The Power of the Resurrection: Philippians 3:-11

Good Morning CBC, would you go with me to the Lord in prayer?

Throne of Grace

Crucifixion/Resurrection

Alright, well if you are a 2nd thru 5th grader and you’ve already been checked in, you can go ahead and be dismissed. Your teachers are waiting for you in the back to walk you to your classrooms. And as a reminder, Parents, you’ll be picking those children up at the Wetlands Building. And if you need any help finding where that is, do not hesitate to ask someone with a lanyard.

But if you have your Bible, go ahead and turn with me to Philippians 3.

If you don’t have a Bible, and you’d like one, we have one for you. There just right outside against this back wall. Feel free to take one home, that’s our gift to you.

But if you’re new with us, my name is Andrew McClure and I am one of the Pastors here, and for the last 13 weeks we’ve been slowly walking through this beautiful letter written by the Apostle Paul to a small church in a city named Philippi.

So let me attempt to catch you up really quickly.

Context

What we’ve learned so far in the Book of Philippians, is that the Apostle Paul, who was once the fiercest enemy of Jesus Christ but now the greatest missionary for Jesus Christ, is writing this letter from a Roman Prison.

He’s locked up, awaiting trial. He doesn’t know if he’ll be released and continue to live for Christ, or if he’ll be executed and die with Christ.

And he’s 800 miles from the church, that he loves so dearly, and here in chapter 3 he’s concerned for them because apparently there are some false teachers who have come in to try and divert them from the simple Gospel of Grace found in Jesus Christ.

Look at verse 2, “Look out for the dogs, look out for the evildoers, look out for those who mutiliate the flesh!”

These dogs that he’s referring too, are Judaizers,

they’re Christians but still believe that to be a true follower of Christ, you have to convert to Judaism.

You need to get circumcised, and uphold Jewish ceremonies and be responsible to all the law requires.

In essence, they are preaching the Gospel + Works.

Yea, believe in Jesus, but also apply your own effort and do good things so that God will accept you and approve of you.

And let me just go ahead and say, this Gospel + Works is still alive today,

Consider your own beliefs! Do you believe that your approval and acceptance by God is dependent upon your behaviors and actions?

Do you think he accepts you because of your confessional, church attendance, good deeds, or financial giving?

Because listen, if you do, Paul says that’s all hogwash! Don’t listen to that message.

And Paul goes on to say, listen, if anybody has a resume worth boasting in. If anybody has done enough to be accepted, it was probably himself.

Philippians 3:5–6 “circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.”

But one day, it pleased God the Father, to reveal to Paul God the Son, and on that day all the earnings he had, all the effort he had put in, were counted as loss, as rubbish or trash, or dung.

and now all he wanted in life or in death was to know, more and more fully the surpassing worth of Jesus Christ! (vs.8)

Philippians 3:8–9 “Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith—”

So his right standing before God, is not based on his own effort, but solely on the the work of Christ on the cross.

Not dependent upon works, but on faith.

Which brings us to our text today,

Philippians 3:10–11 ESV

that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

Paul has been gripped by the Grace of Jesus Christ, and here in our text he states his life passion… “That I may Know Him.”

But what I shared in detail last week, is that this knowledge of Jesus Christ isn’t mere cognitive or theoretical or factual knowledge.

Paul’s not saying, I just want to know a lot about Jesus.

No, this knowledge is an experiential knowledge. He’s saying he wants to know Jesus personally. Relationally. Experientially!

IT’s the difference between me telling you the recipe of a chocolate cake vs. cutting you a slice and letting you taste it for yourself.

One type of knowledge informs your mind, the other type of knowledge changes your life!

And that’s the type of knowledge Paul wants of Jesus… REAL, TANGIBLE. LIFE CHANGING Knowledge.

So he says, that’s all I want, “That I may know Him, but look at our text, he goes on to say and the power of his ressurection.

Paul doesn’t just want to know about the resurrection, he wants to experience its Power personally.

And this Easter Sunday, that’s what I want to talk about.

The Power of the Resurrection.

So if you’re an outline person, here’s where we’re headed:

First we are going to answer, “What do we know about the resurrection?

Second, “How do we experience its Power?

But let’s begin with the first kind of knowledge?

What do you know about the resurrection of Jesus?

Knowing About

We know that Jesus predicted it.

First, early in his ministry Jesus predicted it but his predictions were a little shouded in mystery. Confusing to his hearers.

Like one time Jesus went into Jerusalem and was pretty frustrated by the economic abuses taking place in the Temple, so he flipped all these tables, and kicked out the money changers.

And that offended the Jews so they demanded!

Who do you think you are!? John 2:18 ““What sign do you show us for doing these things?””

To which Jesus mysteriously answered, John 2:19, “Destory this temple, and in 3 days I’ll raise it up!”

And the Jews mocked him because it had taken the Jews 46 years to to build that Temple… how on earth could this carpenter’s son raise it up in 3 days?

But Jesus wasn’t talking about the physical structure, but the temple of his body that he would die and in 3 days raise again.

Again, later in his ministry, the Jesus was claiming to be the Savior of the World, and the Jews demanded a sign as proof for his claims

But Jesus answered, Matthew 12:39 “But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.”

Now you may be unfamiliar with the story of Jonah, but he was a prophet sent by God to a sinful city called Ninevah. But Jonah hated the Ninevities. He didn’t think they deserved mercy, so Jonah refused to go.

Actually boarded a boat headed in the opposite direction.

But God in HIs Sovereignty caused Jonah to be eaten by a great fish, and spent 3 days in the belly of that fish, until he was spit out at Ninevah.

And here Jesus is saying, Matthew 12:40 “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.”

He was indicating that he would be buried.... but after 3 days he’d live again!

He mysteriously predicted his resurrection, but he also clearly, or directly predicted it.

As his time on earth was coming to a close 3 times he directly stated,

Matthew 16:21–23 “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.

Church, Jesus predicted his resurrection.

He called his shot, and that’s a bold move, because all it would take to prove that he was just a liar or a lunatic was for him to die and stay dead!

I remember this story about NBA Legend Larry Bird.

Apparently the game was tied, with only a second left on the clock, and the coach called Timeout.

He grabbed his whiteboard and marker and began diagramming the final play, when Bird said, “Coach, just give me the ball and tell everybody else to get out of the way.”

But the Legend get’s even better.

Apparently Bird walked up to his opponent, and the defender said, “I know you’re getting the Ball.” To whic Bird responds, “Yep, I’m going to catch it right there in the corner, turn around and shoot it right in your face.”

Well you know what happened??? Exactly that!

Bird called his shot, but it was his follow through, it was his backing it up that cemented him as a legend.

And the same is true for Jesus Christ!

But obviously at a much greater scale with a much more significant impact.

We know Jesus predicted his ressurection, but we also know that he backed it up.

For when Mary Magdelene, Salome, and Mary the mother of James came on EAster morning to anoint his body with spices, what they found was that the stone had been rolled away, and when they entered the tomb they saw an angel who said,

“Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here!”

And when Peter and John sprinted to see it for themselves, do you know what they found the he tomb!?

NOTHING!

He had been resurrected.

The tomb was empty.

But that’s not the only proof, we also know he ressurrected because he spent the subsequent 40 days appearing to his disciples.

Not like a ghost or a spirit, or a figment of the imagination, but as a body that was once dead, now alive.

He ate with them. Sat with them. Walked with them. Let them touch him.

Paul said that more than 500 people saw him at one time.

He was ALIVE.

So what do we know about the Resurrection!?

That He Called His Shot. He predicted it.

That He Backed it Up. He actually arose.

But we also know that the Resurrection was for a Purpose.

Have you ever wondered, why was it necessary for Jesus to do all this?

Like why did he have to die? and why did He rise again?

Well, he had to die to pay for our sins.

God created mankind to be in relationship with Himself. But when Adam and Eve chose to obey their own desires as opposed to God’s commands, they sinned.

And sin forced a seperation between us and God. It broke our relationship.

and just as darkness must flee from light, we in our sin cannot be in relationship with a Holy God.

Sin is the Problem here. Sin has seperated us from God.

And no matter how much effort you apply, there is nothing you can do to bridge the gap created by your sin.

No matter how many good works you perform, or religious ceremonies you attend, or lawful responsibilities you fulfill… the gap is too great, you can’t breach it by your own effort.

That’s pretty grim eh? We are seperated from God.

But it gets much worse.

Not only does our sin seperate us from God, but it’s penalty is death.

Sin is a capital offense against a Holy God, with the consequence of death!

So we are seperated from God, and we deserve death.

But wait, it gets worse.

We also deserve God’s Righteous Wrath.

Sin angers God. He hates it.

And His wrath is reserved for what the Bible calls the sons of disobedience, or all people who have sinned.

And that’s really bad news, because every one of us here today has sinned. Every one of us!

And not only that , but sin is our primary operating system. It’s our programmed factory setting. It’s part of our nature, that drives and dictates our thoughts, attitudes, and actions.

I use this example a lot, but you see in kids right!

Like, why do we have to spend so much time teaching our kids to do what is right!? But one of my kids, smacking and kicking his brother or sister, is hardwired into His DNA!

Well, it’s because of sin!

So, sin seperates us from God, deserves death, deserves God’s wrath, and defines every single one of us.

Most of you didn’t expect to be so encouraged this morning did you?

But listen, its the BAD NEWS that paves the way for the GOOD NEWS

But the Good News of the Gospel is Romans 5:8 “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

That Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born a Son of Man, so that he could be our substitute.

That he could die in our place, paying the penalty of our sins, and reconciling us back to God overcoming the seperation.

On the cross, Jesus Christ absorbed the Righteous Wrath of God, so that the payment would be made in full.

And this is all by His Grace.

You had nothing to do with it. You didn’t earn this. You didn’t deserve this. It is a gift of God, that Jesus died for your sins.

But how do we know that His death was effective?

How do we know that his substitution, was satisfactory?

Or his sacrifice, was successful?

Well that answer is found in the Resurrection

You see, 1 Corinthians 15:17 “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.”

Jesus’ resurrection marked the Father’s satisfaction with the sons sacrifice.

His LIFE, guarantees a Newness of Life for all of us.

So before Christ died and rose, we were seperated from God, under his wrath, and deserving of death!

But now because he died and rose, We are reconciled back to God, under his favor, and recipients of a new life.

A fresh start. A clean slate!

That’s the purpose…

So what do we know about the Resurrection?

That He Called His Shot. He predicted it.

That He Backed it Up. He actually arose.

That he did it for a reason… Our Salvation.

But remember, Paul didn’t just want to know about… he wanted to know it experientially.

For some of you, you’ve heard all this before… but you’ve never known it experientially.

You’ve read the recipe, but never had a taste!

So how do we do that?

Knowing its Power

Philippians 3:10 “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection,

We love power. It can be the smallest most insignificant things, but it doesn’t take much to cause a power trip does it.

Elect somebody to an HOA board, and you’ll see what I mean.

Or when my 5 year old grabs the remote control, and I mean it changes her entire demeanor.

We love power. We all want power, and we read this and go… YEA God I want the power!

So how do I get it, well you got to keep reading.

Philippians 3:10 “that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death,”

Paul says… you want to know, to experience, the power of the resurrection… you gotta die!

Hang on Paul, I wanted to get off at the last stop. I don’t know about all this.

But here’s the reality.

You can’t know the power of the resurrection, until you have first of all , known the crucifixion.

Jesus had to die first. Then he was resurrected.

And the same is for us. The resurrected life always follows the crucified life.

ANd unfortunately, many of you have never experienced the power of the resurrection, because you’ve constantly rejected the need for a crucifixion.

Now, don’t misunderstand me. I’m not talking about a physical death. Christ’s death was physical, but ours is not.

Like, don’t leave here today thinking… man what a weird cult. They wanted me to physically die!

No, no no, listen I know we’re weird, but we’re not that weird.

No, Christ’s death was physical, but ours is not.

Instead its a death by association. A death by union.

It’s simply, by faith, believing and accepting that JESUS’s death was in fact in your place.

Acknowledging, and accepting His Death as the death you deserved.

So when you stand before God the Father, and he’s considering granting you entrance into eternity, but before he opens the gates somebody asks, “Well have you paid your dues?”

Have you paid the penalty for your sins, that barred you from here in the 1st place?

You answer, well no… and yes.

“I didn’t die, but Jesus died for me, and through faith I died with Him”

And God looks upon Jesus’ death in your place, and is satifified!

We by faith, accept his death as our own.

So we have been united with Christ in His death.

And then Romans 6 says, “if you have been united with him in a death like his by faith, then we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.”

If you are crucified with Christ, you then get the power of the ressurection of Christ!

But to your utter shame, so many of you never taste this power, because you don’t think you needed Jesus to die for you.

You think you’re good all by yourself.

You think you can handle yourself, so you’re just going to attend church, be a really good person, do some really good things, and you trust that somehow that will be enough and God will have to accept you.

You’re trusting in yourself!

But there’s nothing you can do to bridge that gap.

So believe in Christ, and once you embrace that crucifixion you get the Resurrection!

And what is that power?

Well it is eternal. Meaning when a Christian dies, he actually goes on living for all of eternity.

But this morning I’d like to focus on the poewr for today.

And that’s the power over sin!

A frequent question that gets asked in my home, is if you had any superpower, what would it be?

And we tend to get the big 3:

SuperSpeed

The power of flight

And my 3 year old wrecking ball, always wants superstrength.

And those powers would be pretty cool, but you know what we all need…

The power over sin.

I mean right?

You want to be able to run at the speed of light cool. But why don’t we start with the power to simply let your yes’s be yes, and follow through on your commitments?

Or how about the power to finally break free from pornogaphy?

Or the power to not worry what anybody else things, because you’re toally secure in who God’s made you to be?

Or what about the power to repond to your kids with grace and kindness, instead of pulling a Pastor Andrew and just screaming, ENOUGH!?

We all want the power of flight, but if we were honest real power is the power to control and keep at bay sinful tendencies, impulses, and actions.

Well church listen, that’s the power of the Resurrection!

Romans 6:4 “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

Romans 6:6 “We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.”

This is what the Power of the Resurrection does!

He sets us free from our bondage to sin, so that we are no longer controlled by it but by the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

And if you become like Him in His death, then you too can experience that power.

He can take your lust and give you puirty,

He can take your anger, and give you peace.

He can take your insecurity, and make you secure.

He can take your lies, and instil truth.

He can take your greed, and give you contement.

He can take your pride, and give you humility.

And church… that’s POWER. The Power to take what was once dead, and make it newly alive.

And Paul didn’t just know about that power, he knew it experientially!

In a single moment, when he died with Christ, Paul went from murderer to martyr.

From killing Christians, to serving Christians.

He was radically changed, and transfomred. And what could have ever produced in him such a change… nothing but the power of the Resurrection.

Do you know it? Have you experienced it?

If not, may I encourage you to give up your life to faith in Christ, and then you can know that power for yourself!

The power is here now, available today.

Conclusion

This is why the church of Jesus Christ, Christians, dress in bright colors, matching rompers, and sing upbeat hopefilled songs… because Easter is a Celebration.

It’s a day to remember all that Christ did, and all that Christ accomplished.

He died because we were seperated, under wrath, and deserving of death.

He raised so we could be reconciled, under favor, and expereience a new life.

Oh the power of Jesus Christ, may you know it. Not just know about it, but know it personally.

Let me pray.