He is Risen

Intro: 23rd happiest country

A survey just came out listing the happiest countries

Finland was #1

Where was the USA??? #23

It’s the first time it has been out of the top ten in recent memory

Here is where it gets interesting

Amongst people over 60 we would’ve been #12

Amongst people under 30 we would’ve been #63

People who are under 30 are increasingly dealing with depression and discouragement

3 in 10 are prone to anxiety and depression

Three things are causing this depression

Social Media

The Cost of Living

Prevalence Inflation

What is that you say?

It’s describing milder symptoms as much worse

It’s labeling feeling bad as a mental health problem

The problem is that they are throwing medicine at this in unprecedented rates

I think the reason that the reason these young people feel they way they do is because they don’t know the power of resurrection in their lives

Before you blow me off they also asked these people what would make them happy

The top two reasons?

#1 Inner Peace

#2 Hope

Not money or fame, but peace and hope

The resurrection of Jesus gives you these two in spades

Death has been defeated, which gives us hope for the future

Sin has been conquered, which gives us inner peace

This morning I want to show you how you can find the inner peace, hope and so much more in the resurrection of Jesus Christ

Read Luke 24:1-6

Luke 24:1–6 ESV

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee,

Transition

It was early on a Sunday morning that a group of women gathered all the supplies necessary to give Jesus a proper burial

He had been laying in a tomb for three days

In that dry climate bodies decomposed rapidly

They weren’t allowed to touch him on the sabbath but at first dawn they were headed out

We have to remember that in a state of shock and trauma from watching the crucifixion they weren’t expected to remember what Christ had told them

They were doing the only thing they could think of to honor Christ

That makes this whole scene that much more powerful

They going to find an empty tomb, encounter some angels, discover a resurrected Savior,

Empty Tomb vs. 1-3

Luke 24:1–3 ESV

But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

We can find hope in a resurrected Jesus because the tomb was empty

The empty tomb gives us hope because it shows death isn’t final

We have hope of a better outlook and a secure future

The first day of the week means Sunday

Israel didn’t have names for the days of the week

They had six days and the Sabbath

Some people criticize Christianity for gathering to worship on Sundays when the Sabbath is really on Saturday

The reality is that Christians decided to meet on Sundays because it was a way to celebrate the resurrection every week

Remember that Next Sunday when you come to church

It was early in the morning before dawn

This is why we hold sunrise services

The ladies who were there when Jesus was crucified were the ones up early

They prepared spices and headed off to the tomb

When the ladies got there they found the tomb stone rolled away

On their walk there they were asking who would roll away the stone

It was big, heavy, sealed, and guarded by Roman soldiers

Mark 16:3 ESV

And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?”

But God took care of that in one fail swoop

Here is another reason we can have hope, God takes care of the details

He is sovereign

Matthew 28:2 ESV

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.

The stone wasn’t rolled away to let Jesus out, it was rolled away to show the ladies it was empty

Jesus was in his heavenly state and physical barriers didn’t block him

Luke 24:36 ESV

As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!”

The doors were locked in the upper room and Jesus just appeared

So the ladies encounter an empty tomb

They were greatly confused and suspected someone stole the body

The empty tomb can give you hope because it shows you that death is not final

He is Resurrected vs. 4-6

Luke 24:4–6 ESV

While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee,

We can find inner peace because of the resurrection of Jesus Christ

God has more for you than forgiven sins and a final destination

Jesus has overcome the power of this world and the sin which traps everyone

You can have the debts of your sins forgiven and be given new life by believing in the resurrected savior

The resurrection is the divine vindication of the work that Jesus did on the cross.

Apart from the resurrection the cross means nothing.

1 Corinthians 15:17 ESV

And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.

When God raised Jesus from the dead, He affirmed that He had indeed borne our sins in His own body on the cross , and thereby propitiated or satisfied the justice of God

The resurrection is not the epilogue to the story of Christ’s life; it is its triumphant goal, objective, and purpose.

For us it’s just the beginning

The ladies were perplexed about Jesus missing

They supposed someone had stole it

Mary asked someone who she thought was a gardener where the body was

John 20:15 (ESV)

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.”

At that moment two men in dazzling apparel appeared

These are obviously angels

They asked a simple question, “Why do you seek the living amongst the dead?”

This wasn’t judgment, it was a reminder

Jesus had predicted that he would be crucified and resurrected several times

The angels were jarring them from their shock in a loving way to consider another perspective

“He is not here, but has risen.”

Jesus had been resurrected and it made everything he did and said legitimate

Many had come before him claiming to the be the savior of Israel, even the Messiah, but they all had died and were still in the grave

Jesus came and showed that he was the Messiah and then rose from the grave

Pastor in Kenya who claims to be Jesus

Peace comes from knowing something is true and you can trust it

John 14:6 ESV

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

When you put your trust in Jesus peace invades your soul

Romans 5:1 ESV

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

If you haven’t taken that step you can do that today

Crucified for Our Sins vs. 7-9

Luke 24:7–9 ESV

that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.

We can find forgiveness and be set free from guilt because Jesus was crucified for our sins

Most people are seeking inner peace and hope because they are tormented by guilt they can’t get rid of

Thoughts of previous mistakes and feelings of not measuring up to the world’s standards weigh people down

Mental Health is a real thing and people aren’t finding solutions in medication or therapy

That’s because the inner torment can only be removed by Jesus’ crucifixion

Jesus can remove all of that guilt, shame, and unrest

The angels continued speaking to the ladies by reminding them that Jesus told them that he would be delivered into the hands of sinful men, crucified, and on the third day rise again

Jesus is alive and he brings life to all of those who put their faith in him

When Jesus died on the cross your sins were nailed to that cross

The penalty was paid and Jesus proclaimed It is finished

1 Peter 3:18 ESV

For Christ also suffered once for sins, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit,

He suffered and died for our sins so that he might bring us to God

Disciples Disbelief vs. 10-12

Luke 24:10–12 ESV

Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.

You have to make a choice to believe

Doubt is normal

It is hard to believe in things we cannot see