Easter Sunday: This Glorious Gospel

John 3:16–17 KJV 1900

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

Easter Sunday: This Glorious Gospel

What is your favorite Easter tradition?

TRUTH ABOUT GOD

God loved us so much that He gave Himself for us.

TRUTH FOR MY LIFE

I will receive, believe, and respond to Jesus’ gift of salvation for me.

LESSON CONNECTION

There is a story in Bedford County, Virginia, who have to contend with a roving array of treasure hunters.

The scavengers descend on the national forest to pursue the promise of a fabled treasure.

Legend has it that in the 1820s Virginian Thomas Jefferson Beale went west with other adventurers and found thousands of pounds of gold, silver, and gems he then buried back home in Bedford County.

Beale left coded messages describing the contents of the treasure and its location, and in 1885 those papers were published.

Over the years, many have tried to decode the Beale Papers and find the treasure.

One woman dug up a church cemetery in a failed attempt.

Others have attempted digs believing God would lead them to the treasure.

An officer of Jefferson National Forest recounts accompanying a man convinced of the specific location of the treasure.

The hunter rented a tractor with a front-end loader and carefully began strategic digs.

After spending the day digging fifteen feet deep, he sank to the ground with tears pouring from his cheeks as he stared at an empty hole in the earth.

Empty things hold no value!

Imagine going to your bank safe-deposit box or to your home safe to obtain your valuables only to find it is empty.

Opening our favorite box of cereal to find that someone has left one-sixteenth of a cup of cereal in the box and put the nearly empty box back in the pantry.

Most empty things have no value.

But the gospel is unlike anything else in this life because it centers around an empty tomb.

And the empty tomb is of incomparable value because it testifies that Jesus Christ has risen from the grave under His own power.

Because of Jesus’ resurrection, we can know and experience the priceless wonder of hope.

I. JESUS’ CONVERSATION WITH NICODEMUS

Early in Jesus’ ministry, He agreed to have a private conversation with a ruler named Nicodemus.

They met at night because Nicodemus, being a Pharisee, did not want to be caught seeking an audience with Jesus.

The Jewish leaders despised Jesus, and Nicodemus knew they may despise him as well if he was seen with Jesus.

But Nicodemus risked his reputation because he was hungry to know more about this miracle man.

Nicodemus starts the conversation by telling Jesus he understood that Jesus was from God because of the miracles He had performed. (See John 3:2.)

A. Jesus’ Example of Love

Nicodemus was not the only one amazed and puzzled by Jesus.

Everyone who saw what Jesus did and heard what He said was in awe of the marvels Jesus wrought.

But the miracles were not the only reason Jesus came to us.

He revealed His true mission to Nicodemus by sharing this most beloved Scripture text:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).

Nicodemus knew Jesus had come from God, but he did not fully grasp that God had come in flesh as Jesus.

This is God’s great love on display in the Gospels.

He could have come with fanfare; rather, He chose to come as a baby, wrapped in swaddling clothes.

As one of us, exampling sacrifice and divine desire to connect with us!

We sing and celebrate this truth every December, but this truth rings true all year, every year.

God came in human flesh.

Jesus explained to Nicodemus that He did not come into the world to condemn it but to save it.

B. Jesus Foreshadowed His Death

In this late night conversation, Jesus hints at His own death as early as John 3 - explaining He would have to die so others could live.

He even hinted as to how He would have to die: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up” (John 3:14).

Jesus knew Nicodemus studied Moses’ law closely; He alluded to over a thousand years earlier (Num 21) when the children of Israel were attacked by serpents as judgment for their sin.

God instructed them to make a bronze serpent and lift it up on a pole so everyone who had been bitten could look on the brazen statue and not die.

Jesus parallel that story to Himself concerning the day He would be lifted on a cross and everyone who looked to Him for salvation would be saved.

C. We MUST Believe in Jesus’ Love for Me

The love of Jesus is without end.

No one can know the height or depth or width or breadth of it.

“in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

Some people find it difficult to allow themselves to be loved.

Some have not had a good experience with “love.”

Love can be confusing…

Love is sometimes a noun and sometimes a verb.

Throughout history, the word love has held varying degrees of significance.

It has ranged from deep affection and loyalty to casual connection with everyday objects.

We love our families and spouses.

We love our churches and great worship music.

We also love ice cream, books, dogs, and the beach.

Whatever the case, the concept of love has become so widely and frequently used that we rarely think about its depth.

Some have never experienced an unconditional love, yet because of this glorious gospel, we all can.

What does unconditional love look like to you?

Jesus shows us unconditional love.

He does not throw us away when we make a mistake.

He stands waiting for us, even if we walk away.

His love never fails.

We can count on it; we can believe in it; we can embrace it without hesitation.

II. JESUS’ DEATH AND BURIAL

A. Jesus Was Crucified

The day Jesus hinted at has arrived.

Although He never condemned anyone, lied on anyone, cheated anyone, stole from anyone, did anything hateful to anyone, or even judged anyone unjustly for his or her sin, the mob still wanted Him crucified.

When they were asked what He did to deserve such a heinous death, not one of His accusers could come up with an honest answer.

Not even Pilate could find fault in Him, and Pilate was handsomely paid to convict and condemn criminals.

Jesus suffered a great injustice: He was falsely accused.

Can you share an experience where you were accused falsely?

False accusation is its own kind of cruelty, but imagine if the penalty of that false accusation was not just a fine or jail time—imagine if it was death.

He was humiliated, lied on, and scandalized, forced to carry the cross up Calvary’s hill.

He was bloodied and bruised where the Romans waylaid Him with their fists and their whips.

Still Jesus allowed the man whose hands He created to use those hands to nail Jesus to a cross.

Some of the most telling words of Jesus were spoken on the cross when He prayed: “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34).

B. Jesus Was Buried

After Jesus breathed His last, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate to give him Jesus’ body.

Pilate agreed and Joseph took Jesus’ bruised body to prepare it for burial.

Then Nicodemus—yes, the same Nicodemus who was worried about his reputation in John 3—showed up in John 19 with a mixture of myrrh and aloes to anoint Jesus’ body according to Jewish burial custom.

We can assume Nicodemus was at the Crucifixion. He had spent his money ahead of time to pay for all the balms with which he would anoint the body of God in human flesh.

What must Nicodemus have felt as he wrapped the body of Jesus, remembering the night Jesus spoke to him?

Did Nicodemus then understand what Jesus meant when He said He would be lifted up just like the serpent in Moses’ day was lifted up?

C. I Will Praise Jesus for His Sacrifice

Nicodemus surely wept as he anointed the body that was broken for us all.

Jesus wanted nothing more than to love us, heal us, and restore us, yet we crucified Him.

He came to redeem us unto Himself.

That is why He came in flesh to lay down His life to pay the penalty for our sins.

Normally, when someone pays such a high price, the beneficiary wants to pay the person back in some measure.

But how could we possibly pay Jesus back for what He paid for us?

What do you think when you realize we don’t have anything to offer Jesus to repay Him?

What do you feel when you realize He doesn’t ask us to repay Him?

III. JESUS’ RESURRECTION

A. Jesus Resurrected from the Grave

No one truly expected what happened next.

Mary Magdalene came to the tomb, but Jesus’ buried body was not there.

She ran to tell Peter and John, and they ran to the tomb to see for themselves.

John recorded that he outran Peter to the tomb.

Jesus had told them He would rise from the grave, but they did not believe or understand. Luke recorded Jesus’ prophecy of Himself:

For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: and they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. (Luke 18:32–33)

The tomb is still empty today!

Unlike a safe-deposit box or a safe, the tomb is only valuable because it is empty.

B. I Will Respond to This Glorious Gospel

Peter and John left the tomb, but Mary stayed a little longer.

Soon she saw angels sitting in the tomb. Then Jesus Himself appeared to her, alive and rather well, but she thought He was the gardener.

Then He called her by name. She could hear the tenderness in His voice as she heard the risen Jesus say, “Mary.”

In that seminal moment, we see the Lion of Judah who just conquered death, Hell, and the grave.

At the same time, we see the Lamb of God who knows us and calls us by name.

And we have hope in a good, gracious God who has power over the tyrannical reign of death and the grave.

Jesus is the omnipotent one. This story teaches us that Jesus will do exactly as He promised.

He has proven Himself tried, true, trustworthy, and alive forevermore.

Others saw Jesus after His resurrection, but they did not recognize Him either. Why?

Perhaps they were blinded by the impossible thought that Jesus could rise from the dead under His own power, especially after such a brutal beating and public crucifixion.

Surely, Jesus could not come back to life after all He had suffered.

Or did they just go on their way to the next current event in the news even after hearing that Jesus had risen because it was too good to be true?

We cannot just go on our way after hearing this glorious gospel.

We will be judged by the Word of God.

And the Word of God centers on this glorious gospel: this good news that Jesus died, was buried, and rose from the grave.

Once we’ve heard this glorious gospel, we must respond to what Jesus has done for us.

We cannot afford to ignore it or just rush off to the next appointment in our calendar.

By our actions, we either receive this truth or reject it. Jesus laid down His life so we could live.

Our response is our responsibility.

Conclusion: Internalizing the Message

Let us make Jesus’ story our story.

He died for us, He was buried, and He rose from the grave.

The way we make His story our story is to die out to our sin through repentance

We identify with His burial by being baptized in water in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of our sins

Just as He rose, we rise to new life in Christ when we receive His Holy Spirit

Jesus’ sacrifice of love is the greatest gift we could ever receive.

If we have everything in this world except the gospel of Jesus Christ, we are poor.

But if we have nothing in this world except the gospel of Jesus Christ, and we have allowed the gospel to change our lives, we are immeasurably rich.

Nicodemus was.

Certainly, so were the 120 followers who followed Jesus’ instructions to go to Jerusalem and wait until they were endued with power from on high.

Acts 2 tells us they prayed and waited for ten days, and suddenly, a sound like the blowing of a mighty wind came from Heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting.

They saw what appeared to be tongues of fire rest on each of them.

And all 120 of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. (See Acts 2:1–4.)

The Spirit of Almighty God filled them all.

That same day, three thousand more became part of the first church, allowing God’s great gift to change their lives—all through this glorious gospel.

By making Jesus’ sacrifice personal, our way of living shifts drastically.

We walk with more confidence.

We love others deeper.

We believe what Jesus says about us, and our love for Him and for others grows.

Our worship deepens.

We become better disciples of Jesus.

On this Resurrection Sunday, we are reminded of the newness of life available to us, and that newness of life is available to all humanity.

God does not want anyone to perish but for every one of us to come to repentance. (See II Peter 3:9.)

Let us allow the love of God that is shed abroad in our hearts to help us love our neighbors enough to share this glorious gospel with them.

The power of the Resurrection should compel us to extend love and forgiveness to others just as Jesus extended love and forgiveness to us.

Thank God for His goodness.

Thank God for His grace.

Thank God for this glorious gospel.

Jesus died for us so that we may live for him!