Blessed is the King - Easter

Last week: Jesus entered Jerusalem

Passion week - Betrayel, Crucified, and buried in a tomb.

Three days later, the sabbath was over and Mary Magadalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James have come to complete the requirements for the burial.

READ (LUKE 24:1-12)

The earliest creed of the Christian church was simply, “He is risen.”

The entire impact of Christianity stands on this message.

READ (1 Corinthians 15:12-19)

“If Jesus rose from the dead, then you have to accept all that he said; if he didn’t rise from th dead, then why worry about any of what he said? The issue on which everything hangs is not whether you agree with his teachings, but whether or not he rose from the dead.” - Tim Keller

The resurrection is proof that Jesus Christ is King. This is good news!

1. The Grave is Empty.

The women came to the tomb at the first sign of daylight. The sabbath ended at sunset on Saturday.

Historically, Sunday became a holy day for Christian worship.

At first, seeing the empty tomb would not register. There could have been other reasons for the body of Jesus to be missing.

I met Leo, but didn’t notice it at the time.

The good news of the gospel can feel too good to be true.

2. The Bible is True.

Two angels appeard.

“dazzling” - lighting

The women bowed in fear.

Here we have an angelic announcement that Christ was alive.

“Remember how he spoke...”

“It is necessary that the Son of Man suffer many things and be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised on the third day.” (Luke 9:22)

“Let these words sink in: The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men. But they did not understand this statement; it was concealed from them so that they could not grasp it, and they were afraid to ask about it.” (Luke 9:44-45)

“Then he took the Twelve aside and told them, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem. Everything that is written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished. For he will be handed over to the Gentiles, and he will be mocked, insulted; spit on; and after they flog him, they will kill him, and he will rise on the third day.” (Luke 18:31-33)

The women remembered the teachings.

Inductive Bible Study

Easter is a time for revelation and understanding.

The 1st witnesses of the resurrection were the women who stood by Jesus during his crucifixion when the disciples fled out of fear.

The good news is not a secret. The message is available to everyone.

3. The Testimony is Reliable.

Women played a prominent role in Jesus’ ministry. They supported him from their own possessions.

Jesus’ own disciples rejected the news of his resurrection as nonsense.

In the Graeco-Roman world of the 1st century, the testimony of women were considered unreliable and could be used to settle legal disputes.

“nonsense” - “silly talk”. Medical word used of the wild talk while in delirium.

How embarrassing… Peter’s story.

You can leave here today knowing the truth.

“We live and die; Christ died and lived.” - John Stott

Jesus died for sin and rose from the deal. Through his sacrifice, all people can be saved from their sin. This is good news!