Luke 24:1-49
Title: You are my witness
Text: Luke 24:44 – 49, with background on the whole of Luke 24
MP: Easter implies that we are his witnesses
SO: I want to begin laying a ground work for understanding our missionary role (picking up on this around Pentecost)
Easter Sunday is hard for me, because every year I feel the need to prove something we already know: that Christ has risen from the dead. The evidence is all around us. Frankly if you’re here this early on a Sunday morning, you either believe it or else have an unhealthy ability to get out of bed! Wherever we see Christ preached, in word or in deed, we know that Christ risen from the dead.
But like me, I suspect you’ve heard the same old proofs. If you attend more than one service this morning, you’ll probably hear the preacher set up the “Swoon Theory,” positing that perhaps Jesus hadn’t actually died on the cross, but only fainted. And then the response will come. If somebody tries to tell you that, maybe you should whip them within an inch of their life, pound thorns and nails into their flesh, hang them so they can’t breathe for six hours, and then thrust a spear into them. After that, lock them in an airtight chamber and see if they can roll away a six ton boulder. Oh yeah, Jesus was dead alright. And the preacher will be correct.
Or, maybe you’ll hear the “conspiracy theory.” Like a good detective novel, they’ll try to suggest that the Resurrection was nothing more than a good conspiracy crime waiting to be unraveled. But, then you have to think about means, opportunity, and motive. Maybe the body was just stolen? But who would have had the chance? Or, maybe the disciples just made a compact – but how then is it that each of the eleven would go on to face horrible deaths and have nobody slip?
If you need more, frankly you can read the book The Case for the Resurrection by Lee Stroebel. They’re good arguments. There’s more from where that came from. But again, I suspect you’ve heard them before. And please, don’t be annoyed if I’m the preacher doing that next year. These are all true, they’re all important, but they’re not what the Spirit has placed on my heart this morning.
So, if I’m not going to try to convince you of what you already know, why then am I preaching from the Resurrection? Why am I so concerned that you see the whole story that I printed two pages in the bulletin? Because how we got the story of Jesus’ resurrection is almost as important as the message itself.
You see, fundamentally, Easter is a missionary message. At its heart, Easter is a story of people telling the story of Easter. Jesus coming back from the dead was a miracle. But it was a miracle that transcends being a simple fact.
It is the true story that says something about a true God. Not only is it a story of his power, it’s a story of his love. And that love is just for you or me, it’s for his entire creation. It’s a miracle that is personal story that demands we share it. We cannot keep it to ourselves.
I am going to assume that you know that in fact, Jesus died and then rose again. You’ve been through enough of Easter to know that. But how is it that we learned of Jesus’ resurrection? Who first told us that Jesus had risen from the dead?
We won’t be reading all of Luke 24 this morning, but we will be summarizing it, so if you have your Bible, be looking there, or in your bulletin. Knowing this story is the first part of being able to share it.
… trans …
If you’re like me, you must be in awe of the responsibility of being the first. Albert Einstein was the first to tell us about higher physics and relativity and even the atom bomb. Look at how formidable he was! And it was one of the stature of a founding father – no less than Thomas Jefferson who first bore witness in writing to the fact that all men are created equal, and that they are endowed by the Creator with certain inalienable rights. An imposing figure he was!
So what grand and towering figure first bore witness to the resurrection? Some garrulous old ladies. The forgotten castoffs of Jewish society. In a culture where women couldn’t make a name for themselves if they tried, Luke names three of them who first bore witness to the fact that changed more history than anything else. Joanna, Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James.
You’d think that God should have entrusted a great theologian or even a great apostle. Some great man who would have been up to the task, right?
Well, the truth is that none of us is up to the task. From God’s perspective we are all beneath him. We have all fallen short of the glory of God. Why should he choose one over another? The truth is that God loves each and everyone us so much that there is no means by which he could pick anyone of us over another. It should not surprise us then that God is just as likely to choose from the forgotten as he is the famous. That’s just who God is.
If there was any grand and glorious act of faith in Luke 24, perhaps it should be that of Peter. Peter, Jesus’ chief disciple knows how Jesus works. In his culture, a man doesn’t have to listen to a woman, but Peter does. He knows how Jesus was, he knows who Jesus is. Jesus spoke to whomever he chose, however he chose. If there was a chance that Jesus was alive again, Peter wanted to know.
If you were to keep reading in Luke, you’d see that it was only after the women that the gospel came to the disciples. If you keep reading, you come to the passage often called the Emmaus Road story. As two of the company are walking along, a stranger comes into their midst. Even before they knew who he was, it says, “their hearts burned within them.” Jesus took to the Scriptures and showed these disciples everything that testified of him.
You might wonder, why a dusty old book? Why not something flashy – more immediate? Andrew Lloyd Webber asked it so well: If you’d come today you’d reach the whole nation; Israel in 4BC had no mass communication! But Jesus isn’t about mass communication. He is timeless, he is eternal. He is personal.
God uses forgotten women and old stories to testify of himself. He doesn’t use Madison Avenue – instead he simply communicates who he is through whatever he wants. And that brings us to where our text begins, in vs. 36, where Jesus does what Jesus does best: He reveals himself directly. Just eating a simple meal, the disciples are terrified, because they realize there is no doubt – This is Jesus. This is his point, to reveal himself in the ordinary. He is there!
I want to suggest to you this morning that Jesus could have risen from the dead, but if it weren’t for those who bore witness to the fact, we wouldn’t know the joy that act brings. From the very beginning, Jesus took out no TV commercial – he didn’t even write book. This morning, I want to examine how it is that Jesus did get that message out, because how he did it says much about who he is and what that implies for what we need to do. I rejoice at the hope of Easter, but it has implications for how I will live.
1. How it was revealed (Background of Luke 24)
a. The Women
i. Revealed to people of low position, dubious authority
ii. God loves everyone
b. The Scriptures
i. Revealed throughout eternity
ii. God doesn’t change
c. Personal Experience
i. Revealed to us
ii. God is in relationship with us
2. What was revealed: (God is faithful)
a. Everything written must be fulfilled (God is faithful to his word)
b. The Messiah is to suffer and rise from the dead (God is faithful to the forgotten)
c. Repentance and forgiveness is to be proclaimed (God is faithful even in our fallenness)
i. in his name
ii. to all nations
3. The Implication: You are my witness
a. You are a witness – not you should be.
People are looking at you
b. You are My witness – Jesus is the focus, not us
c. You are the witness – in everything you do: Easter is about life, so is the Gospel. In all that happens, everything is witness.
Fundamentally, Easter is a missionary message. At its heart, Easter is a story of people telling the story of Easter. I want to suggest to you this morning that Jesus could have risen from the dead, but if it weren’t for those who bore witness to the fact, we wouldn’t know the joy that act brings. From the very beginning, Jesus took out no TV commercial – he didn’t even write book. This morning, I want to examine how it is that Jesus did get that message out, because how he did it says much about who he is and what that implies for what we need to do. I rejoice at the hope of Easter, but it has implications for how I will live.
This morning, I want to look at Luke 24. I’m not going to read the entire chapter, but I do want to summarize all that happens in it as we lead up to a section where Jesus tells us what the whole point of this gospel is. We’ll be focusing on vs. 44 – 49, and that section is printed in your bulletin. I’d like to ask you to take that out and let’s read that together:
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You are my witnesses, it says. Witness: to bear testimony, to be the evidence of. Fundamentally, there are only two kinds of people in the world. There are those who scoff at the notion that a formerly dead man could come back to life, and those who bear witness to the fact that he did.
What He Reveals Himself
And that brings us to our second point, what he reveals of himself.
Long Branch Baptist Church
Halfway, Virginia; est. 1786
Easter Sunday, April 08, 2007
Enter to Worship
Prelude David Witt
Meditation Isaiah 25: 6 – 9
Invocation Michael Hollinger
*Opening Hymn #367
“Christ the Lord is Risen Today”
Welcome & Announcements
Morning Prayer
*Hymn #365
“Alleluia, Alleluia!”
*Responsive Lesson #364
*Hymn #361
“Worship Christ the Risen King”
Offertory Mr. Witt
*Doxology
Praise God from whom all blessings flow / Praise Him all creatures here below
Praise him above, ye heavenly host / Praise Father, Son and Holy Ghost. Amen.
*Scripture Luke 24:44 – 49
Sermon
“You will be my witnesses”
Invitation Hymn #358
“Because He Lives”
*Benediction
*Congregational Response
May the grace of Christ our Savior / And the Father’s boundless love
With the Holy Spirit’s favor / Rest upon us from above. Amen.
* Congregation, please stand.
Depart To Serve
EASTER PRAYER
O God, who for our redemption gave your only begotten Son to the death of the cross, and by his glorious resurrection delivered us from the power of our enemy: Grant us so to die daily to sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his resurrection
PRAY FOR FORGIVENESS OF YOUR SIN
God of Easter Joy and Resurrection, in your mercy hear us.
Almighty God, who through your only begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: Grant that we, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord’s resurrection, may be raised from the death. Grant this physical life to those whom we love: For my father, John, I ask your healing hand. Upon Susan, Irene, Warren, Martha, Corey, Debbie, Lindsay, and Marjorie we ask for this life, too. God, for Jim and Andy and Joe we ask for your special favor in their circumstances. God, for Jack and Fred and Debbie and your community call them in your Spirit we pray, for them these too:
PRAY FOR YOUR NEIGHBORS
God of Easter Joy and Resurrection, in your mercy hear us.
O God, who made this most holy night to shine with the glory of the Lord’s resurrection: Stir up in your Church that Spirit of adoption which is given to us in Baptism, that we, being renewed both in body and mind, may worship you in sincerity and truth. Stir up in your church around the world the power that you have already begun to pour out. My heart to you, O Lord, is for Central Asia, where you have begun a mighty work. Strengthen those who serve there in your name: For Jeff and Zane and Steve and Clint and Bruce and those you have called, empower them to be your witnesses, and empower us to lift them up to you.
PRAY FOR YOUR COUNTRY AND CHURCH
God of Easter Joy and Resurrection, in your mercy hear us.
God of Good Friday and of Easter, we praise you that you literally condescended to be with us and to hear us. Even though your Son was God he knew the need to cast himself upon you. We echo his words when we pray. Our Father …
But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” And they remembered his words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James and the other women with them who told these things to the apostles, but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb; stooping and looking in, he saw the linen cloths by themselves; and he went home marveling at what had happened.
That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And he said to them, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” And they stood still, looking sad. Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered him, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in these days?” And he said to them, “What things?” And they said to him, “Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, a man who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people, and how our chief priests and rulers delivered him up to be condemned to death, and crucified him. But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things happened. Moreover, some women of our company amazed us. They were at the tomb early in the morning, and when they did not find his body, they came back saying that they had even seen a vision of angels, who said that he was alive but him they did not see.” And he said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself. So they drew near to the village to which they were going.
He acted as if he were going farther, but they urged him strongly, saying, “Stay with us, for it is toward evening and the day is now far spent.” So he went in to stay with them. When he was at table with them, he took the bread and blessed and broke it and gave it to them. And their eyes were opened, and they recognized him. And he vanished from their sight. They said to each other, “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” And they rose that same hour and returned to Jerusalem. And they found the eleven and those who were with them gathered together, saying, “The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!” Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.
As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marveling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate before them. Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.”
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written,
that the Christ should suffer
and on the third day rise from the dead,
and that repentance and forgiveness of sins
should be proclaimed in his name to all nations,
beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.
And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.”
