The Resurrection (Gospel Project)

Jesus is Resurrected

What are your favorite memories around Thanksgiving or Christmas?

What are some of your favorite traditions or memories?

Did any of y’all’s parents do Elf on the Shelf?

Elf on the Shelf came out in 2005, so I didn’t grow up with that tradition.

I had to settle for plain ole Santa at the mall.

What was the lie about Elf on the Shelf?

Now I don’t want you to think your parents are liars…

There is always lots of things happening behind the scenes at Christmas.

And part of the fun of being a parent is doing those things behind the scenes to see joy on your kids faces.

Think about it… How many hours did your parents spend assembling a gift for you?

How many hours did they spend writing notes from that elf and hiding that elf in different places in the house?

With Elf on the Shelf, it’s not about deception, it’s about the joy on the face of your kids.

With all that said, Belief determines Behavior.

Meaning, if you believe Santa won’t bring you gifts because you’re on the naughty list, guess what, that might motivate you to behave better!

If you think that Elf catches you being naughty and is going to report it to Santa, you’re going to make sure you behave in the other room from the elf.

But as you grow up, something monumental happens.

You realize, who your parents really are. Who Santa really is.

This is always a tough moment for a kid.

As a parent myself, I don’t look forward to this moment.

However, hopefully throughout your childhood and throughout my kids childhood, they learn that the meaning of Christmas isn’t about gifts and Santa, but it’s about Jesus and His birth.

What we believe about Christmas hinges most importantly on Jesus!

If we believe Christmas is all Santa and gifts, what you believed about Christmas is going to rock your world when you find out the truth.

WHy?

because belief determines behavior.

Here’s why that is so important today…

The cross and the resurrection is the most important events in history.

Last week we discussed the cross, today we are going to read about the resurrection.

Open your books to page 79

Read John 20:1-10

Jesus had been buried for 3 days by the time we get to John 20.

Who is the first one to go to the tomb?

Mary Magdalene and several other women (as Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell us).

In the first century, it was customary to put spices on a dead body.

Jesus’ body was only partially prepared for burial, so the women are coming to the tomb to finish with those traditions.

When they get to the tomb, What do they find?

empty, stone removed.

So they run back to the other disciples to tell them the news.

WHat news do they tell the disciples?

vs. 2, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put Him.”

Mary assumes the body has been stolen.

Think about it, vs. 1 says it’s “dark” when they get to the tomb, the stone is moved, Jesus had been highly controversial.

Jewish leaders had heard Jesus’ prophetic words that he woudl rise from the dead; though, it’s most likely no one took that seriously, including Jesus’ own disciples based on their reaction.

The Jewish leaders were actually more scared of Jesus’ disciples stealing the body and then claiming Jesus was alive, this is why Jewish leaders stationed Roman guards to guard over the body!

Significance of the women.

Here’s one of my favorite parts of the resurrection though.

God uses unlikely people to do extraordinare things.

In the first century, if you were a woman, your testimony meant very little.

It would take multiple women with one message to even come close to the weight and value of the same message spoken by a man.

Before you get mad about that, think about this.

THe first people in history God chose to reveal the resurrection to was women, not men.

Women who had little to no voice in society. Jesus tells them first.

Amazing.

Even more so, if the resurrection was fake, if the Bible wasn’t true, why would the Bible lie about this fact? It would be more plausible in this society for the most important news in history (Jesus is alive) should come from the mouth of respected men, not women!

Yet it came to the women first. That never would have been written down as a lie; therefore, it must be true that the greatest news ever would come to the most unlikely source first. WOmen.

But then they tell Peter and John and Peter and John run to the tomb.

Something I had not thought about before this week, was what if this was a trap?

The Disciples are hiding from Roman and Jewish leaders.

Jesus has been killed, why wouldn’t they come for the disciples too?

This could have been a trap for the Romans to arrest Jesus’ disciples.

But nevertheless, Peter and John run with boldness to the tomb.

Perhaps this is why when John arrived at the tomb, vs 5 says, “He saw the linen cloths lying there, yet he did not go in.”

He wanted his backup Peter to arrive!

Read vs. 7 again too

It seems from reading this that the wrappings on Jesus’ body were still laying where His body was, but the wrap on his head was folded and lying in a separate location in the tomb.

Would robbers take the time to do this?

Would those setting a trap or with malicious intent take the time to separate the burial wrappings?

Certainly not.

Therefore, we have a beautiful next sentence.

John 20:8, “The other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, then entered the tomb, saw, and beleived.”

He entered, He saw, based on the evidence at hand, He believed.

WHat about you?

On several occasions, Jesus predicted he would raise from the dead after 3 days.

Matthew 16:21, Matthew 20:19.

Based on the evidence before them, Peter and John believed in that moment.

But again what about you?

We don’t have the tomb to inspect this morning.

But we have far more than Peter and John had that morning.

We have the entire Word of God given to us.

The real question is this: Do you believe in God’s Word.

DO you trust it to live what it says and requires of you?

Paul said this in 1 Corinthians 15:14, “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is without foundation, and so is your faith. In addition, we are found tob e false witnesses about GOd, because we have testified about God that He raised up Christ...”

The resurrection of Jesus is the single most important event in History.

It solidifies our faith

But if also makes our entire faith worthless if not true.

APPLICATION:

I’ve heard it said in the past that faith is like taking a shot in the dark.

That’s not true.

Faith is taking a leap into the light.

The deeper you examine the resurrection of Christ, the more evidence you will see to support it.

Because it is true, it leaves us with 2 options.

We accept it, or we reject it.

If we reject it, you can continue living for you.

You can live as if God doesn’t exist.

You can do what you want.

But to what end? For what purpose?

You see if Christ did raise from the dead.

And if you’re a Christian here today, that’s what you claim to believe!

then you have the only hope in this life that matters more than all else.

If Christ did raise from the dead, that’s going to move you to share Christ.

It’s going to give you a sense of urgency that people need to know!

It’s going to change you from living for yourself, to living in a way that makes Christ known in all you do!

The resurrection changed everything.

Ultimately it comes back to what we said at the start too.

Do you believe it?

Do you believe in the resurrection?

If you really do, that’s going to affect your behavior.

I hope you are not behaving in a way to earn God’s favor.

I hope you know that because Christ died and rose again for you, GOd loves you and couldn’t be more pleased with you.

He wants us to beleive and trust Him

ANd most importantly, let that believe determine everything we do.

That the decisions I make, the job I choose, the person I marry, all flows out of the fact that Jesus rose from the grave.

In my job, in my marriage, in my education, Jesus will be praised.

Do you believe that today?