Jesus, the hope of the world!

The director of a medical clinic told of a terminally ill young man who came in for his usual treatment. A new doctor who was on duty said to him casually and cruelly, “You know, don’t you, that you won’t live out the year?”As the young man left, he stopped by the director’s desk and wept. “That man took away my hope,” “I guess he did,” replied the director. “Maybe it’s time to find a new one.”

Hope is the expectation of a future, and like the ill man many hope in the wrong things. Medicine, money, might, and fallible people! These things are the hope of many because they are tangible. If you are hoping in anything but the Resurrected Savior, Jesus, it is time for you to find a new one!

Last week we said “It is darkest before the dawn.” The darkness that fell over the land as Jesus was judged on the cross is a picture of what had to have been in the hearts of those who followed Him. It seemed that life had lost and death had won, all of their hope had been buried in a tomb! It was quite dark but dawn was coming!

In the face of those seemingly horrific events the disciples had lost sight of the promises of God! Psalm 16:10 “For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.” Mark 9:31 “For He was teaching His disciples and telling them, “The Son of Man is to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill Him; and when He has been killed, He will rise three days later.” Let this be a reminder to us removed 2,000 years that we are to hold to the promises of God.

Our world is full of darkness and desperation and at times things seem hopeless but know today that God is faithful! Our greatest enemy, death, has been conquered! Though you may not be able to see Him have faith that Jesus was dead but is now alive!

Romans 8:24 “For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees?” My hope is greater than the things I can see, my hope sits on the throne of God in the glory of heaven! My hope is Jesus!

I. The realization of His death 15:42-45

A preacher once said, that in order for a miracle to happen, the conditions have to be favorable for a miracle to occur. There is nothing more miraculous than the resurrection of Jesus! The resurrection is the clear sign that sin, death, and the devil have been defeated! There are those who deny Jesus arose from the dead and discredit the 500 + people who saw the resurrected Lord. The Gnostic claimed that Jesus only appeared to die. Other’s say that Jesus switched places with Simon of Cyrene and that he died. But our text clearly tells us that Jesus died and this fact was realized by several different people.

A. Realized by friends

The women of verses 40-41 stood there and watched Jesus die. They saw Him give up His spirit and perhaps even saw the Romans thrust the spear into the dead limp body of Jesus. Our text tells us of another friend who realized the death of Jesus, it was Joseph of Arimathea.

Joseph was a member of the Sanhedrin, possibly raised around the outskirts of Joppa. He was wealthy and had influence. He was a Jew eagerly waiting for the kingdom of God to come. John 19:38 tells us that he was a secrete disciple of Jesus because he feared the Jews. The KJV reads he “came, and went in boldly unto Pilate.” Modern translations (NASB) reads “he gathered up courage” and went in before Pilate, and asked for the body of Jesus.

Gathered up courage is the Greek verb tolmaō, it means he dared to be courageous. John Wayne once said “Courage is being scared to death but saddling up anyway.” Joseph’s secret could no longer be held. He asked for the body of Jesus at the cost of friendships and reputation. He asked for the body of Jesus from one who had the power to put him to death too. The Romans normally left victims of the cross to rot in front of the people as testimony and allowed the birds of prey to feast on the dead. Asking for the body of one convicted of treason was most certainly a death sentence! Perhaps its time some of us saddle up and step out of our hiding places, showing the world that we trust and belong to Jesus! Matthew 10:33 “But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.”

Pilate granted the body (corpse NASB) ) of Jesus to Joseph. Jesus was realized as dead by friends!

B. Realized by foe

But it wasn't just friends who attested to the fact that Jesus was dead. When Joseph asked the corpse of Jesus Pilate was surprised that Jesus was already dead. It had only been 6 hours. It often takes days for someone to die by crucifixion. He called the Centurion who carried out the Crucifixion and inquired of Him, who confirmed that Jesus had indeed died. Pilate then released the corpse to Joseph,another sign that Pilate knew Jesus was innocent.

II. The preparation of His burial 15:46-47

The events of that day unfolded quickly, Jesus died around 3 pm leaving only 2-3 hours to bury Jesus before the new day began at 6pm. Deut. 21:22-23 “If a man has committed a sin worthy of death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day (for he who is hanged is accursed of God), so that you do not defile your land which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance.”

Joseph was assisted by a fellow member of the Sanhedrin, Nicodemus who came to Jesus by night (John 3) and who defended Jesus before the council (John 7:45-53). There was too much to do in a couple of hours. I believe that unlike the disciples they had searched the Scriptures led by the Holy Spirit and discovered that Jesus was the Lamb of God and that He would die at Passover. God had made provisions for His Son’s body.

The two men prepared Jesus’ body for burrial, they rubbed a 100 pounds of myrrh and aloe on the body of Jesus and bound him in linen wrappings and laid Jesus in a nearby tomb fulfilling the prophecy of Is. 53:9 “His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.”

The fact that Jesus was buried is proof that He died on the cross. Joseph and Nicodemus rolled the stone against the entrance of the tomb. The Romans placed a seal around the stone, secured it with straps, and placed guards at the entrance!

Friends, Jesus was dead.... but remember… in order for a miracle to take place the conditions have to be favorable for a miracle to occur. It has been said that death is final, but is it?

III. The proclamation of His resurrection 16:1-8

By that Sunday morning Jesus had been laying in the tomb three days. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. On Friday, the Mary’s had followed Joseph and Nicodemus to the tomb of Jesus! They had now come to anoint His body for Burial. Jesus had been anointed by Mary of Bethany, again by Joseph and Nicodemus… the anointing of a corpse with spices was to help mask the odor of the decaying body. but God said Psalm 16:10 “For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; Nor will You allow Your Holy One to undergo decay.” And when they got there, there was no body to anoint! God keeps His promises! The stone had been rolled away and an angel wearing a white robe told them the greatest news in time and eternity, “Jesus the Nazarene, who WAS crucified. HE HAS RISEN: HE IS NOT HERE; behold the place where they laid Him.

The tomb was empty, death had been defeated, life had won! The angel proclaimed the resurrection of Jesus, oh boy what great news!

ILL: Death and darkness, get you packing, Nothing now to man is lacking, All your triumphs now are ended, And what Adam marred, is now mended!

Because of the death and Resurrection of Jesus, sinful man is reconciled by God through faith and the Angel proclaimed that there is hope for us in this world as he said “Go tell the disciples and Peter!”

The disciples fell away and abandoned Him in his moment of crisis, Peter three times denied Him, yet now, the ladies are charged to go tell them He is alive and is going ahead of them to Galilee, there you will see Him, just as He told you!”

There is hope in this world! The disciples and Peter had been forgiven their sins (though their faith was lacking God was faithful) and death is no longer assigned to them and so it is with us! We have hope, a great expectation of a future, because by grace through faith in Jesus… death is not the end for us but only the beginning of eternal life in the presence of our God!

Over the next 40 days Jesus was seen alive by over 500 people, and it was recorded in the Bible for us to read about. Yes Jesus was dead but is now alive and is willing and able to impart Resurrection life to you! Where is your hope? If its in any place other that Jesus it is misplaced!

During the difficulties of life we often lose sight of hope. I tell you today to cling to the promise of God fixating your eyes on the eternal one Jesus who died for you and arose for you!