43: Preaching/Teaching John 20

We must embrace God’s WHY because:

John John 20: Sights of Super Sunday

“The resurrection of Jesus Christ is absolutely the best attested fact in ancient history.”

Horace Bushnell

We talked about this last week.

The Why!

Band of Brothers became an instant HBO TV Series hit. It was about an Army Airborne Unit that would fight in WW2. If you watched the series, you would see this group come together as a unit and make extreme sacrifices so that they could liberate the world from Hitler and Germany.

There is a scene in this movie where one of the main characters who had just been through SOOO much just hit a breaking point. It was the point where he done.

Now I can never even imagine going thru a war.

But in this title there is one of the shows at the end and it is Titled:

WHY WE FIGHT

As their unit enters Germany they come across an abandoned concentration camp. The Jewish people who were captured are still there. They are locked up in these metal dog kennel-type things. They have literally skinned and bones. And as I watched this series the light bulb goes off: THIS is why they fought, this is why people died, this is why people gave of themselves!

Since we have been going through John I have quoted countless times the theme verse

John 20:30–31 NASB95

Therefore many other signs Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.

When Jesus died he had you and me in mind.

He wanted you to believe and to have life in his name.

In a similar way this is why Jesus did what he did:

This is why he came-

John 1-The word became flesh

John 1:14 “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

John 2-he turned the water in the wine

John 3-The most quoted bible verse-Remember this is where we see Nicodemus and just last week we saw that Nicodemus believed

John 4-We see the Samaritan woman does not just believe but all of her people (Remember the Jews thought the Samaritans were unclean and not worthy of believing)

I AM TEMPTED TO WALK THROUGH THE WHOLE BOOK BUT I WILL WAIT.

His hour had come and he did what he came to do, not just dying on the cross but defeating death once and for all.

He did this so that we would believe and that we would have life in his name

Remember in John 10:10 he said I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.

Today I want us to not just know the book of John but to believe it and have life in his name!

Before we jump into the main points of this talk:

Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible Exposition

“If the Gospel of John were an ordinary biography, there would be no chapter 20. I am an incurable reader of biographies, and I notice that almost all of them conclude with the death and burial of the subject. I have yet to read one that describes the subject’s resurrection from the dead! The fact that John continued his account and shared the excitement of the Resurrection miracle is proof that Jesus Christ is not like any other man. He is, indeed, the Son of God.”

Let’s look at the Setting:

John 20:1–5 NASB95

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.” So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. The two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in.

Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible Exposition

20:6–7 When Peter arrived at the tomb, moments later, he entered in, probably because he wanted to know exactly how things stood regardless of the consequences. He also looked at (Gr. theorei, beheld intently) not only the linen burial clothes (Gr. ta othonia), but also the face-cloth that had covered Jesus’ head (Gr. soudarion, cf. 11:44).

John 20:6–10 NASB95

And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. So the disciples went away again to their own homes.

3 life transformations we experience when we embrace JESUS’ WHY!

When we embrace God’s why we will experience these transformations

1. Our Grief will be transformed into Mission (11-18). -Mary

a. Mary before Jesus-

Mary Magdalene in the New Testament

Mary Magdalene appears in all four Gospels as a follower of Jesus (Luke 8:2) and at critical moments in Jesus’ story: the foot of the cross (Matt 27:56; Mark 15:40; John 19:25) and the tomb (Matt 27:61, 28:1–10; Mark 15:47–16:11; Luke 24:1–11; John 20:1–18).

“Magdalene” implies that she was from Magdala, a town on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. In Mark 16:9 and Luke 8:2, it states that Jesus had cast seven demons from her. She may have been a woman of means—Mark 15:40–41 counts her among the women who followed and provided for Jesus. She, Mary the mother of James, and Salome, also bought spices to anoint the body of Jesus (Mark 16:1).

Her life was transformed-can you you picture she was literally had seven demons in her, and Jesus radically transformed her life. She was all in with Jesus. She was so all with Jesus that she was even willing to follow him when he died. She had experienced first hand the life he gives when we belief.

What was your life like without Jesus?

Don't forget where you come from.

b. The Grief was Real and confusing(11-15)

John 20:11–13 NASB95

But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb; and she *saw two angels in white sitting, one at the head and one at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been lying. And they *said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She *said to them, “Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.”

Mary already believed-She believed when it seemed like there was nothing to believe in.

This culture grieved. Their ceremonies were longer, there was typically wailing. The reality is that the one who changed her life was dead.

Have you ever lost someone that is close to you?

John 20:14–15 NASB95

When she had said this, she turned around and *saw Jesus standing there, and did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus *said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing Him to be the gardener, she *said to Him, “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.”

Carderian. I remember the closes thing I witnessed when she lost her son at the age of 13. Where does this mom go from here. This was her only son and he was gone!

she is so emotional so hysterical she does not even recognize her master.

this is kind of a funny scene.

d. Purpose of the mission (16-18)

John 20:16 NASB95

Jesus *said to her, “Mary!” She turned and *said to Him in Hebrew, “Rabboni!” (which means, Teacher).

my sheep know my name is what Jn 10 teaches, she knew her master.

when God changes our lives he then wants to turn us into change agents who change other peoples lives

the disciples were grieving, remind them Jesus died so they could literally have life in his name.

John 20:17–18 NASB95

Jesus *said to her, “Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, ‘I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.’ ” Mary Magdalene *came, announcing to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and that He had said these things to her.

Mary’s new responsibility was to testify to His risen presence. She was the recipient of four special graces: to see angels; to see Jesus risen; to be the first to see Him alive; and to be a proclaimer of the good news. Christians today are also the recipients of special grace; they too are given this new responsibility to witness to the world (cf. Matt. 28:16–20). BKC

As believers we have a new responsibility

Bless our home!

mary embraced Gods mission,

are you?

are you proclaiming him to those around you?

We must embrace God’s WHY because:

2. Our fear will be transformed into gladness (19-23). -Disciples

Did you know the most repeated promise in the Bible is do not fear!

Isaiah 41:10 “‘Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’”

What do you fear most?

1) fear of abandonment, 2) loss of identity, 3) loss of meaning, 4) loss of purpose and 5) fear of death, including the fear of sickness and pain.

Remember in this book the disciples had said we have found the messiah, the one who the scriptures spoke. Now he was dead, the one who could walk on water The one who brought Lazarus to life.

John 20:19–20 NASB95

So when it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and *said to them, “Peace be with you.” And when He had said this, He showed them both His hands and His side. The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

gladness reflects the image of God

when they had seen him and knew that he had defeated death = they rejoiced.

John 20:19–20 (BKC): Seeing the wounds in His pierced hands and side, they were overjoyed (though at first they were frightened, as Luke stated [Luke 24:37–44]). What a change from their fear and despondency!

because of what Jesus did joy was available, I am not talking about happiness, but rather joy.

We just saw Jesus send Mary on mission

now we are going to see him commission the disciples

Gladness reflects the mission of God

John 20:21–23 NASB95

So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” And when He had said this, He breathed on them and *said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. “If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.”

Jesus left heaven to come to earth

he tabernacled among us

this verse is so close to the heart of what we want to be as a church, we want to be a sending church.

we don't just have to go we get to go.

The very mission that God was calling his disciples to is the very mission he Has had for his church and it is the same call he has called yo and me to he is sending us not to stay but rather to go, and not just to go but to go and make disciples of all nations.

we have the message that allows peoples sins to be forgiven and wiped clean.

Brandon and Bethany Cole

We must embrace God’s WHY because:

3. Our doubt will be transformed into Faith (24-29). -Thomas

This one episode of Thomas is the climax of the book of John.

The picture of Thomas before this:

Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible Exposition

John’s previous pictures of this disciple present him as a loyal and courageous, though somewhat gloomy and pessimistic, follower of Jesus. His more common identification as a doubter comes only from the present event.

Don’t forsake the Fellowship when you are struggling.

John 20:24–25 NASB95

But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples were saying to him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe.”

Tom Constable’s Expository Notes on the Bible Exposition

No one else in the New Testament made demands like these before believing. The Greek text clarifies that the other disciples kept saying (Gr. elegon, imperfect tense) that Jesus was alive. They evidently sought Thomas out and shared the good news with him (cf. Gal. 6:1).

Antonio McDyess-Yesterday-His brother just died and I asked how he was doing-He got out of church through this struggle and he said it made a awful situation get even worse

We can be honest about our struggles

John 20:26–27 NASB95

After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.”

Notice Jesus does not rebuke or get angry about his struggle, Jesus meets him where he is at.

Isn’t this encouraging. Jesus could have been how could you not believe. But instead he says I am right here. He wanted Thomas to have faith that he was the resurrected Messiah.

Three things the resurrection transforms:

Mary Grief to mission

Disciples Fear to gladness

Thomas Doubt to Faith

John John 20: Sights of Super Sunday

“The resurrection of Jesus Christ is absolutely the best attested fact in ancient history.”

Horace Bushnell

Embracing the mission of God

Band of brothers!

Explain the pain and torture all these guys went through-

Scene

then in this close to the end

Heather was gone this weekend

Scarlett-Bad dream

When Isaiah encountered the glory of God here was his response

Have we not encountered the glory of God starting right from the beginning