The Reality of the Resurrection
Notes
Transcript
Doxology:
This is my Bible. It is God’s Holy Word. It is a lamp unto my feet, a light unto my path, and I will hide its words within my heart, that I might not sin against God. Amen!
Scripture Reference: Luke 24: 1-8
Context
Context
Happy Easter everyone! Easter is my favorite Holiday, and the Easter season is my favorite time of the year. It is a time in which we celebrate victory… Victory over Satan, victory over sin, and victory over the separation of man from God. All things are reconciled to God in Christ and that is only possible through the Resurrection. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ is the pinnacle of the Christian faith.
Paul put it like this in 1 Corinthians 15:13-19
13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen.
14 And if Christ is not risen, then our preaching is empty and your faith is also empty.
15 Yes, and we are found false witnesses of God, because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ, whom He did not raise up—if in fact the dead do not rise.
16 For if the dead do not rise, then Christ is not risen.
17 And if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins!
18 Then also those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.
19 If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable.
The entire Christian faith hinges on the reality of the resurrection. As Apostle Paul stated, if Jesus did not come out of that grave, then everything is for naught. Without the resurrection, we are yet in our sins without any hope of redemption. Without the resurrection, we are compelled to continue in sin, and therefore remain separated from God for all eternity.
But if Jesus did come back to life and walk out of that tomb on the third day, it changes everything. And according to the Gospels, that is exactly what happened:
1 Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared.
2 But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb.
3 Then they went in and did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.
4 And it happened, as they were greatly perplexed about this, that behold, two men stood by them in shining garments.
5 Then, as they were afraid and bowed their faces to the earth, they said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead?
6 He is not here, but is risen! Remember how He spoke to you when He was still in Galilee,
7 saying, ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again.’ ”
8 And they remembered His words.
So He IS Risen!!! He did come out of the grave. He is alive!
And because He is alive, we do have hope; we can experience peace; we can be redeemed.
But what exactly does that look like for us? What impact does the resurrection have on us and how do we experience that?
That is what I want to focus on today. As I kept reading this text, I couldn’t get away from that question that the angel asked those women… “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen!”
These women came sorrowful that morning expecting to find a lifeless body, but what they found was an empty tomb. Their countenance was determined by their understanding of the situation, not by reality. Once they understood the reality of the Resurrection, it changed everything.
That’s what I want to speak to you about today: The Reality of The Resurrection
Content
Content
It Is Our Proof
It Is Our Proof
The Resurrection serves as the proof of Christianity.
1 Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb.
2 And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it.
3 His countenance was like lightning, and his clothing as white as snow.
4 And the guards shook for fear of him, and became like dead men.
5 But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.
6 He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay.
Notice that the angel invites them in. “Come, see the place where the Lord lay”, he said. Come see for yourselves that He is no longer here.
They were able to enter the tomb, see it empty, see the graveclothes that His body was wrapped in lying there neatly and folded.
Not only were they able to see for themselves that the tomb was empty, but they were also told by this angelic being that He has risen from the dead. Notice that in vs. 3, it says that his countenance was like lightning. I am not sure how to visualize that in my mind, but whatever it means, it was obvious this angel was no mere human. There was no confusion to be had concerning that this being was otherworldly.
He also said in Matthew 28.7
7 And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.”
Jesus is going to meet up with them in Galilee, and He does just that:
16 Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them.
17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted.
So the disciples see Jesus again, after the resurrection. It tells us that some of them doubted whether or not it was Jesus, but we see in Luke that Jesus casts aside all doubts:
37 But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit.
38 And He said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts?
39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.”
40 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet.
41 But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have you any food here?”
42 So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb.
43 And He took it and ate in their presence.
So Jesus proves that He is not a spirit, or a ghost, by showing them His hands and feet, telling them to touch His flesh and bone, and even eating food before them.
Lastly, we are told by Paul in 1 Corinthians that He was seen by over 500 witnesses after His resurrection:
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,
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…
It is one thing for a small group to band together and stick to a story, but for a group of over 500 people to do so is unheard of. Someone would have talked, or told the secret to a buddy and the whole thing would have been debunked. Furthermore, the majority of these individuals were martyred for their faith in Jesus as the Christ and the story remained the same even unto death for every single one of them. Many might be compelled to tell a lie for some benefit, but when one’s life is on the line, lies tend to go our the window and things get real clear… real quick.
This was no lie… this was no scheme. Jesus is alive and well. Jesus came back from the grave. His resurrection serves as the proof of my beliefs.
There are many… many different beliefs throughout the world concerning who God is, what God is, where God is, etc. I don’t have to wonder whether I am serving the one true God or not, I have the proof. None of the other gods took on human flesh, succumbed themselves to the trials and temptations of mortal men, suffered the punishment that my sins deserve, looked down on me being the guilty party who put Him on the cross and begged God to forgive me for my ignorance, died in my place, and then rose again from the grave three days later.
Only Jesus has those credentials.
The reality of the resurrection is the proof of Christianity.
It Is Our Promise
It Is Our Promise
The reality of the resurrection is our proof, but it is also our promise.
20 But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.
When it says that Christ “has become the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep”, it means that He was the first. It means that there will be more to follow. Those who have fallen asleep refers to those who have died and gone on before us. Within this verse is a built-in promise that those who placed their faith in Christ will follow suit with Christ in that they will too experience resurrection.
13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.
15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
Paul says that we are to take comfort in these words. We are to take comfort in the reality of the resurrection, that it serves as a promise to all of those who have believed in His name. One day, we will receive a glorified body, just as He did.
Paul explains to us in some detail what this body might be like in 1 Cor 15:50-53
50 Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption inherit incorruption.
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—
52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
This fleshly body of sin simply isn’t suited for the Kingdom of God. We must take on a new body, a resurrected body, a transformed body. It will be a body suited for the overwhelming light of God which will light the Kingdom. It will be a body suited to dwell in His absolute holiness, which no man has been able to stand in yet. It will be a body free from the temptation or desire of sin but will rather be filled to the brim with the radiance of His glory.
That is why Paul continues to write saying:
54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
55 “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?”
56 The sting of death is sin, and the strength of sin is the law.
57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
That is what we celebrate on Easter! The reality of the resurrection is that we are promised victory in Jesus! We can have victory over sin now and for all eternity in Jesus Christ our Savior!
This is the verse I leave you with today:
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.
26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?”
Commitment
Commitment
