A quote from C.S. Lewis says, “Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition, when infinite joy is offered to us…like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in the slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a vacation on a cruise liner. We are far too easily pleased.”
Such was the case of the disciples after the death of Jesus. He was dead, they lost their joy and went back to their jobs when they should have been standing on the precious promises of God.
Today we are going to go through a couple chapters of Scripture from the Gospel of John that takes us from the crucifixion of Jesus to His resurrection from the grave. He lives. Our Savior lives! The death of Jesus Christ is important because He died to pay the penalty of our sins but His resurrection is also important because it is proof of His victory over sin, death and the grave. This wonderful truth gives the Christian joy even in the most challenging situations.
The resurrection is proof that God the Father accepted His Son’s offering for sin. It also gives us a glimpse of what is to come. The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the grave is like a movie trailer that motivates us to get in line at the theater to see the whole movie!
(1 Corinthians 15:20-23).
We begin our journey in John chapter 18 where we find Jesus taking His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane. This was the place where Jesus frequently met with His disciples. Judas the traitor, was aware of this, and leads a group of heavily-armed Roman soldiers and temple guards there to arrest Jesus.
But Jesus, being God, knew everything that was going to happen to Him and asks the soldiers, “Who are you looking for?” When they answer, “Jesus of Nazareth”, Jesus says, “I Am He.” The Bible says when Jesus said, “I Am He” they all fell to the ground.
Let me pause for a moment to tell you that when God the Son took upon Himself a body and came the earth to dwell among men, the Bible lets us know that His glory as God was veiled (Philippians 2:6-7; 2 Cor. 4:6.; 1 Tim. 6:15-16). But there are those few times when His glory as “God the Son” seeped out. This was one of those times! When Jesus said, “I Am He” they all were knocked to the ground by the power of the Great I Am!
Back in John chapter 18 we find Peter drawing his sword and cutting off the ear of the High Priest’s slave. All pandemonium was about to break loose when Jesus took charge and told Peter to put his sword back and then says to the Roman soldiers, “Leave the alone and take me.” (18:8)
Jesus was arrested and taken to be interrogated by Annas, who was formerly the High Priest but still had lots of power and influence. Annas questioned Jesus and then sent Him to Caiaphas, Annas’ son-in-law, who was the current High Priest.
The Old Testament teaches us that God made a donkey talk and it appears that He was doing a similar thing when Jesus was with Caiaphas. Not even know what he was saying from his own mouth, Caiaphas prophesies that Jesus would have to die (John 11:49-53; John 18:14). He says, “…it is expedient for you that one man should die for the people, and that the whole nation perish not.” Caiaphas didn’t even know the significance of what he was saying. But what he said was true. Jesus died for many so that many could live.
While Jesus was with Annas and Caiaphas, He was beat up by the soldiers and in the morning they Him to Pilate, who was the Roman Governor over the province of Judah.
By the way, where were the disciples? They were nowhere to be found expect for Peter who tried unsuccessfully to blend in with the crowd outside the court of the high priest. When Peter was identified as being one of Jesus’ disciples he denied even knowing Jesus.
Jesus is now with Pilate and Pilate interrogates Him asking if He was “King of the Jews.” Jesus answers in 18:36, “My kingdom does not belong to this world; if my kingdom belonged to this world, my followers would fight to keep me from being handed over to the Jewish authorities. No, my kingdom does not belong here!”
After the interrogation Pilate goes before the people and says, “I cannot find any reason to condemn him.” Obviously, Pilate do his homework concerning Jesus. If he would have checked the record in the Old Testament he would have known that Jesus was the Passover Lamb who was without blemish. If he would have checked with the local new reporter, he would have learned that Jesus Himself said, “Can any of you prove me guilty of sin?”
Jesus was without sin. He broke now laws. He was guilty of nothing but being the Son of God. But trying to keep a riot from breaking out Pilate attempts to bargain with the people by offering to release a prisoner as is the custom during the celebration of the Passover. Pilate offers the crowd Jesus but they say, “No, not him! We want Barabbas!” (Barabbas was a bandit and a thief.)
This takes us to chapter John 19:1: “Then Pilate took Jesus and had him whipped.”
Hymn Break - "Above All"
Now the Gospel of Luke (chapter 23) tells us that Jesus was first brought before Pontius Pilate for trial. Pilate was the governor of Roman Judea, where Jerusalem was located and where Jesus was arrested…so Jesus was brought before him.
Pilate initially handed him over to Herod Antipas, in whose territory Jesus had been most active, but Herod Antipas sent him back to Pilate's court. This probably occurred between verses one and two of John chapter 19.
In John 19:2 we find our Lord back in Pilate’s court experiencing the cruel mocking by the soldiers who “made a crown out of thorns and put it on his head; then they put a purple robe on him and came to him and said, "Long live the King of the Jews!" And they went up and slapped him.”
Pontius Pilate appeals to the crowd once more saying, “Look, I will bring him out here to you to let you see that I cannot find any reason to condemn him.” Pilate brings Jesus before the crowd but “when the chief priests and the Temple guards saw him, they shouted, "Crucify him! Crucify him!" Pilate said to them, "You take him, then, and crucify him. I find no reason to condemn him."”
But the crowd by this time demanded that Jesus be crucified because He claimed that He was “the Son of God.” Besides that, their law said it was blaspheme for Jesus to say He was equal with God (John 5:18). But the sad thing was: He was the Son of God and He was equal to God…His words were honest and true; they just didn’t believe it.
Hearing all of this, Pilate became fearful…He was judging someone who claimed to be God. Also, Pilate’s wife had a terrible dream and warned her husband to have nothing to do with this innocent man Jesus. (Matthew 27:19).
When Pilate hears this, he tries to find a way to set Jesus free. But the crowd shouts back, "If you set him free, that means that you are not Caesar’s friend! Anyone who claims to be a king is a rebel against the Emperor!"
Matthew 27:24 tells us that when Pilate saw that he was getting nowhere with the crowd, and an uproar was starting, he took water and washed his hands in front of the crowd. "I am innocent of this man's blood," he said. "It is your responsibility!"
Back in John 19:14 Pilate says to the crowd, “Here is your King!” The crowd repeats their demands for Jesus to be crucified. They cried out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!”
Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” And then he delivers Jesus over to the crowd to be crucified.
Hymn Break
"You Are My King"
At the scene of the crucifixion we find Jesus’ mother Mary and others. The soldiers take spikes and nail Jesus to the cross.
While hanging on the cross Jesus speaks seven “words” or “utterances.”
THE FIRST WORD - "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do."
Gospel of Luke 23:34
THE SECOND WORD - "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
Gospel of Luke 23:43
THE THIRD WORD - "Jesus said to his mother: "Woman, this is your son." Then he said to the disciple: "This is your mother." - Gospel of John 19:26-27
THE FOURTH WORD - "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" - Matthew 27:46 and Mark 15:34
THE FIFTH WORD - "I thirst." - Gospel of John 19:28
THE SIXTH WORD – “They put a sponge soaked in wine on a sprig of hyssop and put it up to his mouth. When Jesus had received the wine, he said, "It is finished; and he bowed his head and handed over the spirit.” - Gospel of John 19:29-30
THE SEVENTH WORD – “Jesus cried out in a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commend my spirit." - Gospel of Luke 23:46
In John 19:31-37 we see more proof of the wickedness and hypocrisy of the religious leaders of the Jews. They didn’t want Jesus’ crucifixion to run over in their celebration of the Passover so they asked Pilate to hasten the death of the men who had been crucified by breaking their legs. Once their legs were broken they would no longer be able to lift themselves up using their nail-pierced feet in order to breath. And would die by suffocation.
So the soldiers went and broke the legs of the first man and then of the other man who had been crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus, they saw that he was already dead, so they did not break his legs. One of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear just to make sure Jesus was dead and blood and water came out (proof of death). This happened so that the Old Testament prophecy in Psalm 34:20 would be fulfilled: "Not one of his bones will be broken." And, “They shall look on him whom they pierced” (Zechariah 12:10).
Joseph of Arimathea, a secret follower of Jesus (for fear of the Jewish leaders), gets permission from Pilate to take down the body of Jesus. He and Nicodemus, another secret follower of Jesus, take about one hundred pounds of spices, a mixture of myrrh and aloes and wrap Jesus body in linen cloths with the spices according to the Jewish custom of preparing a body for burial.
They place the body of Jesus in a new tomb where no one had ever been buried. Since it was the day before the Sabbath and because the tomb was close by, they placed Jesus' body there.
Have you ever been at a place in your life where you felt the bottom had fallen out?
You ever been at a place in your life where all hope was lost?
This is where the disciples were. They had all (with the exception of John) left the scene. They had all went home. In fact, in chapter 21:3 we find Peter and some of the other disciples. Peter says to them, “I’m going fishing” and the other disciples answered, “We are going with you.”
All hope was lost. They thought Jesus was the Messiah who would right all wrongs and deliver His people from Roman oppression. But they killed Him. He was dead. It was over.
The ministry of Radio Bible Class tells the story of Captain Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin a man who participated in one of the greatest technological feats of the 20th century—he was one of the first two men to walk on the moon. Then something very unexpected happened. In just a few short years after his historic voyage, his life had turned from success to the brink of disaster. Instead of basking in the glow of his heroic achievement, he sagged into a state of such severe depression that it nearly ruined him and his family.
Buzz slid from the mountaintop of achievement into a valley of despair. “I had been immersed in just one project—going to the moon,” Aldrin reflected. “I had gone to the moon. . . . What possible goal could I add now? There simply wasn’t one.” And when the emptiness set in with no hope of ever finding purpose in life again, he became depressed.
The disciples of the Jesus experienced what no man has ever experienced since. They saw the Lord heal and do miracles like turning water into wine and feeding thousands of people with only a few loaves of bread and fish. Once when Jesus sent the Seventy out on a mission’s trip they returned with joy saying, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name.”
They witnessed Jesus raise the widow’s son from the dead (Luke 7:11-17), they saw Jesus raise Jarius’ 12-year-old daughter from the dead (Mark 5:21-43). His disciples witnessed Lazarus (who had been stinking dead for four days) brought back to life (John 11).
But now, Jesus’ Himself was dead. His disciples were helpless and hopeless and decided to go back to what they were doing before they met Him.
Today lots of people become depressed (like Buzz Aldrin and the disciples)…they reach their goals in life and find that there is nothing left to live for. Others slip into a state of depression when things they hoped aren’t reached and now seems lost:
• Some hope for someone to fall in love with and share a life with…
• Some hope for a successful career…
• Some hope for adequate funds to pay the bills…
• Men or women hope for reconciliation for a relationship that went sour…
• People hope for relief from stress…
• Some hope for something they dreamed about all their lives to come true.
On the internet you can find a page that lists 10 Millionaire Businessmen Who Committed Suicide. The article says, “The following men were all successful businessmen who committed suicide. The millions in their bank accounts did nothing to ease their suffering…”
This is where the disciples were…they had it all. They were handpicked by the Lord of Life, they saw His miracles; they walked with the Messiah! But now they are saying to each other, “He’s dead; Jesus is dead; let’s go fishing.”
Joh 20:1 Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been taken away from the entrance.
Joh 20:2 She went running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and told them, "They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"
Joh 20:3 Then Peter and the other disciple went to the tomb.
Joh 20:4 The two of them were running, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and reached the tomb first.
Joh 20:5 He bent over and saw the linen cloths, but he did not go in.
Joh 20:6 Behind him came Simon Peter, and he went straight into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there
Joh 20:7 and the cloth which had been around Jesus' head. It was not lying with the linen cloths but was rolled up by itself.
Joh 20:8 Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in; he saw and believed.
At first glance at the text you see the word “believed” and think that the disciple who reached the tomb first (John) believed that Jesus had risen from the dead. No, he just believed the word of Mary Magdalene that the body of Jesus was missing. As John examines the tomb it’s like he’s saying, “Yup Mary, it’s just like you said; He ain’t there!”
In fact, the narrator lets us know in verse 9 and 10 that none of the disciples believed that Jesus had risen from the dead: (They still did not understand the Scripture which said that He must rise from death.) Then the disciples went back home.
Mary Magdalene didn’t believe. She thought someone stole the body of Jesus….that is until Jesus appeared to her:
Joh 20:11 Mary stood crying outside the tomb. While she was still crying, she bent over and looked in the tomb
Joh 20:12 and saw two angels there dressed in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been, one at the head and the other at the feet.
Joh 20:13 "Woman, why are you crying?" they asked her. She answered, "They have taken my Lord away, and I do not know where they have put him!"
Joh 20:14 Then she turned around and saw Jesus standing there; but she did not know that it was Jesus.
Joh 20:15 "Woman, why are you crying?" Jesus asked her. "Who is it that you are looking for?" She thought he was the gardener, so she said to him, "If you took him away, sir, tell me where you have put him, and I will go and get him."
Joh 20:16 Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned toward him and said in Hebrew, "Rabboni!" (This means "Teacher.")
Joh 20:17 "Do not hold on to me," Jesus told her, "because I have not yet gone back up to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them that I am returning to him who is my Father and their Father, my God and their God."
Hymn Break
"Jesus Messiah"
Joh 20:18 So Mary Magdalene went and told the disciples that she had seen the Lord and related to them what he had told her.
Can you imagine the excitement that must have come over Mary when she left the tomb after talking to Jesus? Can you imagine the joy that overcame her when all her fears were brushed away and she now knows that her Savior was alive?
I believe that it may have been at this time for Mary Magdalene that all Jesus’ teachings; all His prophecies about suffering and dying and raising from the dead hit home and were understood by her.
Mary no longer saw Jesus merely as a good teacher and a miracle worker; she saw Him as Savior and Redeemer and Messiah and God! The light turned on for Mary and all the words that Jesus uttered while on the cross made sense! “Father forgive them…” “My God, My God! What have you forsaken me?” “It is finished!” The price for her sin was paid in full; she was forgiven! She was saved!
Do you remember when Jesus saved you? Do you remember when you first “saw the light”? Do you remember when you first understood the Gospel? All excited, Mary returns to where the disciples were hold up saying, “I have seen the Lord!”
Hymn Break
We Still Remember
John 20:19 tells “later that Sunday evening, the disciples were gathered together behind locked doors, because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities.”
Could this be the state of many of our churches today? Jesus disciples are gathered together behind closed doors…they worship behind closed doors; they learn the Bible behind closed doors; they fellowship behind closed doors… But the need is outside those doors…these walls…the people we are commissioned to reach are in our neighborhoods and on our jobs. The people we are called to reach are at the supermarkets and gas stations and the shopping malls.
Joh 20:19 It was late that Sunday evening, and the disciples were gathered together behind locked doors, because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities. Then Jesus came and stood among them. "Peace be with you," he said.
Joh 20:20 After saying this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples were filled with joy at seeing the Lord.
Joh 20:21 Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father sent me, so I send you."
Joh 20:22 Then he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.
Hymn Break
Breathe
Jesus is sending His disciples by the power His Holy Spirit to make disciples. It is only through the authority of the Gospel that people’s sins are forgiven. When people obey the Gospel, they are forgiven; if they reject the Gospel, they are not forgiven (vs. 23)
Joh 20:24 One of the twelve disciples, Thomas (called the Twin), was not with them when Jesus came.
Joh 20:25 So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord!" Thomas said to them, "Unless I see the scars of the nails in his hands and put my finger on those scars and my hand in his side, I will not believe."
Joh 20:26 A week later the disciples were together again indoors, and Thomas was with them. The doors were locked, but Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."
Joh 20:27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here, and look at my hands; then reach out your hand and put it in my side. Stop your doubting, and believe!"
Joh 20:28 Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!"
Joh 20:29 Jesus said to him, "Do you believe because you see me? How happy, how blessed are those who believe without seeing me!"
I am so glad that Jesus said “How happy, how blessed are those who believe without seeing me!”
This is the power of the resurrection. Jesus is alive and you didn’t have to be living 2000 years ago to benefit from it! He is risen! He’s alive and you can believe in Him and walk in the joy of that belief without having been an eyewitness of the risen Savior.
1 Peter 1:8 says, “Although you have never seen Christ, you love him. You don't see Him now, but you believe in Him. You are extremely blessed with joy and praise that can hardly be expressed in words.”
What Jesus did over 2000 years ago has an effect on your life today. 1 Corinthians 15 tells us that because Christ is risen: our preaching is not in vain; our faith is not in vain; our witness concerning Christ is not false; we are no longer in bondage to sin; those who have died in Christ are not lost, but in His presence! Christians are not to be pitied but to be envied!
Because Christ is risen, He will reign and put all His enemies under His feet, including sin and death. Sin is dethroned! Death is swallowed up in victory! “O death, where is your sting? O grave, where is your victory?” (1 Cor. 15: 54-56)
Because Christ is risen, we who are in Christ will not be confined to these sin-cursed bodies but will be given new, glorified bodies to live in a new heavenly environment where there is no more crying, sickness, death or sorrow or crying or pain! “This corruptible shall put on incorruption, and when this mortal shall put on immortality!”
This is why we can rejoice because He is risen! This is why the song writer says”
When I get weak and I can't go on,
I feel all my hope, all my joy is gone.
Late in the midnight hour I talk to my God
and He gives me joy, joy in my soul.
Joy, joy, God's great joy.
Joy, joy, down in my soul;
sweet, beautiful, soul saving joy,
oh, joy, joy in my soul.
Joh 20:30 In his disciples' presence Jesus performed many other miracles which are not written down in this book.
Joh 20:31 But these have been written in order that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through your faith in Him you may have life.
This is the purpose for which John recorded the words in his book… “that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through your faith in Him you may have (eternal) life.”
Closing Hymn
In Christ Alone, by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend
A conference at a main line denominational church in Omaha. People were given helium filled balloons and told to release them at some point in the service when they felt like expressing the joy in their hearts. Since they were of this particular church denomination, they weren't free to say "Hallelujah, Praise the Lord." All through the service balloons ascended, but when it was over 1/3 of the balloons were unreleased.
Let your balloon go. He is risen!
