The Resurrection
The Resurrection is Essential to Christianity
Fables that Deny the Resurrection
The “Stolen Body” Fable
The “Didn’t Really Die” Fable
The “Wrong Tomb” Fable
Facts that Support the Resurrection
The Empty Tomb
The Effects on the Lives of the Disciples
The Existence of Christianity today
The Resurrection is Essential to Living Life Eternal
The Resurrection is Essential to Living Life Now
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There sure are a lot of opinions out there concerning how you get to heaven and what Easter is all about.
As Christians today is the day we celebrate and remember the Resurrection of Christ and the victory over death that He won for all of those who believe in Him as Christ, the Son of God, God in the flesh.
But not everyone believes that as the video made clear.
Even the apostles didn’t believe this at first (Read Luke 24:1-11)
The Apostles did end up believing, but my question is why should people today believe in the resurrection?
Why should I believe in Christ as the only way to heaven?
And for even Christians, do we have to really believe in the resurrection to be a Christian?
Is the resurrection of Jesus really that important?
I mean, I have never seen anyone in my lifetime be dead for 3 days and then come back to life.
For people today, this resurrection may be hard to believe.
In fact, recently there was a show called “the Lost tomb of Jesus.”
They found a tomb that had some bones in some ossuary that they tried to make a case for these being the bones of Jesus, showing that He never really did rise from the dead.
And there was a man who claimed to be a Christian who said it really didn’t matter if someone found Jesus’ bones or if He did not actually, physically raise from the dead.
Is that true?
Does it matter to Christianity if Jesus really raised from the dead?
Does it really matter to living in the fullness of the Christian life that Jesus raised from the dead or not?
Is it really necessary?
Today, we are going to continue talking about the essential aspects of Christianity that we began talking about last week.
(Release 4-K Short Circuits to class)
Last week we spoke about the essential belief that Jesus is the Christ
Which means we recognize Him as
our King
the Son of God
God in the flesh
Those beliefs are essential to true Christianity.
Failure to believe those things is failure to believe Christianity.
This week we are going to talk about if the resurrection is essential and what is there to support that this event really occurred.
Let’s read again 1 Corinthians 15:1-6
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and see what Paul thinks about these things.
1 Corinthians 15:1-6
1 Now, brothers, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain.
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. (from New International Version)
Well, we see here that Paul tells us that
The Resurrection is Essential to Christianity
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1 Corinthians 15:2-4
Paul is seeking to remind the Corinthians of the gospel that brings salvation and the fact that Jesus raised from the dead is part of that gospel, and essential part of the gospel.
He goes even further later in this chapter in
1 Corinthians 15:12-14
12 But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. 14 And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.
If Christ did not physically resurrect from the dead, then your faith is useless. Your faith in Christ is useless. You might as well just live life as you see fit, because if Christ did not raise from the dead, he lied to his followers, and there really is no hope in life.
But thankfully, Christ did rise from the dead. And we are going to look at some of the evidence of that in a minute.
But the fact that the resurrection is essential shows why people seek to attack the truth of the resurrection. If they can show that the resurrection did not happen, then Christianity is useless.
So that those of you here today, might either be
strengthened in your faith about the Resurrection or perhaps, today
convinced of the truth of the resurrection,
I want to go over some of the
Fables that Deny the Resurrection
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And show why you should not believe them.
These fables that deny the resurrection are not new. They have been around beginning with the actual resurrection.
The first fable that made the rounds is
The “Stolen Body” Fable
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Matthew 28:11-15
11 While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12 When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13 telling them, "You are to say, ’His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble." 15 So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.
(from New International Version)
Why couldn’t the Disciples have stolen His body?
They couldn’t have because the Pharisees and authorities took steps to see that not happen.
A Roman Seal and Guard
Matthew 27:65-66
65 "Take a guard," Pilate answered. "Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how." 66 So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.
First, there was a Roman seal and a guard unit of 16 men.
To break a Roman Seal was punishable by death.
To go up against a Guard unit charged with making sure that the tomb was secure would have meant death for those coming against it.
Cowardly and weak Disciples?
To say that these disciples that fled and abandoned Jesus just several nights ago and were in hiding fearing for their own lives felt an incredible surge of bravery to go and steal his body so they could spread a lie that would lead to their certain death is beyond highly unlikely.
And for an entire Roman Guard unit to say they fell asleep at their post would have meant death for them, probably by being burned alive with a fire started with their own clothes.
No Roman soldier would ever do such a thing or admit to such a thing unless it could be counted on to save their life.
No, there is no evidence to support the Fable that the Disciples stole the body.
Then we have
The “Wrong Tomb” Fable
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There are those who suggested that the women went to the wrong tomb.
That is again not possible, because they saw with their own eyes where the tomb was and there would have been no need for the soldiers and Pharisees to come up with the story of a stolen body had the women simply gone to the wrong tomb.
So this fable also we see is really just a fable.
Finally there is
The “Didn’t Really Die” Fable
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There are those who have said that Jesus didn’t really die, he merely passed out and then he healed and got up and out of the tomb.
Listen, these Roman executioners knew about death. This is what they did. If they said someone was dead, he was dead.
Here is how the Apostle John records Jesus’ death.
John 19:31-34
Because the Jews did not want the bodies left on the crosses during the Sabbath, they asked Pilate to have the legs broken and the bodies taken down. 32 The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. 33 But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. 34 Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.
Pilate was even surprised that Jesus was dead when told so he made sure.
Mark 15:43-45
43 Joseph of Arimathea, a prominent member of the Council, who was himself waiting for the kingdom of God, went boldly to Pilate and asked for Jesus’ body. 44 Pilate was surprised to hear that he was already dead. Summoning the centurion, he asked him if Jesus had already died. 45 When he learned from the centurion that it was so, he gave the body to Joseph.
Well, Scott, believing in a Resurrection after being dead 3 days is still a pretty big stretch. What are the
Facts that Support the Resurrection
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The first fact that supports the Resurrection is
The Empty Tomb
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John 20:2-9
2 So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!"
3 So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb. 4 Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. 5 He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter, who was behind him, arrived and went into the tomb. He saw the strips of linen lying there, 7 as well as the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen. 8 Finally the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went inside. He saw and believed. 9 (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.)
The Disciples we saw already couldn’t have stolen the body.
The empty tomb amidst the circumstances of it being guarded and sealed is a big evidence for a supernatural event.
The authorities did all in their power to guard the tomb and the body, but the reality is is that there is no power and no authority that could stop the work that God was doing to provide victory over death.
Jesus raised from the dead and the empty tomb is a symbol of that victory and the eternal life He offers all of us.
In other belief systems their leader is dead
Buddhism - Buddha (563-483 B.C)
Islam – Muhammad (A.D. 570-632)
Sikhism – Guru Nanak (A. D. 1469-1539)
Jehovah’s Witness – Charles Russell (1852 – 1916)
Mormon – Joseph Smith (1805 – 1844)
Scientology – L. Ron Hubbard (1911 – 1986)
Each of these leaders has a tomb and their body is in it.
The tomb of Jesus Christ is empty because He resurrected and is alive forevermore.
The Jewish authorities could have easily ended Christianity simply by producing the dead body of Jesus.
They didn’t because they couldn’t because there wasn’t a dead body.
He is alive and that is why we can celebrate today!
A second evidence for the resurrection is
The Effects on the Lives of the Disciples
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These guys were running scarred up until they saw the resurrected Messiah.
What could explain their transformation from cowardly and scarred to boldly going forth and preaching wherever they could that Jesus was the Christ and that He rose from the dead.
Paul includes this in the text today.
1 Corinthians 15:3-6
3 For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. 6 After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep.
We see that even the Pharisees took note of the Courage of Peter and John after they had seen the resurrected Christ and were preaching that very thing.
Acts 4:13 reads
13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.
All of the Apostles except for John, went to their death for the reason that they were preaching about the Resurrection of Jesus.
What would account for all of these men being weak cowards and then becoming bold proclaimers of the resurrection of Jesus that would lead to their own deaths if it didn’t really happen?
Another fact to support the resurrection is
The Existence of Christianity today
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The very fact that Christianity exists today is evidence of the truth of the resurrection.
There are people here today who have had changed lives due to the power of the resurrected Lord in their lives. This faith has been passed down through the generations and by the word of God from the very first disciples.
If the resurrection were not true, then it would have collapsed in the first century because it was based upon the fact that Jesus rose from the dead.
If the resurrection was not true, it could have been too easily been proven false by producing a body or at least finding nobody to corroborate the story the apostles were telling.
But there were too many appearances of the risen Christ not to believe in that first generation.
Paul told the Corinthians that over 500 men had seen the resurrected Christ at once and most of them were still alive, they could talk to them and get even more eyewitness testimony.
When the apostles were called in again for preaching Jesus and his resurrection, this what Gamaliel had to say.
Acts 5:34-39
34 But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. 35 Then he addressed them: "Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. 36 Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. 37 After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. 38 Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39 But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God."
It is the very fact that those who could have proven it false believed and were able to persuade so many others who could have proven it false, that continues to lend credence to its truth today.
And further supporting this is the fact that Jesus’ resurrection power continues to transform people 2000 years later.
That nobody has been able to stop Christianity and the claims of the resurrection, or account for the life changing transformations in people these past 2000 years, despite attempts and efforts such as the lost tomb of Jesus, lends great weight to the fact that the resurrection is true.
Explain Away
It is interesting that throughout history, what you don’t see is anyone claiming that the tomb was not empty, or that people did not claim to see the resurrected Christ or that lives were not being transformed.
What you see is Jews or others only trying to explain the fact of the resurrection away with fables and falsehoods.
It did not work then, it does not work today for anyone who is willing to sit and consider the evidence.
Ok, so the resurrection is essential to Christianity, but beyond that
The Resurrection is Essential to Living Life Eternal
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Paul tells us in
1 Corinthians 15:17-18
17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost. 19 If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are to be pitied more than all men.
(from New International Version)
If there is no resurrection, there is no eternal life for anyone.
There is no hope.
The resurrection is essential to Christianity and to our eternal life.
The resurrection proves who Jesus is, that He is the Son of God, God in the flesh and that he has defeated death and won the victory over death.
Romans 1:4 says in speaking of Jesus
…was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord.
Without the resurrection, Jesus was just another man,
A man like Muhammad or Buddha,
A man only, not a God worthy to be worshipped.
If Jesus has not been raised, your faith is futile. You are still in your sins.
And you have no hope of eternal life.
But thankfully, that is not the case.
The truth of the resurrection has been established and can be counted on.
And we have our eternity to look forward to with Christ.
But not only is the resurrection essential to Christianity and to eternal life, but
The Resurrection is Essential to Living Life Now
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1 Peter 1:3
In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
The new birth and living hope is only available through the resurrection of the Lord from the dead.
As I read earlier, Paul says if the resurrection did not happen, then your faith is useless.
There is no hope. Without hope there is no real life. And by hope I don’t mean wishing for in the face of and against reality.
By hope, I mean and the Bible means a confident expectancy. We live with the confident expectance based upon the truth and realities we have experienced, of a better life that helps us to live that way right now.
Retirement
For those of you that are older as you face retirement, knowing that you have a retirement nest egg, helps you to live easier now without the stresses of what to do in the future.
Knowing that our eternity is set with a resurrection that is assured and proven by the resurrection of Jesus, helps us to live life in a way now that is better by far.
For those who have already received Christ, while Satan cannot take away your eternal life, he does try and take away your ability to live the full life now, by trying to take a way that confident expectation of the resurrection that has occurred in Christ and that will occur in you.
Don’t let him take that away. Live the full life now.
Conclusion
Today, as we celebrate the resurrection, if you have received Christ as Savior, I hope that you are strengthened in your faith and can better live now in the hope of eternal life.
Maybe you just happened in today because you are just supposed to go to church on Easter.
Maybe you have never really considered the resurrection before today, it has just been something that you never really thought about.
Well, I want to offer you the opportunity to enter into the resurrected life of Jesus by receiving Him as Savior.
Trusting Jesus is more than just knowing who He is. It is a belief that relies on Him for your eternal life and the resurrection power to live.
