Well, if you could keep your Bible open in front
of you, that'd be great. Let's pray. Let's ask
God for help as we look at his word now. Gracious
Heavenly Father, we ask that as we dig into your
word, help us to see the hope that we have in
Jesus. May it move our hearts to greater joy,
to greater peace, to greater delight. And we
ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Well, up near
Limberlost are some tennis courts. I don't know
if you've ever seen them up in freshwater there.
Court 4 recently was renamed the Tom Bentley
Court. Tom Bentley was president for 10 years
of the tennis club there. He was a member for
50 years. He was instrumental in acquiring the
land and even some of the bricks. He did a lot
for the tennis club there. But sadly, Tom is
gone. He died a few months ago. I was actually
at his funeral. Because Tom Bentley was no stranger
to me. Tom Bentley was my uncle. And naming the
court after him was a fitting honour, just as
he was greatly honoured by his family and friends
at his funeral as well. Yet no matter what we
do, no matter how well we honour people, There's
something really biting about death, isn't there?
When we lose a loved one, it's brutal. It's unnatural.
It's painful because it's so permanent. Uncle
Tom did a lot for his family and friends and
for his tennis club. But, you know, it's kind
of depressing, but it's worth asking, well, to
what end? If we all die and that's it, then all
the good we ever do is just palliative care,
isn't it? It doesn't truly change anything, because
hey, we're all going to die. It just makes life
a little bit more comfortable until we do. That's
the brutal reality of death. And it's so confronting,
we try to avoid it. Have you ever had dinner
guests who just won't take the hint and leave?
Do you want to know how to get rid of them? Drop
this bomb. What do you think happens when you
die? Rather than engaging in a deep and meaningful
philosophical conversation about the afterlife,
I expect they'll say, oh, look at the time. It's
a bit late. We'd better be going. In our culture,
we really don't like death, do we? It's dark,
it's unsettling, it's crushing. Life feels better
if we just don't think about death. Yet try as
we might, death is unavoidable. As the old saying
goes, there are two certainties in life. They're
death and taxes. And to be honest, I've got another
uncle who's actually a tax accountant and he
can give you a handful of ways to avoid taxes.
But death, there is absolutely no escape. It
catches us all. And this makes life, well, living
life, so hard, doesn't it? Our lives become plagued
with fear, falsehoods, indecision, because death
touches everything we do. Today, I want to ask
you, How can we ever truly live when the spectre
of death always looms over us? How can we ever
truly live when the spectre of death always looms
over us? Well, Easter Sunday and the resurrection
of Jesus show us how we can. It shows us that
we can have hope, power and joy even in the face
of death. Here's the one thing I hope you see
from our passage today. Jesus really has conquered
death, so he really can change your life. Jesus
really has conquered death, so he really can
change your life. And as we look at Jesus conquering
of death, we'll see three things today that change
our lives. So Jesus is alive, so do not be afraid.
Jesus is alive, so do not be deceived. And Jesus
is alive, so do not be indecisive. So let's have
a look at each of those. Here's the first one.
Jesus is alive, so do not be afraid. If you've
got your Bible there, look with me at verses
one to 10 of Matthew 28. And while we're reading
it, look out for the way fear is used here. Okay,
look out for the way fear is used here. Here's
what it says, after the Sabbath at dawn on the
first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the
other Mary went to look at the tomb. There was
a violent earthquake for an angel of the Lord
came down from heaven and going to the tomb rolled
back the stone and sat on it. His appearance
was like lightning and his clothes were white
as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that
they shook and became like dead men. The angel
said to the women, Do not be afraid, for I know
that you are looking for Jesus who is crucified.
He is not here. He is risen, just as He said.
Come and see the place where He lay. Then go
quickly and tell His disciples, He is risen from
the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee.
There you will see Him. Now I have told you.'
So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid,
yet filled with joy, and ran to tell His disciples.
Suddenly Jesus met them. Greetings, he said.
They came to him, clasped his feet and worshipped
him. Then Jesus said to them, do not be afraid.
Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee. There
they will see me. Now Jesus comes back to life
here with glorious power. There's an earthquake.
There's an angel. And for those opposed to Jesus,
the guards, this was terrifying, wasn't it? Such
power was out of this world with all their shields
and spears. They were no match for whatever was
going on here. And it was scary for the women
at the tomb. But for them, it was more of a confusing
awe, wasn't it? Wow, Jesus is alive. How great's
this? But as the angel and the risen Jesus tells
them, they are not to be afraid. You might ask,
well, why not? I mean, when you live life, it
seems like there's plenty of things to be afraid
of, especially for them. I mean, Jesus had just
been tortured, crucified and murdered after being
betrayed by one of his own disciples. The one
they had followed, the Lord Jesus, had lost.
He'd been humiliated and many of them abandoned
him. I mean, they were scared because they were
dealing with their own guilt as well. What's
he going to do now if he's alive? And sure, these
two guards were down for the count, but what
about all the other Roman soldiers? That's kind
of scary too, isn't it? And just like for us,
life for them, it just generally is scary, isn't
it? Because we're fragile. Storms, famine, unemployment,
economic crashes, the price of petrol, sickness,
war, people's negligence or violence could mean
life could end, couldn't it? Maybe the price
of petrol doesn't do that. It's brutal, isn't
it? It seems like there's plenty to be afraid
of. And yet the angels in Jesus' words, do not
be afraid. Don't just tell us, oh, don't be afraid.
This is not going to hurt you. They signal to
us something deeper. If you follow the risen
Lord Jesus, you do not have to be afraid of anything
or anyone. Why? Because Jesus' words, did you
see it in our text, happened just as he said.
It shows that he's in control. When Jesus died,
he didn't fall asleep at the wheel, did he? Everything
was going according to God's plan. And he says
that he's going to go on ahead to them in Galilee.
Why Galilee? Because that's where it all started.
It's all going to start again and they're going
to get a fresh start because Jesus bore their
guilt. No matter what his disciples had done,
no matter how they had failed. Jesus would forgive
them. And Jesus had overcome death. I mean, that's
the greatest fear that we have, isn't it? And
yet Jesus had beaten it. If you belong to Jesus,
you might know this already, but death will get
you one day. But it won't be the end. Because
of what Jesus has done, death is now a doorway
to eternal paradise. You don't need to fear it.
The most heartbreaking funeral I've ever seen
was when I was a minister back in Geraldton.
I assisted at a funeral for a 50 -year -old man
who died before his parents. His life was a mess
of broken and dysfunctional relationships. Do
you know the highlight of his funeral was that
he was a big Collingwood magpie supporter. The
coach of Collingwood, Nathan Buckley, wrote a
letter about how wonderful this guy was as a
supporter. He even had a Collingwood casket.
But it was so sad. There was no hope of anything
better. Just fear masked with empty platitudes.
People saying, he's in a better place. Me inwardly
thinking, really? Why? Why do you think that?
But contrast that with the funerals of Christians
that I've been to. I remember in the same church
building where we had this guy, this Collingwood
supporter's funeral, we had another guy from
our church had his funeral there, an older man
named Rex. And as he died, he died with immense
peace. And his funeral was so different. It was
full of hope and joy, despite the grief of losing
someone that we dearly loved. When people said,
Rex, is in a better place. It wasn't an empty
platitude. It was a certain reality. Because
Rex loved and trusted the risen Lord Jesus. And
Rex's life reflected it. It wasn't plagued with
fear, but a deep security in Christ. And all
of us there who knew Jesus were grateful for
Rex and knew that one day we'd see him again.
See, knowing the risen Lord Jesus, it changes
your life. It gives you a powerful hope that
calms your worst fears, including that greatest
of all fears, death itself. If you're a Christian
here today, I want to ask you, has that hope
slipped onto the back burner? Don't let it. Let
it be front and centre in your life, in your
thinking. Think about that hope when life is
scary. Think about that hope when you get bad
news. You know, and it doesn't just have to be
in the hard times. Marvel at it in the ironically
dead time that you might have. You know, dead
time where you have like you're there at the
stove and you're cooking the eggs or cooking
whatever you're doing, or you're there and you're
sitting in traffic. Spend some time thinking
about that hope. Let it fill you with joy again
because you know where you're headed. You know,
the direction of your life is clear. Okay, wherever
it's going, I know it's headed to eternity. I
know it's headed to eternity with Jesus in paradise.
Fill your heart with that hope. And if you're
here today and you're not yet a Christian, I
want to ask you, what hope do you have? Is it
a hope as good as that? What do you think happens
when you die? You know, you might leave my dinner
party right away if I ask you that, but I'm asking
you now, have a think about it. That's a deep
question. It's one of those big questions of
life that we all should work out. But Jesus'
resurrection doesn't just give us a hope that
soothes our fears. It's actually intellectually
satisfying. When you believe it, it makes you
a truth seeker. So Jesus is alive, so don't be
afraid. But also, Jesus is alive, so do not be
deceived. I'll tell you, when I first became
a Christian, I got hit with waves of doubt. I
kept thinking to myself, have I joined history's
greatest pyramid scheme? Is this as true as the
Easter Bunny? I've got no idea. And so I spent
a year researching into whether Christianity
really was true. And I want to share with you
that most of it boiled down to one thing. Did
Jesus rise from the dead? Did Jesus rise from
the dead? I mean, you can have all sorts of beef
and qualms about Christianity, but it boils down
to that. If Jesus rose from the dead, wow, I
better listen to him. If he didn't, well, hey,
you know, it's the greatest joke that anyone's
ever played or con job that anyone's ever played
on humanity. Just get rid of it. Dismiss it.
But if he rose from the dead, take Jesus seriously.
I love John Dickson's metaphor that in the resurrection
of Jesus, Christianity places its head on the
chopping block and invites anyone to take a swing.
See, Christianity doesn't say, don't ask, don't
tell. Did Jesus write something? I don't want
to know, I just believe. Christianity says, use
your brain, get it engaged, work out the truth.
It says, Take your swing. And if you do, then
be real. Ask what actually happened. One of the
books I really loved was a book called The Case
for Christ by Lee Strobel. It's a bit of a thick
one, so it's good as a paperweight as well. But
Lee Strobel, he was a journalist with the Chicago
Tribune. And his wife became a Christian. And
I think he just found her annoyingly kind all
of a sudden. He was kind of like, what has happened
to my wife? I'm really annoyed by this. And so
he went, I know what I'll do. I'll go and prove
that Christianity isn't true. So he sought out
to prove that Christianity wasn't true. By the
end of it, he'd become a Christian. Will you
be that honest? Will you be that unbiased to
give Jesus a fair go and work out if he really
rose from the dead. Well, if you do, you've got
to work out what actually happened there. I mean,
there's lots of different stories or ideas about
what happened, and in verses 11 to 15 we get
one of them. Here's what it says. 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 were 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. 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. Well, this is the
story or the idea that the disciples stole the
body of Jesus. And it makes no sense to me. Because
the disciples were martyred for their faith.
No one knowingly dies for a lie, do they? What
motive would they have? But also this story is
full of holes, isn't it? If the Roman soldiers
slept whilst on duty, do you know what would
happen to a Roman soldier? You'd be executed.
It's doubtful they slept. It's doubtful that
these Roman soldiers with advanced militaristic
weaponry of the day were beaten up by fishermen.
And also... It just doesn't strike me as, you
know, when you read Matthew's version of it,
that Jesus rose from the dead, it doesn't strike
me as something that is made up. This story about
the guard sounds made up, but Matthew's version
doesn't sound made up. Do you know the first
witnesses of Jesus' resurrection are women? In
a patriarchal society like this one, women couldn't
testify in court. If you were Matthew and you
were there with the other disciples going, hey,
let's concoct a story to trick everybody, you
wouldn't do it this way. You wouldn't start with
women as the first witnesses. I actually love
this about the Bible, that it's giving women
in that culture a wonderful honour, isn't it?
But also, you've got to wonder why the first
disciples look so bad too. If this is just made
up, why do they look so stupid and horrible half
the time? They abandoned Jesus. Can you smell
that? It reeks of authenticity, doesn't it? Actually,
it takes more faith to believe other theories
about whether Jesus rose from the dead or not,
because they're so full of holes. Sadly, a lot
of people don't seek the truth because they're
like the guards in this story. They believe the
lie that being physically safe and materially
well off is what truly matters in life. Being
healthy and wealthy. But the death and resurrection
of Jesus exposes that fiction. These guards here
What's going to happen to them? One day they're
going to die, aren't they? What good is the money
that they got paid when they're standing before
Jesus face to face at Judgment Day? These guards
saw the evidence of a supernatural resurrection.
What should they have done? They should have
become curious. They should have seen through
the lie that being healthy and wealthy, that's
not what really matters, that there's more to
life than this life. If you're here today and
you're not yet a Christian, can I encourage you,
don't be like the guards. Seek the truth. What
happens after death matters more than the comforts
of this life. Get curious. Take your swing at
Christianity. See if Jesus rose from the dead.
Seeking the truth could change your life now
in so many wonderful ways and not only that,
it could change your afterlife, couldn't it?
You see these books? I've got a bunch of them
here. These are all the ones I read when I was
on my quest. They're all up the back here, up
the front here. If you want to read, borrow one
of them, please come talk to me. I'd love to
lend it out to you. I'll even let you keep it
if you really want it. But check it out. Give
Jesus a fair go. And if you're a Christian, you
need to learn this stuff too. We need to be able
to give an answer for the hope that we have in
Jesus. But not only that, it strengthens us when
we know these things too. When life hits us for
six, when there's all sorts of things that make
us suddenly feel disillusioned with God, having
this foundation is so helpful. Dig into it yourself,
work out. Did Jesus really rise from the dead?
Engage your brain. But Jesus' resurrection doesn't
just give us hope. It doesn't just make us truth
seekers. There's one more thing it does. Jesus
is alive, so do not be indecisive. See, Jesus'
resurrection makes us bold. It stops us being
paralysed. In your Bible there, come with me
to verses 16 and 17. Then the 11 disciples went
to Galilee to the mountain where Jesus had told
them to go. When they saw him, they worshipped
him, but some doubted. Now, what's going on there?
Well, that word doubted literally means hesitated.
They hesitated to worship Jesus. Why? Well, maybe
they were stunned. Whoa, here's Jesus. I mean,
that's fair enough. He has just risen from the
dead. Maybe it's a self -defense mechanism. I
mean, their hopes have been dashed before. Sheesh,
I don't want to kind of get hurt again. Maybe
they were worried about their failures. Maybe
they were going, is Jesus going to get angry
at me because we did abandon him when he was
crucified? Well, I mean, it could be all of those,
but most likely is that they were good Jews and
that they said the Shema twice daily. Here's
the Shema. It comes from Deuteronomy 6. They
would say this twice daily, hero Israel, the
Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love
the Lord your God with all your heart and with
all your soul and with all your might. Basically,
you shall worship him. How many gods are there?
One. Who do you worship? Only Him. And now here
they are and some of them are worshipping Jesus.
And they're going, I say the Shema twice daily.
Can I really be worshipping Jesus? This doesn't
feel right. And so what Jesus does is he reassures
them. Look at verses 18 to 20. Then Jesus came
to them and said, all authority in heaven and
on earth has been given to me. It's godlike,
isn't it? Therefore, go and make disciples of
all nations, baptising them in the name of the
Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching
them to obey everything I have commanded you,
and surely I am with you always to the very end
of the age.' Again, Jesus explains to them that
God is one and three, that God is Trinity. and
that they are right to worship Him because He's
God, He's Lord of all. And because He has this
universal Lordship, He's also able to be with
them always. Things that only God can do, isn't
it? And the way they worship is to make disciples
and to obey what Jesus says. And Jesus' resurrection
backs all this up. There's no need to be indecisive.
There's no need to hesitate worshipping Jesus.
He truly is God. He truly is Lord of all. At
home, I have a great poker set and I love playing
poker with older boys and Laura. We use poker
chips, but we don't gamble anything. And when
we're playing poker, you get those moments, really
good for maths, so that's why I love it for the
kiddos. But you get those moments where you look
at your cards and you think, yeah, I've got the
best hand. And you go, I'll go all in. And you
know what happens? You hesitate. Have they got
a better hand? Well, they might have a better
hand. I'll just do a small bet. Well, that's
good for poker. There's my, you know, Brendan's
poker strategies 101 for you. But Jesus' resurrection
is not like that. Jesus rose again. And so if
you're a Christian, you have the greatest hand
you could ever have. It should give you confidence.
There's no need to hesitate. Should I go all
in on Jesus? Go all in on Jesus. You can't lose.
He's so glorious, wonderful. It's so certain.
Go all in on him. There's no better hand that
you can hold than to be a worshiper of the risen
Lord Jesus. See, when you are, it gives life
direction, purpose and clarity. You know what
you're here for. The good a Christian does, whether
it's in word or deed, it's not just palliative
care, is it? It helps souls to be saved for eternity.
We're pointing people to the risen Lord Jesus,
the only one who can give people eternal life.
When you're a Christian, death doesn't rob life
of meaning. It gives life meaning. You know where
it's all going. You have hope beyond death. Sadly,
too many Christians, myself included at times,
hesitate from going all in on Jesus, don't we?
We just make the small bet. We limit our worship.
Yeah, I'll do some making of disciples. I will
obey Jesus a bit, but I've got all these other
things going on in my life. And we're double
-minded, aren't we? And the antidote is to see
again that Jesus really did rise and is Lord
of all. To see reality. That death won't just
be the end. That it gives life forever to all
who trust Jesus. It's so meaningful and liberating
to go all in on Jesus and to know that as you
do, your life is making ripples into eternity.
Please don't hesitate. Look at His resurrection.
See how good it is to follow Him. All right,
let's wrap up. We started by asking, how can
we ever truly live when the spectre of death
is always looming over us? And I hope you've
seen that it's by living in the light of Jesus'
resurrection. That's what our three points today
showed us. Jesus is alive, so do not be afraid.
Live with hope of eternal life. Jesus is alive,
so do not be deceived. Don't fall for the lie
that this life is all there is. Seek the truth
of Jesus' resurrection. And Jesus is alive, so
do not be indecisive. Live with meaning and purpose.
Go all in on Jesus and live to see souls saved.
You know, you could sum it all up like this.
Jesus really has conquered death. so he really
can change your life. If you're a Christian here
today, I hope today you've been reminded of the
riches we have in Jesus. I hope you'll keep coming
back to those in the resurrection to soothe your
fears, to see the certainty of the hope you have,
to give your life purpose and direction. We have
a great hope that acts as the compass of our
lives. Moments like Easter are so important to
remember and recalibrate our hearts, isn't it?
To take the time to remember the hope that is
ours in Jesus. I'm glad that we've been able
to do that this Easter and I hope you keep doing
it throughout the school holidays as well. But
if you're like these guards that we read about,
if you're a materialist and you believe this
life is all there is, well, I hope I've pushed
you a little bit today to question what you think.
Is this life all that there actually is? To consider
the claims of Christ? I mean, and have you actually
thought about your position? If this world is
all there is, there's no meaning, there's no
justice, there's no hope. At best, all you can
do is just palliative care. I think that's a
horrible way to live. No judgement on you, I'm
just saying. That's very depressing. Are you
robbing yourself by living this way? Are you
ruining your eternity by living this way? Is
it really impossible that Christianity could
be both beautiful and true? If you want help
finding out whether Jesus rose from the dead,
come have a chat with me. I'd love to talk to
you about it. And honestly, What could be more
important? Because one day all of us will die,
just like my Uncle Tom did. All of us will enter
that grave and there's no avoiding it. Only Jesus
can provide us with a hope beyond the grave,
a hope that changes our lives. Do you have that
hope? Is it changing your life? Let's pray. Heavenly
Father, we want to thank you so much for the
hope that is in Jesus. Open our eyes to see how
glorious, how wonderful, how life -transforming
that hope is. Let it dwell in our hearts. And
for anyone here today who is uncertain about
this hope, Please help them to give Jesus a fair
go to see if Jesus really rose from the dead.
And we ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.