrection Births and Sustains the Church
The risen Christ gave the church its mission: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:19) That command came from nail-scarred hands. And ever since Pentecost, the church has gone forward with resurrection power.
Church planting is not about building a building. It’s about bringing the life of the risen Christ to bear in a place that has not yet known it. When a church is planted, a beachhead is established against the gates of hell. It becomes a lighthouse of grace, a gathering of those who were dead in sin but now live in Christ.
Resurrection power is not a theory—it’s the only thing strong enough to sustain a church through persecution, famine, or isolation. It is what gives courage to believers who are the first in their village to follow Christ. It is what causes joy to erupt in jungle huts and desert tents when people sing praise in their own language for the very first time.
The Resurrection Gives Courage to the Missionary
“The Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you…” (Romans 8:11) That’s not only a comfort—it’s a commissioning.
Missionaries often go to hard places. Places where sickness comes easy and answers come slow. Places where the enemy roars and the soil seems barren. What keeps the field workers there? What moves their feet when fear knocks at the door? The same power that raised Jesus from the grave.
Because Christ is alive, no place is too dark, no people too beyond hope. Remember, we are not called to places of safety—we are called to faithfulness in hardship. And we have the resurrection behind us, beneath us, and within us.
The Resurrection Guarantees the Final Harvest
John saw a vision of it. A great multitude “from every nation, tribe, people, and tongue standing before the throne.” (Revelation 7:9) That is the end of the story. And it is certain because of the resurrection.
That’s why we translate. That’s why we develop communities. That’s why we plant churches. Because the harvest is coming. And because Christ lives, the last chapter has already been written.
Let the skeptics doubt. Let the world sleep. But we will not be silent. We have seen the empty tomb. We have tasted resurrection life. And now we must go. We will go!
Whether we hold a translator’s pen, a water pipe, or a shepherd’s staff, our hands are not idle. They are working in resurrection power. Let us press on, not in our own strength, but with the promise that our labor is never wasted.
And because He lives—He will gather the nations to Himself.
— Harold R. Troyer
