HE IS RISEN!
Lk. 24: 1-6; 36-39
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. A Romanian woman fainted when she opened her front door and found her husband standing there. The Romanian weekly, Tinerama, says it all started when a man named Neagu choked on a fishbone, stopped breathing, and collapsed.
2. The family doctor, knowing Neagu’s heart condition, didn’t think twice about declaring the 71 year-old man dead on a heart attack. But three days later, gravediggers at the cemetery heard someone knock on wood. They opened Neagu’s coffin to find him surrounded by flowers but very much alive.
3. When Neagu arrived home, his wife, fearing he was a ghost, barred him from spending nights at home. It took Neagu three weeks to convince authorities to cancel his death certificate from their registers. [Servant Mag., 09/91, p. 9]
B. TEXT
1 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. 36 While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” 37 They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. 38 He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? 39 Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” Lk. 24: 1-6; 36-39
C. WHAT MADE THE EARLY CHURCH SO GREAT?
It was because they knew a Jesus who had risen from the dead. Nothing could stop them! Not even death! Because they knew they would rise again!
D. WHAT HAPPENED ON THIS DAY APPROX. 2,000 YEARS AGO?
1. The ground began to rumble; a nuclear blast shook the center of Hell.
2. Death was overcome and the Saints of old were liberated from death.
3. Life reigned triumphant. I serve a Risen Savior! Christians ought to have a positive outlook on life because we know that Jesus is Risen!
I. THE SHOCKING DEFINITION OF “RESURRECTION”
A. WHAT RESURRECTION DOES NOT MEAN:
1. Not the resuscitation of a dead body like Neagu experienced. Even those that Jesus raised during His ministry – like Jairus’ daughter, the widow’s son, and Lazarus – all died again and lay in the grave.
2. So resurrection is not the reviving of a person – who’s heart has stopped beating, or who's stopped breathing, or who's brain has ceased to function – to resume the kind of life they had before.
B. WHAT RESURRECTION DOES MEAN:
1. The Greek word “anastasis” is used almost exclusively of Jesus’ resurrection and the future resurrection of all the dead.
2. In Acts 26:23, Paul says that “Christ was the first to rise from the dead.” So he’s not referring to resuscitation or to anything of this present universe.
3. Jesus’ earthly body was transformed, not only at the cellular or atomic level, but deeper. God’s going to destroy this present universe and create a New Heaven & Earth where there’s never been a Fall, or Sin. God reached forward and brought back into this universe that resurrection life and recreated Jesus’ body as the first act of creation of that New Order.
4. That’s why the Scripture declares that God “exerted” His mighty strength when He raised Christ from the dead (Eph. 1:20). That’s why Jesus “rose” with a different kind of body, with different characteristics and properties.
C. CHARACTERISTICS OF HIS RESURRECTION BODY
1. He could pass through walls.
2. Could appear instantly many miles away.
3. Not hindered by gravity.
4. He could pass through outer space without a space suit.
5. His (and our) body will never be capable of dying again.
6. It cannot experience pain. Rev. 21:4 says “There will be no more...pain.”
D. ILLUS. The Butterflies
1. A teacher at our school once ordered butterflies for a class project. They were supposed to be in the larvae stage – as caterpillars. She was disappointed when they arrived in the cocoon stage.
2. Imagine a caterpillar funeral. Caterpillars carry around a cocoon, mourning the loss of a friend. Little do they know, in a few days the cocoon will open and their friend will be soaring in the sky, dressed in beautiful colors, and no longer earthbound or in a “wormy” body.
II. EASTER ISN’T JUST AN EVENT, BUT AN EXPERIENCE
A. THERE’S AN INNER VOID IN YOU
1. Christianity isn’t a religion, it’s a relationship with God through Jesus Christ. Religions are man-made and are always based on people’s efforts to please God.
2. The world around us is a world of outer relationships. We develop friendships & families. But God, who created you, sees you as a precious treasure and He longs to have a close relationship with you!
3. Blaise Pascal said, “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every person that only God can fill.” It’s true! No person or thing will ever be able to fill that spot. We will never be satisfied without Jesus!
4. A friend of mine, Royce Creech, was once asked, “Have you ever felt the presence of God?” He said, “Yes, once, at Easter.” His friend answered, “ROYCE, EVERY DAY CAN BE LIKE EASTER!” True! God wants you to feel His presence every day.
B. YOU NEED INTIMACY WITH GOD
1. You need intimacy with the Living God! Intimacy has been described as “IN TO ME SEE.” Its allowing God to look into our heart and God allowing us to look into His heart! Wow!
2. Imagine that: looking into the very heart of God – seeing what He sees! In intimacy we become one with the Spirit of God and our desires begin to match His desires.
3. Our oneness with God results in our wholeness. Why? Because we’re incomplete without God. We were made that way, so when we get restored to God’s presence, healing and wholeness take place.
4. Easter is much more than a date on the calendar; it’s the beginning of a walk with God, of being set free, of being made whole. Are you open to that?
III. JESUS’ RESURRECTION MEANS YOU CAN HAVE...
A. COURAGE THAT CONQUERS FEAR
1. After Christ was crucified, the disciples were afraid they would be the next to be arrested and thrown into jail. They locked the doors whenever they met together.
2. But Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After He said this He showed them His hands and side. “The disciples were OVERJOYED when they saw the Lord,” Luke 24:42. Fear was replaced by joy!
B. A HOPE THAT REMOVES YOUR DOUBTS
1. The Apostle Thomas was a skeptic. He lived by the scientific method, which says, “If I can’t feel it, see it, hear it, taste it, or smell it – I won’t believe it!”
2. When he heard others talking about Jesus’ resurrection, he told them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe” John 20:25.
3. Jesus gave Thomas a special visit to confirm His resurrection. He told Thomas to put a finger in his wounds and no longer be unbelieving (John 20:27-28). Thomas became one of the most determined witnesses for Christ, dying in India.
4. So if you have doubts and fears, Jesus is very patient with you. He understands you and will meet with you to bring clarity and peace. Go to Him with your troubles!
C. A GRACE THAT FORGIVES YOUR FAILURES
1. Peter denied the Lord three times. But because of the resurrection, Peter got a second chance. In John 21:15-19 Jesus took the time to address Peter’s denials and ended up reinstating him as a disciple.
2. Whatever ways you may have failed, the Lord already knows about them and is ready to forgive you if you come to Him for forgiveness. He is the God who forgives. Don’t delay in getting right with Him!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. A missionary in Brazil discovered a tribe of Indians in the jungle who had a contagious disease. They were dying daily.
2. A hospital was not too far away – across the River, but the Indians would not cross it because they believed death was in the River.
3. The missionary walked out into the water up to his waist. They didn’t grasp the significance of that. Finally, he dove into the River and swam to the other side. He raised a triumphant fist into the air. He had entered the water and escaped. It was then that the Indians broke into a cheer and followed him across.
4. That’s what Jesus did! He swam across the river of Death and came back to show us that He’s the Lord of both sides! We don’t need to be afraid to swim it, for He is our Lifeguard who will bring us safely over!
B. THE CALL
1. Prayer for repentance.
2. The Lord’s Supper celebrated.
[This message had input from Ian Johnson's message "Intimacy with God."]
