Resurrection
This morning. We are continuing. Yes, it's Resurrection Sunday know this isn't going to break us out of the series that we've been in we've been looking in the Gospel of Luke. I'd encourage you to pick up your Bible and turn to Luke chapter 24, if you don't have a Bible with you, that's not a problem. There's one under the seat in front of you or in front of your neighbor one of the to look around for him, but turn to Luke chapter 24 because that's where we're going to be. But as we continue this series here on Resurrection Sunday, you need to understand kind of what the the theme has been as we've been looking at the Gospel of Luke over the last several months as a church. We've been looking at its particular Lee the disciples and some of the struggles that they had in following Jesus and we've recognized that a lot of the struggles that we have in following. Jesus are nothing new as a matter of fact, there's something that Jesus's followers have always dealt with this a Confusion sometimes that we have they had the same doubts that we had. Sometimes they had and they persevered and Christ showed himself to them. And that is our hope I did as we persevere even as we struggle but we follow Jesus together that Jesus would show himself to us because as we come to Resurrection Sunday, what are the things that I feel like we ought to do is deal with the resurrection No, I'm not terribly original nor am I terribly creative? But the resurrection spark some questions in our mine and if we're honest it may even spark some different reactions in the good news. Is that the reactions that the Resurrection the news of the fact that Jesus has risen that news to the disciples spark some different reactions. Now what are some of the reactions that you might have expected at the resurrection? If you were with us last week, we talked about the crucifixion and in Luke chapter 23, if if I get really particularly boring today and take some time to read Luke 23 and and just see the crucifixion scene and we looked at last week. How as you go through this scene is Jesus's being nailed to the cross as he is lifted up as he is suffering and dying. The one group that does not get mentioned by name or the disciples. And the crucifixion was really a struggle for the disciples. And so when it comes then to Resurrection Sunday, what is the response that you expect? From them. What is it that you think you're going to see from the disciples?
Would you expect to see worship? Have we worshipped today? I hope so. We understand that worship is more than music, but could you blame the disciples if in Luke chapter 24 we read that Jesus has risen from the dead and they break out into song. Could you blame them? We used music to express our worship a lot of time. So worship might be something that we would expect as a reaction to the resurrection from the disciples. Maybe just even even those might be stretched silent, but in all maybe they would just be awestruck at the fact that Jesus was alive now one thing and I don't want to offend anybody one thing that we know for certain the disciples did not react to the resurrection by is dressing up.
It wasn't like there. Jesus is resurrected. Like oh snap. Let me go grab my tie. No offense to those of you were wearing ties. I left eyes on you, not me. All right.
These are different ways that we react to the resurrection. So we assume that the disciples must have reacted the same way and yet when we look at Loop 24, that's not how they reacted. The number one thing that we see in Luke 24 the reaction of the disciples. doubt
doubt was their reaction.
That's surprising to anyone. It struck me again this week as I was reading this passage. How strange is it that these disciples reacted in doubt? And yet in the moments of honesty with ourselves. In the moments where if it was just you and me standing here in the room and not all of your faces looking at me. We can look at one another and say, you know, the resurrection is kind of hard for me to believe.
We're in good company. Because that's where the disciples were. And what we need to understand from Luke 24 is that our doubts are answered in Christ. Our doubts are answered in the resurrection, but maybe not in the way that you think because when I have doubt when I doubt some aspect of the Gospel visiting, but normally I'm like what if If somebody would just show up who was there. All right, if I could just talk to an eyewitness. Aurora's God would you somehow give me a special sense a special feeling about the resurrection or even better if Jesus would just show up and sit down with me and talk then I would not doubt the resurrection and yet strangely enough. You know what we see in Luke 24 an eyewitness account and the disciples responses doubt
Right when it has to do with that special feeling that some of them get and yet they don't find that to be certainty it'll find that to be proof of the resurrection of Jesus himself shows up and you know how they react. doubt your doubt is nothing new. Your doubt is not something that Jesus is surprised by. But today I hope that we find some answers for it. I hope that we can find some certainty there. Look at Luke chapter 24 with me. And we're going to read a significant chunk of this passage. And what I'm asking you to do is to give your attention to the word either on the screen in front of you or if you're like one of those auditory Learners, then you can just listen to me. As long as you promise not to fall asleep. Let's focus on the story the resurrection of Christ. Let's get this even though it's a long passage. Let's stick through its and expand our attention spans for a bit.
Chapter 24 verse one, but on the first day of the week at early Dawn they went to the tomb taking the spices they had prepared and they found the stone rolled away from the tune. But when they went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus while they were perplexed about this behold two men stood by them and dazzling apparel and as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground the men said to them. Why do you seek the living among the dead he is not here, but he is risen remember how we told you while you were still at while he was still in Galilee that the son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men to be crucified and on the third day rise, and they remember his words and returning from the tomb. They told all these things to the 11 in to all the rest now. It was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seem to them and idle tale and they did not believe them, but Peter Rose and ran to the tomb stooping and looking in he saw Linen clothes by themselves and he went home marveling at what it happens that very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus about 7 miles from Jerusalem and they were talking with each other about these things that it happened while we were talking and disgusting together Jesus himself Drew near and went with them, but their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them what is this conversation that you were holding with each other as you walk and they stood still looking sad then one of them named cleophus answered him. Are you the only visit Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened here in these days and he said to them what things and they said to him concerning Jesus of Nazareth a man who was a prophet Mighty indeed and before God and all the people and how are chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death and crucified him. But we had hope that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this it is now the third day since these things happened more over some women of our company amazed us they were at the tomb early in the morning and when they did not find his body they came back saying that they had even seen the vision of angels who said that he was alive some of those who are with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see and he said to them o foolish ones. Play Slow of heart to believe all the profits of spoken was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory and beginning with Moses and all the prophets. He interpreted to them all the things in scripture concerning himself. So they were going and he acted as if he were going on farther, but they urged him strongly sang stay with us for it is towards evening in the day is now far spent he went in to stay with them when he was at table with him. He took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them and their eyes were opened and they recognized him and he vanished from their site. They said to each other did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road while you open to us the scriptures and a rose that same hour and return to Jerusalem and they found me 11 and those who were with them gathered together saying the Lord has risen indeed and has appeared to Simon then they told what happened on the road and how he was none too damn in the breaking of the bread. As they were talking about these things Jesus himself stood among them and said to them peace to you, but they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit and he said then why are you troubled? Why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet that it is I myself touch me and see for a spirit does not have Flesh and Bones as you see that I have and when he had said that he showed them his hands and feet and while they still disbelieve for joy and were marveling. He said to them have you anything here to eat? They gave him a piece of broiled fish and he took it and ate before then then he said to them. These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you that everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets in the Psalms must be fulfilled. Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures and said to them that it is written that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead.
amen churches as you as you ponder that can I pray for us?
Lord, thank you. for the resurrection Thank you for the life that you gave your son Jesus Christ. That forms the sound basis of our faith in Our Hope. And our joy in our worship. father we doubt like the 12 doubt it. We doubt but Lord give us Grace to see the truth. Give us eyes to see and ears to hear in Minds to comprehend what it is that you reveal to us in your word. What you've shown Us in Jesus Christ, we ask this in Jesus name. Amen. Church did you did you catch that as we went through? Did you catch the fact that there were so many things that happens that the disciples saw that they heard opportunities for them to believe in the resurrection. And each time. They responded with doubt. Then I witness account right the women go to the tomb before they had prepared the spices for the burial but because it was late on the day of preparation, they weren't able to finish it. And so they had to go back on Sunday after the Sabbath to finish preparing Jesus's body for burial imagine. They're surprised of the women come lugging these baskets of spices to wrap the body in. And the only thing missing is the body.
That's a surprise imagine their surprise. Then when these angels show up and say why do you look for the living among the dead he's not here. He is risen just like he told you. Ended the same just like he told you applied to the disciples the women believe it they say yes, of course now, we understand what he was saying and they run back to the 12 disciples and they say hey Jesus isn't dead anymore. What is the text say was their response to the women and they thought these words and idle Tale? And eyewitness Account Now ladies, it's okay. If you take offense on behalf of your gender for these women who were not believed and guys shame on us. For not believing the women that God has placed in our lives. But we're in good company. The disciples didn't believe the women either. Just an idle Tale. You're making it up. Jesus is Alive. No way doubt. Disbelief. That's how they responded to an eyewitness account. If only we could talk to married in our doubts would be put aside. If only we could talk with Johanna surely we would no longer doubt the resurrection and yet that's exactly what the disciple stand they weren't convinced by an eyewitness account.
What's the deal with that? It was just an idle tale but they get a second chance write two of them. Do anyways, this is actually Luke is the only gospel that record this and it's probably my favorite Resurrection story, right? You got these two disciples clean up this and then one guy that's not named their walking to Emmaus and they're talking about these things in Jesus shows up and starts walking with them. Hey guys, we talked about Jesus that I love this story and yet as the disciples are walking and they're saying yeah, Jesus died, but now they're telling us he's not dead anymore. Jesus Will. That's what the scripture said.
And they're walking along and they're listening and they get to Emmaus and they're going in to eat and Jesus acts like he's going to go find us a while or stop this. Let's go to the store have a meal before you take off. And as Jesus breaks the bread. They recognized him and what did they say man? We knew something was happening on the road. Right? We we had this feeling as we were going down the road, but it didn't convince them did not our hearts burn within us, right. Didn't we have this feeling that something was different about this guy on the road and yet it didn't convince them that everything that Jesus taught them. Didn't convince them what Jesus told the women he told the disciples. They didn't believe it. Jesus shows them from the scripture and says, this is what I was talking about their hearts were burning and get that feeling didn't convince them.
Is this like us? Why didn't the disciples believe the women? Why didn't the two disciples on the road to Emmaus trust that feeling with in them?
Because I witnesses can lie.
And eyewitnesses can hallucinate and I minds are incredibly powerful and we can see what we want to see even if it's not the truth.
They didn't believe and eyewitness account because that was falsifiable the disciples on the road to Emmaus didn't trust their feeling. They didn't look for truth and how they felt why? Why don't we look for truth and how we feel? Why Don't We Trust our feelings to show us truth cuz they change all the time I could I can see clear pus turn into the other guy. Like didn't our hearts burn within us as we were going along the road. Yeah, but I thought it was their breakfast that we had.
Feelings are way too unstable for us to trust them to be a source of Truth for us. They change too frequently. So they didn't believe an eyewitness account because I witnesses can lie they could be hallucinating. They could be seeing what they want to see they didn't trust their feelings because feelings are way too fleeting and way to changing. and trust that but we say if Jesus showed up if Jesus showed up this morning first off you guys let him preach not me today. Second off. We would definitely believe that Jesus was risen, wouldn't we?
when we
would we It didn't convince the disciples right Luke. I'm going to lay all my cards on the table Luke's my favorite gospel this week. All right, because I love that little subtle ironies that he kind of pulls out in his in his narrative just walked with Jesus and and they come running back to Jerusalem. Right? What did they tell Jesus don't go on tonight? It's way too late for you to keep traveling and yet they run back the seven miles to Jerusalem to share what had just happened, right? This is before streetlights, right? This is before flashlights. This is in the Wilds of Canaan. And they're like we don't care about Bandits. We don't care about anything else. We got to go tell everybody. We saw Jesus they run through the nights to get back the seven miles to tell the people what they saying they come bursting in and they find out Simon beat him to the punch and Luke doesn't record it. But Simon had this encounter with Christ and he's told the other disciples about it. And then these guys show up and say we saw Jesus. And Jesus shows up in the midst of them and their first reaction is it's a ghost. Literally Simon and clampus and this other guy just said we Jesus is alive Jesus shows up and they're like, oh that can't be Jesus. It must be a spirit. I'm not so sure. Did if we saw Jesus it would convince us another gospel story is Jesus's teaching prior to his death prior to the crucifixion. He's teaching and he tells a story about a Man Poor Man Named Lazarus who dies and a rich man. Whose unnamed who dies? And these two die and the rich man goes to Hades and and Lazarus goes to be with Abraham and he's in comfort in the rich man's internment and the rich man says well as you can't do anything for me. Send Lazarus back. To my brothers. Tell them the truth in Jesus says something really interesting. He says if they don't believe Moses and the prophets, they won't believe it if a man rises from the dead.
If we don't believe Moses and the prophets, we won't believe that a man rose from the dead even if he stands in front of us. Even if he showed up this morning, I'm not convinced that all our doubts would go away. The disciples had Jesus standing in front of them and that did not convince them that he was raised bodily. They thought they were seeing a ghost. Church doubt is nothing new. Doubt is nothing new.
But is there a solution for the doubt does Jesus help his disciples overcome your doubt? You better believe he does these guys who in Luke 23 were too cowardly to even go and stand by the cross. We learned from John John that one of them kind of shuffled by the cross for a moment, but they were not willing to be identified with Jesus crucifixion day. And yet after Resurrection Day they were so convinced that Jesus was alive that every single one of them was willing to die for that truth. Even under the force of death. They said no, we believe Jesus is alive, but we just read and I witnessed didn't convince them of that the feeling they had didn't convince them of that. Jesus standing in front of them did not convince them. Of that instead what did convince them what convinced them is what I got to convince us.
First thing they were open to the truth. What did I said? They weren't open to the truth? Sometimes my my Southern Idaho act accent and throws you for a loop. There was actually a hard day at the end of that opened. They were open. This was an action performed on them. Right, if anybody should have been open to the truth of the Messiah would have been the guys who walked with him for three years to whom he said the son of man is going to be handed over to sinful man. He's going to be crucified is going to die is going to rise again. If anybody should have believed it should have been then they should have been open to that, but they weren't Know what the text says look at verse 31. It's not until their eyes were opened. Did they recognize him and then look later when Jesus shows up to the disciples? He opened their minds. The only way your doubts of the Resurrection will be overcome is if God himself opens your eyes to see the truth opens your minds to understand the truth that he is risen. Write this is a key theme throughout the Bible on our own left to our own devices. We don't want to believe in the resurrection. We don't want to believe in God. Do you know why we don't want to believe that because if there's a God who made everything and said this is how things ought to go.
We want to say no we want to go this way. God says no it goes this way we say no we go this way. We are Rebels at hearts. And so is God exist he gets to tell us how things go and we don't want that. And so our eyes are shut firmly. We don't want to open them. Our minds are closed against any possibility that the gospel would be true and that God would exist.
in Ephesians We're told that apart from Christ. Where dat? Before we can understand that Jesus is Alive. We have to recognise we're dead in our sins. We don't want. To believe in the resurrection believe that Jesus is Alive because we are not alive. And if Jesus is Alive and that says something bad about us. We're a stinking putrefying missed dead in our sins rebelling against God. The only thing that puts us in the frame of mind where we can even begin to believe in. The resurrection is god making us alive. We have to have dead Hearts resurrected is Ezekiel one of the Old Testament prophets. He says it's like this we walk around with hearts of stone. We walk around with hearts that don't want to acknowledge God in order for us to recognize what God has done through Christ death and Resurrection scripture says Ezekiel says, we have to have Newhart's we have to have the Heart of Stone taken out of our chest and heart of Flesh put in its place. You can't do that work on your own.
And even if Jesus stood in front of you today. If you wanted to continue in your unbelief, if you had not had got open your eyes are open your mind. You would not recognize the truth of the Resurrection you would continue and down. The first thing that I would encourage you to do if you want to believe in the resurrection. Is ask God to open your eyes. Ask God to open your mind.
But as GK Chesterton put it so well. The point of an open mind is to close it again on something solid like an open mouth. GK Chesterton was onto something we can't just be open-minded loosey-goosey like maybe Jesus rose from the dead. I'm open to the possibility that he did but I'm going to continue in doubt because I really don't want to acknowledge the fact that there's a God who hold me account for my actions a guy who tells me how my life got to go. So if we're open if our eyes are opening our mind is open by God's external work coming in and saying Eyes Open Heart heal life return. Where do we go from there? Because Jesus isn't standing in front of us the disciples on the road to Emmaus. Their eyes were open to the fact that Jesus was right in front of them. Write it what the eyes were open. They were convinced. Jesus is Alive.
They were ready. Yes. We don't have that option. But note what the disciples on the road to Emmaus said they didn't say. Wow, eyes are open and there's Jesus. They said Remember on the road when he was talking about the scriptures their eyes being open to the reality of the Resurrection cast their mind back to the reality of the scriptures that Jesus and spent seven miles teaching them about in the upper room when it when Jesus comes into the disciples, right? He opened their minds to something the truth of the scripture look back there. At verse 46 then he opened their minds to understand scriptures instead of them. Thus it is written that Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead.
Their eyes were opened their minds were opened to the truth of the scripture. Remember what I said about The Story of Lazarus and the rich man.
Lazarus and the rich man says just send somebody back from the dead send Lazarus back from the dead and he'll convince my brothers that they want to submit to God while they're breathing so they don't end up where I'm at. Jesus says they won't believe that somebody rose from the dead if they don't believe the scripture. Church the answer to your doubt is in your hands. Or under your seat or on the screen wherever it is that you've chosen to located at this morning. The scripture is where we go to have an answer to our doubts. That's what Jesus does to the disciples on the road to Emmaus. He says here's what the scripture says about the Christ he had to suffer he had to die and he would rise again. To the disciple who said ghost He says remember the scripture he points them back to the truth. Knowing Jesus says scripture. He's using that in a very particular way. He's talking about something very specific. He's talking about the tonight, right? If you're if you're if you speak Hebrew, that's what you would call it and kind of got to spit at the in there tonight. All that is it's just an abbreviation for the sections of the Old Testament the Torah the ridings the prophets, right? This is this is how they referred to what we would refer to today as the Old Testament Genesis to Malachi. Jesus points to that and he says study that if you want to know that I'm alive. Study Genesis to Malachi for truth. The truth that this is who I am and this is what had to happen.
We seem to think that an eyewitness a feeling or Jesus himself standing in front of us would get rid of our doubts. Jesus says, none of that would work. It didn't work for the disciples. But you do have the scripture you can go there. Now. How does the scripture do that? Well, first thing remember Jesus opens our eyes opens our mind, he does that work to where we actually want understand and once we want to understand we begin to search the text and you know, the amazing thing that you find in the Old Testament Jesus Never mentioned by name and yet on every single page of the Old Testament now, I told I told I teach CBI it's a release time class for some of our high school students at both of you and at Cedar I teach CVI and I told them something that I don't know that I've ever told you guys, but there was a time in my life where I desperately wanted the gospel to not be true. I desperately wanted a reason to disbelieve in the truth of the Resurrection because I recognize this puts a call on my life. If this is true, I have to respond. I have to make a decision and you can ask my wife. I'm just not very good at making decisions. I wanted out of that responsibility. But the thing the one thing I found answers that could explain away answers that could get me away from the truth of most everything but you know what I couldn't get away from the Old Testament written hundreds of years before Jesus was even born spoke of him in ways that were so clear. I could not ignore it. I could not explain it away. I could not escape the fact that there must be a God who is in control of the world if these prophets writing hundreds of years prior to the birth of Christ were able to record in precise detail the nature of his life his teaching his death and his resurrection if they could do that. God had to be true not only that but the gospel had that should be true. If Jesus was the only one who fulfilled these 300-plus prophecies. The gospel was true. And I had to decide what to do with that. All the doubt. I tried to create. God dispelled with the truth of the Old Testament lot of people want to want to point at the at the Bible and they want to say you can't trust what it says. Sure. The Bible says that Jesus was raised from the dead. Sure the Bible says that he's the Messiah will you'd expect that write his followers were so sad that he died that they just kind of made up this whole dying Messiah story. So that their lives would have been wasted for the last three and a half years so they can explain to their parents. Why there they quit their jobs and left and follow this itinerant guy.
Yeah rim of the disciples who were willing to die. For the truth of the Resurrection. I didn't just make this up out of thin air. They didn't even go back and change the Old Testament to fit what'd happened in the New Testament. Right? How many you guys are part of the Dead Sea Scrolls? Familiar with that the Dead Sea Scrolls is one of the most important historical archaeological finds of all time. One of the key pieces that was founded. The Dead Sea Scrolls were Scrolls that were left by a group called the s means. They were a group within Judaism and they had been recording the scriptures. They've been copying the scriptures and they preserve them and they set them in caves and these scratches were found back in the 60s. Okay, Nick done a ton of work biblical Scholars argue archaeologists have continued to do work with these Scrolls. One of the neatest things I found was a scroll of the book of Isaiah. How many of you guys know who Isaiah is one of the prophets? He's actually want to be really important prophets, right? You got the minor-league profits and he got the major league profits while Isaiah's like batting first in line up. Okay. He's one of the Major Prophets and one of the most important passages in Isaiah for us as Believers in Christ. The Messiah is Isaiah chapter 53
Isaiah 53 some people have said oh, well the early Christians just went and changed all the Jewish texts that were extant and they put Isaiah 53 in there. Well up until 1960 that could have been a highly far-fetched but possibly valid arguments because the earliest copy of the book of Isaiah that we had was from like 800 a d. Right. We didn't have anything earlier in the Dead Sea Scrolls. They found one that dates to 125 BC right so bcat right? We know what those mean. It's not before Christ and after death. It's before Christ. And anno domini or year of Our Lord, right? So bcat it's marked by Jesus and yet in 1:25 BC before Jesus was born before any of his followers walk the earth before they could have got to the text and monkeyed with it Isaiah 53 was there. I want you to turn the Isaiah 53 with me. The Resurrection Sunday surely we'd be staying in the New Testament know the Old Testament is what we're looking at pointing us to the reality of the Resurrection.
Isaiah 53
and this this is what the word of God says. Who has believed what he has heard from us to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? He grew up before him like a young plant in like a root out of dry ground. He had no for Majesty that we should look at him. No beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by Men A Man of Sorrows acquainted with grief as one from whom men hide their faces. He was despised and we esteemed him. Not surely. He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows yet. We esteemed him stricken Smitten by God and Afflicted but he was wounded for our transgressions. He was crushed for our iniquities upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace and with his stripes we are healed. We all like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way and the lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and he was afflicted yet. He opened not his mouth like a land that is led to the slaughter like a sheep that before its shares is silence. So he opened not his mouth by Preston and judgment. He was taken away and asked for his generation who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living stricken for the transgression of my people. They made his grave with the Wicked with the rich man in his death. Although he had done no violence and there was no deceit in his mouth yet. It was the will of the Lord to crush him. He has put him to grief when is soil makes an offering for Guilt. He shall see his offspring he shall prolong his days the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand out of the anguish of his soul. He shall see and be satisfied by his knowledge. Shall the righteous one my servant make mini to be accounted righteous. He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide him a portion with the men. And he shall divide the spoil with the strong because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors yet. He bore the sin of many and makes intercession for the transgressors. Now we don't have time. Well we have time but you guys wouldn't give me enough time.
I love you Robert.
There is so many points of connection between Isaiah 53 and the life of Christ beating. pierced no deceit in his mouth. Dying to Bear the iniquity of his people at the will of his father Jesus in the garden praise father. If it be your will take this cup from me yet not my will but thy will be done the will of the Lord to crush him. And yes. He shall see his offspring. He shall prolong his days after he makes an offering for Guilt. He shall see again after he dies bearing transgressions yet. This one that Isaiah is talking about with live again and see the fruit of his labor and See Redemption come to his people. This one who was crushed would be given the victors spoils. This one who died would see again the light of day Isaiah 53 written 100 leave the earliest copy. We have was written 125 years before Jesus walk the earth.
God said he was going to do this. God did it. And if we continue in doubt, it is not because God has not answered that doubt. It's because we want to We have eyewitness accounts. We have the feeling we have Jesus himself standing at the right hand of the Throne of God.
But he says more than that, you've got the scriptures written hundreds of years before testifying with this is how we were going to do things. Church Easter is nothing new. Doubting the resurrection is nothing new I get a kick out of I like to read books by guys who were trying to disprove the resurrection. It seems like every year around Easter a new book comes out from some wannabe scholar whose leg will here's why you know, the Christian just made it up and they were all willing to die because they got rich off of it. Not how that worked out. Actually, I've read the stories. I like reading those books.
You know, why not trying to disprove the resurrection anymore. But there's this small part of me admittedly. Probably not entirely Godly. But likes to laugh at the attempts that we will make us humans. To deny. What is the plain truth of God? Jesus is risen. He didn't just rise. To be a good example for us Heroes to transform our lives through his grace Heroes demonstrating the fact that he is now the king Sovereign over all creation Heroes to be the Lord and Master of his people to church until the day when God would bring all things into subjection under his feet Heroes to be the Conquering Hero to receive the victors spoils. The choice I'm convinced. The choice is not did the resurrection happen or not. An honest look at the fax says Jesus Is Not Dead. An honest look at the timeline of scripture says all of these prophecies being fulfilled in Christ the possibility that that would happen is astronomical mathematically don't ask me about math, but it just couldn't happen. The Jesus would fulfill all these by accident. It has to be true. The choice is not did the resurrection happen. The choice is Am I going to let the resurrection to find the decisions that I make from here on out? Am I going to submit to what God has done in Christ? Rhyme I going to continue in Rebellion is God going to say this is how I fought to go and I'm going to continue to say no we're going the other way.
The resurrection is reality. My question to you on this Resurrection Sunday. Is do you believe that? If you do your life looks different walking out of this place. If you do the entire trajectory of your eternity is changed quite literally forever.
if you don't
you are closing your eyes and closing your mind to a truth that stands witnessed by people who were transformed by eyes, but more than that by scripture God revealing himself to us across the years across the centuries. And culminating with the revelation of Jesus Christ as the Messiah if you don't believe that here's my challenge to you.
On the back of your bulletin there's my number. My name is Brandon if I didn't introduce myself and we haven't met yet. Max Brannon my numbers on the back there. If you don't believe in the resurrection, I would love to have you call me or text me sometime this week. Let's sit down and you tell me why you don't believe Let's sit down and you can explain to me just how painfully diluted and simple-minded I am. Which is an admitted truth again, you can ask my wife.
But not about this. I am convinced Jesus rose from the dead because God has opened my mind to the truth of the scripture. He will do the same for you if you honestly want it. Question is do you call me text me this week. I would love to get to sit down and talk with you Church. Let's pray.