He Gets Us: Doubt

Prayer

We Doubt

Welcome, so glad you’re here today, joining us for Easter Sunday. Easter is our big day. This is it - our big party day, to celebrate what is the greatest news ever - that Jesus Christ, after dying on the cross for our sins, rose to life again. And in doing so, conquered sin. He defeated death. It’s huge. You cannot overstate the significance of what we’re celebrating here today. This is the very basis of hope we have - new birth into a living hope. I hope you know that hope.

Maybe you don’t. Maybe you have doubts. Serious doubts. Maybe you’re just a little uncertain. Honestly, it’s all good - that’s actually what we want to focus in on this morning.

We’re starting a new sermon series this morning that coincides with a national ad campaign that’s happening - perhaps you’ve seen some of the ads. But it’s called He Gets Us. The whole idea is that Jesus gets us. He understands. He’s been there. He knows what we’re going through - and he meets us there.

By the way, ad campaign invites people to respond to a website if they want someone to talk to. Those people are then connected with local churches. We’ve been connected with several folks throughout the state - I don’t know how many other churches are signed up with this, but connections are coming from all over.

If you’re interested in being a part of the Team that responds to them, please let me know.

But this morning we’re going to talk about how Jesus meets us in the midst of our doubts. And there’s a lot of things we doubt in life, we struggle with.

I’m betting a number of you have doubts about your finances, ability to pay basic bills. Concern over rising inflation is the #1 issue in our nation right now. If you’re on a fixed income, that’s hard pill to swallow.

You might have serious doubts about our nation, and direction you think it’s headed. Everything seems to be getting worse and worse and you don’t know what that means for our country.

Maybe your doubts are more personal - doubts about the future of your marriage relationship (or whether you’ll ever be in one, and what that means for you.)

If you’re in a place of depression or heavy anxiety - those are times we have doubts about whether or not things will ever get better. Consumed by that dark cloud that seems like it will never end.

Maybe you’re got serious doubts about this whole church thing. Or about Jesus himself.

Let’s be honest - this is a huge claim, to say that someone actually died - and then on the third day following, came back to life.

For some folks, forget it. Couldn’t happen. People don’t come back to life. We know that’s scientifically impossible. Dismiss it outright.

Maybe you’re open to the idea, but you still struggle with it - and for good reason. It’s an almost unbelievable claim that somebody could come back to life.

Listen, you are not alone in this. In fact, you’re in very good company. The doubts about the news of Jesus’ resurrections started right at the beginning - and with his closest followers, the disciples.

I want to walk us through that a bit this morning because what I want you to see how He gets us. Jesus truly does get us. He gets our doubts - and is willing to meet us there.

Jesus Gets Us

We’re going to be looking at the story in Luke 24:36-49, but I think it’s helpful to set it up, what’s happened earlier that Sunday morning.

Right as the day begins, early in the morning, a group of women go to the tomb where Jesus was buried in order to do more preparations for the body, bringing spices with them to wrap his body up with.

Except, when they get there, huge stone that had sealed entrance to the tomb has been rolled away…and the tomb is empty.

Two men in bright gleaming clothes appear to the women and tell them the news, “he is not here, he’s risen.”

Women race back to the rest of the disciples telling them what happened - and they don’t believe it…the whole thing sounded like nonsense to them.

As the day goes on, there’s two of the disciples, Clopas and another guy (Luke never gives us his name), and they’re making their way from Jerusalem to Emmaus, and while they’re going along talking, Jesus comes up alongside them - but they don’t recognize him!

They have a long conversation with Jesus about all the big news in Jerusalem (which, ironically is all about Jesus).

Towards the end of the day, they arrive in Emmaus and the two men invite Jesus to stay with them. And as they break bread together, their eyes are opened and they finally realize that it’s Jesus…and then he disappears from their sight!

Two men are so excited, they hightail it all the way back to Jerusalem - which is no small task, that’s a seven mile journey. Anyway, they go back to Jerusalem to tell the rest of the disciples that they have seen the risen Jesus.

Here’s where we pick up the story, I want to walk us through, because what I want you to see here is how Jesus gets us. How he meets the disciples in the midst of their doubts.

Luke 24:36-38...While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?

So, Jesus just all of a sudden shows up right among them - and listen, we know from the Gospel of John that they were in a locked room, afraid the religious leaders would start coming after them, too. So, for Jesus, a man they knew to be dead, to all of sudden be standing in their midst…you better believe they’re going to be a little freaked out. You can see why they thought he was a ghost.

Now, at first glance it seems that Jesus is chiding them for their lack of faith - “why are you troubled? Why do doubts rise in your mind?”, he asks them. But as we’ll see, Jesus is working to build faith in them. He’s trying to tell them they really have no reason to be doubtful. And he’s going to show them why.

And here’s where he meets them in their doubts. He does five things to reassure them that it’s really him, Jesus, alive and in the flesh.

Five Things

We see the first two in Luke 24:39-40...Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet.

I want you to take note of the two body parts Jesus invites them to look at - his hands and feet. Why his hands and feet?...Because that’s where the scars were. Jesus wants them to see the scars from where the nails were driven through his hands and feet. It’s me. I’m really the one who was just crucified, put to death. But now I’m here.

Second thing we see Jesus do here is the invitation to touch him. To feel that he is real, physical being. He is not a ghost. Some have tried to argue that Jesus’ resurrection was a spiritual resurrection, whatever that means. Nope. It was a physical resurrection. The body that laid in the tomb, that was wrapped up in spices and linen, is alive again.

So we have scars, and the invitation to touch as two ways Jesus is meeting them in their doubts. Third thing Jesus does...

Luke 24:41-43...And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence.

Strange little comment here - while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement - which I’ll come back to at the end. But what I want to point out here is Jesus asking them for something to eat.

Now perhaps he was just hungry, but I think Jesus is offering them another piece of evidence to assuage their doubts. The Bible makes a point of telling us that he ate it in their presence.

Jesus is doing something ordinary with them, something they’d seen him do hundreds of times. They traveled together for three years, likely eaten hundreds of meals together. In addition to being an overtly physical act, Jesus eating something in front of them would have a familiar sight, an act that would have prompted within him - oh, yeah, that’s our Jesus.

So, showing them his scars, invitation to touch, doing this ordinary, familiar act of eating - last two things Jesus does:

Luke 24:44-49...He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.” Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, “This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”

First, Jesus reminds them of what he had taught them - this is what I told you while I was still with you. Remember, I talked about this numerous times, this should really come as no surprise. I told you that this is what would happen.

Jesus had forewarned because he knew they would have a hard time believing it was true - so numerous times throughout the Gospels we see Jesus telling him that he would be handed over by the religious leaders, killed and then rise on the third day: Mark 8:31, Mark 9:31, Mark 10:34.

Of course it’s the kind of thing that if you heard it, you wouldn’t think he meant that literally. The disciples certainly didn’t. They couldn’t figure out what he meant. But now that it’s happened, oh, yeah, he meant exactly what he said.

Finally, Jesus points them to not just what he had been telling them, but what has been there all along in the Scriptures, in God’s Word. He takes the time to show them how the Law of Moses (Torah, first five books of the Bible - Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy), the Prophetic writings (Isaiah, Ezekiel, etc.), and the Psalms - they all pointed to what was going to happen to Jesus: “The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”

You can see Jesus meeting them in their doubts: See my scars. Touch me, I’m real, flesh and bones. If that’s not enough - let me eat something right in front of you. Remember, I told you all this was going to happen. Not just me, but it’s been written throughout the Scriptures, it’s all there.

Jesus gets us. He meets us in the midst of our doubts.

Now, you may be thinking, that’s not really where my doubts lie. My doubts have to do with finances, job, health situation.

Here’s the thing - everything has to do with the resurrection. (yeah, right, Jesus rising from the dead is gonna pay my bills, fix my marriage?).

Here’s what I mean, if Jesus really did rise from the dead, then evil itself has been conquered. All that’s wrong with world has already been defeated. The problem of sin and sorrow, suffering and death are no more. God’s goodness, his life, his joy - win out.

Let me take you back to the verse I mentioned before...Luke 24:40-41, When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet. And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?”

And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement…gotta tell you, this description has long confused me - how can you still not believe - you doubt - and at the same time be filled with joy and amazement because of it?!

Then I started thinking about my reaction when I got the news that the church building was going to be paid for…if you haven’t heard the story it’s an amazing God story…long story short: building came up for sale, twice we started looking at it to consider buying it, twice someone else made an offer before we could even think about it, beating us to the punch. The second time we decided to make a secondary offer just in case it might come available - and the first person I call, who’s not even a member of this church - to ask whether he’d consider help paying for it (just so you know, he had offered his help several times) - he volunteered to pay for everything. Then second offer fell through and ours was accepted. All of a sudden this building is ours, completely paid for.

I gotta tell you, I was filled with joy and amazement because of it. But there was still a part that seemed absolutely unreal. Did I really hear it? Is that what he told me? Exactly because it was such amazing news that I doubted it, this can’t be real.

The news was so big, it’s almost unbelievable - pinch yourself to check to see if you’re awake or not.

This is the resurrection news. This is when you know that you are really starting to believe - you can hardly believe it because of joy and amazement.

There’s a lot of things we can debate about whether we believe or not, doesn’t make much difference to us (there is no joy or amazement)…just this past week, I was having a conversation about whether or not aliens exist.

But the resurrection changes everything!! The more we trust that it’s really true, the more we in a sense do what the disciples did - look at Jesus, see his scars, touch him, see life he lived, listen to his teachings, read Scriptures. - more we embrace the reality of the Resurrection - it changes everything that spurs doubt within us.

Because I can know, in the end, God wins. His promises are true. That all bad I’ve experienced in life - and all the bad I’ve done, my sin - can and will be redeemed. One day, it won’t matter how much my body is wasting away…I’ll have a resurrection body - immortal, imperishable. Who needs to worry about money when you’re with God to whom everything belongs?!? Every tear wiped away. No more suffering, no more pain.

So, go ahead and doubt. Jesus will meet you right there. He gets us. He always has.

Spiritual Disciplines - One of our core values is Lived Obedience to Jesus. We work to put our faith into practice, by not just listening to Jesus, but putting into practice what he teaches us.

If you have genuine doubts, particularly intellectually - check the evidence. Test it. It stands up - and it has for over two thousand years.

I would recommend two books to you - The Case for Christ by Lee Stroebel (a journalist for Chicago Sun Times who decided, as an atheist, to investigate the resurrection). He knew this was the hinge of the Christian faith.

A second book, Cold-Case Christianity by J. Warner Wallace. Again, another skeptic, this time a cold case detective, who investigated to see whether or not the gospels are reliable. He recognized that they were written as eyewitness testimony, which is exactly what Jesus told them they’d be.

Stroebel had it right - if the resurrection is not true, if Jesus did not really rise from the dead, then the whole thing falls apart. It’s a remarkable story about a man who did and taught amazing things and then died a tragic, unjust death. But nothing more. But if it is true, then it’s the most significant event in all of human history. It’s worth your time and attention to check it out. And there’s good evidence that it did indeed happen.

Reality of the Resurrection, let it be your living hope. Let it be the anchor for your soul - because there will be times when the waves will come, and doubts will arise.

As you experience doubts…remind yourself of this singular truth. Christ is risen. He is risen, indeed.

I’m quite serious about this, if this is just a little church saying, for us here on Easter Sunday, that’s pretty weak. Remember, resurrection changes everything. In those moments, when you start experiencing doubts about your finances, your future, your family, whatever the case may be…Christ is risen. He is risen, indeed. It’s a way of embracing that reality that whatever you’re facing in life, God is with and for you and far bigger than anything we have to contend with.

Let’s close together. Christ is risen. He is risen, indeed.