Scenes Of The Resurrection

Introduction:

Low in the grave He lay, Jesus my savior!

Waiting the coming day, Jesus my Lord!

Up from the grave He arose!

With a mighty triumph o’er His foes;

He arose a victor from the dark domain,

And He lives forever with His saints to reign

He arose! He arose! Hallelujah! Christ arose!

The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most provable fact in all of history! There is more evidence that Christ rose from the grave than any other fact in history. Today followers of the Islamic faith can visit the tomb of their leader Mohammed. Today followers of the Buddhist religion can go to the grave of their founder, Buddha. You can visit the graves of past presidents and historical figures, you can visit the graves of past loved ones, but you cannot visit the burial place of the greatest man that ever lived, Jesus Christ, because he rose from the dead and lives even today.

A little less than two thousand years ago today, Jesus walked into Jerusalem greeted warmly by the people of the city. They laid palm branches down as He entered the city. This is the day called the triumphal entry or what we now call Palm Sunday. Jesus was greeted like a king and then within a week of that time, he was put on trial for a crime he did not commit, taken all over the city to face trial, beaten, whipped, mocked, laughed at, nailed to a cross, hung naked and died. This is not the end of the story; there is a happy ending, after three days Christ rose from the tomb.

During this time of the year Christians all around the world turn their focus towards Jesus resurrection. We call this time; Easter. There is nothing wrong with setting time out to remember that Jesus rose from the dead, but we must remember that every Lord’s Day is Resurrection Sunday. Every time we meet together it is because Jesus rose from the dead. I think it is a shame however, that we do not focus more on this cornerstone of our faith. It is only during Easter time that we sing songs like “He Arose”, when is reality that should be the theme of our life. The resurrection is the single greatest event in history, and should be remembered more than just one time a year.

The resurrection is not some fairy tale Bible story, it is not some made up Christian belief, but it is a historical fact. The history books cannot deny the fact that Jesus rose from the dead. To non-Christians the resurrection in the most baffling and most difficult aspect of Christianity to understand, and to Christians the resurrection is the climax of the life of Jesus.

Jesus performed many wonderful miracles. Over the course of history God has done many magnificent things, but the greatest miracle in history is the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, and the second greatest miracle is when we arise out of the watery grave of baptism, symbolizing the resurrection of Christ. We arose to die no more.

Text: Luke 24:1-12

As we look at the scene of the resurrection we see many different people present.

I. Scoffer

At the scene of the resurrection there were many people present and many people that we can read about their reactions to the news that Jesus rose from the dead. One of the most stunning groups that we can read about is the chief priests.

Matthew 28:12-15

The chief priests that we read about are the scoffers. They laugh at the idea that Jesus may have rose from the dead. We live today in a world that scoffs at the thought that any man could raise from the dead. People constantly will try to find ways not to believe the amazing things recorded in the Bible. One of those people was Thomas Jefferson, who could not believe any of the miracles in the Bible including the resurrection. He did not believe them so he ripped out of his Bible every account with a miracle recorded. Even Paul as he was on trial when he spoke of the resurrection and was interrupted by Festus and told he was insane. Being a Christian today is not the popular thing it used to be. Being a Christian today may get you laughed at or mocked because you believe in things that may not make logical sense or fit into people’s scientific method. Over the course of my time I have heard many people mocking the idea of the resurrection. People come up with many arguments against the possibility.

a. The Disciples Stole it

Some will try to argue and say that Jesus’ disciples had to steal the body from the tomb. My question to that proposal would be… If they stole the body and knew it then why would they spend the rest of their lives dedicated to preaching Christ as risen from the dead, and eventually be killed for their faith? Would you die for something you knew was absolutely false? The disciples knew Jesus really rose from the dead, they saw Him alive again, and that is why they could preach that message with such dedication and without doubt. It does not make any sense to presume the disciples stole Jesus’ body!