The Gospel of Mark: He is Risen ... He is Not Here!

Text: “As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed. 6 “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him.” (Mark 16:5–6, NIV)

Theme: The practical significance of the resurrection to the every-day life of the believer.

Date: 11/10/19 File name: GospelOfMark45.wpd ID Number: 96

Some years ago when Linda and I were in England we had the opportunity to visit Westminster Cathedral in London. It's the Cathedral where English royalty is wed and Kings and Queens coronated. It is also a place where many famous people are buried. In underground vaults beneath the floor of the church lies tomb after tomb. On each can be seen the words, "Here lieth the body of . . . " followed by the name of some noted general, artist, scholar, politician or clergyman.

How different it is at the tomb of Jesus. There you will not find a tombstone with the inscription, "Here lieth the body of Jesus of Nazereth." Instead we hear the words of the angel on Easter morning as our Lord's epitaph, "You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here.”

Those are the most remarkable words in the history of the world."The best news mankind has ever had came from a graveyard near Jerusalem."

In just a few weeks we will begin celebrating the incarnation. The incarnation would make no sense if it were not for the resurrection. Our Lord conquered death. He rose again. This was the culminating reason for the incarnation. It's something we celebrate every Sunday.

But in practical terms, what does the resurrection mean to us today?

I. THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS MAKES POSSIBLE THE PRESENCE OF CHRIST

1. the great mystery of the Gospel is "Christ in us"

a. out of His sovereign grace and divine mercy, God has chosen to indwell all those who call upon the name of His only begotten son

1) Paul writes in Colossians 1:27-28 that this mystery was hidden ... from generations, but now is made known to his saints . . . which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

b. the resurrection of our Lord guarantees the presence of Christ in the lives of believers

1) that presence is just as real as the presence of the person sitting next to you this evening

2. God has always desired a presence among His people

a. He frequently came to stroll with Adam and Eve in the Garden – in the cool of the day – before their fall

b. He regularly came and visited with Abraham in the form of an angel

c. He was with the exodus wanderers in the pillar of fire and the pillar of smoke

d. He was with His prophets through the still small voice

e. He was with the nation of Israel as the Shekinah glory in the temple at Jerusalem

f. He walked with His disciple in the presence of Jesus

3. what's the point?

A. GOD WANTS TO HAVE FELLOWSHIP WITH HIS SAINTS

1. our passage reveals that resurrection Sunday had come

a. Jesus was alive

b. the Disciples just didn’t know it

2. our texts tells us of our Lords appearances

a. Mary Magdalene had excitedly told the apostles that Jesus had appeared to her at the tomb

b. Peter and John had run to see the empty tomb, looked in and seen the discarded grave shroud

1) they did not know what to make of it

c. next, the two disciples who had seen Jesus on the road to Emmaus have hurriedly returned to report their experience

3. the burning question of the hour is: Could all these reports be true? Could the Master really be alive?

4. suddenly their question is answered – Jesus is in their presence!

a. Peace be with you! is his message

b. the disciples are at first terrified

1) at the very least they think they are hallucinating

2) at the very worst they think they are seeing a ghost

c. they are unbelieving and in shock until he shows them his nail-scared hands and sword-pierced side

5. what is the spiritual application?

a. Jesus desires fellowship with each one of us

ILLUS. Many denominations have the tradition of keeping a red light burning in the sanctuary which represents the eternal presence of Christ in his church.

b. the good news is that you don't have to come to church to experience the presence of Christ in your life

1) every Christian is the temple of the living God

“What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.”” (2 Corinthians 6:16, NIV)

2) we don’t need to have an ever-burning candle in the church, because Jesus – who is the light of life – indwells His Church—every true believer’s life

c. because Jesus is the resurrection and the life we can experience his presence and fellowship

6. The Resurrection of Jesus Makes Possible the Presence of Christ

II. THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS MAKES POSSIBLE THE PROGRAM OF GOD

Luke 24:44-48

1. what is the program of God?

2. Jesus makes it very clear in what we call The Great Commission

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”” (Matthew 28:19–20, NIV)

A. GOD GIVES US THE PRIVILEGE AND RESPONSIBILITY OF ACCOMPLISHING GOD'S PROGRAM

1. it's really a very simple plan

ILLUS. Some instructions are not simple! Years ago George Will was lamenting on the preponderance of verbiage it takes to Congress to explain a legislative bill these days. He compared the Affordable Health Care Act to the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. The ordinance created the Northwest Territory, the first organized territory of the United States, from lands beyond the Appalachian Mountains, between British Canada and the Great Lakes to the north and the Ohio River to the south. The upper Mississippi River formed the Territory's western boundary. It established the precedent by which the Federal government would be sovereign and expand westward across North America with the admission of new states. It’s a page and a-half in length verses the three-thousand pages of the Affordable Health Care Act.

a. God has made His “Kingdom plan of action” so simple that a child can understand it

1. 1st, the Christ has to suffer and die v. 46

a. man's sins had to be atoned for

b. only the Son of God could be the perfect and innocent sacrifice needed

2. 2nd, the Christ should rise again on the third day v. 46

a. it was not enough for Jesus to have victory over sin alone

b. God also decreed that death would loose its grip upon all those who put their faith in Jesus

3. 3rd, the gospel of repentance and forgiveness be preached in his name to all the world v. 47

a. no other message provides hope to the human soul like this message

1) God can and will fully and completely forgive our sin!

4. 4th, that we be the witnesses who do the proclaiming, v. 48

a. this is where you and I each come into the picture of God’s plan for this world

b. we are to be instruments in His hands for the evangelizing of the world

5. because Jesus is the resurrection and the life there is power in his name and God's program of world evangelization

ILLUS. In the middle of Red Square within the walls of the Kremlin there is a huge black marble mausoleum. It is the burial place of Lenin – leader of the Communist Revolution. Inside are the embalmed remains of Lenin lying within a crystal casket. On the casket are the words, "He was the greatest leader of all peoples, of all countries, of all times. He was the lord of the new humanity. He was the saviour of the world." Quite a boast! But decades after his death there is no power in the name of Lenin. Outside of Moscow, one of the fastest growing trash dumps is the one for old Lenin statues!

a. but, Praise God, there is still power in the name of Jesus!

6. The Resurrection of Jesus Makes Possible the Program of God

III. THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS MAKES POSSIBLE THE PROMISE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

““If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.” (John 14:15–17, NIV)

A. GOD DOES NOT RENEGE ON HIS PROMISES

1. in the prophecy of Joel, God promised to pour out His Spirit on all flesh

2. Jesus renewed that promise to his disciples

3. the Holy Spirit is the presence of Christ in us

a. the Holy Spirit is God's down payment in our life guaranteeing our final redemption

b. the Holy Spirit is the believer's power source for spiritual renewal

c. the Holy Spirit is our partner in prayer

d. the Holy Spirit is the revealer of Bible truth to us

4. The Resurrection of Jesus Makes Possible the Promise of the Holy Spirit

IV. THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS MAKES POSSIBLE THE PRAISE OF THE SAINTS

“Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. 53 And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.” (Luke 24:52–53, NIV)

A. CHRISTIANS NEEDS TO WORSHIP THE RISEN LORD

1. one of the real problems in the Body of Christ is that we often come to church for the wrong reason

a. it's not a new problem

ILLUS. One of the real problems of our time is the celebrity status of many preachers—particularly some of the mega-church pastors. Many of these men are virtually worshiped by their followers. I am reminded of an incident Lyman Beecher Stowe wrote about in his book Saints, Sinners, and Beechers. Stowe told that on one occasion Thomas K. Beecher substituted for his famous brother Henry Ward Beecher at the Plymouth Church in Brooklyn, New York. Many curiosity seekers had come to hear the renowned Henry Beecher speak. Therefore when Thomas Beecher appeared in the pulpit instead, some of the people got up and started for the doors. Sensing that they were disappointed because he was substituting for his brother, Thomas Beecher raised his hand for silence and announced, "All those who came here this morning to worship Henry Ward Beecher may withdraw from the church; all who came to worship God may remain."

2. our purpose for being here today is to worship the risen Lord

3. if Christ had not risen, then our presence here this morning is in vain

a. our singing falls on deaf ears

b. our praying is fruitless

c. our proclamation will be pointless

4. but because He lives we can rejoice and have sweet fellowship with God and with each other

5. as the hymn says, Because He Lives, I Can Face Tomorrow

ILLUS.One of the finest definitions of worship ever laid down was laid down by William Temple: "To worship is to quicken the conscience by the holiness of God, to feed the mind with the truth of God, to purge the imagination by the beauty of God, to open the heart to the love of God, to devote the will to the purpose of God."

6. the resurrection of Jesus makes possible the praise of the saints

Let me sum up this evening’s message and put into perspective for you.

You need the presence of Jesus Christ in your life. That presence is made possible because God came in the flesh to this world. That incarnation would culminate in the most significant event in world history – the resurrection of Christ from the grave. This living Savior, wants to come into your life if you will let him. The presence of Christ begins when you accept Jesus Christ as your personal savior. The faith that Christ asks you to put in him is not a blind faith, but a faith that knows the truth as revealed in God's word.

God has developed a program through which men can come to know Him through Christ. He invites you to be a part of that program.

Do you need power for daily living? The resurrection of our Lord has made possible the indwelling and filling of the Holy Spirit in your life.

You need to meet God daily through worship and praise.