Easter 2019

RESURRECITON SUNDAY – 2019 (Six Important Questions)

Text: Multiple Passages

I recently read an article that was talking about teachers. It said, “Teachers teach their students. But at the same time, they can’t help but wonder if their students are actually learning what is being taught. So… they give exams from time to time, in an attempt to gauge their students’ progress. And what is an exam? It’s a group of several questions about the subject material.” The article went on to say, “And so, teachers are often asking questions. Either in the form of exams, or while they are teaching. And on occasion they do not get the answers they were hoping for. I imagine that there were some disappointed teachers who got the following answers to some of their questions.”

For example:

THE TEACHERS QUESTION – What ended in 1945?

THE STUDENTS ANSWER – 1944

THE TEACHERS QUESTION – Where was the Declaration of Independence signed?

THE STUDENTS ANSWER – At the bottom of the paper

THE TEACHERS QUESTION – Give a brief explanation of hard water.

THE STUDNETS ANSWER – Ice.

Now those are kind of funny… but there’s a lot of truth to the idea that the way a person answers a question reveals what they know, or think, or believe about a particular subject. In the Bible Jesus asked His disciples a very important question. It’s in Matthew 16:13 – 16… let me just read that to you (READ).

Now I don’t know about you, but I’d say that’s probably one of the most important questions ever asked. Who is Jesus? And to make it even more personal, the Bible asks, “Who do you say Jesus is?” The way you answer that question will shape your entire life. It will shape your entire world view. It will shape the way you think about things. It will shape the way you spend your time, your money, and your energy. It will shape you politically and socially. It will have an effect on the way you talk, what you watch on TV, how you spend your free time. The way you answer that question effects everything about you – who you are, what you are, and what you do.

And there’s really only two ways to answer that question. Jesus is either who the Bible says He is, or He’s not. Now the Bible says that Jesus is God. He’s God the Son, and that He came to this world in the flesh. In other-words, He is fully and totally God, but He became a man. The Bible tells us that He was born of a virgin and that He lived on this earth for 33 years.

Now for some folks, they feel that just knowing that is enough… and don’t misunderstand me… if you know that about Jesus, that’s a good thing. It’s a great thing! But if that’s where your knowledge and understanding ends, I have to tell you; it’s incomplete. Because knowing that should actually lead you to ask another question. You see… if you know and believe that Jesus is God… that’s good. And if you know and believe that Jesus is God and that He became a man… That’s even better. But the next thing you should ask yourself is – WHY? Why did God the Son, the Second Person of the Trinity become a man? Again; there’s two ways to answer that second question. We can answer it according to the Bible, or we can answer it in a way contrary to the Bible. Here’s the way the Bible answers that second question. The Bible tells us that the reason Jesus came to this earth – was to die.

Now when Jesus was on this earth, He did a lot of things. He healed the sick, He fed multitudes, He walked on water, He cast out demons. John’s Gospel tells us that Jesus did so many things, that John couldn’t even write them all down. And when He was on this earth, Jesus said a lot of things. He taught a lot of things. He taught about heaven and hell, He taught about the Kingdom of God. He taught about sin and repentance. He taught about righteousness and holiness, and how we should live our lives. He taught about love – loving God and loving our neighbors. So Jesus did a lot, He said a lot, and He taught a lot of things, but His main purpose in coming to this world was to die.

And that brings us to a third question – Why did Jesus have to die?

Well that’s the question – and answer I want us to spend a little more time on, because that’s a big part of what Easter is all about.

So if you’ll take your Bibles and open them up to Isaiah 53:10 I’m going to show you from Scripture why Jesus had to die… and what His death and resurrection means for us. (READ Isaiah 53:10). Now let’s turn over to the New Testament, to the Book of Romans 8:32 (READ).