It is Finished

He is Risen!!

Theme: He rolled the stone away and defeated death.....what does that mean tho?

Hey LFY! We are on the last week of our series “It is Finished” where we cover prominent events of Jesus’s final days on earth and the meaning of Easter why we celebrate it why it is so important to our faith. Let’s look to the timeline!

[Timeline Pic] - Passover Meal, Jesus Washes his Disciples Feet, Jesus identifies his betrayer (Judas), The Lords Supper Instituted

Jesus at Garden of Gesthemane, Betrayed By Judas and taken into custody

Peter Deines Jesus, Jesus taken to Romans, Jesus is beaten, whipped, and mocked and crucified

Saturday pharisees ask for a guard at Jesus’s tomb, his body is in the grave. Resurrection Sunday, the tomb is found empty, Jesus has Risen.

Let me tell you something there was a lot of things I was not able to cover, Jesus on a donkey, Peter cuts an ear off, so many details and things I was not able to get to but Hopefully this series propelled you to want to dive deeper into your bible and find out for yourself what happened - here is a reading Plan where you can read it!

Let’s continue our story, Jesus suffered, died on a cross for us, they confirmed his death by taking a spear to his side and took him off the cross to be placed into a tomb. So not buried, not thrown into a mass tomb where they would but the dead, but an unused tomb. And a few days later, this happened;

Mark 16:1–4 NIV

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?” But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away.

[Pic of the Stone]

That first Easter morning, when the women made their way to the tomb, they had just one question on their minds: “Who will roll away the stone for us?”  Depending on the type of stone used, it could weigh between 1-2 tons (2000-4000 pounds). This was a heavy stone. But They wanted to anoint their beloved Savior’s dead body. It would be their last act of love toward the one who showed them such love. But upon arrival of the tomb they found it empty. And the stone rolled away. Mary Magdelene says;

John 20:2 NIV

So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!”

Let me give some context real quick; Did you notice that they did not appear in our gospel reading? They are not going to the tomb to help the women remove the stone. No. They are all locked away in the upper room, afraid for their lives. No wonder the women were worried about who would roll away the stone for them – they couldn’t get the men to go to the tomb with them! But when Mary told them they sprung into action; They race to the tomb to investigate, they see the grave clothes on the ground in scripture it says

Peter and John Investigate (John 20:8-10)

John 20:8–10 NIV

Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.

So they saw his body was missing, who would take Jesus???? Mary stays behind and is mourning until;

John 20:11–18 NIV

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot. They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?” “They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus. He asked her, “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.” Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means “Teacher”). Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her.

AHHH JESUS IS ALIVE. So Mary just seen her JESUS, she races back to the disciples and tells them, their friend and Savior Jesus is alive! I can just imagine the mixed emotions the disciples felt, probably happy confused, probably remenising on all the miracles he did while they were with him. This is all amazing and what does it mean that Jesus is alive for us today. Here’s three points

He is who he says he is

What does this mean? Jesus- fully God and fully man, is really fully God and fully man. It says in John that he says “I and the Father are one” His death, dying on the cross that proves that he was a man but him being raised from the dead and rolling the stone away, it couldnt be anyone other than God himself. Can you imagine the people who put him to death? Like they thought he was balsphemous and then to hear that he is risen I’d be scared. If I was a pharisee I would be terrified. What’s crazy is that some people think of Jesus is only mentioned in the New Testament. But its not true, in Isaiah the prophet said this;

Isaiah 53:5 NIV

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed.

700 years before Jesus was physically on Earth this prophet foretold of him. But here’s my favorite place in scripture; Lets take it back all the way to Genesis where Adam and Eve First sinned God said this to the serpent who tempted them;

Genesis 3:15 NIV

And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.”

Jesus born of a virgin side swiped the enemy where he thought he killed THE MESSIAH BUT NAH he only struck his heal because Jesus came back to life HE DEFEATED DEATH HE DEFEATED THE GRAVE. God gave the enemy right there in the Garden a heads up. And isn’t it crazy that Jesus even told his disciples this

Luke 10:19 NIV

I have given you authority to trample on snakes and scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will harm you.

2. We Are Forgiven

In old testament times the only way to atone for our sins (Atone means to make ammends with) was by sacrificing a spotless lamb thats what they had to do but like we talked about in the first week Jesus, laid his life down willings, making a new covenant. Because Jesus rose from the dead, His sacrifice on the cross was complete and accepted by God. His resurrection is the receipt that proves our debt of sin was paid.

📖 “He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.” — Romans 4:25 (NIV)

You don’t have to live in guilt or shame anymore. If you believe in Jesus, your sin has been washed clean.

3. We Have New Life

Jesus didn’t just die for us — He rose to bring us into a new kind of life: full of purpose, hope, and connection to God.

📖 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!” — 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)

You’re not who you were. Because He lives, you can live differently — with peace, joy, and power. Easter is about an empty tomb, and so much more. It is about our risen Lord, with us always, rolling away the stones and obstacles in our lives. It is about God helping us to live our lives without fear, following our risen Savior wherever he leads us, and helping to usher in God’s reign. Easter means that there is no tomb that God cannot free us from. There is no stone that God cannot roll away. Regardless of how we got there, God doesn’t want us to stay there. God wants to free us from whatever it is that is keeping us from the new life in Christ that the miracle of Easter offers to us all. 

So, do not be afraid. Trust in God. Believe in God’s Son. Rejoice in God’s love for you. And do not worry about who will roll away the stone for you, whatever that stone may be. For Christ is risen. He is risen indeed. Alleluia!

4. Death Isn’t the End

Jesus’ resurrection proves that death doesn’t win. Death means eternal seperation, He conquered the grave, and now we have the promise of eternal life with Him.

“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die.” — John 11:25 (NIV)

This life isn’t all there is. Jesus gives us the hope of forever — where there’s no pain, no loss, just Him.

5. We’ve Been Given a Mission

The resurrection wasn’t just for us to celebrate — it was for us to share. Jesus called His followers to go make disciples, because the world needs to know He’s alive.

“Go and make disciples of all nations... And surely I am with you always.” — Matthew 28:19–20 (NIV)

We don’t just sit back — we step forward. He rose, so we rise up and go.

Salvation ResponseI don’t know why you came to Youth today, but my guess is it has something to do with the fact that you are looking for a change in life. I am here to tell you that real life begins with Jesus. People tell me all the time; “ I’m not sure if I can keep up the Christian way of life. I tell them; and I struggle to keep up my workout routine, but that doesn’t stop me from trying. The truth of the matter is this, Jesus is not looking for your perfection, He is looking for your surrender. You know, and I know, that life in your own hands is not working. God tells us this:Romans 10:9 NIVIf you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. I share this verse with us because this verse reminds us that our salvation is not based upon our ability to perform for Jesus, but His willingness to save us. Today, I want to lead you in a simple prayer of surrender to Jesus. If you are here in this room and want to ask Jesus the be the Lord and Savior of your life, raise your hand right now. Let’s pray this out loud, church, repeat after me.​“Heavenly Father, I trust You to save me through Your Son, Jesus.  Forgive me for all of my sins.  Make me brand new.  Because You died for me, I want to live for You.  Fill me with Your Spirit, so I could follow You.  Jesus, You’re now my Lord and the Savior of my life.  Take my life.  It is Yours.  In Jesus’ name, I pray.”