You Are Not Forgotten

Happy Resurrection Sunday!

Charles W. Colson: “I know the resurrection is a fact, and Watergate proved it to me. How? Because 12 men testified they had seen Jesus raised from the dead, then they proclaimed that truth for 40 years, never once denying it. Every one was beaten, tortured, stoned and put in prison. They would not have endured that if it weren't true.

“Watergate embroiled 12 of the most powerful men in the world-and they couldn't keep a lie for three weeks. You're telling me 12 apostles could keep a lie for 40 years? Absolutely impossible.”

Paul who, as Saul, was a doubter of Jesus and persecutor of Christians, apparently interviewed those who were eyewitnesses:

1 Corinthians 15:3–4 NKJV

3 For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures,

1 Corinthians 15:5–6 NKJV

5 and that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. 6 After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep.

So back to that First Resurrection Sunday:

Mark 16:1–7 NKJV

1 Now when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, that they might come and anoint Him. 2 Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they came to the tomb when the sun had risen. 3 And they said among themselves, “Who will roll away the stone from the door of the tomb for us?” 4 But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away—for it was very large. 5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man clothed in a long white robe sitting on the right side; and they were alarmed. 6 But he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He is risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid Him. 7 But go, tell His disciples—and Peter—that He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him, as He said to you.”

Why did He say, “And Peter?”

Matthew 26:31–35 NKJV

31 Then Jesus said to them, “All of you will be made to stumble because of Me this night, for it is written: ‘I will strike the Shepherd, And the sheep of the flock will be scattered.’ 32 But after I have been raised, I will go before you to Galilee.” 33 Peter answered and said to Him, “Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble.” 34 Jesus said to him, “Assuredly, I say to you that this night, before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” 35 Peter said to Him, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” And so said all the disciples.

Matthew 26:69–75 NKJV

69 Now Peter sat outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came to him, saying, “You also were with Jesus of Galilee.” 70 But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you are saying.” 71 And when he had gone out to the gateway, another girl saw him and said to those who were there, “This fellow also was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72 But again he denied with an oath, “I do not know the Man!” 73 And a little later those who stood by came up and said to Peter, “Surely you also are one of them, for your speech betrays you.” 74 Then he began to curse and swear, saying, “I do not know the Man!” Immediately a rooster crowed. 75 And Peter remembered the word of Jesus who had said to him, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” So he went out and wept bitterly.

Peter was the one who first recognized Jesus as Messiah - The Christ!

Matthew 16:13–20 NKJV

13 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” 14 So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” 15 He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” 20 Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.

Last week: Unmet Expectations turn Praise into Resentment

In four days they went from Praising Him to shouting Crucify Him

“Daniel is [...] told, that, after the seventy years of the captivity, seventy times seven must elapse, and that even then Messiah would not come in glory as the Jews might through misunderstanding expect from the earlier prophets, but by dying would put away sin.”

With the arrival of Jesus, Israel’s long-awaited freedom from captivity was imminent — or was it? They expected the Messiah to free them from Rome. What they needed was freedom from self. Where did this misunderstanding come from?

Israel in the First Century

Israel’s predicament was this: They were captives to the Roman Empire. Their history reveals a pattern of oppression, exile, and victory over assorted enemies from the very beginning of their timeline. “The Old Testament contains over 300 prophecies about a future Messiah, a savior anointed by God to deliver His people from oppression,” wrote Dolores Smyth.

These oppressors were external and internal. A basic outline of the Bible highlights treachery starting with Adam and Eve in the Garden, moves into families, and grows into Israel’s rebellion against God as a nation.

They were conquered by other countries (Assyria, Egypt), and subjected to oppression by their own religious leaders. The Pharisees, declared Jesus, “tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger” (Matthew 23:4).

“By the time of Jesus, Israel was generally considered a backwater Roman province full of cantankerous people with strange religious beliefs. The Jews had very little autonomy, though they clung to their religion and customs,” according to Alyssa Roat.

Some became citizens of Rome (Paul for example), but Jewish leaders still came under Roman authority to decide how much religious freedom Israel would be permitted to exercise.

Beyond religious and political autonomy, Israel also hated the economic imposition of belonging to Rome. “The Jews particularly saw Roman taxes as a tribute to a god they hated (Caesars were all declared gods) and as a symbol of their slavery to Rome.”

The Jews focused on the oppression inherent to their current circumstances. They wanted to see the fulfillment of God’s promise to make Israel a great and free nation, but sin repeatedly got in the way.

The Promised Land

God’s people had a long memory. The Lord had instituted the Passover as a way of remembering his deliverance from Egypt. Israel would never forget how Almighty God had opened the Red Sea for them ahead of Pharaoh’s chariots, a supernatural defeat of a concrete enemy.

The Jews also knew from prophecy that a Messiah would come, but they pictured him as a warrior who would crush a visible enemy.

King Herod, who ruled Judea under the Romans, clearly understood that the Messiah the Jews expected was to be another king and thus a rival to himself. [...] Herod and the Jewish rulers considered the title “Christ” as synonymous with that of “King of the Jews” in accordance with the general expectation of the time.

One reason for this expectation was that prophecy told them Jesus would be descended from King David. “There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit” (Isaiah 11:1). The Messiah would be descended from the most famous warrior king of Israel’s history, one who with a single stone that slayed Goliath.

Hope of Israel

Our God is able to do more than we could ever ask or imagine (Ephesians 3:20). All that his people could imagine during the rule of Rome was that a great warrior king would emerge. “They were hoping for the prophesied One who would restore the kingdom of Israel under the Davidic dynasty.”

Jesus himself appeared to be preparing the early stages of an uprising. His following was, at times, quite large, although the people abandoned Jesus when he no longer provided bread or performed miracles.

Sometimes Jesus really did sound like an anarchist. “Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom” (Matthew 16:28). Was he going to lead Israel into battle and cause them to usurp Rome’s power over the Jews and much of the known world?

Israel’s focus on receiving a new promised land caused God’s people to forget some of the key elements of Passover and the ways these connected with prophecy to foreshadow a true deliverance and a better Kingdom. What they imagined was short-sighted.

Key Elements of Prophecy

When Jesus arrived, God’s purpose was not to save his nation so they could disobey him again and fall into slavery once more. He wanted them to be saved for all time from their biggest enemy — sin.

Benjamin Vrbicek wrote: “The whole of Scripture teaches that the greatest enemy to God’s people is internal” and “we deeply resist this teaching.” There were clues all throughout Scripture.

All of our enemies are not external.

Ephesians 6:12 NKJV

12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

We fight Spiritual Enemies.

When the enemy wants to get to you, he will look around you and find the weakest person and use that person. - Dr. Billy Wilson

We fight Personal Enemies.

Galatians 5:17 NKJV

17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.

James 1:14–15 NKJV

14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. 15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.

Peter thought all his enemies were external - especially Romans.

Luke 22:49–51 NKJV

49 When those around Him saw what was going to happen, they said to Him, “Lord, shall we strike with the sword?” 50 And one of them struck the servant of the high priest and cut off his right ear. 51 But Jesus answered and said, “Permit even this.” And He touched his ear and healed him.

Though Peter had the revelation of who Jesus was, he may have been caught up in the thought that Jesus was going to lead the overthrow of Roman occupation.

Matthew 26:74 NKJV

74 Then he began to curse and swear, saying, “I do not know the Man!” Immediately a rooster crowed.

Peter was having a crisis of faith.

This was not supposed to happen to the Messiah!

Matthew 16:21–23 NKJV

21 From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day. 22 Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!” 23 But He turned and said to Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men.”

this was in the same conversation

Matthew 16:16–17 NKJV

16 Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” 17 Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

Peter was having a hard time still KNOWING who Jesus was, but Jesus still KNEW who Peter was!

Luke 15:1–7 NKJV

1 Then all the tax collectors and the sinners drew near to Him to hear Him. 2 And the Pharisees and scribes complained, saying, “This Man receives sinners and eats with them.” 3 So He spoke this parable to them, saying: 4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!’ 7 I say to you that likewise there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance.

Romans 2:23 NKJV

23 You who make your boast in the law, do you dishonor God through breaking the law?

Romans 6:23 NKJV

23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 5:8 NKJV

8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 10:9–10 NKJV

9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Romans 10:13 NKJV

13 For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”