Rudyard Kipling, author of “The Jungle Book,” has an imaginary character named Mowgli. Mowgli asks the animals what’s the most feared thing in the jungle?
He’s told that when two animals meet on a narrow path that one must step aside and let the other pass. The animal that steps aside for no one would then be the most feared. Mowgli wants to know what kind of animal would that be? One tells him it’s an elephant. Another tells him it’s a lion.
Finally the wise old owl exclaims, “The most feared thing in the jungle is death. It steps aside for no one.
We find that statement to be so true
It doesn’t matter how physically strong, financially rich, fantastically popular or overwhelmingly powerful
•Death is an absolute truth for all of us No one is exempt from death
Heb. 9:27 – It is appointed to all men once to die and after that the judgment.
Ecc. 7:2 – …for death is the destiny of every man.
Text: Rudyard Kipling, author of “The Jungle Book,” has an imaginary character named Mowgli. Mowgli asks the animals what’s the most feared thing in the jungle?
He’s told that when two animals meet on a narrow path that one must step aside and let the other pass. The animal that steps aside for no one would then be the most feared. Mowgli wants to know what kind of animal would that be?
One tells him it’s an elephant. Another tells him it’s a lion. Finally the wise old owl exclaims, “The most feared thing in the jungle is death. It steps aside for no one.”
We find that statement to be so true
It doesn’t matter how physically strong, financially rich, fantastically popular or overwhelmingly powerful
• Death is an absolute truth for all of us No one is exempt from death
Heb. 9:27 – It is appointed to all men once to die and after that the judgment.
Ecc. 7:2 – …for death is the destiny of every man.
Text: Luke 24:1-8 On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. 2 They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. 5 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? 6 He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: 7 ‘The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’ ” 8 Then they remembered his words.
A woman wrote J. Vernon McGee: "Our preacher said that on Easter Jesus just swooned on the cross and that the disciples nursed him back to health. What do you think?" McGee replied, "Dear Sister, beat your preacher with a leather whip for thirty-nine heavy strokes. Nail him to a cross. Hang him in the sun for six hours Run a spear through his heart. Embalm him. Put him in an airless tomb for three days. Then see what happens."
What a wonderful day this is,
• All over the world people are celebrating the resurrection of Jesus as the Son of God, King of Kings & Lord of Lords, alive forevermore!
• Good people –we celebrate the Lords Resurrection every Sunday as we gather together with fellow Christians around the Lord’s Table? Every time we take the bread & drink the cup,
I appreciate what Apostle Paul who wrote, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day & not only to me, but also to all who have longed for His appearing." (2 Timothy 4:7-8)
One of these days we are going home. All of us love life. But as much as I love life, I, too, long for the day when I shall see the Lord, & be with Him.
I want to see my mother and my brother once again. I want to see Jim Massey, Charles Coil and my grandparents. I want to see once again some of the most wonderful Christians that I have ever known that have gone to be with Jesus. In every church I have preached –loved ones have left!
Don’t look upon death with fear, but with anticipation.
Now don’t get me wrong. I’m not wanting to die yet –You all would miss me!!! But yet, one of these days I will. But the wonderful thing is that I’m ready, because Jesus is my Savior & my Lord.
Now watch this:
The chief priests & Pharisees came to Pilate After they had crucified Jesus and in Matthew 27:63-66 tells us, "Sir”, they said, “We remember that while He was still alive that deceiver said, ’After 3 days I will rise again.’ So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day.
“Otherwise, his disciples may come & steal the body & tell the people that He has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first."
"‘Take a guard,’ Pilate answered, ‘Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.’ So they went & made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone & posting the guard."
I think God must have laughed out loud when he heard them talking.
• Can’t you just see all the hosts of heaven looking down, watching the priests & Pharisees issuing orders, & those soldiers grunting & straining to roll the stone into place, putting the seal of the Roman Empire on it, & then standing guard to make sure that nothing happened.
• Can you imagine God who took the sun & flung it into space being out witted by a mere stone in front of a tomb?
• Can you imagine the God who created the power of the atom being stopped by a few Roman soldiers armed with swords & spears?
Matthew 28:2-4 says, "There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven &, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone & sat on it.
The Angels appearance was like lightning, & his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook & became like dead men."
What a scene! God spoke the word, & instantly an angel descends, the earth is shaken, the stone is rolled away, & the soldiers are paralyzed with fear.
The chief priest & Pharisees were trying to stop the inevitable. They were trying to seal up the Son of God. And we laugh at their futile efforts.
• But sometimes it almost seems as if we, too, are trying to seal up Jesus. We put Him in a little corner of our life & say,
• "Lord, you’re welcome to stay, but please don’t interfere. Please don’t interfere with my church traditions, don’t change the way I think or act or speak. Lord, do not move me to repent over my past. Just stay in your corner & everything will be fine."
We must not forget in all our business that this life is a preparation for eternity -- an eternity in which we will be among the saved or the lost forever & ever.
I want us to see just two power life changing principles as it relates to the resurrection.
I. THE RESURRECTION DEMONSTRATES THE POWER OF GOD
Soldiers & seals & stones can never stop the plan of God.
• God marches on & His plan will be accomplished. We believe that because the tomb is empty & because Jesus Christ is alive.
• I wasn’t there. I didn’t see what happened. But I believe in the resurrection with all my heart.
I wasn’t there when the Germans surrendered in WW 2 either. But I believe we won & I have two good reasons for believing that.
I was not there when Abraham Lincoln was president but I have good reason to believe he was.
I was not here when the pilgrims made their journey on the Mayflower but I believe they did..
i wasn’t there when Jesus rose from the dead. But I believe it with all my heart, & I have good reasons for believing that He arose.
1. First of all, I believe in the resurrection because eyewitnesses
have told me that it is true.
In 1 Corinthians 15:3-8 the Apostle Paul wrote, “For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, & that He appeared to Peter & then to the Twelve. “After that He appeared to more than 500 of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, & last of all He appeared to me also, as to one abnormally born.”
I believe it because the Apostle John wrote in 1 John 1:1-2, “That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked at and our hands have touched – this we proclaim concerning the Word of life.”
• In other words, the apostle John is saying, "I want to tell you what we saw, what we felt, what we experienced. was Jesus."
• I believe it because reliable people who saw what happened passed it on.
• If Jesus were not alive –why did not someone produce his dead body. Illustrate –Acts 2
2. I believe it because our world is greatly different because Jesus is alive.
In 1 Corinthians 15:14 Paul wrote, "If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.”
• Do you realize that that there would be no reason for us to meet this morning if Christ were not alive?
• Do you realize that thousands of Christian institutions & agencies across the land would not exist today if Jesus were not alive?
• Two thousand years have come and gone & people still gather & remember. And if the Lord tarries another 2,000 years, God’s people will still be meeting to remember, because Jesus is alive.
We do not forget because sin & death have been conquered & victory has been won. Our world is different because Jesus is alive!
II. THE RESURRECTION SHOWS POWER OVER DEATH
The resurrection also changes the way we look at life & death.
•Jesus talked about death as being like a wedding.
I have been to a lot of weddings & so have many of you. We know what it is to watch a beautiful bride come down the aisle.
Jesus told us that the end of time is the church is like a bride waiting for the coming of the bridegroom & that glorious moment when she will be with the Lord forever.
• Jesus also tells us that death is like sitting down to a banquet with God. God has invited us to His banquet. It will be a time of joy & happiness & fellowship, & Jesus says, "Death is like that."
• Jesus also says, "Death is like going home."
I heard a preacher say the other day…I walk thru the cemetery because It is a short cut to home.
At the end of a busy day it is wonderful to be able to say, "I’m going home." It is wonderful to be able to go home & relax, to feel the love & warmth of home, & to know that you have a share in all that happens there.
• Death is also like a graduation.
I will never forget when I graduated from International Bible College -- I remember walking off the stage, clutching my diploma & thinking to myself:
• This really represents a lot of accomplishments a lot of papers that were written a lot of tests that were taken a lot of things that were memorized. Years & years of study all represented in this one little piece of paper.’"
"I looked at my diploma & just kept looking at it. ’There is my name. I graduated. I did it!’
There were some at the graduation ceremony that did not finish their requirements for graduation. Some even dropped out and did not graduate.
I am thinking to himself, "We studied together, we spent time together, & one graduates & the other one doesn’t."
THE RESURRECTION IF FOR EVERYONE –YOU CAN GRADUATE TO GLORY –BUT SOME EXCEPT IT AND SOME DO NOT.
You see, some people graduate & some do not.
Some homes are peaceful, while others are not.
Some marriages succeed, but others do not. Some banquets are occasions of joy, but some are not.
In the same way, while the cross is a blessing for those who come & accept its sacrifice, it is a curse for those who turn away & never acknowledge what is there.
The empty tomb is the greatest source of joy for those who know Jesus as their Lord & Savior. But it is also the greatest source of judgment & condemnation for those who do not.
HERE IS THE GOOD NEWS:
JUST LIKE GOD RESURRECTED JESUS –HE CAN RESURRECT YOU!
He can resurrect the church. He can give you new life, a new beginning, a new start, a better attitude, a new Christian disposition. He can resurrect your ministry. He can restore,
The thieve comes to destroy, steal and kill, but I have come to give life:
You see, you can’t stop of God.
Not with stones in front of tombs or seals or soldiers.
You can’t stop what God is trying to do in our world because God will conquer.
God will be victorious & you will either be on His winning side or you won’t. The decision is yours!
