Hymn Study – I Know That My Redeemer Lives

1 I know that my Redeemer lives; What comfort this sweet sentence gives! He lives, he lives, who once was dead; He lives, my ever-living Head! 2 He lives triumphant from the grave; He lives eternally to save. He lives all-glorious in the sky; He lives exalted there on high. 3 He lives to bless me with his love; He lives to plead for me above. He lives, my hungry soul to feed; He lives to help in time of need. 4 He lives to grant me rich supply; He lives to guide me with his eye. He lives to comfort me when faint; He lives to hear my soul's complaint. 5 He lives to silence all my fears; He lives to wipe away my tears. He lives to calm my troubled heart; He lives, all blessings to impart. 6 He lives, my kind, wise, heav'nly friend; He lives and loves me to the end. He lives, and while he lives I'll sing; He lives, my Prophet, Priest, and King. 7 He lives and grants me daily breath; He lives, and I shall conquer death. He lives my mansion to prepare; He lives to bring my safely there. 8 He lives, all glory to his name! He lives, my Jesus, still the same. Oh, the sweet joy this sentence gives: "I know that my Redeemer lives!"

Christ is risen! Alleluia! During Lent we look into Christ's march to the cross. He's disowned by the people who praised Him, He's hated by the Sanhedrin, He's mocked by the Romans, He's betrayed by His disciple Judas, He's denied by Peter, His disciples run away from His upcoming arrest and trial, He's thought permanently dead by Mary and the women with Him even though He had been saying quite the opposite, He was flogged, pierced, had thorns driven into Him and crucified. He did it for us, He did it because of us. It's not a very pleasant time at Lent for an onlooker at first glance. But we know differently don't we?

That onlooker is probably very confused when after 40 days of sorrow and remorse we show up once again, just two mornings later with flowers adorning the alter, bright colors, pretty dresses and big smiles. "He's risen from the dead!" we proclaim. Just now? That onlooker would surely have to think. Well no, nearing about 2000 years ago. There next thought would be, so you knew this whole time?! So why were we grieved all Lent? We weren't, with a humble respect for the cross we understood that sin, our sin, had to be paid for and that price was so high only God Himself could ransom it.

But Easter, we know our Redeemer lives! Yes, but 2000 years ago. No, Jesus is alive right now. He lives and is in Heaven, full man, now true God. Now maybe that onlooker would become skeptical. He's resurrected from the dead, but is in Heaven, isn't that what happens when you die, you go to Heaven? Wouldn't that mean by that logic that Jesus is as good as dead? That's when we can look to the inspiring words of this hymn.

Jesus is not just in Heaven, Jesus is not as good as dead and He's certainly not far away. No, we can't just call upon Jesus and have Him show up for a photo opportunity hence showing His existence, but we can look at what Jesus is doing for us. He lives to save me, He's currently working as that sacrifice for when you are finally judged, be it through death or upon His return. He lives to bless us, eternally and currently, He's there in time of need, fears, sorrow, worry, no matter what ills you, Jesus will be there to help you through it, not in a when I get around to it way either, He wants your sorrow, your worry, the things that scare you, He says, send them My way so you can get back to being you.

He lives as God, His creation continues, His blessings come to us, He blesses us with food, He shelters us from the elements, He clothes us, the Bible even promises trouble for the Christian’s life, unfair judgements and persecutions from the nonbelieving world. The Bible promises that this side of Heaven there will be tears, but that He will wipe them away when we arrive home and that's more than enough for us and more than we deserve. But He's not on the other side of Heaven waiting to comfort us, He's here now to comfort us, even when it's things are at their darkest. This is proof of Jesus, raised from the dead, alive with us.

He lives and we'll live. He has conquered death. Death is two different things, yet for Christians they're one and the same in their defeat. The first death is an eternal separation from God. Jesus conquered that death for every person and it's there for the taking, and Christians have grabbed it up and in abundance. We sin, we repent and just like that, death is defeated. Sins of choice and sins of habit. We can choose to sin, we may even have an addiction to our sin, something we know could very well plague us until our last breath, but our righteousness is there waiting for us, there's no sin that can't be overcome, that hasn't already been overcome.

The second death Jesus defeated was medical, heart stopping death. The Christian will medically die, but we're at rest, in Heaven and we'll awake from our sleep and we will sleep no more, we will medically die no more. We'll have a new Earth for ourselves with Jesus as far away as He is now, but with a physical presence. He lives, we live. The unbeliever though, they'll medically live, but they'll spiritually die. There tears will not be wiped away. But for the Christian, we've conquered death, spiritually and physically.

Perhaps you're reading this on Easter Sunday, perhaps you're reading this a few days after or even before, or maybe it's the middle of August. That's the beauty of Easter, we know our Redeemer lives right now, risen from the dead. What sweet joy that sentence gives.