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Title: What Comes to Your Mind? Text: Lk 24:1-8 Date: 4-16-06.am What comes to your mind when you hear the word Easter? Like some people in the video clip it may be family, Easter baskets, chocolate bunnies, jelly beans and Easter eggs. I think about those things myself and now they make sugar free chocolate bunnies and jelly beans! But the point of the clip is that the most important aspect of Easter that eludes many people that needs to be foremost in our minds and hearts and taught to our children is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Like the birth of Christ at Christmas, the resurrection is the true reason for the season. People can argue about Spring celebrations in pagan cultures and so forth, but the fact is that none of those celebrations would exist apart from the grace of God. The new birth of nature in the spring time shouts resurrection. There are three phrases found in the New Testament which bear this truth out: before the foundation of the world, from the foundation of the world and since the foundation of the world. What they indicate is that even before the creation until now God’s grace was and is upon the earth and because of that grace all other celebrations exist. But this particular celebration was in the mind and heart of God even before the foundation or creation of the world. The resurrection account is found in all four gospels, with each telling the story from a different perspective emphasizing different aspects all making the same truth evident “Christ the Lord is Risen.” Luke 24:1-8 1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 And it happened that while they were perplexed about this, behold, two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling apparel; 5 and as {the women} were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground, {the men} said to them, "Why do you seek the living One among the dead? 6 "He is not here, but He has risen. Remember how He spoke to you while He was still in Galilee, 7 saying that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and be crucified, and the third day rise again." 8 And they remembered His words, (NAS) In John 11:25-26 Jesus told Martha, "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me shall live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. (NAS) The Fact of the Resurrection: We seem to be unable to discern what is factual today. Just in the past few months we’ve been told by “scholars” that Jesus actually walked on ice on the Sea of Galilee ( I guess Peter just slipped off the ice); now we’re being told that Judas wasn’t really a bad guy, He was actually following Jesus’ instructions and Dan Brown would have us believe that his work of fiction The De Vinci Code with it’s aberrational ideas about Christianity is based on factual history. And many people are just enthralled with this information. It reminds me of a cartoon, I think it was Zits that was on the bulletin board at Furman when I was there. But, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is historical fact as well as faith and was verified by eyewitness testimony. 1 Cor 15:1-8 1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; 7 then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; 8 and last of all, as it were to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. (NAS) Both men and women who had seen Him crucified, nailed on that cruel Roman cross, who had heard His cries from the cross, and heard His word of victory “it is finished” who had seen his lifeless body placed in that borrowed tomb saw Him alive again. They touched Him, they talked to Him, they ate with Him, more than five hundred at one time, the Bible says, saw the awesome love of God confirmed in the Risen Christ. And though men have tried over the centuries with all sorts of explanations it has never been disproved. He arose from the dead He came out of the tomb. He lives today and forever more, and Jesus said, because I live, you shall live also. The Promise of the Resurrection: That’s a promise. The resurrection wasn’t just a promise of prophecy, it was and is a promise of hope to everyone who believes...... The bible says: “For as in Adam all die, Paul wrote, so also in Christ all shall be made alive. (1 Cor 15:22) All because of His resurrection. Do you that promise of hope as a reality in your life this morning? The Apostle Paul writing to the Corinthian church in chapter 15 of 1 Cor wrote, “Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?. . . if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.. . .if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. (1 Cor 15: 12, 14,17) If Christ has not been raised from the dead we are without hope. But, Paul said, I saw Him. (1 Cor 15:8) If our hope is in our self, or in our good works, or anything that contends men and women can be good enough or work hard enough to save themselves, then we must realize that we will fall far short. Isa 64:6 says: “For all of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment. . .” (NAS) If you have hope in what you have or the material possessions you might accumulate in this life, then like Solomon you will find that all under the sun is vain, and your thirst will never be satisfied. Unlike the popular bumper sticker the one with the most toys doesn’t win. If your hope is in Religion, or philosophy or some type of ritualism, like the Nicodemus the Pharisee the teacher you will find religion and philosophy are not enough. The apostles didn’t steal the body of Jesus from the tomb, as a matter of fact Mark says when Mary Magdalene first reported she had see the resurrected Lord the disciples did not believe her (Mk 16:10-11) Thomas who was one of the twelve did not believe even the other apostles when they reported seeing Jesus alive. Thomas said, "Unless I shall see in His hands the imprint of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into His side, I will not believe."(John 20:25) Eight days later Thomas saw and declared. "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28) The apostle Peter, who had denied Jesus, wrote, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,” 1 Pet 1:3 (NAS) A living hope in a living resurrected Savior. Because Christ is risen all things have changed, by faith in Him I am no longer the same, I am free from the bondage of sin and death and made alive in Christ and, I have been redeemed. The Proclamation of the Resurrection: Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; for His lovingkindness is everlasting. Let the redeemed of the LORD say {so} . . . Ps 107:1-2 (NAS ) “In this is love,” John wrote, “not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son {to be} the propitiation for our sins.”( I Jn 4:10) “And we have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us.” (I Jn 4:16) (NAS) What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, (John wrote) what we beheld and our hands handled, concerning the Word of Life– and the life was manifested, and we have seen and bear witness and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us– what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, that you also may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ. (I Jn 1:1-3) (NAS) The Bible says, “. . .that if you confess with your mouth Jesus {as} Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved; for "Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved." (Rom 10:9, 13). The proclamation of the resurrection is that God loved us enough to die for us on the cross, but that His love overcomes even death. In this world we are Dead in Sin, caught up in the drudgery of this life, we have an emptiness and are spiritually lifeless because of what sin has done. Scripture describes the person who is separated from God—as a person who is spiritually dead. Most people do not think of themselves as spiritually dead. Yet the Bible tells us that spiritually, a man separated from God is dead. Through the cross we are made Dead to Sin, we are redeemed, no longer controlled by the tyranny of sin, a slave to sin and under the penalty of the curse of sin. By the resurrection we are made Alive to God. God has transformed our lives. He has resurrected us into unity with His creative and redemptive purpose. He has reconciled us to Himself. We are loosed from the burial rags of sin and set free to live new life in Christ. That promise of hope and proclamation of love is given to everyone. Rom 10:9-11 9 that if you confess with your mouth Jesus {as} Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you shall be saved; 10 for with the heart man believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. Rom 10:13 for "Whoever will call upon the name of the Lord will be saved." (NAS) Will you call upon His Name? Let me ask you to bow your heads and close your eyes. I want you to repeat this prayer after me. HEAVENLY FATHER, LAMB OF GOD, RISEN SAVIOR FORGIVE MY SIN AND CLEANSE MY HEART STRENGTHEN ME WHEN I AM WEAK ENCOURAGE ME WHEN I AM DOWN LIGHT MY PATH AND GUIDE MY STEPS MAY I BE YIELDED TO YOUR SPIRIT AND OBEDIENT TO YOUR WORD GIVE ME A LOVING HEART THAT I MIGHT LOVE YOU AND OTHERS EVEN AS YOU HAVE LOVED ME. MAY I BE FAITHFUL TO MY LORD AND MY CHURCH MAY I BE SALT AND LIGHT IN MY WORLD. If you don’t know Christ, we invite you to place your faith in Him. Isa 25:9 we trusted Him and He saved us.” Rom 10:13 said whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. If the Spirit of God is speaking to your heart and you don’t know Jesus as Lord and Savior of your life we want you to respond. If you’re a believer and His Spirit is speaking to you this morning about something else we also invite you to come. It may be to rededicate or recommit your life, or surrender Him in any other way, it may be to join the church or be baptized but whatever God is speaking to you about this morning we want to give you a chance to respond. Father, on this glorious Easter day may You be glorified in our lives, and in our church. May each of us give ourselves completely to you in glorious surrender to Your will. May the light of Your love shine in us and through us that the world may know You are indeed risen and You are Lord. |