A Savior to have and share

Intro

He has Risen!

Scripture

Father God, we thank You for Who You are. A great Big God who sees each and every one of us here and cares deeply about us. We ask this day, as we are continuing in this time of worship to You, reading Your Word and hearing Your Word, that You refine us with it. Mold us, make us, shape us, rearrange us so that we can more like You, and more made into the image of Christ. Help us be a people who love You and love others so much, that we are moved into action by whatever it is You are going to show us about Yourself today and what that means in our lives. Help us do this, because all to often our selfish and sinless flesh war against our will to follow Yours. As we are doing this, and as we are coming into Your Word today, we ask that You take away any distraction that we may have, and make it go as far away as it possible can, because we want to see and we want to know You better. It’s in these things that I ask and in Jesus Christ’s Holy and precious name that I pray, Amen.

16 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they could go and anoint him. 2 Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb at sunrise. 3 They were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance to the tomb for us?” 4 Looking up, they noticed that the stone—which was very large—had been rolled away.

5 When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side; they were alarmed. 6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he told them. “You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they put him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see him there just as he told you.’ ”

8 They went out and ran from the tomb, because trembling and astonishment overwhelmed them. And they said nothing to anyone, since they were afraid.

[9 Early on the first day of the week, after he had risen, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. 10 She went and reported to those who had been with him, as they were mourning and weeping. 11 Yet, when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe it.

12 After this, he appeared in a different form to two of them walking on their way into the country. 13 And they went and reported it to the rest, who did not believe them either.

14 Later he appeared to the Eleven themselves as they were reclining at the table. He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who saw him after he had risen. 15 Then he said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes;, if they should drink anything deadly, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well.” [1]

Context

Here we are, at a totally different turn of events then our previous few weeks. In the last month we have walked through the story of Jesus’ steps, His ever forward march, like a lamb to the slaughter to the cruel Roman Cross. This cross was unforgiving, cruel, and torturous. The steps towards it were filled with low points, including betrayal, shame, sham trials, wickedness, political prowess, and the wickedness of Satan and Sin all throughout. This all led us up to the point of Jesus death for us, a day that we remembered in solemn reflection on Good Friday.

Friday was a day of mourning, but today. Today is very much different! Today is a day of celebration!! Today is a day of proof being shown. Today is a day of grief being wiped away. Today is a day of relief. This day, is Easter. This day, is the day that The Lord Jesus Christ rose from His grave, just as He told us He would. This day, Jesus showed us that He indeed is Lord. He is master over both life and death. He is king of king and Lord of Lord’s. He is the prince of peace, in Him is no darkness but only light. Now, all of mankind that will turn towards Him in trueness and faith will be made whole again, able to withstand all things. Able to stand before God not just as a friend (whereas in sin we were all enemies) but as a beloved child. This is a great message, this is a wonderful message. That the sin that separates us from God, can now be forgiven and you can be saved.

This is a message that Jesus wants the whole world to know. Now granted, not everyone will accept it, but none the less it is true. As believers, we are to know this truth, love this truth, tell it to ourselves daily, and share it with others. What is this truth, it is that faith in Jesus will forgive you of sins. It is the gospel of Jesus, and Jesus has told believers to both know and share the gospel with others. So, let’s hop into the text, let’s take a look at what God is revealing to us through His word and this week; From the text, I want you to know these facts about Jesus, who is a savior to both have and share.

Message

The first fact about Jesus who is a savior to both have and share is that : He has risen! (1-8)

16 When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they could go and anoint him. 2 Very early in the morning, on the first day of the week, they went to the tomb at sunrise. 3 They were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone from the entrance to the tomb for us?” 4 Looking up, they noticed that the stone—which was very large—had been rolled away.

5 When they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side; they were alarmed. 6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he told them. “You are looking for Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they put him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter, ‘He is going ahead of you to Galilee; you will see him there just as he told you.’ ”

8 They went out and ran from the tomb, because trembling and astonishment overwhelmed them. And they said nothing to anyone, since they were afraid.

The Sabbath day, the holy day of the week for the Jewish people, where they were not supposed to do any work at all, but devote the day to rest and worship, was the day after Jesus’ death. So, the women were unable to anoint Jesus’ body for burial just after His death, as would have been the preferred situation. In fact, when compared with the other Gospel accounts, Jesus’ body was put in his tomb last minute before the sabbath started. After the Sabbath was over when there was enough light to see, the women went to do this act of love and devotion to who they thought was the slain and dead Jesus. As they went down, they wondered how they could remove the very large stone that sealed the entrance, to their surprise, it had been removed! From there, the women entered the tomb, and encountered a man (who Mark’s descriptions tells us was an angel, a messenger of God). This would be a shocking thing to see, where you expected to see a dead body, instead you see a heavenly being. This angel tells them, do not fear. I know who you are looking for, Jesus of Nazareth who was crucified. He is not here! He has risen! Go and tell the other disciples and Peter, He is going to Galilee just as He told you He would! The women, were quite shocked by this, not knowing what to do or even if their grief had over taken them. But, they knew this fact; whether they believed it or not, they knew it, Jesus is risen!

This moment, the moment of Jesus resurrection, was a moment that the whole world had been waiting for. Whether you are strong in conviction and belief Christian, a luke warm at best Christian, or someone who never professed Christ as Lord, this was one of the critical moments in all of history. Not to make light of a serious subject, but even the brilliant mind in Benjamin Franklin, who was never a professed born-again Christian. Knew that there was something to this Jesus’ being resurrected thing. Listen to what he had written for his tombstone it says, “ The Body of B. Franklin, Printer Like the Cover of an old Book Its contents torn out, And stript of its Lettering and Guilding, Lies here, Food for Worms, But the Work shall not be wholly lost: For it will, as he believ'd, Appear once more In a new & more perfect Edition, Corrected and amended by the Author.”[2]

Friends, Jesus has Risen! And lives forever and ever more. He is forever glorified, and is sitting even right now in glory and honor at the right hand of God The Father. He is risen, and if we can take anything away from that angel’s command to the women, is that we are to not only trust that message ourselves, but tell the others about it as well, not keep it to ourselves. Jesus has told believers to both know and share the gospel with others. Know this truth, and make it your life goal to make it known more and more not just in yourself, but in others as well.

The next fact about Jesus who is a savior to both have and share is that He is seen! (9-13)

[9 Early on the first day of the week, after he had risen, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons. 10 She went and reported to those who had been with him, as they were mourning and weeping. 11 Yet, when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they did not believe it.

12 After this, he appeared in a different form to two of them walking on their way into the country. 13 And they went and reported it to the rest, who did not believe them either.

Jesus appears to Mary, and this fact she couldn’t keep to herself! She went to the others, which would have likely included both the apostles and other various disciples, and told them the news while they were mourning. She shared this with them, do not be sad, Jesus is alive! I saw Him! Why are you crying? But….. they did not believe her. That same day, two disciples were walking back to Emmaus, Luke’s Gospel names one of them as Cleopas. These two went and told the same thing that Mary did to the brothers, that Jesus is alive, we have seen Him! Now on this day, we know of at least 3 witnesses to Jesus being alive. Still, they did not believe.

They did not believe right now, but it wouldn’t be long before the world knew. In fact, just before Jesus went back to heaven, a day and event we call the ascension, Jesus was seen by over 500 eyewitnesses. In any court that requires evidence, in any person’s mind who would have heard this same testimony over and over again, it would have been clear, Jesus was seen, and so He is not dead, He is alive!

All throughout our lives, Satan and the Power of sin try to keep us from not seeing, not understanding, or just flat out rejecting this truth. In fact, they went so far as pay to off the Roman guards who were charged with guarding the tomb, telling them to deny what had really happened, that God was not really with and is this Jesus. Even in the face of testimony of close friends, still doubt and sin covered the truth from these early disciples. In the face of truth, just like we spoke about last week, Satan and Sin want what’s wrong, not what is right. What is right, is that Jesus is risen! What is right is that God can be trusted and should be. What is right is that you can be forgiven of your sin. What is right, is that once you turn to Jesus as savior, He knows it and you are saved.

In this scripture, Jesus is seen. And what did those believers do that saw Him? That told the others about what had happened, they told others about Jesus, that what He said was true. We are to do just the same believers, Jesus has told believers to both know and share the gospel with others. How then do you know the Gospel, well you can’t know it unless Jesus is your savior. Sure, you may be able to recite the words, or maybe you made a childhood profession of faith, and once you hit adulthood or some kind of snag in your faith; you stepped away…. And now you don’t know Him, though He knows you; and He is beckoning you back to Him. So, come to Him and know the forgiveness of your loving heavenly father, come to Him and fill that empty spot in your heart you have been feeling for so long. Come to Him and know true rest and peace in your life, and no longer war against Him. You try to fight against it all you want, you will never be right, because Jesus is truth. He is seen, He is alive and is forevermore. So, what are you waiting for? You can be forgiven today, it doesn’t matter who you are or what you have done, you are never so far away that Jesus doesn’t see you and isn’t calling you towards Himself. Will you answer?

Another fact about Jesus who is a savior to both have and share is that He says go! (14-18)

14 Later he appeared to the Eleven themselves as they were reclining at the table. He rebuked their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they did not believe those who saw him after he had risen. 15 Then he said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up snakes;, if they should drink anything deadly, it will not harm them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will get well.”

After all the disciples and apostles had not believed those that saw the risen Jesus showed their hardness of heart, Jesus shows them; that He has not abandoned them. Just because they were slow to hear Him, doesn’t mean that God abandoned them. After all, they were hand chosen by Jesus, by God Himself to be His witnesses to the earth, as is every person who becomes a believer, that is a true Christian. He corrected them, showed Himself to them. Showed them once again, as God spent with mankind through all of time, just like He does now, that He can be trusted; that God can be and should be trusted.

Then notice what He does, He doesn’t call them to an idol faith. To faith that is in name only or thought only. He tells them to have a faith of action. A faith that does something. A faith that goes and shares the gospel, the good news that through faith in Jesus we can be forgiven of sins, and shares it with anyone and everyone you can in the world. No Christian is called to an inactive faith, to a faith alone without other believers working together in the goal of ministry, sanctification, evangelism, worship, and growth in love and devotion to God.

In our church, at LaFayette Baptist Church, we put this very simply. We say that all Christians are to fulfill these things: We are to love God, Love Others, and Make Disciples. The Christian that does not do this, is in contrast with Jesus’ teaching. Just look at what He is saying here, in this passage, He is showing them that you need to Love God more, to trust God more. And He is telling them to do the most loving thing you can do for others, to share the Gospel with them, and make them disciples. Jesus said Go! Go and do these things.Jesus has told believers to both know and share the gospel with others. Because Jesus is a savior to both know and share.

Conclusion

What we all have to know, what you need to know is that sin, which every person who has been born has, separates us from God. God doesn’t want you to be separated from Him. He want’s you to be in His family, as a beloved Son or daughter. But you can’t do that if you live and have unforgiven sin. To be forgiven of sin. You have to give that sin over to Jesus, who is the only one who can save you and give you forgiveness. We did this symbolically on Good Friday when we nailed our sins to the cross. Which you see here.

*Go over and tear sin into tiny little bits*

With all of that being said, I would be remised if I didn’t share the Gospel (or the Good News) of Jesus Christ with you today, for the benefit of both believer and non-believer in the room. This begins all the way back at the beginning, God created everything, and he created all things good. He gave His most treasured creation (us, mankind) the ability of free will, the ability to choose Him or rebellion. Man was deceived by Satan and desired to be like God and sinned (or rebelled against God). This brought the curse of sin and death into the world and it remains with us to this day; which separates us from God. God though, loved His creation (mankind) so much that He worked through history to redeem all mankind that would turn to Him from sin so that we can experience a full and perfect relationship with Him again. This was through the perfect and final sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the pay for sins. Accepting this free gift from God, makes you new and forgiven. All you have to do accept this free gift by repenting and believing in the Lord Jesus and you will get to experience the good side of God’s justice forever. So, now that you know this, you can no longer plead ignorance. I invite and urge you to respond today non-believer and apply this to every part of your life believers in the audience today.

With that, Let’s conclude. Brothers and Sisters, I love you all. During our last song together, if you need prayer, or want to talk more about Jesus, or have something you want to talk about, I’ll be here, don’t be afraid to come on down. Let’s pray. Father God, we thank You for who You are and what You are doing to us here in this place. May whatever it is that You are doing in each of heart here, continue as we leave go out into the world this week. Change us, mold us, make us, re-arrange us, that we can be both better lovers of You and better showers of You. It’s in these things that I ask and in Jesus Christ’s Holy and precious name that I pray, Amen.

[1] Christian Standard Bible. Holman Bible Publishers, 2020, p. Mk 16:1–18. [2] https://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/r/resurrection.htm