WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:01.780 Good morning again, church. Did you hear that 00:00:01.780 --> 00:00:06.580 lyric? I will gaze upon my Jesus and thank him 00:00:06.580 --> 00:00:09.939 for the cross. Someday, someday we will gaze 00:00:09.939 --> 00:00:12.880 upon him and thank him for that. I'm not sure 00:00:12.880 --> 00:00:16.519 that any of us can fully grasp just how important 00:00:16.519 --> 00:00:20.379 the story of the cross and the resurrection are 00:00:20.379 --> 00:00:24.359 to the lives that we live today. What we're going 00:00:24.359 --> 00:00:26.739 to be looking at this morning is assuredly the 00:00:26.739 --> 00:00:30.149 most consequential three days in the history 00:00:30.149 --> 00:00:34.070 of the world. Let me say that again. The most 00:00:34.070 --> 00:00:38.670 consequential three days in all of human history. 00:00:39.329 --> 00:00:41.530 If there were no cross, there would be no way 00:00:41.530 --> 00:00:45.109 for human sin to be forgiven. If there were no 00:00:45.109 --> 00:00:47.750 empty tomb, there would be no path to eternal 00:00:47.750 --> 00:00:52.210 life for anyone. Everything that we as human 00:00:52.210 --> 00:00:55.789 beings know about goodness and about love and 00:00:55.789 --> 00:00:59.399 about sacrifice, and about freedom and dignity, 00:00:59.560 --> 00:01:03.979 about equality. It all has come down to us from 00:01:03.979 --> 00:01:06.340 the God who made us in his image, from the God 00:01:06.340 --> 00:01:09.200 who looked down and saw our greatest need as 00:01:09.200 --> 00:01:12.340 humans and acted to meet that need by sending 00:01:12.340 --> 00:01:16.219 his own son to take on flesh and to live and 00:01:16.219 --> 00:01:19.900 die for us. That story never gets old, does it? 00:01:20.260 --> 00:01:23.239 That God would do that for us. Where would we 00:01:23.239 --> 00:01:27.609 be without Jesus? What hope would we have? in 00:01:27.609 --> 00:01:30.709 this world. This morning, we're gathered together 00:01:30.709 --> 00:01:33.329 to celebrate the centerpiece of what God has 00:01:33.329 --> 00:01:37.030 done in human history to reconcile us to himself, 00:01:37.329 --> 00:01:39.829 the resurrection, which means we're here today 00:01:39.829 --> 00:01:42.950 to celebrate life itself. Jesus, the way, the 00:01:42.950 --> 00:01:46.409 truth, and the life. Jesus, the resurrection, 00:01:46.590 --> 00:01:50.469 and the life. And for those of us who belong 00:01:50.469 --> 00:01:53.549 to him, who have trusted in him, for us, we also 00:01:53.549 --> 00:01:56.590 have this thing we call resurrection life. this 00:01:56.590 --> 00:01:59.950 morning which means new life in the present and 00:01:59.950 --> 00:02:02.629 eternal life in the future so what we're going 00:02:02.629 --> 00:02:05.189 to do this morning is if you're with us on friday 00:02:05.189 --> 00:02:07.329 night at good friday what we did was we did a 00:02:07.329 --> 00:02:11.189 full reading of the entire story of jesus's arrest 00:02:11.189 --> 00:02:15.259 and trials and crucifixion and burial. And what 00:02:15.259 --> 00:02:18.039 I did was I pieced together all four gospels 00:02:18.039 --> 00:02:21.159 to give us that sort of full story. And what 00:02:21.159 --> 00:02:23.699 I want to do this morning is to finish that story 00:02:23.699 --> 00:02:26.659 by doing the same. Directly from the text of 00:02:26.659 --> 00:02:29.080 the four gospels, we're going to read the story 00:02:29.080 --> 00:02:31.419 of the resurrection. And then after that, what 00:02:31.419 --> 00:02:33.300 I'm hoping to do is to give you some insights 00:02:33.300 --> 00:02:36.639 and some commentary on the story itself. And 00:02:36.639 --> 00:02:39.000 then we will briefly look at John 14, 6, which 00:02:39.000 --> 00:02:42.120 is our theme verse. for Passion Week and talk 00:02:42.120 --> 00:02:44.439 about what resurrection life, what difference 00:02:44.439 --> 00:02:47.500 that makes in our lives as we go out into the 00:02:47.500 --> 00:02:49.759 world. So let me read to you the story of the 00:02:49.759 --> 00:02:52.280 resurrection. Now, again, I'm piecing this together 00:02:52.280 --> 00:02:54.680 from all four gospels, so you really can't follow 00:02:54.680 --> 00:02:57.520 along in any one of them. So maybe just listen, 00:02:57.620 --> 00:02:59.280 if you want to close your eyes, that's fine, 00:02:59.360 --> 00:03:01.879 or just listen carefully and let's hear what 00:03:01.879 --> 00:03:05.199 God, how God himself has described this part 00:03:05.199 --> 00:03:07.840 of the story. Here's the word of the Lord. It 00:03:07.840 --> 00:03:11.199 says, when the Sabbath was over, At early dawn 00:03:11.199 --> 00:03:14.460 on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene, 00:03:14.520 --> 00:03:18.639 Mary the mother of James, and Salome came to 00:03:18.639 --> 00:03:21.620 the tomb bringing spices which they had prepared 00:03:21.620 --> 00:03:24.740 in order to anoint him. And they were saying 00:03:24.740 --> 00:03:27.259 to one another, who will roll away the stone 00:03:27.259 --> 00:03:30.879 for us from the entrance of the tomb? And they 00:03:30.879 --> 00:03:32.900 came to the tomb when the sun had risen, and 00:03:32.900 --> 00:03:36.159 behold, a severe earthquake had occurred in the 00:03:36.159 --> 00:03:39.210 night. For an angel of the Lord descended from 00:03:39.210 --> 00:03:41.830 heaven and came and rolled away the stone and 00:03:41.830 --> 00:03:45.469 sat upon it. And his appearance was like lightning 00:03:45.469 --> 00:03:48.409 and his clothing as white as snow. And the guards 00:03:48.409 --> 00:03:51.650 shook for fear of him and became like dead men. 00:03:52.569 --> 00:03:55.189 Upon arriving, the women found the stone already 00:03:55.189 --> 00:03:57.710 rolled away from the tomb. But when they entered, 00:03:57.830 --> 00:04:00.969 they did not find the body of Jesus. And they 00:04:00.969 --> 00:04:02.849 saw a young man sitting at the right wearing 00:04:02.849 --> 00:04:05.349 a dazzling white robe. And they were terrified. 00:04:06.039 --> 00:04:08.960 and bowed their faces to the ground. And the 00:04:08.960 --> 00:04:12.139 angel said to the women, Do not be afraid, for 00:04:12.139 --> 00:04:14.740 I know you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, 00:04:14.840 --> 00:04:18.560 who's been crucified. Why do you seek the living 00:04:18.560 --> 00:04:22.959 one among the dead? He's not here. He is risen, 00:04:23.000 --> 00:04:27.019 just as he said. See the place where he was lying. 00:04:27.860 --> 00:04:30.860 But go, tell his disciples, he is going ahead 00:04:30.860 --> 00:04:33.819 of you to Galilee. There you will see him, just 00:04:33.819 --> 00:04:37.050 as he told you. And they left the tomb quickly 00:04:37.050 --> 00:04:40.350 with fear and with great joy and they ran to 00:04:40.350 --> 00:04:43.189 report it to his disciples. And they came in 00:04:43.189 --> 00:04:45.389 to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom 00:04:45.389 --> 00:04:48.290 Jesus loved and said to them, they have taken 00:04:48.290 --> 00:04:51.329 away the Lord out of the tomb and we don't know 00:04:51.329 --> 00:04:54.850 where they've laid him. So Peter and the other 00:04:54.850 --> 00:04:57.269 disciple went forth going to the tomb. The two 00:04:57.269 --> 00:05:00.149 were running together and the other disciple 00:05:00.149 --> 00:05:03.230 ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb 00:05:03.230 --> 00:05:06.860 first. And stooping and looking in, he saw the 00:05:06.860 --> 00:05:09.920 linen wrappings lying there, but he did not go 00:05:09.920 --> 00:05:13.579 in. Simon Peter also came following after him, 00:05:13.660 --> 00:05:17.360 and he entered the tomb, and he saw the linen 00:05:17.360 --> 00:05:20.259 wrappings lying there and the face cloth which 00:05:20.259 --> 00:05:22.879 had been on his head, not lying with the linen 00:05:22.879 --> 00:05:25.620 wrappings, but rolled up in a place by itself. 00:05:26.959 --> 00:05:29.240 So the other disciple who had first come to the 00:05:29.240 --> 00:05:33.620 tomb then also entered, and he saw and he believed. 00:05:34.480 --> 00:05:36.740 And they went away to their homes, marveling 00:05:36.740 --> 00:05:39.939 at what had happened. But Mary remained outside 00:05:39.939 --> 00:05:43.519 the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she stooped 00:05:43.519 --> 00:05:46.139 and looked into the tomb and she saw two angels 00:05:46.139 --> 00:05:49.339 in white sitting, one at the head and one at 00:05:49.339 --> 00:05:52.000 the feet where the body of Jesus had been lying. 00:05:52.720 --> 00:05:55.040 And they said to her, woman, why are you weeping? 00:05:55.980 --> 00:05:57.819 She said to them, because they've taken away 00:05:57.819 --> 00:06:01.139 my Lord. I don't know where they've laid him. 00:06:02.939 --> 00:06:05.040 When she had said this, she turned around and 00:06:05.040 --> 00:06:08.079 saw Jesus standing there, but did not know it 00:06:08.079 --> 00:06:11.740 was Jesus. And Jesus said to her, woman, why 00:06:11.740 --> 00:06:15.480 are you weeping? Whom are you seeking? Supposing 00:06:15.480 --> 00:06:18.420 him to be the gardener. She said to him, sir, 00:06:18.540 --> 00:06:21.040 if you have carried him away, tell me where you 00:06:21.040 --> 00:06:26.699 have laid him and I will take him away. Jesus 00:06:26.699 --> 00:06:33.339 said to her, Mary, Mary. And she turned and said 00:06:33.339 --> 00:06:37.259 to him in Hebrew, Teacher. Then Jesus said to 00:06:37.259 --> 00:06:40.399 her, Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers 00:06:40.399 --> 00:06:42.480 to leave for Galilee, and there they will see 00:06:42.480 --> 00:06:45.639 me. And Mary came announcing to the disciples, 00:06:45.839 --> 00:06:49.000 I've seen the Lord, and that he had said these 00:06:49.000 --> 00:06:51.060 things to her. But when they heard that he was 00:06:51.060 --> 00:06:53.740 alive and had been seen by her, they refused 00:06:53.740 --> 00:06:57.759 to believe it. These words were as nonsense to 00:06:57.759 --> 00:07:00.990 them. So when it was evening on that day, the 00:07:00.990 --> 00:07:02.649 first day of the week, and when the doors were 00:07:02.649 --> 00:07:05.110 shut where the disciples were for fear of the 00:07:05.110 --> 00:07:09.649 Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and 00:07:09.649 --> 00:07:14.129 said to them, Peace be with you. And when he 00:07:14.129 --> 00:07:16.470 had said this, he showed them both his hands 00:07:16.470 --> 00:07:19.389 and his side. And the disciples then rejoiced 00:07:19.389 --> 00:07:23.209 when they saw the Lord. But Thomas, Thomas, one 00:07:23.209 --> 00:07:25.310 of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. 00:07:25.839 --> 00:07:27.720 So the other disciples were saying to him, we 00:07:27.720 --> 00:07:31.019 have seen the Lord. But he said to them, unless 00:07:31.019 --> 00:07:34.459 I see in his hands the imprint of the nails and 00:07:34.459 --> 00:07:37.079 put my finger into the place of the nails and 00:07:37.079 --> 00:07:40.240 put my hand into a side, I will not believe. 00:07:41.819 --> 00:07:44.519 After eight days, his disciples were again inside 00:07:44.519 --> 00:07:47.459 and Thomas was with them. And Jesus came, the 00:07:47.459 --> 00:07:50.079 doors having been shut, and stood in their midst 00:07:50.079 --> 00:07:54.439 and said, peace be with you. Then he said to 00:07:54.439 --> 00:07:57.699 Thomas, Reach here with your finger and see my 00:07:57.699 --> 00:08:00.579 hands and reach here and put your hand into my 00:08:00.579 --> 00:08:10.079 side and do not disbelieve, but believe. Thomas 00:08:10.079 --> 00:08:14.819 answered and said to him, my Lord and my God. 00:08:16.560 --> 00:08:19.079 Jesus said to him, because you've seen me, have 00:08:19.079 --> 00:08:22.319 you believed? Blessed are they who did not see 00:08:22.319 --> 00:08:27.730 and yet believed. May the Lord bless this reading 00:08:27.730 --> 00:08:33.330 from his word. So let me share some thoughts 00:08:33.330 --> 00:08:35.730 about what we've just heard and also try to connect 00:08:35.730 --> 00:08:38.490 some thoughts from Good Friday as well. Obviously, 00:08:38.490 --> 00:08:42.029 we know the timeline here. Jesus is crucified 00:08:42.029 --> 00:08:44.529 and buried on Friday. He's raised from the dead 00:08:44.529 --> 00:08:47.230 on Sunday. What has always fascinated me, and 00:08:47.230 --> 00:08:49.169 maybe you've thought of this as well, is what 00:08:49.169 --> 00:08:52.620 happened on Saturday. Right? What happened between 00:08:52.620 --> 00:08:55.240 the time that he was laid there in the tomb and 00:08:55.240 --> 00:08:58.799 the moment his body was revivified or reanimated 00:08:58.799 --> 00:09:01.240 and that stone was rolled away? What was going 00:09:01.240 --> 00:09:04.059 on there? So let's go back to what we know from 00:09:04.059 --> 00:09:06.139 the Gospels. From Mark's Gospel, we know that 00:09:06.139 --> 00:09:08.940 Jesus was confirmed physically dead, and that's 00:09:08.940 --> 00:09:12.919 an important point. Physically dead by the centurion 00:09:12.919 --> 00:09:15.259 who was on watch, and that news was taken back 00:09:15.259 --> 00:09:17.789 to Pontius Pilate. We also know that the two 00:09:17.789 --> 00:09:20.009 criminals that were crucified on either side 00:09:20.009 --> 00:09:23.769 of him had their legs broken to speed up their 00:09:23.769 --> 00:09:26.690 deaths on the cross because Passover was coming 00:09:26.690 --> 00:09:29.389 and they needed to wrap up that execution site. 00:09:29.509 --> 00:09:31.529 So they broke their legs so that they would die 00:09:31.529 --> 00:09:34.110 quicker. But we're told by John that Jesus was 00:09:34.110 --> 00:09:37.490 dead prior to that moment. So when the centurion 00:09:37.490 --> 00:09:39.970 came to him, they didn't need to break Jesus' 00:09:40.190 --> 00:09:42.570 legs. And that is an important fulfillment of 00:09:42.570 --> 00:09:46.360 prophecy. And we should know this. It's a fulfillment 00:09:46.360 --> 00:09:49.559 of the prophecy concerning the Passover lamb 00:09:49.559 --> 00:09:53.820 in ancient Israel from the Torah. In fact, I'm 00:09:53.820 --> 00:09:57.440 going to warm this up here. So two passages that 00:09:57.440 --> 00:10:01.220 show this in the Torah. First of all, Exodus 00:10:01.220 --> 00:10:04.279 12, 46. Alex, can you hit that? There you go. 00:10:05.740 --> 00:10:08.159 It says the Passover lamb is to be eaten in a 00:10:08.159 --> 00:10:11.000 single house. You are not to bring forth any 00:10:11.000 --> 00:10:14.080 of the flesh outside of the house. nor are you 00:10:14.080 --> 00:10:17.879 to break any bone of it. That's the Passover 00:10:17.879 --> 00:10:20.559 lamb. And then from Numbers chapter nine, you 00:10:20.559 --> 00:10:23.840 shall leave none of it until morning, nor break 00:10:23.840 --> 00:10:27.779 a bone of it. Jesus, the Passover lamb, could 00:10:27.779 --> 00:10:30.320 not have had his bones broken to fulfill this 00:10:30.320 --> 00:10:33.559 prophecy. So Pilate released the body to the 00:10:33.559 --> 00:10:35.820 one man who asked for it, right? His name was 00:10:35.820 --> 00:10:38.620 Joseph of Arimathea. And remember, he was a member 00:10:38.620 --> 00:10:42.429 of the Sanhedrin. He was a prominent... member 00:10:42.429 --> 00:10:44.850 of the council there in Israel, but had become 00:10:44.850 --> 00:10:47.710 a follower of Christ. Secretly though, because 00:10:47.710 --> 00:10:51.950 he feared repercussions from the Jews. Now, the 00:10:51.950 --> 00:10:54.429 rest of the day, the next day, Saturday, was 00:10:54.429 --> 00:10:56.250 of course the Sabbath. And on the Sabbath, no 00:10:56.250 --> 00:10:59.230 physical work could be done. So Joseph wanted 00:10:59.230 --> 00:11:02.230 to get the body down from the cross before sundown 00:11:02.230 --> 00:11:05.330 on Friday so that he could give Jesus a proper 00:11:05.330 --> 00:11:08.730 burial and to fulfill all the standard Jewish 00:11:08.730 --> 00:11:12.490 customs related to how a body is treated. That 00:11:12.490 --> 00:11:14.769 was Joseph's goal. And we're told that Joseph 00:11:14.769 --> 00:11:17.769 honored Jesus greatly by granting him his own 00:11:17.769 --> 00:11:21.009 tomb. which was a big deal in ancient Israel. 00:11:21.169 --> 00:11:23.929 Tombs were expensive. Family tombs were expensive. 00:11:24.429 --> 00:11:27.929 And apparently, Joseph had just recently carved 00:11:27.929 --> 00:11:31.409 his tomb out of the limestone rock in that area. 00:11:31.649 --> 00:11:33.809 And we know this because John tells us that this 00:11:33.809 --> 00:11:37.570 was, quote, a new tomb in which no one had yet 00:11:37.570 --> 00:11:42.220 been laid. Nobody. And in that day, Tombs were 00:11:42.220 --> 00:11:45.980 entire burial complexes for all of your relatives, 00:11:46.100 --> 00:11:48.879 generations and generations. So the fact that 00:11:48.879 --> 00:11:51.000 nobody had ever been there means it was absolutely 00:11:51.000 --> 00:11:55.019 fresh, never occupied by anyone. Now again, Joseph 00:11:55.019 --> 00:11:57.419 was a prominent man in Israel. He was wealthy. 00:11:57.580 --> 00:12:00.379 And that too was a fulfillment of prophecy. Comes 00:12:00.379 --> 00:12:04.299 out of this great chapter in Isaiah 53. His grave, 00:12:04.320 --> 00:12:06.940 the Messiah, his grave was assigned with wicked 00:12:06.940 --> 00:12:10.460 men, meaning he was buried with the masses. yet 00:12:10.460 --> 00:12:14.059 he was with a rich man in his death, because 00:12:14.059 --> 00:12:17.659 he had done no violence, nor was any deceit found 00:12:17.659 --> 00:12:21.039 in his mouth. Now John also tells us that this 00:12:21.039 --> 00:12:24.159 tomb was located in a particular patch of land 00:12:24.159 --> 00:12:26.779 in Israel, and he is the only one of the four 00:12:26.779 --> 00:12:30.659 gospel writers who says it was a garden, which 00:12:30.659 --> 00:12:34.220 for centuries has puzzled scholars until just 00:12:34.220 --> 00:12:36.000 the last few years. I'll come back to that in 00:12:36.000 --> 00:12:39.000 a second. John also tells us that Joseph's tomb 00:12:39.000 --> 00:12:42.799 was near the execution site, right near Golgotha. 00:12:43.279 --> 00:12:45.519 And according to extensive surveys that have 00:12:45.519 --> 00:12:47.940 been done there, it's just a short walking distance 00:12:47.940 --> 00:12:52.399 between Golgotha and the tomb of Joseph. Now 00:12:52.399 --> 00:12:56.179 here's why I say until recently. Here's a photo. 00:12:56.480 --> 00:12:59.340 You knew we had to do some archaeological work 00:12:59.340 --> 00:13:01.539 on Easter, right? Sorry. There's no maps today, 00:13:01.580 --> 00:13:04.539 I'm sorry. But we do have pictures. This is the 00:13:04.539 --> 00:13:07.690 Church of the Holy Sepulchre. in the center of 00:13:07.690 --> 00:13:10.429 the old city of Jerusalem, a very important place 00:13:10.429 --> 00:13:12.409 that I know I've been there a number of times. 00:13:12.470 --> 00:13:15.190 Some of you guys have been there as well. In 00:13:15.190 --> 00:13:16.830 spite of the fact that I'm not a fan, that they 00:13:16.830 --> 00:13:19.990 built a church over this spot, that church is 00:13:19.990 --> 00:13:22.470 an ancient relic itself. It was built back in 00:13:22.470 --> 00:13:26.710 the year 335 by Constantine and his mother Helena, 00:13:26.929 --> 00:13:29.309 who had surveyed the land. So it's an important 00:13:29.309 --> 00:13:33.649 building. And by all accounts, it is built over 00:13:33.649 --> 00:13:37.250 the correct spot. where Golgotha was and where 00:13:37.250 --> 00:13:40.190 the tomb was as well. Now, here's what's interesting. 00:13:40.289 --> 00:13:44.429 In 2022, just a few years ago, workers started 00:13:44.429 --> 00:13:46.870 to do renovation of the flooring in a part of 00:13:46.870 --> 00:13:49.590 the church. And as they tore things out, what 00:13:49.590 --> 00:13:52.070 they discovered underneath caused them to call 00:13:52.070 --> 00:13:54.529 in all of the archaeologists. What they found 00:13:54.529 --> 00:13:59.590 were botanical remains. They found seeds. They 00:13:59.590 --> 00:14:03.610 found plant traces. They found pollen. Things 00:14:03.610 --> 00:14:06.169 that tell archaeologists that in past centuries, 00:14:06.309 --> 00:14:09.490 you know what was under that church? Olive trees, 00:14:09.929 --> 00:14:13.269 grape vines, all kinds of things. Guess what? 00:14:13.409 --> 00:14:16.590 John had it right. In spite of what all the scholars 00:14:16.590 --> 00:14:19.950 said, it was a garden at one point, and that's 00:14:19.950 --> 00:14:22.909 where Jesus was laid. Now, when you pull out 00:14:22.909 --> 00:14:25.509 from this and look from overhead, you can see 00:14:25.509 --> 00:14:27.649 this is the same church, and there's two gray 00:14:27.649 --> 00:14:30.429 domes there. The larger dome was built over the 00:14:30.429 --> 00:14:33.820 site of Golgotha. And the smaller dome was built 00:14:33.820 --> 00:14:37.039 over the site of Jesus' tomb. So you can see 00:14:37.039 --> 00:14:40.100 how close they actually were together. Now this 00:14:40.100 --> 00:14:42.320 was once outside the city walls. In the first 00:14:42.320 --> 00:14:45.120 century, this was outside the walls of the city 00:14:45.120 --> 00:14:47.460 of Jerusalem because Jesus was put to death outside 00:14:47.460 --> 00:14:50.200 the walls. Today, because the city's been built 00:14:50.200 --> 00:14:52.720 up so much, it is smack dab in the middle of 00:14:52.720 --> 00:14:55.639 the city. When you go inside this church, you 00:14:55.639 --> 00:14:58.100 can see, and it drives me crazy that they've 00:14:58.100 --> 00:15:01.159 done this. That is the rock of Golgotha. It's 00:15:01.159 --> 00:15:04.639 now covered in glass because they're worried 00:15:04.639 --> 00:15:07.080 about people, you know, sort of damaging it. 00:15:07.200 --> 00:15:10.419 But that is the actual rock that they have uncovered 00:15:10.419 --> 00:15:14.600 underneath the church itself. And this is where 00:15:14.600 --> 00:15:18.080 the tomb of Jesus was. It's now built around 00:15:18.080 --> 00:15:22.029 this kind of funny looking structure. It is, 00:15:22.029 --> 00:15:25.309 that ceiling is magnificent. The sun light comes 00:15:25.309 --> 00:15:27.750 in through those windows and it is an amazing 00:15:27.750 --> 00:15:30.470 thing to see. But that is the spot they believe 00:15:30.470 --> 00:15:33.190 where the tomb actually was. So if you go to 00:15:33.190 --> 00:15:36.269 Jerusalem, it's worth a look. So Jesus' body 00:15:36.269 --> 00:15:39.669 was then carefully laid in Joseph's tomb and 00:15:39.669 --> 00:15:41.990 we're told that it was wrapped in strips of linen, 00:15:42.110 --> 00:15:44.850 what we call his grave clothes, and also that 00:15:44.850 --> 00:15:47.690 there was a face cloth that covered his head. 00:15:48.409 --> 00:15:50.750 And remember, John tells us that Nicodemus also 00:15:50.750 --> 00:15:53.129 came to help with the burial and that he brought 00:15:53.129 --> 00:15:57.370 something around 100 pounds of spices to anoint 00:15:57.370 --> 00:16:00.730 the body. And part of it, we're told, was a mixture 00:16:00.730 --> 00:16:04.070 of myrrh and aloes. Now, when you hear the word 00:16:04.070 --> 00:16:08.590 myrrh, that's a callback to what? The time of 00:16:08.590 --> 00:16:11.330 Christ's birth. One of the great gifts that came 00:16:11.330 --> 00:16:15.620 from the Magi was myrrh. And we know that that 00:16:15.620 --> 00:16:18.860 was a foreboding dark sign for Mary of what was 00:16:18.860 --> 00:16:22.480 to come, that myrrh would be present at the time 00:16:22.480 --> 00:16:25.340 of his death. We know from the customs of the 00:16:25.340 --> 00:16:27.299 day that first the body would have been anointed 00:16:27.299 --> 00:16:30.240 with oils, with fragrant oils. And then the spices 00:16:30.240 --> 00:16:32.700 along with the oil would be placed between the 00:16:32.700 --> 00:16:35.379 strips as they were laid on the body. And then 00:16:35.379 --> 00:16:38.840 probably also spices were put in jars or in bundles 00:16:38.840 --> 00:16:41.200 around the body, particularly around the head 00:16:41.200 --> 00:16:44.600 and around the chest area. And my guess is that 00:16:44.600 --> 00:16:46.759 Joseph and Nicodemus helped the women. Remember, 00:16:46.919 --> 00:16:49.159 sundown's coming. They've got to get this done. 00:16:49.299 --> 00:16:51.580 They finished the task, and then they rushed 00:16:51.580 --> 00:16:54.480 home in preparation for the Sabbath. But then 00:16:54.480 --> 00:16:56.879 we're told that Mary Magdalene and Mary, the 00:16:56.879 --> 00:17:00.759 mother of James, lingered outside the tomb. They 00:17:00.759 --> 00:17:03.940 stayed there. And I can only imagine why, if 00:17:03.940 --> 00:17:08.579 you have ever had to bury a loved one, one of 00:17:08.579 --> 00:17:10.519 the hardest things that you do at the end of 00:17:10.519 --> 00:17:13.380 the service, is to walk away from that casket 00:17:13.380 --> 00:17:16.599 because you don't want to leave. You don't want 00:17:16.599 --> 00:17:19.220 to have to say goodbye for this final time. And 00:17:19.220 --> 00:17:22.940 it's hard to just leave. And so the Marys, they 00:17:22.940 --> 00:17:24.920 don't want to leave their master. And so they 00:17:24.920 --> 00:17:27.859 stay there in the garden. They continue to mourn 00:17:27.859 --> 00:17:30.220 because they're having a hard time saying goodbye, 00:17:30.539 --> 00:17:33.619 which is understandable. Meanwhile, Matthew says 00:17:33.619 --> 00:17:36.079 that the chief priests paid a visit to Pilate 00:17:36.079 --> 00:17:38.940 that afternoon and they asked him to put a guard 00:17:38.940 --> 00:17:42.500 by the tomb. Why? Because they were very aware, 00:17:42.599 --> 00:17:44.759 because they'd been studying Jesus' words. They 00:17:44.759 --> 00:17:47.559 knew that Jesus had openly said that he would 00:17:47.559 --> 00:17:50.019 rise from the dead on the third day, and they 00:17:50.019 --> 00:17:53.920 were worried about it. And so Pilate, being a 00:17:53.920 --> 00:17:57.319 pragmatist who didn't want any more problems 00:17:57.319 --> 00:17:59.940 in Jerusalem, just wanted this whole thing to 00:17:59.940 --> 00:18:02.940 be over, grants their request for a detachment 00:18:02.940 --> 00:18:06.559 of soldiers to guard the tomb, and he allows 00:18:06.559 --> 00:18:09.750 them to set a royal seal. Over the stone that 00:18:09.750 --> 00:18:13.849 covered the tomb itself. And that's the way things 00:18:13.849 --> 00:18:18.150 sat over the Sabbath. From sundown on Friday 00:18:18.150 --> 00:18:20.950 through all Saturday, all of that frantic activity 00:18:20.950 --> 00:18:23.690 that had happened at Golgotha, the execution 00:18:23.690 --> 00:18:27.750 site, it had all fallen silent. If you'd walked 00:18:27.750 --> 00:18:29.710 by at that time, you would have seen the crosses. 00:18:29.769 --> 00:18:33.450 You would have seen probably nails and hammers 00:18:33.450 --> 00:18:35.930 and rope scattered all over the place. You probably 00:18:35.930 --> 00:18:38.450 would have been able to smell. the lingering 00:18:38.450 --> 00:18:42.670 scent of dried blood that would be all over that 00:18:42.670 --> 00:18:46.609 execution site. At the tomb on Saturday, I'm 00:18:46.609 --> 00:18:48.769 sure all things were quiet other than the sound 00:18:48.769 --> 00:18:51.410 of these guards who were going about their duties. 00:18:51.670 --> 00:18:53.650 I have no doubt they were wondering, what am 00:18:53.650 --> 00:18:57.269 I doing here? Why did I get this assignment? 00:18:57.329 --> 00:19:00.190 This is boring. I'm guarding a dead Jewish guy. 00:19:00.950 --> 00:19:02.829 It probably made no sense to them whatsoever. 00:19:03.210 --> 00:19:06.630 But sometime between that moment on Saturday, 00:19:07.339 --> 00:19:10.339 And the dawn of Sunday morning, something wild 00:19:10.339 --> 00:19:13.839 took place that, man, if we could just get some 00:19:13.839 --> 00:19:21.079 video of how this went down. A mighty angel is 00:19:21.079 --> 00:19:23.359 sent from heaven. He breaks out of the spiritual 00:19:23.359 --> 00:19:26.599 realm into the physical world. And the sound 00:19:26.599 --> 00:19:30.039 of his arrival causes an earthquake to strike 00:19:30.039 --> 00:19:33.299 the region. Think about that. And I've always 00:19:33.299 --> 00:19:36.690 wondered to myself. Was this Michael who came, 00:19:36.809 --> 00:19:39.769 right? The prince and protector of Israel. Was 00:19:39.769 --> 00:19:43.049 this the archangel who came with this duty? I 00:19:43.049 --> 00:19:46.009 don't know. I can't prove it, but wow. The sound 00:19:46.009 --> 00:19:50.309 of his arrival shakes the earth. What we do know 00:19:50.309 --> 00:19:52.349 is that the sight and sound of him definitely 00:19:52.349 --> 00:19:54.849 affected the guards. Could you imagine, right? 00:19:54.950 --> 00:19:57.230 They fall into such a state of fear that they're 00:19:57.230 --> 00:20:00.490 basically put into a catatonic state, frozen 00:20:00.490 --> 00:20:03.809 in fear and unable to move. I can imagine why. 00:20:04.650 --> 00:20:06.930 And we're told that this angel rolls the heavy 00:20:06.930 --> 00:20:09.869 stone away, not a problem for him, and he sits 00:20:09.869 --> 00:20:13.349 down on it. Now, my guess is the guards eventually 00:20:13.349 --> 00:20:18.029 sort of come to, and they, what would you do? 00:20:18.069 --> 00:20:21.369 You flee the scene, man. They run off in panic. 00:20:21.970 --> 00:20:24.250 It's interesting, Matthew records that later 00:20:24.250 --> 00:20:27.029 those soldiers were bribed by the chief priest 00:20:27.029 --> 00:20:31.119 to make up a story. To say that, well, the disciples 00:20:31.119 --> 00:20:33.559 came by and stole the body while we were all 00:20:33.559 --> 00:20:38.099 asleep. And fearing for their own safety, the 00:20:38.099 --> 00:20:40.619 soldiers took that bribe and spread the story 00:20:40.619 --> 00:20:42.619 in Jerusalem. You would probably do the same 00:20:42.619 --> 00:20:45.880 because if you don't toe the line, you're probably 00:20:45.880 --> 00:20:49.099 a dead man. But is anybody really buying that 00:20:49.099 --> 00:20:52.220 story? Come on. A whole detachment of soldiers 00:20:52.220 --> 00:20:56.440 all fall asleep at the same time? And a bunch 00:20:56.440 --> 00:21:00.140 of guys sneak up on them, right? Sneak past them 00:21:00.140 --> 00:21:02.880 and then roll the heavy stone away and none of 00:21:02.880 --> 00:21:08.000 them wakes up? Come on. These are soldiers. Nobody's 00:21:08.000 --> 00:21:11.640 buying that story. So come Sunday morning at 00:21:11.640 --> 00:21:14.839 dawn, these beautifully, wonderfully faithful 00:21:14.839 --> 00:21:18.400 women who are really at the center of the story. 00:21:18.500 --> 00:21:22.009 And what a grace that is. that God has seen fit 00:21:22.009 --> 00:21:25.049 to use these women in such an amazing way in 00:21:25.049 --> 00:21:27.569 the story. They head toward the tomb. They're 00:21:27.569 --> 00:21:30.210 still aching over the loss of their Lord. We're 00:21:30.210 --> 00:21:32.930 told that they're concerned about how are we 00:21:32.930 --> 00:21:35.529 going to move that stone? And I sort of picture 00:21:35.529 --> 00:21:38.190 them going, well, we'll figure it out when we 00:21:38.190 --> 00:21:40.089 get there. We'll see what God will do, right? 00:21:40.150 --> 00:21:42.970 They just don't know. And then you can picture 00:21:42.970 --> 00:21:45.549 them coming around and the tomb is in sight, 00:21:45.650 --> 00:21:48.170 right? And they are shocked by what they see. 00:21:48.720 --> 00:21:51.160 Put yourself in their sandals for a moment. You 00:21:51.160 --> 00:21:52.920 have expectations of what you're going to see 00:21:52.920 --> 00:21:56.359 when you get to the tomb, and it's wide open. 00:21:57.460 --> 00:22:01.500 The tomb is wide open. Nobody's there. Nobody's 00:22:01.500 --> 00:22:06.240 around. It's early. No guards, not anybody. What 00:22:06.240 --> 00:22:09.140 would you have thought? Put yourself in their 00:22:09.140 --> 00:22:11.880 sandals. Bugs. Put yourself in their sandals. 00:22:12.900 --> 00:22:15.000 What would you have thought in that moment? Grave 00:22:15.000 --> 00:22:20.960 robbers? I don't know. So they do what I think 00:22:20.960 --> 00:22:22.700 exactly what all of us would have done. They 00:22:22.700 --> 00:22:26.480 cautiously approach the tomb and they peek inside. 00:22:26.579 --> 00:22:30.640 What do you think they expected to see? Sometimes 00:22:30.640 --> 00:22:32.960 when we read the flat page in the Bible, it's 00:22:32.960 --> 00:22:34.700 good to ask those questions like how would we 00:22:34.700 --> 00:22:36.680 have reacted? What were they thinking in that 00:22:36.680 --> 00:22:39.559 moment? Did they expect to see Jesus' body still 00:22:39.559 --> 00:22:45.319 there? I guarantee you they didn't expect to 00:22:45.319 --> 00:22:48.619 see what they saw. which was this angel dressed 00:22:48.619 --> 00:22:52.279 in dazzling white. Later, Mary would see two 00:22:52.279 --> 00:22:55.240 angels when she went back to the tomb, two angels. 00:22:56.740 --> 00:22:58.779 And I want to share with you my theory on this. 00:22:59.619 --> 00:23:01.960 And I admit that this is some speculation, but 00:23:01.960 --> 00:23:04.400 it is based on some data that we find in other 00:23:04.400 --> 00:23:06.779 places in the New Testament about how angels 00:23:06.779 --> 00:23:10.980 operate. I think multiple angels were sent to 00:23:10.980 --> 00:23:13.539 watch over the body of Christ as soon as that 00:23:13.539 --> 00:23:16.900 stone was rolled into place. I think they were 00:23:16.900 --> 00:23:20.259 there inside the tomb on Friday and on Saturday 00:23:20.259 --> 00:23:23.000 and right up until the time that the women got 00:23:23.000 --> 00:23:26.500 there. And to me, picture the scene and see the 00:23:26.500 --> 00:23:29.180 symbolism in this. Pilate and the chief priests 00:23:29.180 --> 00:23:32.140 think they are so strong and powerful and clever 00:23:32.140 --> 00:23:34.740 that we're going to put a human guard outside 00:23:34.740 --> 00:23:38.200 the tomb and that'll do the trick. Meanwhile, 00:23:38.319 --> 00:23:41.279 God laughs in heaven and says, I have a much 00:23:41.279 --> 00:23:43.960 more powerful guard inside the tomb that you 00:23:43.960 --> 00:23:48.279 don't even know about. I love that picture. And 00:23:48.279 --> 00:23:50.259 think about the function of angels. Think about 00:23:50.259 --> 00:23:52.720 the various places where angels were sent to 00:23:52.720 --> 00:23:56.859 minister to and guard the incarnate Son of God 00:23:56.859 --> 00:23:59.440 during his life on the earth. First at his birth, 00:23:59.640 --> 00:24:02.400 right? The angels are sent, this heavenly chorus 00:24:02.400 --> 00:24:06.339 announcing his arrival. Then Jesus is sent into 00:24:06.339 --> 00:24:08.420 the wilderness, right, to be tempted by Satan. 00:24:08.599 --> 00:24:10.940 Do you remember how Satan led him to the pinnacle 00:24:10.940 --> 00:24:15.220 of the temple and said, throw yourself off? Satan 00:24:15.220 --> 00:24:18.059 knew something about God. What did he say? If 00:24:18.059 --> 00:24:20.680 you do that, if you are the son of God and you 00:24:20.680 --> 00:24:23.559 throw yourself off the temple, won't the father 00:24:23.559 --> 00:24:27.740 send angels to guard you and keep you safe? Now, 00:24:27.759 --> 00:24:30.259 Jesus doesn't fall for that trick, right? But 00:24:30.259 --> 00:24:32.440 he also didn't have to jump off the temple to 00:24:32.440 --> 00:24:34.880 know that, yes, angels would have rescued me. 00:24:35.920 --> 00:24:38.019 And as soon as Satan has been defeated and he 00:24:38.019 --> 00:24:40.839 leaves, we're told that... Angels came to Jesus 00:24:40.839 --> 00:24:43.380 and ministered to him in the wilderness. And 00:24:43.380 --> 00:24:46.940 guys, I suspect they were there all along, guarding 00:24:46.940 --> 00:24:49.259 the Son of God, making sure that Satan didn't 00:24:49.259 --> 00:24:53.500 cross boundaries and harm him in any way. Angels 00:24:53.500 --> 00:24:56.180 have always ministered to the incarnate Christ. 00:24:57.140 --> 00:24:59.740 Then there's Jesus' most desperate moment of 00:24:59.740 --> 00:25:02.380 human grief in the Garden of Gethsemane, right? 00:25:02.480 --> 00:25:05.059 He prays that the cup might pass from him. And 00:25:05.059 --> 00:25:08.380 we're told what? An angel was sent. to strengthen 00:25:08.380 --> 00:25:12.960 him in that moment of need. Even at his arrest, 00:25:13.299 --> 00:25:15.799 remember you hear Jesus saying, don't you realize 00:25:15.799 --> 00:25:19.019 I could call on 12 legions of angels to stop 00:25:19.019 --> 00:25:23.240 this if I wanted to? And so angels seem to play 00:25:23.240 --> 00:25:25.819 a huge role in watching over the incarnate Christ. 00:25:26.079 --> 00:25:28.599 So it seems logical to me that the reason angel 00:25:28.599 --> 00:25:31.980 was inside that tomb on Sunday morning is because 00:25:31.980 --> 00:25:35.880 he has been there all night, guarding the body 00:25:35.880 --> 00:25:40.880 of Christ. And catch this. Again, put yourself 00:25:40.880 --> 00:25:43.279 into the story. Think about this. That angel 00:25:43.279 --> 00:25:46.839 would have been an eyewitness to Jesus' body 00:25:46.839 --> 00:25:50.740 being reanimated. Man, would you like to have 00:25:50.740 --> 00:25:55.099 video of that? Coming back to life. How? Through 00:25:55.099 --> 00:25:58.059 the omnipotent power of the Holy Spirit. That's 00:25:58.059 --> 00:26:01.309 what we're told in Scripture. Can you imagine 00:26:01.309 --> 00:26:02.970 what that would have looked like? And it makes 00:26:02.970 --> 00:26:05.269 sense. Remember it was the angel Gabriel who 00:26:05.269 --> 00:26:07.809 first appeared to Mary to announce that she was 00:26:07.809 --> 00:26:09.869 with child and she said, how could this be since 00:26:09.869 --> 00:26:11.869 I'm a virgin? Do you remember what he told her? 00:26:12.289 --> 00:26:14.710 He said, the Holy Spirit will come upon you. 00:26:15.890 --> 00:26:19.579 He will produce that life in your womb. The power 00:26:19.579 --> 00:26:21.740 of the Most High will overshadow you. So the 00:26:21.740 --> 00:26:24.059 Holy Spirit is the author of Jesus' life in the 00:26:24.059 --> 00:26:27.420 womb, and according to Romans 8, 11, he is also 00:26:27.420 --> 00:26:30.980 the author of Jesus coming back to life in the 00:26:30.980 --> 00:26:35.460 tomb while the angel looks on. What a picture. 00:26:35.859 --> 00:26:39.329 It's the power of the Most High. On display once 00:26:39.329 --> 00:26:41.910 again. So by the time the women arrive on Sunday 00:26:41.910 --> 00:26:43.990 morning, the angels have done their job. They've 00:26:43.990 --> 00:26:46.569 completed their missions. The Holy Spirit has 00:26:46.569 --> 00:26:49.890 raised Jesus back to life. And it appears that 00:26:49.890 --> 00:26:51.509 he has come straight through the grave clothes. 00:26:51.769 --> 00:26:54.589 Even the head cloth is separated and rolled up 00:26:54.589 --> 00:27:00.329 all nice. He's a tidy Messiah. I like that. Here's 00:27:00.329 --> 00:27:02.930 the thing, you guys. And here's the true message 00:27:02.930 --> 00:27:06.549 of Resurrection Sunday. It couldn't be otherwise. 00:27:07.500 --> 00:27:13.420 God the Son could not have stayed dead. God the 00:27:13.420 --> 00:27:16.279 Son could not have stayed dead. Remember, every 00:27:16.279 --> 00:27:18.500 animal that had ever been sacrificed in Israel 00:27:18.500 --> 00:27:22.680 had stayed dead. But not Jesus. And there are 00:27:22.680 --> 00:27:25.160 biblically logical reasons for why that's true. 00:27:25.460 --> 00:27:29.299 First of all, he committed no sin in his life. 00:27:29.480 --> 00:27:33.460 So death had no claim on him. Death had no power 00:27:33.460 --> 00:27:36.579 over him. He was a sinless man. In fact, if you 00:27:36.579 --> 00:27:38.799 think about this, and again, my brain goes to 00:27:38.799 --> 00:27:40.980 all kinds of places, but think about this. If 00:27:40.980 --> 00:27:44.359 he hadn't willingly accepted the imputation of 00:27:44.359 --> 00:27:47.140 our sins upon him, Jesus never would have died. 00:27:49.900 --> 00:27:53.559 He never would have died. So when unbelievers 00:27:53.559 --> 00:27:55.220 say, how can you believe in the resurrection? 00:27:55.680 --> 00:27:59.480 My answer is, how can I not? The guy committed 00:27:59.480 --> 00:28:03.339 no sins. Of course he came back to life. It's 00:28:03.339 --> 00:28:05.500 just biblically logical. The second reason Jesus 00:28:05.500 --> 00:28:08.680 had to come back to life was for his vindication. 00:28:09.859 --> 00:28:12.220 And honestly, this probably deserves a whole 00:28:12.220 --> 00:28:14.700 sermon to itself, but think about what was required 00:28:14.700 --> 00:28:18.039 for God the Father to announce to the world his 00:28:18.039 --> 00:28:21.700 full approval of the Son, to vindicate the character 00:28:21.700 --> 00:28:25.200 of his Son in spite of what the world saw. Because 00:28:25.200 --> 00:28:28.019 remember, it was seen by the human eye that he 00:28:28.019 --> 00:28:34.119 died as a criminal. He died becoming sin. So 00:28:34.119 --> 00:28:36.180 how do you set the record straight? Well, you 00:28:36.180 --> 00:28:39.380 bring him back to life. That's how God vindicates 00:28:39.380 --> 00:28:41.740 his son, by bringing him back to life. By the 00:28:41.740 --> 00:28:44.019 way, this is what Paul writes in Romans 1 -4. 00:28:44.440 --> 00:28:47.380 Jesus was declared the son of God with power. 00:28:47.559 --> 00:28:51.720 How? By his resurrection from the dead. God declared 00:28:51.720 --> 00:28:55.420 that as my son. By raising him from the dead. 00:28:55.519 --> 00:28:57.339 And you can run through all kinds of passages. 00:28:57.460 --> 00:28:59.900 What you're gonna see is that Jesus, not only 00:28:59.900 --> 00:29:02.339 being vindicated through the resurrection, but 00:29:02.339 --> 00:29:04.920 being vindicated by being exalted to the right 00:29:04.920 --> 00:29:07.420 hand of the Father and being vindicated by being 00:29:07.420 --> 00:29:10.859 declared the ruler over creation and the head 00:29:10.859 --> 00:29:14.279 over the body of the church. And lastly, Paul 00:29:14.279 --> 00:29:18.259 says to the Athenians in Acts 17, by God declaring 00:29:18.259 --> 00:29:21.539 that Jesus has been appointed, ready, the judge 00:29:21.539 --> 00:29:26.339 over all. And he says this, he says, God has 00:29:26.339 --> 00:29:29.099 furnished proof of this to all men by what? By 00:29:29.099 --> 00:29:33.200 raising him from the dead. The father has vindicated 00:29:33.200 --> 00:29:36.099 his son. In each of these things, God has said 00:29:36.099 --> 00:29:39.259 to the world, this is my son, he is an unblemished 00:29:39.259 --> 00:29:41.839 lamb, and all the charges that were brought against 00:29:41.839 --> 00:29:48.279 him were false. Jesus offered himself. to satisfy 00:29:48.279 --> 00:29:50.680 the demands of God's justice and righteousness. 00:29:50.960 --> 00:29:53.160 And by raising him from the dead, the father 00:29:53.160 --> 00:29:58.720 declares, I accept his offering. Jesus is vindicated. 00:29:58.799 --> 00:30:03.299 That's why he had to come back to life. Listen, 00:30:03.380 --> 00:30:07.000 Jesus is Lord because Jesus is alive. He is the 00:30:07.000 --> 00:30:10.619 living God who still to this day retains his 00:30:10.619 --> 00:30:13.759 glorified human body and will have it forevermore. 00:30:14.539 --> 00:30:17.660 You can't say that about Moses. or Muhammad, 00:30:17.940 --> 00:30:20.940 or Buddha, or Joseph Smith, or any other man. 00:30:21.079 --> 00:30:23.539 All those guys have rotted in their graves, right? 00:30:24.859 --> 00:30:27.180 Only one man has ever been raised from the dead 00:30:27.180 --> 00:30:32.400 and remained alive forever. Only one guy. There's 00:30:32.400 --> 00:30:34.460 nobody to match him. There's nobody to compare 00:30:34.460 --> 00:30:37.819 him to. The one man who is now declared to be 00:30:37.819 --> 00:30:40.339 the only mediator between God and us as human 00:30:40.339 --> 00:30:43.539 beings. the man Christ Jesus. He is King of kings 00:30:43.539 --> 00:30:47.420 and Lord of lords, risen indeed. Amen? Amen. 00:30:48.680 --> 00:30:50.960 Now, I know it's kind of late in the message 00:30:50.960 --> 00:30:55.039 to do this, but grab your Bibles. I'm going to 00:30:55.039 --> 00:30:56.720 keep this short because I know it's a family 00:30:56.720 --> 00:30:59.759 service, but we need to look at our theme verse, 00:30:59.859 --> 00:31:03.839 our theme passage for the Passion Week. John 00:31:03.839 --> 00:31:08.210 14, verses 1 through 6. So turn there. By the 00:31:08.210 --> 00:31:10.329 way, Adam did a great job expositing this part 00:31:10.329 --> 00:31:12.450 of the text last Sunday, so I won't go into too 00:31:12.450 --> 00:31:14.890 much detail. If you missed the Palm Sunday message, 00:31:15.049 --> 00:31:17.849 go back and listen. It's worth it. Because this 00:31:17.849 --> 00:31:20.910 is such an important passage for us to understand. 00:31:23.049 --> 00:31:26.230 John 14, beginning in verse 1. Remember, these 00:31:26.230 --> 00:31:30.710 are tense moments between the Lord and his disciples, 00:31:30.849 --> 00:31:33.650 right? And Jesus looks at these men whom he loves 00:31:33.650 --> 00:31:37.180 so much. And he knows he's about to have to say 00:31:37.180 --> 00:31:40.140 goodbye. You're going to flee. You're going to 00:31:40.140 --> 00:31:42.079 run away. And I'm going to go to the cross. And 00:31:42.079 --> 00:31:44.579 this is a difficult moment for him. And so he 00:31:44.579 --> 00:31:46.880 looks at them and says, do not let your heart 00:31:46.880 --> 00:31:50.400 be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in 00:31:50.400 --> 00:31:53.500 me. Do you see the deity being connected there? 00:31:53.559 --> 00:31:57.099 Believe in God. Believe in me. In my father's 00:31:57.099 --> 00:31:59.839 house are many dwelling places. If it were not 00:31:59.839 --> 00:32:03.059 so, I would have told you, for I go to prepare 00:32:03.059 --> 00:32:06.519 a place for you. Isn't that comforting? Isn't 00:32:06.519 --> 00:32:09.119 that great? And if I go and prepare a place for 00:32:09.119 --> 00:32:11.519 you, I will come again and receive you to myself. 00:32:13.180 --> 00:32:17.200 He's gonna come and usher us into one of the 00:32:17.200 --> 00:32:21.200 Father's rooms. And there, so that where I am, 00:32:21.279 --> 00:32:24.359 there you may be also. And you know the way where 00:32:24.359 --> 00:32:26.579 I'm going. And Thomas said, Lord, we don't know 00:32:26.579 --> 00:32:29.140 where you're going. How do we know the way? Adam 00:32:29.140 --> 00:32:32.059 talked about that last Sunday, right? Very important. 00:32:32.730 --> 00:32:36.009 Verse 6 is the key. Jesus said to him, I am the 00:32:36.009 --> 00:32:40.210 way and the truth and the life. No one comes 00:32:40.210 --> 00:32:43.710 to the Father but through me. That is, guys, 00:32:43.769 --> 00:32:45.750 one of the most powerful statements that Jesus 00:32:45.750 --> 00:32:48.230 made during his days on the earth. Listen now. 00:32:48.349 --> 00:32:51.950 It is an airtight, unrelenting statement that 00:32:51.950 --> 00:32:55.230 opponents of the gospel will always despise because 00:32:55.230 --> 00:32:58.890 it leaves no room for pluralism. They will always 00:32:58.890 --> 00:33:01.680 hate this statement. And therefore, you should 00:33:01.680 --> 00:33:05.140 memorize it. They despise it because it leaves 00:33:05.140 --> 00:33:08.460 no room for this idea of a big tent salvation 00:33:08.460 --> 00:33:11.460 scenario where everybody can find their own path 00:33:11.460 --> 00:33:14.980 to God. And they can do it their own way. And 00:33:14.980 --> 00:33:17.059 they can do it on their own terms. No, no, no. 00:33:17.299 --> 00:33:20.920 Jesus doesn't leave room for that. He could not 00:33:20.920 --> 00:33:22.819 have been more clear. If you want to know the 00:33:22.819 --> 00:33:25.859 way or the path that leads to heaven, it runs 00:33:25.859 --> 00:33:33.660 through me. Period. I am, I embody the way. And 00:33:33.660 --> 00:33:36.519 if you want to know what truth is, what is true 00:33:36.519 --> 00:33:38.900 about the big issues of life and death and everything 00:33:38.900 --> 00:33:41.880 in between, especially if you want to know what 00:33:41.880 --> 00:33:43.960 the truth is about atonement and the forgiveness 00:33:43.960 --> 00:33:47.440 of sins, look to me, look to my word because 00:33:47.440 --> 00:33:51.940 I am the truth. I embody the truth. It's in a 00:33:51.940 --> 00:33:55.700 person. And if it's eternal life that you're 00:33:55.700 --> 00:33:58.059 seeking rather than judgment and wrath, then 00:33:58.059 --> 00:34:01.319 listen closely, I am that life. To reject Jesus 00:34:01.319 --> 00:34:04.380 is to reject life and to choose death instead. 00:34:04.819 --> 00:34:09.659 I am the life, he says. I embody it. Listen, 00:34:09.820 --> 00:34:11.400 if you're here this morning and you don't know 00:34:11.400 --> 00:34:13.900 Christ as Savior and Lord, but you're serious 00:34:13.900 --> 00:34:17.280 about finding a way to God and to eternal life, 00:34:17.480 --> 00:34:20.679 the news I have for you is this. There's no other 00:34:20.679 --> 00:34:25.260 option but Jesus. You can listen to every podcast. 00:34:25.320 --> 00:34:28.000 You can read every book. You can listen to all 00:34:28.000 --> 00:34:30.960 the so -called experts out there. I implore you 00:34:30.960 --> 00:34:34.440 to look to God's word. There is no other option 00:34:34.440 --> 00:34:36.500 but Jesus. He is the only begotten son of the 00:34:36.500 --> 00:34:40.820 Father who existed as God yet took on flesh to 00:34:40.820 --> 00:34:43.980 live a perfect life and die as a substitute for 00:34:43.980 --> 00:34:49.300 your sins. Will you receive it? This is an utterly 00:34:49.300 --> 00:34:52.739 exclusive statement. that Jesus makes here. Ignore 00:34:52.739 --> 00:34:55.820 it at your peril. Don't believe that you can 00:34:55.820 --> 00:34:58.380 find your own path to heaven. Don't believe the 00:34:58.380 --> 00:35:00.699 lie that the world tells you that if you just 00:35:00.699 --> 00:35:03.900 do enough good things that you will earn a spot 00:35:03.900 --> 00:35:07.260 in heaven. Isn't that the like, isn't that the 00:35:07.260 --> 00:35:09.579 way the world see things? Oh, everybody who dies, 00:35:09.639 --> 00:35:11.800 every funeral, such a good person. He's in heaven. 00:35:12.260 --> 00:35:15.900 That's not what the Bible says. Don't believe 00:35:15.900 --> 00:35:18.360 the lie that's out there that if I just do enough 00:35:18.360 --> 00:35:22.699 good things, I earn a spot up there. Don't think 00:35:22.699 --> 00:35:25.800 that by being a good person, whatever that means, 00:35:26.119 --> 00:35:28.300 right? What does it mean to be a good person? 00:35:29.699 --> 00:35:32.119 Don't believe that by being a good person that 00:35:32.119 --> 00:35:35.659 you get a free pass. Because without having a 00:35:35.659 --> 00:35:39.480 sacrifice for your sins, you still owe a debt 00:35:39.480 --> 00:35:44.010 to God. How are you going to pay that? What's 00:35:44.010 --> 00:35:46.889 the currency that you have to pay the debt that 00:35:46.889 --> 00:35:48.630 you owe for all the things that you've done? 00:35:51.190 --> 00:35:53.409 How are you going to take that beyond physical 00:35:53.409 --> 00:35:58.570 death? How do you do this? The only question 00:35:58.570 --> 00:36:00.889 is, who's going to pay the debt that you owe? 00:36:01.010 --> 00:36:02.670 Is it going to be you with your eternal soul 00:36:02.670 --> 00:36:05.150 or is it going to be Jesus as your substitute? 00:36:05.510 --> 00:36:09.110 But mark my words, the debt will be paid because 00:36:09.110 --> 00:36:11.510 God's perfect justice demands that it be paid. 00:36:12.329 --> 00:36:14.429 And now that choice is up to you. Do you want 00:36:14.429 --> 00:36:19.409 to pay it or do you want it late on Jesus? And 00:36:19.409 --> 00:36:21.789 when your soul passes from this life into eternity 00:36:21.789 --> 00:36:24.989 and you realize, my goodness, what Jesus claimed 00:36:24.989 --> 00:36:27.530 in John 14 is true, by that time it's too late. 00:36:28.829 --> 00:36:32.309 It's too late. And so that's why we preach the 00:36:32.309 --> 00:36:35.570 gospel with force and clarity on a morning like 00:36:35.570 --> 00:36:40.369 this. The motivation is love. Immense love for 00:36:40.369 --> 00:36:43.179 every person in this room. Because I want to 00:36:43.179 --> 00:36:45.420 see every one of you saved. I want to see everybody 00:36:45.420 --> 00:36:49.059 in heaven. And so on a day like this, of all 00:36:49.059 --> 00:36:54.079 days, that we preach the brutal truth filled 00:36:54.079 --> 00:36:58.219 with love about how we can be saved. There's 00:36:58.219 --> 00:37:01.880 only one way. There's only one way. Trust in 00:37:01.880 --> 00:37:04.960 Christ alone. Turn from your sinful ways. Believe 00:37:04.960 --> 00:37:07.059 the good news of the cross and the resurrection. 00:37:08.239 --> 00:37:12.539 And be saved this morning. Now, let me wrap up 00:37:12.539 --> 00:37:14.400 by addressing those of you who do know Christ 00:37:14.400 --> 00:37:17.840 this morning, who have trusted in him by faith 00:37:17.840 --> 00:37:20.119 alone. What does it mean to live in light of 00:37:20.119 --> 00:37:23.519 the resurrection? Do you ever think about what 00:37:23.519 --> 00:37:26.639 it means to live with resurrection power? Let 00:37:26.639 --> 00:37:28.260 me give you a couple reasons. First of all, it 00:37:28.260 --> 00:37:31.340 means living in light of who God says you are. 00:37:33.119 --> 00:37:35.519 Living in light of who God says you are as a 00:37:35.519 --> 00:37:40.519 redeemed son or a redeemed daughter. And that 00:37:40.519 --> 00:37:42.159 means a whole bunch of things. It means recognizing 00:37:42.159 --> 00:37:45.460 that, yes, once you were like everyone else in 00:37:45.460 --> 00:37:48.780 the world, you were formerly dead in your sins, 00:37:48.800 --> 00:37:54.159 and that Christ made you alive. He made you a 00:37:54.159 --> 00:37:56.340 new creation in him. You've been born again by 00:37:56.340 --> 00:37:58.900 the Spirit, and now you are united to Christ 00:37:58.900 --> 00:38:02.239 in all things. You have the privilege of abiding 00:38:02.239 --> 00:38:06.239 with him in a personal relationship. Recognize 00:38:06.239 --> 00:38:08.940 that truth, you guys. Be who God says you are. 00:38:10.059 --> 00:38:12.199 It's striving to live out the truth that you've 00:38:12.199 --> 00:38:15.380 been set free from slavery to sin. You are now 00:38:15.380 --> 00:38:19.380 able by the Spirit to live a transformed, progressively 00:38:19.380 --> 00:38:24.440 holy life. That's who God says you are. It means 00:38:24.440 --> 00:38:27.119 realizing that you've now been called and empowered 00:38:27.119 --> 00:38:29.980 by the Spirit to walk in all the good works that 00:38:29.980 --> 00:38:32.619 God has set forth in front of you to say, go 00:38:32.619 --> 00:38:35.820 walk in these things. Show the world who I am 00:38:35.820 --> 00:38:39.519 by doing these good things. In its most basic 00:38:39.519 --> 00:38:42.519 sense, resurrection life means cooperating with 00:38:42.519 --> 00:38:45.159 the Spirit and becoming more and more like the 00:38:45.159 --> 00:38:49.900 Savior as years go by. Again, becoming who God 00:38:49.900 --> 00:38:52.800 has declared that we are as His children. And 00:38:52.800 --> 00:38:55.840 all of these things are a reality for us because 00:38:55.840 --> 00:39:03.360 the tomb was empty. Resurrection power. Today, 00:39:03.719 --> 00:39:07.610 tomorrow, this week. resurrection power. Be who 00:39:07.610 --> 00:39:11.769 God says you are now. Second thing, having resurrection 00:39:11.769 --> 00:39:14.750 life means maintaining this certain hope that 00:39:14.750 --> 00:39:18.070 we have, this confident expectation that physical 00:39:18.070 --> 00:39:21.429 death is not the end for us, right? That someday 00:39:21.429 --> 00:39:25.230 soon God is going to raise us up to new and perfected 00:39:25.230 --> 00:39:27.750 life with him for all eternity. That is what 00:39:27.750 --> 00:39:31.449 we call our living hope, our living hope. It's 00:39:31.449 --> 00:39:34.670 grounded in Jesus's own victory over sin and 00:39:34.670 --> 00:39:37.980 death. in his own resurrection. He is our pioneer 00:39:37.980 --> 00:39:42.480 who goes before us and shows us the way. If we 00:39:42.480 --> 00:39:45.159 pick up our cross, dying to self, so that we 00:39:45.159 --> 00:39:48.159 can follow after Jesus, then we'll also follow 00:39:48.159 --> 00:39:51.519 after him in resurrection. That's the promise 00:39:51.519 --> 00:39:53.940 that we have. And so these truths, you guys, 00:39:53.980 --> 00:39:57.500 gives us strength and motivation to persevere 00:39:57.500 --> 00:40:01.650 in the faith to our very last breath. It's what 00:40:01.650 --> 00:40:04.369 gives us peace and joy in the midst of the suffering 00:40:04.369 --> 00:40:07.710 and grief of this world. We know that someday 00:40:07.710 --> 00:40:10.510 we will be with Christ forever, even if for a 00:40:10.510 --> 00:40:13.469 little while we have to show patient endurance. 00:40:14.590 --> 00:40:17.570 One last passage. Paul puts it this way in 2 00:40:17.570 --> 00:40:21.050 Timothy. If we died with him, we will also live 00:40:21.050 --> 00:40:26.050 with him. Have you died with him? Have you died 00:40:26.050 --> 00:40:29.269 with him by putting your trust in him alone? 00:40:29.960 --> 00:40:32.780 If so, you will live with him. If we endure to 00:40:32.780 --> 00:40:36.820 the end, we will also one day reign with him. 00:40:38.039 --> 00:40:40.360 Friends, the glorious hope of resurrection lies 00:40:40.360 --> 00:40:45.699 right before us, and it is wondrous. Jesus Christ 00:40:45.699 --> 00:40:58.840 is risen. Let's bow our heads. Heavenly Father, 00:41:00.230 --> 00:41:05.989 There just aren't human words to fully expound 00:41:05.989 --> 00:41:09.309 on the importance of the cross and the resurrection. 00:41:09.469 --> 00:41:11.449 Lord, I don't think we will understand it until 00:41:11.449 --> 00:41:14.570 we gaze upon your face and thank you for all 00:41:14.570 --> 00:41:19.710 of it. But here on this side of heaven, on earth, 00:41:19.829 --> 00:41:23.650 Lord, I ask that by your spirit you would lead 00:41:23.650 --> 00:41:26.389 us and guide us into as much truth about this 00:41:26.389 --> 00:41:31.090 as we can possibly take in. and that it would 00:41:31.090 --> 00:41:34.309 cause us to live lives that are different, lives 00:41:34.309 --> 00:41:37.269 filled with this thing we call resurrection power, 00:41:37.489 --> 00:41:40.289 recognizing what you've done, who we are now, 00:41:40.510 --> 00:41:42.969 and then just walking into that and living it 00:41:42.969 --> 00:41:45.690 out by the power of the Spirit that you've given 00:41:45.690 --> 00:41:49.889 us. Lord, seal those things into our hearts and 00:41:49.889 --> 00:41:52.550 minds today. Let us be changed because we've 00:41:52.550 --> 00:41:55.789 seen this in your word. And Father, for anybody 00:41:55.789 --> 00:41:58.840 here this morning who was on the fence, who came 00:41:58.840 --> 00:42:00.940 here this morning because maybe they got invited 00:42:00.940 --> 00:42:04.599 or a family member or they just haven't yet decided 00:42:04.599 --> 00:42:09.780 that you are real and true. Father, would you 00:42:09.780 --> 00:42:12.079 speak to their hearts by your spirit this morning 00:42:12.079 --> 00:42:16.659 and draw them to yourself and speak to them about 00:42:16.659 --> 00:42:18.980 the fact that these things are real. These are 00:42:18.980 --> 00:42:21.239 historical things. These are theologically true 00:42:21.239 --> 00:42:24.449 things and they make a difference. Not just now, 00:42:24.570 --> 00:42:27.349 but for all eternity. Would you save some here 00:42:27.349 --> 00:42:31.489 this morning, Lord? Father, help us now as we 00:42:31.489 --> 00:42:37.110 come back to singing that we would sing these 00:42:37.110 --> 00:42:40.429 lyrics, these words, not just out of rote memory 00:42:40.429 --> 00:42:43.369 or just from our lips, but from the depths of 00:42:43.369 --> 00:42:46.309 our hearts because we love you so much and because 00:42:46.309 --> 00:42:48.550 you've done so many things for us. Help us to 00:42:48.550 --> 00:42:51.349 sing well your praise and your glory right now. 00:42:51.820 --> 00:42:55.119 In Jesus' name, the Savior, we pray. Amen.