THE RISEN CHRIST AND THE TROUBLED DISCIPLES
************************************************
OUTLINE
1.WORRY
2.FEAR
3.UNBELIEF
4.SORROW
5.CONFUSION
6.DISCOURAGEMENT
7.LIES
THE MESSAGE
THE RISEN CHRIST AND THE TROUBLED DISCIPLES
************************************************
1.WORRY
Even after Christ had risen from the dead , the disciples had needless worries. The women going to the tomb were worried about who will roll away the stone
for them . The stone had already been rolled away and the Lord had risen . In their ignorance these women had unnecessary worries . Even in our lives the
Lord wants us to be free from unnecessary worries because we have a risen Lord who takes care of every situation for us . He goes before us and opens a way
for us .
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
*******************************
Mark 16:1-3
"When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body.
Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb
and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?â€
2.FEAR
Even after Christ had risen from the dead , the disciples had needless fears . Instead of being filled with courage and boldness as a result of the
resurrection of Christ , they were filled with fear over everything . Even in our lives the Lord wants us to be free from all fears in our lives , because we
have a risen Lord who is there to deliver us from all fears.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
*******************************
Matthew 28:8
"So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples."
Mark 16:5,8
"As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed...
Trembling and bewildered, the women went out and fled from the tomb. They said nothing to anyone, because they were afraid. "
Luke 24:5
"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? "
Luke 24:37
" They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. "
John 20:19
"On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them
and said, “Peace be with you!†’
3.UNBELIEF
Even after Christ had risen from the dead , the disciples had needless doubt and unbelief . They were so reluctant to beleive that Jesus had risen from the
dead. Instead of being strong in faith and being free from doubt , they were filled with apprehension and suspicion. Jesus rebuked them for their unbelief
and doubt . They did not beleive the predictions of Jesus or the prophecies of the scriptures. Even in our lives the Lord wants us to be filled with faith
and trust in His promises. The scriptures are given to us to build our faith so that we can face every situation with faith and confidence.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
*******************************
Matthew 28:17
"When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted."
Mark 16:11-14
"When they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe it.
Afterward Jesus appeared in a different form to two of them while they were walking in the country.
These returned and reported it to the rest; but they did not believe them either.
Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him
after he had risen. "
Luke 24:11
"But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense."
Luke 24:25
"He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! "
Luke 24:41
"And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?†"
John 20 :25-29
" "So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!†But he said to 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 it.â€
A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace
be with you!â€
Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe.â€
Thomas said to him, “My Lord and my God!â€
Then Jesus told him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.†"
4.SORROW
Even after Christ had risen from the dead , the disciples had needless sorrow. Instead of celebrating with joy and gladness the victory of Jesus over death ,
they were in mourning and sorrow . Even in our lives the Lord wants us to free from needless sorrow .We should be filled with the joy of the Lord because we
have a risen Lord who fills us with joy and peace.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
*******************************
Mark 16:10
" She went and told those who had been with him and who were mourning and weeping. "
John 20:11-15
"but Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb
and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.
They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?†“They have taken my Lord away,†she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.â€
At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.
“Woman,†he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?†Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me
where you have put him, and I will get him.†"
5.CONFUSION
Even after Christ had risen from the dead , the disciples had needless confusion. Instead of having clarity of mind they were confused and bewildered . They
were confused because of their ignorance of the scriptures . The Lord had already revealed through His prophets about the death and resurrection of Christ .
The disciples would not have been confused if they had understood the scriptures . Jesus had to rebuke them and remind them of the words of the prophets and
make them understand that everything was happening according to the plan of God. Even in our lives many times we get confused because we are ignorant of the
word of God . The Lord wants us to be grounded in His word so that we would not get needlessly confused over the situations we face in our lives.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
*******************************
Luke 24:4
"While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them."
Luke 24:17-21
"He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?†They stood still, their faces downcast.
One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?â€
“What things?†he asked.“About Jesus of Nazareth,†they replied. “He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people.
The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him;
but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place."
Luke 24:38
"He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?"
6.DISCOURAGEMENT
Even after Christ had risen from the dead , the disciples had needless discouragement. Even after Jesus had appeared to them and breathed on them to receive
the Holy Spirit and had done many miraculous signs in their presence , the disciples got discouraged and went back to fishing . Jesus had to appear again to
them and restore them back to the ministry for which He had chosen them. Even in our lives many times even after we have had many wonderful experiences with
the Lord and experienced His goodness and power , we get discouraged and deviate from the purpose of God in our lives . The Lord wants to restore us back to
His purpose in our lives.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
*******************************
John 21:3
"I’m going out to fish,†Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.†So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught
nothing. "
John 20 :22
"And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. "
John 20:30-31
"Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book.
But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. "
7.LIES
Even after Christ had risen from the dead , his enemies did not want to acknowledge the truth . The priests instead of believing in the resurrection of
Christ , decided to bribe the guards and spread lies about the risen Christ. This was an opportunity for these priests to realise the error of their ways and
repent . But they chose to continue in their sin and follow the path of lies and untruth. Even in our lives we should be careful not harden our hearts when
the Lord shows us the error of our ways. We should also realise that there are sinful men who will continue in their sins even after they know the truth . We
should not be discouraged or confused when we encounter such people in our lives.
SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
*******************************
Matthew 28:11-15
"While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened.
When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money,
telling them, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.’
If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.â€
So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day. "
*******************************************************************
