But Did He Really?

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This story is the most important part of our faith.

1 Corinthians 15:17–19 HCSB

And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Therefore, those who have fallen asleep in Christ have also perished. If we have put our hope in Christ for this life only, we should be pitied more than anyone.

1 Corinthians 15:

So we have to believe in this. If we don’t, the rest of it just doesn’t matter! If Jesus didn’t come back, then all we have in Christianity is a story that helps us to be nice. This must be true and we must believe, and then Scripture tells us we have much more than a story to help us be nice. We have eternal hope for joy! That’s where we’ll start tonight, with this hope.

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Jesus’ resurrection means our reward is secure, and we can feel secure because the resurrection really happened!

Jesus arose because God is satisfied.

We have hope for our eternity because Jesus rose from the dead.

You know in movies and TV shows there’s a scene that happens a lot. There are two people and they like each other, but can’t get it to work. They’re standing in the street and they decide together it’s just not meant to be and they’re not too upset and they turn and walk away. What do they do when they’re walking away?… Or if the guy was at her house, he looks back to see if what?… Why do they do this? Because if she’s looking, that means there is hope! The resurrection is kind of like the Christian’s girl in the window watching you walk away. Maybe you can think about Jesus looking around the corner of the tomb, watching his followers walk away! Only this isn’t like a “maybe one day it’ll work out” kind of hope, it’s a sure thing, we know it’s good, rest easy kind of hope.

Jesus was resurrected from the dead and this is the sign that our salvation is sure and true. That our reward is definite. That God is pleased with us and his wrath against our sin is finished.

Romans 4:25 HCSB

He was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.

Romans 4:25

It is the guarantee of our new life.

Ephesians 2:6 HCSB

Together with Christ Jesus He also raised us up and seated us in the heavens,

By raising Christ from the dead, God the Father was in effect saying that he approved of Christ’s work of suffering and dying for our sins, that his work was completed, and that Christ no longer had any need to remain dead. –Wayne Grudem

Jesus’ resurrection also assures us that we will be resurrected and receive a glorified body like his.

In Paul begins by showing that Jesus truly was raised from the dead, and he wraps up the chapter by saying that as a result He will one day come back for us and we will be raised like Him and he says this about it...

1 Corinthians 15:53–57 HCSB

For this corruptible must be clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal must be clothed with immortality. When this corruptible is clothed with incorruptibility, and this mortal is clothed with immortality, then the saying that is written will take place: Death has been swallowed up in victory. Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting? Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!

:53-57

So then, how do we respond in this life knowing this hope we have for the next life? Paul tells us that in

Colossians 3:1–4 HCSB

So if you have been raised with the Messiah, seek what is above, where the Messiah is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on what is above, not on what is on the earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with the Messiah in God. When the Messiah, who is your life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.

Colossians

But all this hinges on the resurrection being true! So how do we know? There’s nothing we can point to that proves it beyond a shadow of doubt, but we have lots of evidence. It’s clear the body was gone from the tomb. Otherwise, the whole thing could’ve been put out pretty quickly! So why was the tomb empty?

The tomb was empty cause He walked out!

It’s clear the body was gone. Otherwise, the whole thing could’ve been put out pretty quickly!

I had a lot of trouble with Algebra in school. I usually understood it and knew what to do, but I kept getting bad grades on my tests. I knew the formulas… But I kept getting bad grades! I’d look over my work to figure out what I was messing up; “ok this is the formula, get the square root of that, get that exponent, and then 10x5=15. This is all right, what’s the deal!? Oh wait, I see it! I see what I did there!” This one small thing is incorrect, so the whole thing is incorrect.

It has to be true that Jesus came back to life from death. But non-Christians have all sorts of reasons they give to not believe.

How do we know people didn’t just think they saw Jesus?

Could they have imagined it?

Seems unlikely that everyone did...

Especially for Saul to have imagined it.

Did they just steal his body and make it up?

Is this the pre-qual to Weekend at Bernie’s?

His apostles didn’t really seem to be expecting his resurrection, so why would think of it?

Could they really have pulled this plan off so quickly?

Could they have stolen his body when it was under the watch of Roman guards?

There were others before Jesus who claimed to be the Messiah, yet we have no record of any of these people coming back from the dead, because there wasn’t much expectation for it because the Jews didn’t understand that this was supposed to happen for the most part.

Most of all, if they had made it up, would so many of them have really been willing to die for it?

One more thing, when you’re coming up with a lie to tell, do you leave your story open or do you try to think of all the details so you have an answer for every question?

Also, the first people to see Jesus alive were the women. This wouldn’t have been a smart move in their culture.

Ok, well maybe Jesus wasn’t really dead then?

He got stabbed in the side and blood and water poured out.

Also, Christianity spread at a crazy pace. People believed this.

Paul in talks about 500 people who saw Jesus resurrected. Almost inviting you to go ask them about it.

Also, the way the Gospels are written doesn’t support a made up story. They would likely match up more closely, details all in tact.

Maybe you haven’t bought into the resurrection before, but tonight God has let you see that it is indeed true and you believe. Tonight can be the night that you are saved!

Romans 10:9–10 HCSB

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.

Being able to explain why you believe in the resurrection is important. People will challenge you. You need to have evidence for yourself and to give to others. This is called apologetics.