You Won’t Find Life by Searching Dead Places

The Joy of Life

On Friday evening we had the privilege of attending a fundraiser for Tomball Pregnancy Crisis Center. As a result of their work, in 2021 over 200 decisions were made for life instead of death! We heard testimonies of expecting parents who didn’t think they could bring a life into this world but whose minds were changed by talking to dedicated and sympathetic staff and volunteers at the Center. Some of our own folks have volunteered to help these desperate families.

Dr. Ben Carson was the featured speaker. If you don’t recognize the name, he is a famous pediatric brain surgeon, former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, a 2016 Candidate for President, and the founder of American Cornerstone Institute (an organization that centers on restoring the values of faith, liberty, community, and life).

Life is amazing! Dr. Carson described the development of a child. From the merging of 23 chromosomes from the father and 23 chromosomes of the mother, a baby will have a beating heart, a face, and fingers within 8 weeks. Simply amazing! And…we are created in God’s image! God is life…

Of course, that is the marvelous message of Easter. Christianity is about life!

Morning Turns to Dancing

There is so much to celebrate about the Resurrection of Jesus! One of the stories is found in Luke 24. The friends of Jesus went to the tomb to finish preparing the body of Jesus in the customary way. They were carrying spices, still mourning the events two days ago. But, when they got to the tomb, the stone had been rolled away, there was no body, and two individuals as bright as lightning were waiting...

Luke 24:5–6 NIV

In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee:

Could you imagine the emotions that these women were experiencing? They had awakened sad, expecting to see the dead body of Jesus. That would have been emotionally exhausted. They walked somberlyto the tomb. They were shockedby stone removed, confusedby the missing body, and excitedby 2 angelic beings. In a matter of minutes, they went from sorrow to joy, from fright to excitement.

Somewhere in this emotional roller coaster they were asked the question, “Why do you look for the living among the dead?” I think that is a good question for us to consider this morning.

The Search for the Living and the Dead

Life is Found in the Lord Over the Living and the Dead

Jesus is the undisputed Lord over the living and the dead. The Apostle Paul looks back at the meaning of the Resurrection and writes:

Romans 14:9–11 NIV

For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. You, then, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat. It is written: “ ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’ ”

The Apostle John described his vision of Jesus:

Revelation 1:17–18 NIV

When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. Then he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades.

The fact that Jesus and life are synonymous has been realized by Christians. If you want to find life, it is simple – find where Jesus is.

Death is Found When We Have No Expectation of the Miraculous

As I mentioned, these women were on an emotional roller coaster but one thing that we know is that they did not run to the tomb with the expectation that Jesus would rise from the dead that day. They were not expecting a miracle.

They were not seeking a miracle. They were not seeking a fulfillment of prophecy. They were not seeking to hear from angels, or to be the first on earth to proclaim the Gospel of a risen Savior.

They were merely in a cemetery seeking a dead man.

I can’t imagine living the Christian life without an expectation of the miraculous. Yesterday I received a call from my brother-in-law who serves the Tellico Village Fire Department in Tennessee. He asked me if I was working on my sermon. He then told me the story of a fire they had just worked where an entire 40x60 storage facility had been destroyed except for 2 Gideon bibles. He described the look on the faces of the firemen who stood staring at the Bibles. The remark that was made was, “You know that doesn’t happen by chance!”

I think that sometimes life can wear us down to the point that we are not expecting the miraculous. We cannot allow that to happen! I pray and expect miracles in my life and in the life of our church. What do we believe that God can do for us? What do you believe God can do for you?

Do you expect to see miracles? Are you looking for the living or the dead?

Life is Found by Faith

Faith is simply reliance and trust in God. There is a remarkable story about Jesus and Peter in the middle of the Sea of Galilee. The disciples had set out in a boat before Jesus did, expecting Jesus to show up later in another boat. The thing is, He didn’t need a boat, and simply showed up walking on the water. Peter wanted in on the action and Jesus called him. Peter believed and walked on water. The Bible is filled with remarkable results of faith:

- Noah builds an ark and saves his family

- 3 men are thrown into a furnace and survive

- Daniel is thrown to lions and survives the night

- Prisons open and Christians are freed

- Water is turned to wine

- The last bit of flour and oil last for 3 years

- The earth stops spinning so a battle could be won

- Philip teleports from one city to another.

Faith takes God without any “If’s.” If God says it, Faith says, “I believe it”; Faith says “Amen” to it. Dwight L. Moody*[1]

I can’t imagine living without faith. I would much rather believe in a God who empties graves than one that fills them!

Dead Things are Found When You Ignore the Word of God

An empty tomb should not have been a surprise to the women. There are 21 references in the Gospels to a 3rd day resurrection. When I went to the Defense Strategic Debriefers Course we were taught to listen for clues without needing to be hit over the head with a 2x4. I would say that 21 direct statements predicting the resurrection would be a big miss on the part of the disciples.

Of course, people are missing it today as well. I’ve found quotes from historians, presidents, conquerors, college presidents, and scientists about the value of the Bible but none were as comprehensive as this from an unknown source:

“This Book contains the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers. Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding, its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe in it to be safe, and practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you. It is the traveler’s map, the pilgrim’s staff, the pilot’s compass, the soldier’s sword, and the Christian’s character. Here paradise is restored, heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed. Christ is its grand object, our good its design, and the glory of God its end. It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure. It is given you in life, will be opened in the judgment, and will be remembered forever. It involves the highest responsibilities, will reward the greatest labor, and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents.”

Trying to live this life, in this world, without the Word of God would be looking for the living in dead places.

Life is Found in the Person of the Holy Spirit

On Easter Sunday we had a very visible demonstration of the gifts of the Spirit in our service. We had a public utterance in an unknown language followed by a prophetic interpretation of the utterance. This has sparked some great conversations during the week. Although there was some apprehension, many of us were able to understand what happened by going to the Bible and seeing it for ourselves. One comment in our community group was something like, “it made my heart excited”. That is because the things of the Spirit are life giving!

John 16:6–15 NIV

Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. He will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you. All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will receive from me what he will make known to you.”

A few years ago we did a long series on the book of Acts. We recognized that the book of Acts is about the Person of the Holy Spirit. It is not the “Acts of the Apostles” but the “Acts of the Holy Spirit”. As we were introduced to the book of Acts, I shared some thoughts that I believe are relevant to the message today so I’d like to share them again. Remember our mission statement is:

“Finding true life in Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit”

I realize that there are many wonderful Christian ministries throughout our area. And, I don’t intend to make the following statement out of pride….it is really out of necessity. Our beliefs, as a church, agree with the beliefs of the Acts church more than any other protestant church that I know (Lutheran, Episcopalian, Methodist, Baptist, etc). I’m not trying to be argumentative. I believe I am simply stating a fact. We believe in

- The Person of the Holy Spirit actively involved in our lives

- The baptism of the Holy Spirit with evidence of speaking in a new heavenly language is the normative experience

- An expectation of the miraculous in our lives today

These are Pentecostal beliefs. These are Pentecostal experiences. These are the norm for today’s church. And, I believe, the fact that we are not seeing it as much as we ought to be is because even Christians are looking for Jesus in places that are dead, not living! More than ever, we need to desire, pray, and fast for the move of the Holy Spirit in our lives and church.

Time to Change Search Parameters

If you are ‘Google-ing’ to find information, you sometimes have to change the search parameters to find what you need. The women were not looking for a living Jesus that morning. They were looking for a dead one, among the rest of the dead.

Today this question is also addressed to us. You, why do seek the living among the dead, you who withdraw into yourself after a failure, and you who no longer have the strength to pray? Why do you seek the living among the dead, you who feel alone, abandoned by friends and perhaps also by God? Why do you seek the living among the dead, you who have lost hope and you who feel imprisoned by your sins? Why do you seek the living among the dead?[2]

It is strange to realize that this question is the first declaration in Luke that Jesus is alive.

A little boy who lived far out in the country in the late 1800s had reached the age of twelve and had never in all his life seen a circus. You can imagine his excitement, when one day a poster went up at school announcing that on the next Saturday a traveling circus was coming to the nearby town.

He ran home with the glad news and the question, "Daddy, can I go?" Although the family was poor, the father sensed how important this was to the lad. "If you do your Saturday chores ahead of time," he said, "I'll see to it that you have the money to go."'

Come Saturday morning, the chores were done and the little boy stood by the breakfast table, dressed in his Sunday best. His father reached down into the pocket of his overalls and pulled out a dollar bill-the most money the little boy had possessed at one time in all his life. The father cautioned him to be careful and then sent him on his way to town.

The boy was so excited, his feet hardly seemed to touch the ground all the way. As he neared the outskirts of the village, he noticed people lining the streets, and he worked his way through the crowd until he could see what was happening. Lo and behold, it was the approaching spectacle of a circus parade! The parade was the grandest thing this lad had ever seen. Caged animals snarled as they passed, bands beat their rhythms and sounded shining horns, midgets performed acrobatics while flags and ribbons swirled overhead.

Finally, after everything had passed where he was standing, the traditional circus clown, with floppy shoes, baggy pants, and a brightly painted face, brought up the rear. As the clown passed by, the little boy reached into his pocket and took out that precious dollar bill. Handing the money to the clown, the boy turned around and went home. What had happened? The boy thought he had seen the circus when he had only seen the parade![3]

I have to admit it, there have been times when I have seen the parade but missed the circus. There are times when I have expected less than what God wants for me – for us as a church.

Imagine what it would have been like if the Bible reported to us the massive party at the tomb when Jesus rose the 3rd day! We must be reminded about the life we have in Christ, the power of the Spirit, and living a faith-filled Spiritual walk.

Recommital. Repentance. Salvation.

[1]Elliot Ritzema and Elizabeth Vince, eds., 300 Quotations for Preachers from the Modern Church, Pastorum Series (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2013). [2] https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/audiences/2014/documents/papa-francesco_20140423_udienza-generale.html [3] Hot Illustrations For Youth TalksWayne Rice, Zonderzan, pp. 56-57.