The Real Resurrection

OPENING PRAYER

Book of Common Prayer, Passover Lamb (adapted)

Heavenly Father,

It is truly right and good,

always and everywhere,

with our whole heart and mind and voice,

to praise You,

the invisible, almighty, and eternal God,

and Your only begotten Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

For He is the true Passover Lamb,

who at the feast of the Passover paid for us the debt of Adam's sin,

and by His blood delivered Your faithful people.

The same way that You brought children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt,

and led them through the Red Sea on dry ground,

and brought them into the Land promised to Your servant, Abraham;

You have brought us out of bondage to sin,

and adopted us as Your children,

and have promised to bring us into Your presence, forevermore.

How wonderful and beyond our knowing,

O God is Your mercy and loving-kindness to us,

that to redeem a slave, You gave a Son.

How holy are Your ways,

when through the cross of Your Son, our Savior,

wickedness is put to flight,

and sin is washed away.

It restores innocence to the fallen,

and joy to those who mourn.

It casts out pride and hatred,

and brings peace and unity,

to all who know Your Son.

May You be glorified this day,

and honored through our worship.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

INTRODUCTION

Good morning.

And what a Good...nay… GREAT morning it is!

As believers, we have had the opportunity this past week to be refreshed concerning the final week of Jesus’ life.

Through our reading of the biblical account, we were reminded of the pain and sorrow He experienced:

the short-lived acclaim during his entry to Jerusalem on Sunday

the betrayal by Judas on Wednesday, to sell him out for 30 pieces of silver

the agony as He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, while His disciples were unable to stay awake

the unlawful arrest and abandonment by His disciples

the unjust trial and flogging

the crucifixion and mockery while on the cross

Such a sobering time to reflect on the final days of Jesus.

Yet, we are also reminded in Isaiah 53:5 & 10, he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed… it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief.

Everything that took place this fateful week, 2,000 years ago, was the fulfillment of the ancient plan of God.

It was the will of God to crush Jesus for our benefit.

Jesus was the Passover Lamb of God, slain to bring deliverance from God’s judgment for our sin

2 Corinthians 5:21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Now as we come to today… Sunday of Holy Week… the focus shifts from a forlorn, downtrodden demeanor and mindset to one of victory!!

As the women came to the tomb in the morning, they were met by two men… in dazzling apparel, who said, Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen, (Luke 24:5-6).

That’s right!

This Jesus, crushed by God and rejected by men is not dead.

He is risen!

This proclamation introduces us to arguably the most important doctrine in all of Christianity: The Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The Apostle Paul makes clear the importance of this doctrine:

Read 1 Corinthians 15:12–19

No resurrection = no hope

OPPOSITION FROM FALSE TEACHERS

Last week, as we started digging into the second chapter of 2 Peter, we saw Peter’s clear warning to Beware Of Predatory False Teachers.

2 Peter 2:1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing upon themselves swift destruction.

The fact is, since the beginning of the Church, there have been battles over doctrine.

The question that Christians need to figure out is: which ones are essential?

Unfortunately, that is not the focus of today’s sermon except to say that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is an essential doctrine of the church that must not be compromised.

But wouldn’t you know that the Resurrection is a commonly attacked/ridiculed teaching throughout Church history.

Matthew 28:13 - chief priests & elders Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’

Acts 17:32 - Athenian philosophers Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked.

Modern example: Lee Strobel and The Case for Christ

ALTERNATIVE THEORIES ABOUT THE RESURRECTION

The Wrong Tomb Theory

According to this theory, during the dingy morning hours when the women returned to Jesus’ tomb to complete the burial procedures, they simply made a mistake. They went to the wrong tomb, found it empty, and concluded Jesus had risen from the grave.

The Fraud Theory

Jesus conspired with Joseph of Arimathea, Lazarus, and an anonymous young man to convince His disciples that He was the Messiah. He allegedly manipulated events to make it appear that He was the fulfillment of numerous prophecies. Regarding the resurrection, Jesus allegedly took some drugs and feigned death, but was revived later. Unfortunately, the crucifixion wounds ultimately proved fatal and He died. The plotters then stole and disposed of Jesus’ body, and the appearances of Christ were simply a case of mistaken identity.

The Swoon Theory

This interesting view says Jesus did not die on the cross but merely fainted from loss of blood and exhaustion. Later, He was revived by the coolness of the tomb and eventually made His way out.

The Heart Theory

Jesus was only resurrected in the heart of His friends

The Vision Theory

This says, in essence, that the early disciples were guilty of using some kind of primitive LSD

Each of these alternatives to the Resurrection account in the Bible are full of holes and can be decimated without much effort.

The bottom line in all of this is that people will believe anything as long as they don’t have to believe the truth.

FACTS ABOUT THE RESURRECTION

Fulfillment of Prophecy

Isaiah 46:9–10 I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose.’

Read 1 Corinthians 15:3-4

Romans 1:2 (speaking of the gospel) which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures

God is the only one capable of declaring long before an event takes place, that it is going to take place.

For hundreds of years, He sent prophets and gave clues about the coming Messiah

That Messiah was prophesied to die and rise again

Eyewitness Accounts

Read 1 Corinthians 15:5-8

2 Peter 1:16 For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

1 John 1:1–3 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ.

The claims made by the Apostles concerning the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus come from a place of having seen it take place.

Bart Ehrman (atheistic NT scholar):  It is undisputable that some of the followers of Jesus came to think that he had been raised from the dead, and that something had to have happened to make them think so.

Gary Habermas (Christian historian and philosopher):  It seems clear that the disciples were utterly persuaded that the risen Jesus had appeared to them.  The data are strong enough that this is granted by virtually all critical scholars.

The Receipt For Christ’s Sacrifice

Romans 1:1–4 Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.

The resurrection is effectively God’s stamp of approval on the message and atoning work of Jesus Christ.

If what He did on the cross was unsatisfactory, there would be no reason to raise Him from the dead.

1 John 2:1–2 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.

CONCLUSION

Jesus is the only founding figure of a major world religion who is claimed to be alive today.

Confucius… dead!

Buddha… dead!

Muhammad… dead!

Joseph Smith… dead!

Jesus Christ… alive!

Acts 17:30–31 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.

CLOSING PRAYER

Crucifixion and Resurrection, Valley of Vision (adapted)

O, LORD, we are amazed that You should become incarnate, be crucified, dead, and buried.

The tomb calls for our adoring wonder, for it is empty and You are risen;

the four gospels attest to it,

the eye witnesses prove it,

our hearts’ experience knows it.

It is our longing to die with You

that we may rise to new life,

for we wish to be as dead and buried to sin,

to selfishness,

to the world;

that we might not hear the voice of the tempter,

and might be delivered from his lusts.

O Lord, there is much ill about us - crucify it,

much flesh within us - mortify it.

Purge us from selfishness,

from the fear of man,

from the love of approval and affirmation,

from the shame of being thought old-fashioned and foolish,

from the desire to be educated and relevant.

Let us consider our old life as dead because of crucifixion,

and never feed it as a living thing.

Grant that we would stand with our dying Savior,

to be content to be rejected,

to be willing to take up unpopular truths,

and to hold fast despised teachings until death.

Help us to be resolute and Christ-centered.

Never let us wander from the path of obedience to Your will.

Strengthen us for the battles ahead.

Give us courage for all the trials, and grace for all the joys.

Help us to be holy, happy people,

free from every wrong desire,

from everything contrary to Your mind.

Grant us more and more of the resurrection life:

may it rule us,

may we walk in its power,

and be strengthened through its influence.

For Your glory we pray,

In the name of our Creator and Redeemer, Jesus Christ,

Amen.