Radical Resurrection

Introduction

I grew up in the 1980s. I still think of it as a great decade. One of my favorite words to use when I was in those impressionable years was the word, “radical.” “That’s rad man.” It was one of the popular slang terms that we used along with “awesome”, “cool”, etc… As these things go, this particular word, “radical” left the popular vernacular. It wasn’t in style anymore I guess. People largely stopped using it and moved on to other means of expressing awesomeness. But I remember several years later when I was in college. I had been listening to a particular punk rock band a lot and I remember that their lead singer in an interview or at some point used the word, “rad”. I was intrigued because remember, I liked it a lot. So, I figured it was kind of punk rock and counter pop culture so I brought it back into my vocabulary. You may still occasionally catch me saying it. The thing is, we used that word, as many of the others, in ways that really didn’t match up with the definition of the word or at least not to the degree the true definition would go. In using it in a common way, we were essentially redefining it. But today I want to recapture the actual definition of the word “radical.”

According to dictionary.com, the first definition of radical is: (adjective) (especially of change or action) relating to or affecting the fundamental nature of something; far-reaching or thorough.

Example: A radical overhaul of an existing framework.

A radical event is an event that takes the normal or usual way a system works and upsets the apple cart…just flips it on it’s head. IF something is truly radical, it instantly changes everything. The single event in history that has brought about the most extreme change in the world is without a doubt, the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. In one instant on one morning, nothing would ever be the same again! Let’s read about it in the book of John, chapter 9, beginning in verse 38.

John 19:38–20:31 ESV

38 After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body. 39 Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. 40 So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. 41 Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. 42 So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there. 1 Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. 2 So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” 3 So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going toward the tomb. 4 Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. 8 Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; 9 for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead. 10 Then the disciples went back to their homes. 11 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb. 12 And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. 13 They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” 14 Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. 15 Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” 16 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). 17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” 18 Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”—and that he had said these things to her. 19 On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 20 When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” 22 And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” 24 Now Thomas, one of the twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. 25 So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” 26 Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” 27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” 30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Pray

My goal this morning is to break down the various scenes in the passage so we understand what is happening, pointing to the changes happening to people along the way, but then to point to the radical changes that have taken place because of the resurrection of Jesus and how it changed things for us as well. Would you pray with me that we would see the Lord clearly in His Word this morning?

I. Jesus was buried.

Joseph of Arimathea - the text tells us he was a secret disciple of Jesus because he feared the Jews. Scripture tells us that he was a member of the Sanhedrin. He got permission from Pilate to take Jesus’s body after He was crucified. Nicodemus came as well. If you’ll remember John 3, Nicodemus had previously come to Jesus at night. Now he comes to prepare Jesus’ body for burial. These two men were putting their reputations on the line and outing themselves as followers of Jesus. This seems to be a pretty big change for these two guys. From secret follower to asking for Jesus’ body and preparing it for burial.

This was a costly burial. They took the body to a garden tomb that no one had ever laid in. Generally speaking, the wealthy were the only ones who could afford a new tomb. This fulfills

Isaiah 53:9 ESV

9 And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth.

So we see a change in the attitudes of these two men.

We see a change in the way Jesus was treated. From hung on the cross and executed with common criminals and denied to being cared for and prepared for burial in a rich man’s tomb.

These are small changes. They are aftershocks of the major happenings here.

II. The resurrected Lord Jesus appears to His followers. (v.1-10)

Mary Magdeline goes to the tomb and finds the stone rolled away. She fears that someone has taken Jesus’ body. She tells Peter and another disciple who we understand to be John who is writing this account. These two guys head out for the tomb. They were running together but the other disciple runs ahead of Peter and gets there first. He stoops and looks in but waits for Peter before entering the tomb. Peter arrives and enters the tomb first.

Note is made of the burial clothes. Now you can find different ideas about what this means that have varied amounts of scholarship to them. Let’s look at another resurrection recorded in scripture. Let’s go back to John 11 when Jesus raised his friend Lazarus from the dead.

John 11:38–44 ESV

38 Then Jesus, deeply moved again, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. 39 Jesus said, “Take away the stone.” Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” 40 Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” 41 So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that you sent me.” 43 When he had said these things, he cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out.” 44 The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

What I want you to pay attention to is that when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, he came out with the grave clothes still on. But Jesus had left His grave clothes there in the tomb. This is an interesting contrast. Note in verse 44 of chapter 11. Jesus told them to unwrap Lazarus. Lazarus was raised by the power of God. He was raised by Jesus. So was Jesus. Lazarus was unable to remove the garb of death from himself but Jesus was all powerful in the resurrection. Remember that Jesus is sovereign over this entire event.

v. 8 (saw and believed)

v. 9 They didn’t understand the Scripture that He must rise from the dead

John doesn’t fully understand it but he believes. You don’t have to know all of the answers to every question and you can still count the cost of following Jesus and believe that He is God, that He died in your place for your sins, and He is risen from the dead, and if you trust Him alone you will be saved. You don’t have to have everything figured out first. Yes, there are basic things about the gospel that you need to understand and be able to articulate.

I am very interested in doctrinal precision. I think it’s important. But when you are new to the faith, you shouldn’t think you have to know everything. And here’s a little secret… the people who have been Christians for many years…they don’t know everything either. They have learned more and experienced more over their years probably but if anyone tells you they have God completely figured out, you’re going to probably want to keep your distance from that guy. So we must keep studying but we should believe and take God at His word even though we don’t know how it all works. One pastor I served with said not to discount something just because you’re not smart enough to figure out how it works

Peter and John head back to where they were staying. In the next section, verses 11-18, we are back with Mary and she’s out side the tomb crying. 2 angels appear and ask her why she’s crying.

She still thinks that someone has taken the body. Then Jesus appears to her but she thinks he’s the gardener. He asks her why she is crying and who she is seeking. She wants to know where he has put the body. Jesus says her name and she recognizes Him. This reminded me of

John 10:27 ESV

27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.

She calls him Rabboni which we are told means, teacher.

Jesus gives her a mission. He tells her to go tell His brothers, meaning the disciples.

John 20:17 ESV

17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ”

Don’t remain complacent here. Don’t just keep this but go and tell the others. Even here, Jesus is sending someone out to spread the good news of the resurrection.

She obey’s and tells the others.

Again we transition scenes and the disciples have locked themselves up together because they are afraid of the Jews. Makes sense. The Jews killed their master, their teacher, and leader. Jesus comes and stands among them. No mere doors can keep Jesus away from His followers. If He wants to get to you, He will. Two times he speaks peace. Imagine the emotions welling up inside of the disciples. He had been dead. And now here He was among them behind locked doors. They rejoiced at seeing Him. I’m sure it was a lot to take in.

In verse 21 we have the giving of a mission to the disciples.

In verse 22 we see the basis for the authority given to the church to declare sins forgiven or retained. This is not to be thought of as power to individuals but rather, the authority to reveal on Earth what was already determined in Heaven.

In verse 23 we find out that Thomas wasn’t there. This is where the name, Doubting Thomas comes from if you didn’t know. He wanted to lay eyes and hands on Jesus before he would believe that he had been raised. I don’t know if you caught this but a week passes between this interaction and when Thomas actually gets to see Jesus. The Lord, in His goodness and patience and perfect sovereign plan, let Thomas sit in his unbelief for a bit.

This time, the doors are locked again and Jesus appears before them in His resurrected body. Thomas touches and believes. But let’s look at what Jesus says in verse 29.

John 20:29 ESV

29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Those who have not seen and yet believe… We have eyewitness accounts. Right here in the Gospel of John we have John’s eyewitness account of what happened. We aren’t seeing these things for ourselves but are called to believe the Word of the Lord. Those who believe, are blessed. They get to know God.

III. The Mission of John’s Gospel (verse 30-31)

John 20:30–31 ESV

30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Chapter 20 ends with a declaration of why John is writing these things.

That we may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God

And that by believing we would have life in His name.

The importance of the resurrection to our faith was an emphasis of the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians 15.

1 Corinthians 15:12–22 ESV

12 Now if Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. 20 But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. 21 For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. 22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.

It is key and it changes EVERYTHING.

The resurrection changes EVERYTHING!

IV. Radical changes that we see taking place in this passage.

If you’ll recall earlier I pointed out some of the aftershocks of this event… changes but not the type I’m talking about.

Some of these are:

the changed attitudes of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus

the change in the way Jesus was treated

the change in the tomb from full to empty

the change in John when he looks into the tomb and believes

the change in Mary Magdeline from weeping to rejoicing

I also want to take a look at two radical changes that we see taking place in this chapter and how they affect our lives as Christ followers.

1. A radical change in the power of death.

Death is disarmed. No power over us.

Hebrews 2:15 ESV

15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.

Our priorities should reflect Jesus’s victory over death.

Colossians 3:1–2 ESV

1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.

The things we concern ourselves with are different because Christ has been raised from the dead. We serve a living God. Every other religious leader in the world gets put in the ground and stays when they die but our God died on our behalf and lives!!! This separates Christianity from all other world religions and philosophies. Because of this, our way of ordering our lives is different.

The reasons we prioritize certain things in life change.

How we think and act toward our personal times of worship in the Word change. If Christ be raised, we are free to live for His order in life.

Worship with the body of Christ becomes a priority for us over the things of the world.

How we spend our time and how we spend our money and how we use our talents. Because the power of death has no hold on us we are free to live as servants of God.

Carter and Wredburg point out that this is why Christianity and materialism cannot peacefully coexist.

- Christianity is giving up the stuff of this life (not clinging to it) to pursue happiness in Jesus, not stuff.

- We are not bound anymore to death. It has no claim on us. No hold on us. We are free to live for what lasts instead of what is temporary. Start living like it! Stop living like the dead and live like the blood bought family of the resurrected Lord.

2. A radical change in the position of the disciples.

The second radical change is in the position of the disciples.

Look back when Jesus tells Mary to go and inform them of his resurrection.

John 20:17 ESV

17 Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ”

He calls them His brothers. This is the only time in John’s Gospel that Jesus refers to them in this way.

they are no longer cut off from God by the power of sin

they are no longer considered enemies of God

they are no longer dead in their sin

They are NOW family members of God.

Jesus had given Himself as a sacrifice for their sin and his raising from the dead was a sign that the Father in Heaven had accepted that sacrifice as atonement. This brings them into a new family where God is their Father and Jesus is their brother. This is amazing!

And the same thing is true for us, if we have trusted in Christ alone by faith alone.

John 1:12–13 ESV

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

When we place our trust in Jesus’ completed work on the cross for our salvation and His resurrection from the dead, so many amazing promises become ours because of our new position as children of God.

The promise of inheritance

The promise of love

The promise of acceptance

Conclusion: (Musicians)

Question for you:

How has your life changed because of your belief in the resurrection of Jesus?

Do you believe the gospel?

God - Holy

Sin - Everyone is a sinner. ALL.

Separation

Jesus - the God-man. Perfect life. Willing death. Perfect sacrifice. Substitute.

Believe, repent

Trust - chair illustration?

Would you say, yes I am a Christian but there’s times in my life that I lose sight of the glorious promises we have because we serve a risen Lord? Are you priorities in life out of whack because sin and world have crept in and you’ve given in. Repent. Turn from your sin and run to Jesus. He will reorder your life.

Will today mark the beginning of a radical change in your life?

Pray