He is Risen! - Easter
1 Peter 1:3-5
Luke 23:55 - 24:12
April 12, 2020
START OUT WITH MAGIC TRICK - making candy appear out of an empty cup
Now, I don’t usually start messages with a magic trick, but I thought today would be the exception. Why a magic trick? Well . . . it’s Easter . . . why not? Actually, isn’t that what they were thinking after Jesus rose?
If I was really good, I would have done a trick like Houdini. I would have been tied up and escaped. But again, isn’t that what Pilate was afraid of? Look at what Matthew tells us in Matthew 27 - -
65 Pilate said to the chief priests, “You have a guard of soldiers. Go, make it as secure as you can.”
66 So they went and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone and setting a guard. - Matthew 27
After Jesus has risen, the guards tell the Jewish leaders about this amazing disappearing act. They essentially buy off the guards, saying -
12 And when the soldiers met with the elders and taken counsel, the counsel gave a sum of money to the soldiers
13 and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ - Matthew 28:12-13
Isn’t that what we do when we can’t explain something away? We make up a story and pass it around. They were hoping this would stick and everyone would forget about this Jesus guy. But that didn’t happen . . . and we thank God for that. Isn’t that what we do when we can’t explain something . . . well, it’s just an illusion.
But this time it wasn’t! It was real, Jesus was alive. I want to share two passages with you this morning. The first is really the Easter story. I believe it’s important to share the story as it was recorded in the Bible. So, I want to firstly read from the last 2 verses of Matthew 23 and continue in Matthew 24 - -
55 The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed and saw the tomb and how His body was laid. 56 Then they returned and prepared spices and ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment. 1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 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? 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how He told you, while He was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” 8 And they remembered His words, 9 and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest. 10 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, 11 but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them. 12 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. - Luke 23:55-24:12
I’m really not going to talk much about this scripture except to remind us of verses 6-7. Again, we read the angels saying - 6 He is not here, but has risen.
That’s got to be one of the most comforting 7 words in the Bible. Think about it? Drink it in? HE IS NOT HERE, BUT HAS RISEN! Isn’t that great news? Keep reminding yourself of this great news! He is not contained in some tomb. He’s not here! He’s alive!!
And the angels remind the women, because in our grief we so easily forget. Saying,
6 Remember how He told you, while He was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.”
Jesus told them He would rise again on the 3rd day. I think they kind of believed Him, but again, maybe it’s just an illusion, a slight of hand trick. Yet, they were witnesses to the miracles. Not just healings but Jesus brought 3 people back to life! Nobody had that power . . . nobody! But Jesus!
It seems so strange not to have Easter lilies filling the sanctuary, for you not to be here, all dressed up for Easter. New clothes, Easter egg hunts, excitement, an Easter morning breakfast at church. None of that’s happening.
Easter Sunday and COVID-19. There’s similarities all around on this. We’re secluded in our homes and told to wrap our faces and put on gloves when going out. I’ve heard stories of people getting too close to one another in stores. We’re certainly in scary times. We’re trying to stay hidden and have this virus skip us. It’s like we want to put the lambs blood on our doorposts, like the Israelites did when they were preparing to leave Egypt.
In some ways, we may feel like we’re locked up in a dark tomb, as though the darkness of "Good Friday" might go on forever with little hope in sight. And yet all around us, we see signs of spring, signs of awakening, signs of hope, signs of resurrection. Spring blooms all around us: Birds sing, some hot days, stormy days, there’s signs of hope, signs of new life, trees budding and how many of you have already cut your grass. I even turned on the A/C one night! Then the heat the next night! Yup, we’re in Spring.
I wonder what it must have felt like for Jesus those "three days" in the tomb, knowing resurrection was imminent, yet waiting for dawn to come on that magnificent morning when the stone was rolled away, and the sun streamed through, when an "angel of the Lord" removed the funerary cloth from Jesus' face, and the Holy Spirit breathed again the holy breath of life into His body and made it rise like Ezekiel's bones from the valley of the shadow of death. Three days of darkness. Then, new and restored life. Not the same life. But a resurrected life.
Even the disciples were feeling the affects of those days. Hiding in their homes. Afraid to go out in public. After all, the toughest of the disciples, Peter had denied Jesus 3 times. Yup, they were self quarantining themselves as well.
It seemed everyone was. Then we heard those 7 words from the angels of God.
HE IS NOT HERE, BUT HAS RISEN!
How sweet those words were and are and will be. I want to share words of hope with you. They are words from Peter. The book of 1 Peter focuses on the trials and difficult times the new believers must endure. Peter talks about hope throughout the book as well. As he started this letter, he wrote these words in chapter 1 --
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, 5 who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. - 1 Peter 1:3-5
Peter must have been agonizing at his rejection of Jesus. He meant well, but he failed miserably. Then a little girl's question melted all his bravado, and he denied Jesus. The disciples all fled and hid.
Maybe you’re feeling like Peter right now. Maybe this virus has crushed some hopes. Maybe you had dreams – and now they're gone. Maybe you had a set of ideals you meant to live by, but you didn’t. It's hard to admit. You meant to do well, but you ended up wrong. Maybe it was a failed relationship, maybe it’s career related, maybe you’ve lost someone and you’re filled with grief.
It’s within these moments that the Resurrection takes our breath away, in a good way! And we regain hope! I believe that’s what Peter had in mind in this passage.
Verse 3 is one of my favorite resurrection passages - -
After giving praise to God, Peter refers to God’s great mercy. Remember, mercy means WE DO NOT RECEIVE WHAT WE DESERVE! We don’t receive what we deserve, which is death, separation from God because of our sin. BUT, that’s not happening!
Peter adds God has caused us to be born again. Peter wants us to know the gift we received from God. God has given us new birth and now we are new people. That's what everyone wants – a new start, a fresh beginning. We can be born again, receive a new life, having the opportunity to find total and full forgiveness from God. It’s a gift God gives us. We let go of the past and embrace a new today
That gift to be born again gives us a living hope. And that’s something we need right now. We need a hope that is alive! This hope means we have an expectation of what’s going to happen. We don’t doubt. We have full belief. And what is it we believe in? It happens through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
We have mercy, we are born again and we have a living hope! Can I get a few AMENS at home? This is great news. It’s new we need to hear today!
But Peter doesn’t end there. He’s got more good news for you today, because we all need more good news. He tells us that all of this leads - - -
4 to an inheritance that is IMPERISHABLE, UNDEFILED, and UNFADING,
kept in heaven for you,
Remember, inheritance was only for the legit children of the Father. And let me tell you . . . you are a legit child of the living God. When you said yes to Jesus, He adopted you into His family. You are holy / dearly loved, worth dying for.
So, you have this inheritance. And look at the descriptors . . .
Those words almost sound similar. But they are so different - -
IMPERISHABLE means
(uncorrupted, not liable to corruption or decay, immortal, incorruptible)
It is indestructible. This means our inheritance which is imperishable will last forever. It will never decay or get beaten up. I like that. I like that hope. It won’t break down or decay.
Think about that new car you bought. It looks great and shiny now, but, the day will come when it looks like this. That’s what Peter means when he talks about imperishable.
Now, Peter goes on to say, my inheritance is also ~
UNDEFILED MEANS (untainted, free from contamination, unsoiled, unstained)
It’s free from contamination. Aren’t we trying to avoid contamination right now!? You know what’s worst than anything? When you’re really hungry for some healthy food and you find rotten fruit in the fridge.
You open the refrigerator and want to make a fruit salad. And this is what you see. Not very appetizing. This is what Peter means that your inheritance will be undefiled. When I want a fruit salad, this is what I want.
Finally, Peter tells us our inheritance is unfading. (It’s pretty straight forward, and means not fading away, it’s perpetual, it’s never ending.)
Everything in life will ultimately perish and spoil and fade. Our bodies get older and we can’t do what we were once able to do. But when it comes to our inheritance, to our eternity - - - the great hope which is promised — — Peter tells us that it’s never, never, never going to fail us. Our inheritance is guaranteed for those who have embraced Jesus as Lord and Savior.
That inheritance is kept in heaven for you and me. It’s there, because heaven is a place of perfection. Nothing there will perish. Nothing will fade away. Nothing will spoil. It is imperishable, undefiled and unfading.
There’s no coronavirus in heaven! There’s no more death, no grieving, no tears, no hunger, no cold, no heat. It’s perfect! That’s the hope we have in Christ! It’s the resurrection hope!
Today, as we celebrate Easter morning, resurrection means so much more to us than it did before. We’ve been living in darkness, confined to a kind of tomblike existence. Life as we’ve known it has stopped. We don't go to work. We don't go out to play. We hide our faces; we guard our lungs.
But only for a time.
Life in waiting is merely that, a time of waiting. And yet a time of expectation. For we know that no matter what, God's resurrection breath will raise us up. A new day is coming . . . for now, would you hold onto the power of the resurrection. Would you see the goodness of God, even in the midst of some very precarious times.
In the end we will emerge victorious. We don’t know what this world will look like . . . BUT Oh, we know what the future holds and that’s something we can always, always count on!
