Restoration Through Resurrection

Welcome 

Good afternoon. Happy Resurrection Sunday! It is a glorious day for Christians across most of the world and it is a day worth being excited about. 

Thank you to all of you for joining us this afternoon, we are glad you are here. And to those joining us online, happy resurrection Sunday to you and thank you as well for joining. 

Introduction 

What I want to talk with you about this afternoon is on the theme of restoration. There’s no greater source of restoration than the resurrection of Jesus that took place 2000 years ago. That moment didn’t just change the course of human history—it can change the course of every person’s story. 

The big idea that I want you to take with you today is that the resurrection of Jesus brings restoration to what sin has broken, affected.  

No matter what area of your life that is affected by sin, whether it’s the sin in the world, the sin within you, or the sin done to you—restoration is possible because Jesus rose from the dead.  

Many years ago God made a promise of restoration to the nation of ancient Israel in Isaiah 61. On the heels of the promise was an initial promise of judgment. Judgment because Israel as a nation had deserted God and followed after their own personal agendas and desires.  

But if you know anything about the God of the bible then you know he does not leave his people in their mess, he flies to their rescue.  

In Isaiah 61, God gave the prophet Isaiah a prophecy that there will come a day of restoration to the nation of Israel. And years later, that prophecy would be temporarily fulfilled. Israel would be restored back to the land they had lost, their temple would be rebuilt but it was not the same. It was not the grand restoration they had envisioned from Isaiah 61.  

Many years after this temporary fulfillment, Jesus arrived on the scene.  

And one day early in his ministry he went back to his hometown of Nazareth. You know that feeling when you go back home? Whether home is your country of origin or the home you grew up in. It is usually a feeling of nostalgia.  

But Jesus had no feelings of nostalgia. He was on a mission. Luke 4 tells us He went into the synagogue and a scroll of Isaiah was given to him. A scroll was their bible. He opened the scroll and found Isaiah 61. He read it and proclaimed in the presence of all that were present, “Today as you listen, this Scripture has been fulfilled.” 

The ultimate fulfillment of the promised restoration of Isaiah 61 comes through Jesus and it is not only for Israel but for the whole world, for all who would place their faith in him.  

Whether you have been a Christian for a while or you have yet to believe, I want you to know today that restoration in all areas of your life is possible because Jesus left an empty grave behind.  

In Isaiah 61:1-3, we will see four truths about the resurrection of Jesus. Because of the resurrection of Jesus, hope is restored, freedom is restored, protective grace is restored, and your story is restored.  

If you have your bible with you, open to Isaiah 61:1-3. We’ll read and I’ll pray asking for God’s blessing on the preaching of his word. 

Hope Restored - Not Defined by Your Circumstance - 61:1a 

About a year ago, I was on the phone with a young lady who told me with tears in her eyes and her voice quaking with sadness, “God can’t accept me because I’m too broken.”  

She was overwhelmed by the decisions she’s made and has come to define herself by her mistakes. 

Maybe you’ve been there too. And you might have wandered what could Jesus want with me?

The first truth I want us to see about the resurrection in Isaiah 61 is that Jesus came from those who hurt and don’t feel good enough.

Isaiah 61 opened with the words “the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor and he has sent me to heal the brokenhearted.”  

The word for poor here is not merely those with no money, it’s a word that speaks to the affliction of the soul. Those whom life has humbled. When you’ve been humbled by life and you feel broken, hope for change is often missing.

You might feel hopeless because you don’t see a way out, you might feel hopeless because you feel alone.  

Your brokenness is so pervasive that that it has come to define who you are. And Jesus is the last person you feel worthy of.

I want you to know that Jesus came to bring good news to the afflicted and healing to those who feel broken. The good news that you are not alone in your affliction.

The good news that there is a savior who died for your brokenness so that you can be restored.

The resurrection of Jesus means there is hope in your circumstance and you are not defined by it.

Hope is alive and present because Jesus died and rose.  

Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:3, “according to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” 

In his death, he took on the shame, guilt, and pain of the world so that those who believe in him would experience a healing that cuts deep to their soul. A healing the frees them from their brokenness.

You might feel broken and afflicted because of the decisions you’ve made, you might feel broken and afflicted because life keeps hitting you hard, and you’re tired of trying to bounce back, you might feel broken and afflicted because of what has been done to you, I want you to know that you can look to the empty tomb and find hope that you can be healed, that you are not alone, that there is a savior who died to call you his friend.  

You don’t need to make more money to cover your brokenness, you don’t need to keep yourself busy to ignore your brokenness, you don’t need to keep the status quo to accept you are your brokenness, you just need to cling to Jesus.

That young lady has since clung to Jesus with a renewed hope that she can be healed.  

You’re not defined by your circumstance. Hope is restored in the resurrection of Jesus.

But Jesus didn’t just come to bring hope to the brokenhearted—He came to set the captives free. Let’s look at the second truth, freedom restored.

Freedom Restored - Not Enslaved to Your Circumstance - 61:1b 

I remember during a period in my college years, I would open my laptop and do a google search for inappropriate content. I wanted to stop but felt enslaved to it. I remember during those same years a female friend who wanted to stop having relations with her partner but felt powerless.  

Maybe you’ve had some seasons in your life where you felt captive by your sins. Maybe you’re in that season right now. You feel powerless and imprisoned.

I want you to know that because of the resurrection of Jesus, you can be free.

The end of verse 1 says the anointed one has been sent to “proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners.”  

A literal reading of that verse is “to proclaim liberty to those held captive and freedom to those imprisoned.” It communicates that something has got a hold on you.  

It’s an awful feeling to feel enslaved. You can try many things to try to break free but the only freedom that last is the freedom bought by Jesus on cross.

Because Jesus died and rose, liberty and freedom can be yours. You don’t have to be enslaved to your circumstance - your sins, the sins of your family, or the sins done to you. You’ve don’t have to be enslaved to your emotions, to your achievements, to financial success, or to people’s opinions.

The resurrection of Jesus gives you freedom because Jesus defeated sin at the cross and broke its power over your life. You are free and free indeed!  

Jesus said in John 8:36 “If the Son sets you free, you really will be free.” 

Freedom is knowing your value and dignity comes from who God has made you to be, it comes from what Jesus has done on the cross. Freedom is knowing you are not powerless to resist engaging in destructive behaviors that only pleases the enemy. Freedom is knowing there is forgiveness because of the cross.

You are not a slave to your sins, you are not a slave to your family’s curse, you have the power to overcome because Jesus rose from the dead and overcame on your behalf.  

I overcame and so did my friend.  

If your faith is in Jesus, Freedom is restored in the resurrection of Jesus. 

Not only is hope and freedom restored, but protective grace is restored. Here’s the third truth about the resurrection.

Protective Grace Restored - Not Helpless in Your Circumstance - 61:2a-3a 

Some of you know that it took 6 years before Modesta was able to be pregnant with our first baby and 8 years before we were able to have our first-born child. 8 years of waiting. 8 years of sometimes feeling helpless.  

You might know what that’s like.

Some of you have been waiting for God to show up in your circumstance, some of you have experienced unjust and unfair treatment from others and you wonder where justice is.  

I want you to know that because Jesus rose, protective grace is restored.

Isaiah 61:2-3, says that the Anointed One has been sent to “proclaim the Lord’s favor, His vengeance, and to comfort those who mourn.” 

Protective grace means God is not only actively looking out for you—He is also standing guard over you. His grace moves toward you with favor, and it surrounds you with protection. He fights for you while He comforts you.  

The resurrection of Jesus means those who place their faith in him are not helpless in your circumstance.

I know sometimes it doesn’t feel like it, but Jesus has your back, and his eyes have not left you. Your waiting is not in vain. Justice will not be forgotten.  

God will stand up for you—if not now, then surely when Christ returns in glory.  

The resurrection of Jesus gives us complete confidence that God’s vengeance will become a reality. We can be rest assured that God will fight for us against those who act wickedly toward us

The greatest favor of the Lord that we could experience is the favor of his redemption. You know we don’t deserve this redemption. It’s a something we can earn. But Jesus rose from the dead, we get to experience the favor of God’s redemption in our life.

The Lord’s favor goes beyond redemption though; it includes his concerns for our daily necessities.  

It is why we end each service with the prayer “May the Lord look upon you with favor.” Because of the resurrection we can live with full confidence that the favor of the Lord is upon us. If he died to bestow his redemptive grace on us, how much more will we experience the grace of him meeting our needs?  

The resurrection does not mean we get everything we desire but it means we can be confident that God has not neglected us and is aware of our needs. He is present to comfort us in a way only he can. His protective grace is yours.  

The Apostle Paul wrote to the Corinthian Church that “God comforts us in all our affliction.”  And that’s possible because of the resurrection.

Modes and I had 8 years of waiting but it was also 8 years of feeling the comfort of Jesus.  

You’re not helpless in your circumstance. Protective grace is restored because of the resurrection of Jesus.  

Story Restored - Not Stuck in Your Circumstance - 61:3b 

When God restores hope, freedom, and grace, it’s never just for our comfort alone—it’s also to rewrite our story. That brings us to our final truth. Story restored.

No matter where you are today with God, you don’t have to live in shame, you don’t have to be at war with God, you don’t have to carry the un-healed hurt of your past with you, you don’t have to feel helpless and hopeless, you don’t have to feel trapped and unable to change, your story can be restored because Jesus defeated sin and death and rose from the grave.  

Isaiah ends by saying the Anointed one has been set to “exchange beauty for ashes, oil for mourning, and splendid clothes for despair.” 

Jesus changes stories and he can change yours. The grave didn’t hold him down so that your shame wouldn’t hold you down, so that mistakes wouldn’t hold you down, so that pain and suffering wouldn’t hold you down, so that your disappointments wouldn’t hold you down, so that your sins wouldn’t hold you down.  

Here’s the amazing part of following Jesus, when he changes your story, he gives you a renewed purpose, when he exchanges beauty for ashes, he gives you a renewed identity, a renewed value. 61:4 mentions how Israel after experiencing restoration is to be on mission rebuilding their temple and city walls.  

Verse 3 ends with being on mission to glorify God.

Jesus restores us to send us out to be a light. He restores us so that we can be on mission helping others experience the same restoration. He restores us so that he can work through us in his restoration of all things.  

Conclusion  

As we wrap up, don’t let this resurrection Sunday go by without making certain that you have experienced the restoration that comes through Jesus.  

If you have yet to place your faith in Jesus, this is an open invitation to experience a life of restoration. A life where hope, freedom, protective grace, and your story are all restored because Jesus rose from the dead.  

If you sense the Lord’s pulling on your heart to give up your story to him so that he can restore it, don’t resist.  

If you already placed your faith in Jesus but you’ve wandered. You’re not too far gone. Jesus wants you to experience his restoration today.

We don’t usually do altar calls but I would love to pray with you. If there’s an area in your life where you are desiring the restoration of Jesus, you can come forward or to stand in your seat. If you have wandered but would like to be restored back to what you once had with Jesus, I would love to pray for you. Jesus wants to restore you. He died and rose for that very purpose.  

For those who already believe in Jesus, be filled with joy and know that this restoration is already yours. Lean into Jesus and resist the lies of the enemy.  

The tomb is empty—so your hope doesn’t have to be.  Christ is alive—and so are you, if your trust is in Him.  This is the power of the resurrection:  You are not just forgiven. You are restored.