Master of Resurrection
Notes
Transcript
We approach the Easter season and reflect on Jesus as our one and only Master. He is the Master of life, death and resurrection.It is the Resurrection of Jesus that proves His words and claims are true. Without the resurrection, we are most to be pitied of all mankind. We must "believe in our heart in his resurrection" to be saved. We serve a now-living Master, not a past-tense heroic figure.
Jim, Jack, Jerry and Larry
Jim, Jack, Jerry and Larry
Internship at Comcash. Making Point-Of-Sale software (aka POS).
I got called in by Larry. The CEO. He told me how great I was doing in my internship and they wanted to offer me a full-time job. Making more than double… and stock options.
Oh man, I was SOO excited. Went home, told everybody. 18 years old, this was game changing.
I went in the next day, Jack calls me into his office.
“So… I know Larry had a talk with you yesterday and offered you some things. Well, the thing is, as of this morning Larry isn’t the CEO anymore and is no longer part of the company.”
The other partners were Jim, Jack, Jerry… you can see why Larry just had to go. If they had a partner named Barry maybe he would have had a chance!
All of his promises… were now worth nothing. Because he was gone. He was out. He had no power anymore, so he had no power to deliver on all the promises he made me.
I had to make a whole new deal with Jack. Not as good. Not nearly as good.
What’s our deal with Jesus?
Jesus makes a whole lot of promises. Promises about who he is and what he has done for us. How can we know that he’s good for it? That he’s in a position to deliver?
Recap
Recap
We approach the Easter season and reflect on Jesus as our one and only Master.
Jesus is the Master of Life because he created it… and then he lived it perfectly. Full of wisdom, full of grace and truth. He amazed and astounded the crowds, the leaders, the religious experts. He had authority… and showed us, taught us what Righteousness was.
And then, willingly, purposefully, he went to the cross, took on our sin and shame, and died for us. He bore the sin and stupid of all humanity, to present us whole and holy before God.
How do we know Jesus can deliver on all that? Why is his death worth more than any other death?
Why didn’t his disciples scatter to the winds when he died in shame and infamy?
Why didn’t they go home and stay home?
Well… Jesus made some promises.
The Temple
The Temple
18 So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?”
19 Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”
20 The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?”
21 But he was speaking about the temple of his body.
22 When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.
The temple thing… that’s a bit vague.
John is written from a post-Resurrection perspective, so this kind of insight is threaded throughout. Oh after, they realized, this vague temple comment was actually about his body and coming resurrection.
He was vague at first.
But remember, after Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Son of God, Jesus stops being vague… and he starts telling his disciples the plan. Not just the plan for the cross… but the plan for what comes next.
21 From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.
Jesus made some promises. Just a little while later, six days later, Jesus goes up the mountain:
2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light.
Jesus is transfigured, like a revealing of his actual spiritual reality:
9 And as they were coming down the mountain, Jesus commanded them, “Tell no one the vision, until the Son of Man is raised from the dead.”
And then back in Galilee:
22 As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men,
23 and they will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day.” And they were greatly distressed.
And then again, when headed into Jerusalem...
17 And as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside, and on the way he said to them,
18 “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death
19 and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day.”
Okay… that’s pretty spot on.
To be honest… not all that impressive that he could predict his own death. He was making trouble. He was ticking off powerful people. He was a threat to every entrenched power and authority. He was the King of Kings, he is going to inherently threaten little kings of all kinds.
It was predictable the chief priests and scribes would hand him over.
It was predictable he would be condemned as a criminal.
But that last part. He will be raised the third day.
And actually, every gospel contains specific records, multiple records of Jesus teaching exactly this:
After Peter’s confession of faith, Mark says… and Mark is probably relating Peter’s own testimony:
Mark 8:31 (ESV)
31 And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.
Luke 9:22 (ESV)
22 saying, “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.”
Mark 10:34 (ESV)
34 And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”
Luke 18:33 (ESV)
33 And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise.”
Again and again Jesus is telling disciples in general, hundreds of people, and the 12 in particular, “Here is what’s going to go down.”
I’m going to die. (Not a surprising prediction).
Then I’m going to resurrect three days later. VERY SURPRISING PREDICTION!!!
Guards on the Tomb
Guards on the Tomb
Enough that his enemies put guards on the tomb? Why? Because they heard Jesus say what he said!
62 The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate
63 and said, “Sir, we remember how that impostor said, while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise.’
64 Therefore order the tomb to be made secure until the third day, lest his disciples go and steal him away and tell the people, ‘He has risen from the dead,’ and the last fraud will be worse than the first.”
65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.”
66 So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard.
Everyone involved heard Jesus make this prediction. This promise.
So we have three options… and only three options.
Liar, Lunatic, or Lord
Liar, Lunatic, or Lord
If Jesus is a Liar, he is a false prophet. The “prophet” status Islam kind of half-gives Jesus… that doesn’t work. Over and over again in all the records we have of Jesus… this is what he claimed, this is what he said.
He claimed to be the Son of God, the Messiah, and that the evidence he is who he said he is would be his death and resurrection.
So… either he lied.
Or, he’s crazy. He imagined the whole thing. He is off his rocker. After all, 99.9999999% of people claiming to be Jesus Christ aren’t. They are in need of medication and counseling… maybe a padded room.
And he claimed crazy things. If you’re brother claimed to be about to die and rise from the dead you would call the police for a 48 hour hold. Suicidal ideation. Maybe he’s crazy.
As Paul said:
1 Cor 15:14
14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.
19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
It’s all about the resurrection!
20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
Or… and this I believe: He is Lord. He is Master of Life. Master of Death. Master of Resurrection. And this was the plan the whole time.
Life.
Death.
Resurrection.
Here’s the facts:
Sneak peek for tomorrow morning.
1 Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.
2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.
3 His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow.
4 And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men.
5 But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.
6 He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.
7 Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.”
8 So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell his disciples.
9 And behold, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him.
10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.”
If Jesus was just dead in the grave, all his talk of “master of life” was just noise. A precocious pre-teen, a pithy preacher, a sweet turn of phrase, with a smattering of insight. Not even a great prophet since he was wrong about his own self, his own destiny...
If Jesus is dead in the grave, He isn’t the Master of Life.
If Jesus is dead in the grave, He certainly isn’t the Master of Death. What power does the cross have over any other death? What proof is there that Jesus’ death is in any way different from any other criminal execution… innocent or not.
But… because He lives
He is all of those things and more!
Altar Call
Altar Call
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Confess with your mouth that Jesus is Master.
… and believe in heart. That isn’t with your emotions… it is with your decider.
Examine all the evidence. The written testimony of eye witnesses who went to their own grave declaring that Jesus Christ is alive.
The testimony of a church of billions, that overtook the world, a host of people declaring and celebrating this weekend that He is Risen, Indeed.
The testimony of your brothers and sisters in this room, hearts won and lives changed by the Risen, Living Lord Jesus.
Because He Lives, we know he is not a Liar. He is not a Lunatic. He is Lord of my life… and all Life… and the Universe if for him.
<Worship Team>
Right now, let’s declare and worship the Risen Lord Jesus. If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, would you stand with me?
If you believe in your heart that Jesus is Risen, would you stand with me?
… and when just saying it isn’t enough, doesn’t carry the conviction, doesn’t carry the emotion… instead we sing it. Let’s sing it.