BECAUSE HE LIVES
John 14:19
***In April of the year 2000, there was a car crash in Japan. Sadly, a man died in the accident. When the police came to examine the body, witnesses at the scene said they recognized the car and though the injuries disfigured the body, they also recognized the dead man. He was a 60-year-old local shipbuilder. This man’s family was contacted and a brother-in-law was able to come to the scene. "Yes," he said, "That’s him. That’s my brother-in-law." He took the tragic news back to the family. Calls were made. The family quickly gathered that very afternoon at the home of the widow.There they were immersed in mourning: weeping, embracing, sharing memories, making funeral plans.
Then the door opened and in walked the 60-year-old local shipbuilder, home from a hard day’s work and wondering why all the relatives had come over to his house.
No, it was not a resurrection. It was a misidentification. The man at the car crash was not the man they thought he was, so the family called the police and told them to start their identification process over, because the "dead man" had just walked into their living room.
It would have been interesting to have been in that living room to see the change that came over the family when they realized their loved one was not dead after all: from tears to smiles, from devastation to elation, from mourning to dancing. They must have felt like death had been defeated in their home. But, of course, death had not been defeated; it had just been misplaced. Their joy meant some other family’s sorrow, and the local shipbuilder will someday himself succumb to the power of death.
Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, as Peter had declared, was dead. Hope went to the grave with Him.
The movie gives only the briefest glimpse of Jesus’ resurrection, but in the Bible it is the crucial event. It is the turning point of the lives of those first followers and the event that catapulted faith in Jesus beyond this small circle to the entire world.
The shipbuilder’s family must have been overjoyed when he walked in the door. But when the disciples realized that Jesus was alive, they were infused with a joy that, as Jesus said, no one would ever take away. That man had a greater duration of life than his family thought, but the meaning of life and its ultimate outcome were the same as the day before. When Jesus walked out of that tomb, the structures of the world itself fundamentally changed.
Let’s talk about what the resurrection of Jesus Christ means for us today as Christians.
I-BECAUSE HE LIVES WE HAVE HIS PRESENCE TO SURROUND US:
Matthew 28:20B: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. We have the Son of God as our partner in life, every step of the way.
ILLUSTRATION: A man went on vacation to the Holy Land with his wife and her mother. While in Israel, the mother-in-law died from a heart attack. The couple went to a local undertaker, who explained that they could either ship the body home which would cost more than $1500, or they could bury her right there in the Holy Land for only $150.
The man said, "We’ll ship her home." Surprised, the undertaker responded, "Are you sure? That’s an awfully big expense, and we can do a very nice burial here."
The man said, "Look, 2000 years ago they buried a guy here and three days later He rose from the dead. I just can’t take that chance."
If someone is alive, he/she is still with you: Bad news for this guy with his mother-in-law, but unparalleled good news for us. We can go through life with Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as our partner, our companion, our mentor, our daily instructor in how to live, our friend.
There have been other great spiritual and ethical teachers throughout the history of the world: Socrates, Confucius, Buddha, Muhammad. The one thing they all have in common is, they’re all dead. Their followers can read their ideas and try to implement them, but they can’t actually have these teachers as their companions.
Jesus is alive. He rose from the dead. Which means he can be with us on every step of our journey.
If I were to pass away, I could, before I died, leave written personal instructions to my 3 girls on how to live. These would be a great help to them. But how much better for me to go on living and be there for them every day - there to teach them, guide them, listen to them, cheer for them, discipline them, enjoy them, love them, and - what they care most about - buy things for them.
If Jesus were dead, I could still have His written instructions. That would be helpful. But since He is with me, I have a joy that nothing can ever take away. Jesus is alive to teach me, guide me, listen to me, cheer for me, discipline me , play with me, explore with me, enjoy me, love me, and, yes, even buy things for me (He bought my eternal life with His blood).
ILLUSTRATION: William Frey, retired Episcopal bishop from Colorado, told the following story: When I was a younger man, I volunteered to read to a degree student named John who was blind. One day I asked him, "How did you lose your sight?"
"A chemical explosion," John said, "at the age of thirteen." "How did that make you feel?" I asked. "Life was over. I felt helpless. I hated God," John responded. "For the first six months I did nothing to improve my lot in life. I would eat all my meals alone in my room. One day my father entered my room and said, ’John, winter’s coming and the storm windows need to be up-that’s your job. I want those hung by the time I get back this evening or else!’ "Then he turned, walked out of the room and slammed the door. I got so angry. I thought, "Who does he think I am? I’m blind!" I was so angry I decided to do it. I felt my way to the garage, found the windows, located the necessary tools, found the ladder, all the while muttering under my breath, ’I’ll show them. I’ll fall, then they’ll have a blind and paralyzed son!’"John continued, "I got the windows up. I found out later that never at any moment was my father more than four or five feet away from my side."
Whatever you go through, wherever you are, whatever task God calls you to undertake, whatever trial you have to endure, whatever delights you enjoy or heartbreaks you suffer, because Jesus is alive, He will never, at any moment be away from your side.
"Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
Then there is another statement of Jesus that brings us joy because of His resurrected life.
II-BECAUSE HE LIVES WE HAVE HIS PEACE TO SECURE US:
John 20:21A: Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you:
The one thing the disciples didn’t have was the one thing that Jesus was offering...PEACE! They were not at all comfortable with what was happening. But in their despair, Jesus said, “peace be with you.”
The world can’t give you peace only God can. A person encounter with the risen Savior is where you will find true peace and forgiveness. God’s Word tells us that He not only forgives our sins but forgets them also. God can give you peace with your past!
THIS PEACE HE GIVE US IS BEYOND UNDERSTANDING, AND ALL BECAUSE OF GOD’S GRACE.
Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Let me illustrate. You work your forty hours for an hourly wage, and when you get to the end of the week you expect to be paid what you have earned. If you earned $700 dollars then what you deserve to receive is $700 dollars. But what if you got your pay envelope and inside was a bonus check for a $1000 dollars. You ask your employer why you were given the additional check, and he says that he was just feeling generous. That’s grace. You got something that you did not deserve. God has showed his grace to us.
III-BECAUSE HE LIVES I HAVE HIS POWER TO STRENGHEN ME
Ephesians 1:19-20 And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
How much power did it take for God to raise a crucified, mutilated, disgraced, and dead Jesus to newness of life and make Him a radiant, triumphant, and glorious Christ and place Him at His own right hand of His throne of glory? More power than is available in human terms.
The first word "power" comes from dunamis from which we get "dynamite" and "dynamic." The second "power" refers to God’s dominion or control. Ischus or "mighty" refers to endowed power.
We too can have this same power. Paul urges us to depend on this power; seek God as source of strength and not ourselves.
You already have all the power you need to witness, to overcome temptation and sin, to endure whatever trials may come your way. You just need to realize it and tap into it!
ILLUSTRATON: I heard the story of the old woman who lived in the hills of Tennessee. She went to a great deal of trouble to have electrical power installed in her home. After a few months the Power Company noticed that she used very little electricity. They sent a meter reader out to check on the matter. He asked the old woman, "Don’t you ever use electricity?" "Oh yes" she replied, "I turn it on every evening to see how to light my lamps." God’s power must be used.
IV-BECAUSE HE LIVES WE HAVE HIS PURPOSE TO STIR US:
John 29:21B: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.
One of the most important things that I can do as a Christian is to understand God’s will for my life and do that will. We all recognize that it is God’s will that we go out and tell others about Jesus
ILLUSTRATION: Years ago when D. L. Moody was first saved, he was presented to a Church board as a candidate for church membership. He was asked the question, "What has Jesus done for you in particular?" Young Dwight who was nervous and untaught in the Scriptures replied, "I know He has done a lot for us all in general, but I can not think of anything He has done for me in PARTICULAR." He was not accepted for membership, but later became the greatest evangelist of his day. The apostle John’s account of the Great Commission attempts to take the responsibility of the believer out of the general category and make the individual believer feel his responsibility to a lost world in PARTICULAR.
ILLUSTRATION: One Sunday morning a pastor was dressing for church and had the radio on listening to a local church service. Suddenly he heard to minister say, "It’s Easter, and it doesn’t make any difference if Christ be risen or not..." Shocked, A.H.Ackley shouted," It’s a lie! He is risen!" His wife said," Why don’t you write a song about it?" Reading the gospels again" He is risen" and feeling God’s presence, he began writing. "I serve a risen Savior, He’s in the world today, I know that He is living, whatever men may say..."
Oh my friends what a wonderful message.
V-BECAUSE HE LIVES WE HAVE HIS PROMISE TO SATISFY US:
John 14:19B: because I live, ye shall live also.
With Jesus our living partner, our friend and companion, we really live here on earth. But I think with this statement, Jesus is pointing beyond this life to the life that never ends. When He rose from the dead to live everlasting, He went where no man had gone before. No one had ever died and then been raised up never to die again. But Jesus’ doing it was not a singular incident. Rather, it was Jesus blazing a trail that we all can follow.
ILLUSTRATION: During the Middle Ages, many speculated about the possibility of a sea route from Europe to India around the southern tip of Africa. Mariners doubted that it could be done because of the storms at the point where the Atlantic and Indian oceans met. These violent weather conditions caused the point to be called the Cape of Storms. In the sixteenth century, the Portuguese explorer, Vasco De Gama, successfully rounded the Cape of Storms and found beyond those wild waters a great calm sea and beyond that, India. No more could people doubt that such a route could be taken. The name of that point was changed from the Cape of Storms to the Cape of Good Hope.
Death had been the cape of storms, the point at which all the hopes of life had been dashed, until Jesus rounded that cape and returned to life. We now see death as the cape of good hope, as the passageway into an infinitely superior life. At His resurrection, Jesus led the way from death to life. If we follow along His path, when we round that cape of death, we will come out on the spectacular sea of life everlasting.
Jesus rose from the dead to build a heaven for you - a forever home made just right for you. Because He lives, you can live with Him forever in the place of your dreams, designed for you by the one who designed you before the world began.
Through His suffering and death, Jesus paid the price for our wrongdoing, defeating sin. Then, by rising from the dead, Jesus dealt a death-blow to death. There were two great human enemies, sin and the grave. Through the cross and resurrection, Jesus defeated them both.
So now there is nothing to stop us from living forever in His heavenly mansions. He offers forgiveness of sin as a gift we didn’t deserve or earn, and He leads the way to life beyond the grave.
ILLUSTRATION: Winston Churchill planned his own funeral, which took place in St. Paul’s Cathedral. He included many of the great hymns of the church and used the eloquent Anglican liturgy. At his direction, a bugler, positioned high in the dome of St. Paul’s, after the benediction intoned the haunting melody of Taps. The melancholy air gave the universal signal that Churchill’s day had come to an end. But as soon as Taps had ended, Churchill had instructed another bugler, placed on the other side of the dome, to play Reveille: It’s time to get up in the morning. That was Churchill’s testimony that the last note of his time on earth was not Taps, a final end, but Reveille, a new beginning.
Most of us have recently witnessed Taps being played for Christ - the awful hours that led to that final moment in which darkness fell, Jesus died, and Taps moaned for all humanity. That was not, however, the last note. Sunday morning, the bugle rang out with a new strain, Reveille. Time for Jesus to get up, step out of that tomb and stride into the morning of eternity.
Unless Jesus first returns, Taps will sound for you someday. The same bugler that trumpeted Reveille for Jesus on that resurrection morning will play for you as well. Death will not be the final twilight, but a new and vastly more glorious morning.
Will this new morning dawn for you? It becomes ours when we follow Jesus from death to life. So the question of the moment is, have you, by faith, put your life on His path?
CONCLUSION:
Ed Young shared he had a friend named Walter Carroll, who was an atheist. He was a good guy, though. One Sunday afternoon he looked at me and said, "Eddie, do you believe there’s a God?" I said, "Sure, Walter, I believe there’s a God." He said, "You don’t live like it." I said, "What do you mean?" He said, "You live just like I do. I’m an atheist. I don’t believe there’s a God, and I live like there’s no God. We’re buddies. You do everything I do. You say there is a God, and yet you don’t live like there’s a God. Don’t you have enough sense to know that, if there is a God, if you can get to know Him and live the way He wants you to live, that’s the most important thing in life?"
That was the greatest sermon I have ever heard. God used the mouth of an atheist. I’ll never forget it. I couldn’t answer. I went to my room, dropped down on my knees, and said, "Lord, I know you’re there. I believe Jesus is your son. I’ve gotten away from that, away from my background when I got away from home. Just lead me. I’m yours."
***NOTE-SOME OF THE MATERIAL AND ILLUSTRATIONS ABOVE ARE FROM SERMON CENTRAL AND BAPTIST SERMONS ONLINE.
