#56: Joyful Trembling

This week we kick off our Easter series Joyful Trembling by sitting with Mark’s account of the empty tomb and the strange mix of fear and awe it creates. We follow how trembling comes first, then lasting joy, as the resurrection of Jesus reshapes our hope, our bodies, and our urgency to share the gospel. 

• why “joyful trembling” captures the first response to resurrection 
• the women at the tomb as reliable witnesses who know Jesus is dead 
• Mark 16:8 and the shock of trembling and astonishment 
• why the resurrection breaks our categories and demands a verdict about Jesus 
• Jesus as the God-man and what that means for reality 
• eternal life as embodied life with glorified bodies and a new heavens and new earth 
• how failing bodies make resurrection hope feel personal 
• why Easter creates a natural opening to invite neighbours and friends 
• pushing past the “will there be seats?” barrier and trusting we will make room 
• keeping evangelistic zeal so the church does not drift 
• being wise toward outsiders and making the most of the time 

Just invite them anyway. 
Invite people and pray that God would be opening up people's hearts. 

Transcript

Welcome And Easter Series Setup

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to Beyond the Pulpit, exploring the life and ministry of Walnut Creek Church downtown. Walnut Creek Church exists to glorify God by making authentic disciples of Jesus Christ who love and worship him in all they do. Well, all right, welcome to Beyond the Pulpit. My name is Derek Wadley, and I'm joined by Lou Cookie. Hey everyone. And Dan Rude. Good morning, everybody. And this last weekend, we jumped into our Easter series, which is called Joyful Trembling this year. We're looking at the Gospel of Mark, uh tracing kind of Jesus' last days. Uh and Dan, what what in the world do you do we mean by joyful trembling?

SPEAKER_01 0:41

Joyful trembling. Well, yeah, joyful trembling. Uh those are two emotions that human beings experience, we experience all the time. But they typically don't go together. You don't put trembling with joy. Um you typically separate those two emotions. Yeah, trembling and fear. Fear, exactly, exactly. And um and and part of the reason uh I I like that title is is because I think it captures the two emotions that Christians should have when you understand the reality of the resurrection. And um first is the trembling, and then later comes uh the joy. And I think so often when we think about the resurrection of Jesus, uh there's very little emotion. I I mean when when you talk about, oh, Jesus rose from the dead, often people are like, okay, whatever, okay, we know that. That's Christianity. The claim is that Jesus rose from the dead, okay, whatever.

SPEAKER_00 1:37

The sky is also blue. The sky is blue.

Women Find The Empty Tomb

SPEAKER_01 1:40

Exactly, exactly. But the the the resurrection of Jesus, when the when the disciples, the follower and the followers of of Jesus discover the empty tomb and they begin to realize that Jesus is alive, uh it does they don't immediately skip to joy. There's there's first a trembling that happens. And I think the trembling happens because if Jesus has conquered death, like they knew he really died. Yeah. There's no doubt. They knew that he he really died. They buried him. They buried him. Yeah. And the the women were were there, you know, his his most loyal followers, the ones who didn't betray him or abandon him or deny him. It was actually the women followers. And it was this group of women who were with Jesus uh at the empty, or at the tomb when they they they put him in the tomb, the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. And it says that that they were there when the the stone was rolled in front of the tomb. I mean, they they knew he was dead. They knew where he was buried. And uh on that on the first Easter morning, uh the the women went to the tomb and they discovered that it was empty. And I think the at the beginning they don't know what to make of it, but as the reality of the resurrection is beginning to set in, uh there is an there's an astonishment that that takes place in their heart. Their hearts are are overwhelmed. Um it says in Matthew or Mark 16, 8, it says they went out and ran from the tomb because trembling and astonishment overwhelmed them, and they said nothing to anyone since they were afraid. So like the uh the initial emotion is fear, trembling. They're overwhelmed by it. Yeah, and again, it doesn't say, Mark doesn't say, and it's because they knew Jesus had risen from the dead. It's more like just the thought of Jesus rising from the dead, the potential of rising from the dead um made their hearts tremble. And I and I've been thinking about that. Why? Why it why would it make their hearts tremble? Why would they be overwhelmed by it? Well, be it's because people don't rise from the dead. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:52

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 3:53

These people they they weren't uh, you know, they they weren't unsophisticated, uh, you know, dumb.

SPEAKER_00 4:00

Or Neanderthals.

SPEAKER_01 4:02

They were not Neanderthals. That's not who they were. They they they were smart people. They they had as much skeptic skepticism about uh someone coming back from the dead as we do. Like if you heard the report, oh someone was dead for three days and they came back to life. You're like, nah, no. That's they would have had that same that's let's investigate that. Yeah, I know, that same skepticism. And so uh and and even the concept of uh someone rising from the dead, it it we actually have a category for that now. Uh but this is what's establishing the category. It's it's the resurrection of Jesus. So I think just even the thought of the resurrection, that Jesus, the Son of God, would come back from the dead, um, it was it just shattered all of their categories. Like if Jesus is actually alive and he's conquered death, um, then he really is God in the flesh. And it's like they knew it, they believed it, but the the cross totally destroyed uh the idea that he was actually the son of God. That's why they wanted him crucified. Right. They didn't want him just they didn't want him just to be uh stoned or killed, even though I think they would have taken that. Yeah, yep. But but being crucified by the Romans, the very people he the Messiah, they thought uh they thought that that the Messiah was supposed to defeat the Romans. But if the Romans were to conquer him, then it would put it to death the idea that Jesus is actually the Messiah, the Son of God. So the the the cross totally shatters their understanding, but the resurrection in a in a more uh uh exciting, life-changing uh way, the resurrection, it just shatters their categories. He's alive. He's alive. They and they tremble. Yeah. Just even at the thought of it. Yeah, yeah. And I think it it i i I don't think the good news of the resurrection, the good news of the gospel is going to change our lives and bring us deep joy until our hearts first tremble at the person of Jesus. There's no trembling at Jesus. Um Do you understand? Do you even not have do you do you understand who he is?

SPEAKER_02 6:12

When do you think about the s if you're like try to get in the mind of the disciples, the ladies come into the tomb and they're seeing, you know, they see the angel there and the body of Jesus is gone. And then they witness some of the even the you know, they see him in person. I mean, there's like gotta be like a a a sense of woe, like awe, and a sense of fear, and all those emotions. It's not just one thing, but there's lots of things going on. And um, yeah, like to think about okay, Jesus, we saw him die, a bloody, brutal death. We buried his body, and now he is not there, and we're being told he is risen, and then you begin to have experiences with the risen Christ. That would be mind-blowing. Insane. Just mind-blowing. And there it would lead you, I think there would certainly be an initial sense of like, whoa. Who is this man? Yeah. Like seriously, who is he?

Resurrection Hope For Failing Bodies

SPEAKER_01 7:15

Who is he? And I think this is the resurrection um and the astonishment, being overwhelmed with astonishment, as this they were trembling, and astonishment overwhelmed them um at the claim that Jesus had has risen from the dead. I think that claim uh and the idea that Jesus is alive, it what it did is it just brought into focus the reality that Jesus, he is a man, but he's more than the man. He's the God man. And uh they they pretty quickly begin to understand uh that if Jesus has risen from the dead, that there is uh there is a way to live beyond our own death. Like there is eternal life. Um, that if we are in him, if we're in Christ, then we will rise uh as well. That's right. And and I think that is that is something they didn't really understand. They did not have a well-developed theology of the afterlife. No. Um and the idea of getting our bodies back, you know, but glorified. You may you may think, uh, I don't know if I want my body back in like in the new the new heavens and the new earth. Uh maybe you'd think that, I don't know. Um not everyone has a perfect body like me. That's what I was thinking.

SPEAKER_00 8:30

I'm like, I'm not looking to explain if I got Dan's body.

SPEAKER_02 8:36

Get danced. That's really fun. It's like, I mean, just for Luke's 45. If I can get danced.

SPEAKER_00 8:45

I think that maybe the same. That's right.

SPEAKER_01 8:50

Oh man. Yeah, that was kidding about the perfect.

SPEAKER_02 8:55

My comedian people are like, that was Dan.

SPEAKER_00 9:00

Everyone keeps asking for our old sermons, and I'm like, I don't know, have you two want them up? Yeah, I'm cool with it.

SPEAKER_01 9:10

That's uh I probably shouldn't. Speaking of fear, trembling. I shouldn't say this, but someone someone said the other day, um not the other day, a few months ago. He goes, hey, who was the pastor here before you? And I was like, What do you mean? He goes, I used to be like a bald chubby guy. I said, That's me, buddy. That was no. And I said, Yeah, that's me.

SPEAKER_02 9:40

I used to like, I mean, there's a few times after sermons people were like, that was a great sermon. And I was like, I didn't, I didn't teach. And then I was like, should I be offended?

SPEAKER_00 9:51

Because at that point you were trying real hard not to be chubby, but you were both bald.

SPEAKER_02 9:57

Yeah, we were both bald. Um I mean, were you in the service the whole time?

SPEAKER_01 10:02

Anyways, but yeah, just the idea that that uh you know, if Jesus rose from the dead and he has a glorified body, a perfect body, it it starts to make uh claims about the the very nature of reality. You know, Jesus taught about the kingdom of God. He taught about the kingdom of God and and the their claims about spiritual things. Now, certainly he made claims about the physical world, but when the resurrection happened, it's like, oh no, no. It's like, no, Jesus is his claims actually impact the physical world that we live in, and including our bodies and the future, what the world will be and what creation will be. And I again, I don't think they understood all of that in that moment when they saw the empty tomb. But it's it it the implications though are unavoidable. Um, it teases it all out, and that's what gives us such great hope and joy is knowing uh the nature of our salvation, that we're forgiven and we are reconciled to God, and that we've been uh given the Holy Spirit as the down payment of our inheritance in that there is a new a new heavens and a new earth coming, and we are gonna get uh new bodies. Yeah, like Philippians 3, our our bodies will be made in the likeness of his body's body. Of his body, which is awesome. That we will have perfect bodies forever, forever and ever and ever. You know, I was at uh I was at the airport um on Saturday, and I just I saw I saw a man and um I don't know what his health condition was, but he was in a uh in a wheelchair and it looked like you know, it looked like he had some sort of accident or something. I don't know all the details. But he was probably he might be 10 years older than me, but um I would guess he's like 50 or in his 50s. And um I just thought to myself, um what would that be like, you know, to spend your whole life not being able to walk, or maybe you were able to walk and you lose the ability to walk. And um and then I thought all of us are actually headed that direction. All of us, we're all headed towards a place where um you know, if we l if we live long enough, like our bodies are gonna fail us. Like they're gonna get sick and we'll lose our strength and we'll lose our sight and and we'll just lose everything. Yeah. It and it just if we live long enough, it slowly ebbs away. Um but the promise of the resurrection is if Jesus rose, if he rose from the dead, and he has a glorified body, then we get glorified bodies. Where we live in paradise, a perfect new heavens, new earth, uh bodies that have the capacity to enjoy God. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:56

Which I mean, and that is then you think about trembling to joy. Oh, yeah. What joy.

Inviting Friends To Easter Worship

SPEAKER_01 13:02

What joy. What joy. Oh, to be forgiven to see God, reconciled to God. Uh really a glorious future. And I I I think uh often the reason there's a lack of joy in Christ is because we don't tremble. That's what I think. And so that's what we're exploring, and that's what we're gonna explore on Easter. Uh just a little taste, uh joyful trembling, and how and how the resurrection of Jesus changes everything. And uh, I think another another point that uh we just need to uh be faithful to keep communicating is just how in our culture today um people are still more open to going to church on Easter. Like they just are. People just are. Um and um and so we should use that opportunity to invite people. You know, as as uh followers of Christ, we should we should use that uh this season to be thinking about our neighbors and coworkers and friends and you know, parents on on our kids' teams or whatever uh to invite them to church, especially if they don't have a church home. Yeah, you know, if they don't have a church home that where they really belong, then uh we're gonna be communicating the good news of the gospel. And it really is good news. We're sharing it, it really is good good news. I mean, the the simple message of the life, death, burial, resurrection, ascension of Jesus, and and how one day he will return. That message has has been changing people's lives for 2,000 years. And that's what our world needs. They need that message, the simple message of the gospel. That's right.

SPEAKER_00 14:33

Sometimes a barrier, I feel like you can experience when you're trying to invite people is that even lately it's kind of felt like there's not a lot of chairs available for people. Um, but our uh advice to to that barrier would be to uh invite them anyway.

SPEAKER_01 14:50

You mean like a barrier to inviting people? To inviting people.

SPEAKER_00 14:53

It's like, am I if I invite them, are they even gonna have is it gonna be uncomfortable? Is it gonna be crowded? Will there be a seat? It's like we have lots of chairs we can bring we can bring out. Like we'll figure we'll figure it out. But it's like there shouldn't that shouldn't be a barrier for us to inviting people. Uh you know, as you think about the early church, they crowded wherever they could, sat on top of each other in order to hear the message of the gospel proclaimed. Yeah uh we're not quite at that point. Yeah, we're not there. Yeah, we're getting there. Um but yeah, we should just we should just invite them anyway.

SPEAKER_01 15:26

Amen. Yeah, just invite them and and and and I I I think that as a church, if we if we do not uh keep our evangelistic zeal, our our edge, um, we'll move, we'll we'll start moving in the wrong direction as a church. Yeah. Greg Lori, the classic Greg Glory line, uh he says that every church has uh you have two options. You can evangelize or fossilize. You can evangelize or you can fossilize. And um the moment we lose our evangelistic zeal, uh, I I think we start to we we start to drift in the wrong direction. So as a church, uh not everyone has the gift of evangelism, not everyone has the same, you know, the same relation, relational networks and opportunities. And I get that. I totally get that. But we do want to be faithful uh to not just invite people to church, but to to to communicate the good news of the gospel.

SPEAKER_02 16:22

And like you said, Easter is such a good time to do that. Because everybody knows, like in our culture, there's there's an understanding that Easter is about Jesus, at least in some capacity. And it's like even just having conversations with neighbors or whatever, it's like there's opportunities to get into the gospel very naturally this time of the year. Totally. So I mean there always is in one sense, but definitely with the idea of Easter and inviting people to church to hear the gospel, it's like you never know. Like someone comes and they hear the gospel and their whole life is changed forever.

SPEAKER_01 16:51

Forever. I mean, forever. I mean that that's uh that that's what we've been doing for the last uh almost 20 years. So it's it's worth maybe the uncomfortable task, even yeah. And people, you know, I uh if you invite people to church, you know, uh what are they gonna do to you? Yeah, like what are they gonna are they gonna be like no feed them to the lion? This I know what to do with people like you.

SPEAKER_00 17:13

Burn your house down.

Make The Most Of The Time

SPEAKER_01 17:14

We're gonna burn your house down. It's like no. I mean, the uh almost the worst thing that can happen if someone says no things. I don't go to church. I don't go to church. It's like great, cool, great. It's great. So invite people and pray that God would be opening up people's hearts. And you know, there's that that verse in um Colossians chapter uh four, where uh uh Paul says that we are to be wise in the way we act towards outsiders, making the most of the time because the days are evil. And um, and and the idea is that we want to just be wise, like we we sense the time, we sense the the need of our cultures to hear about Christ. And so we we just want to make the most of the opportunities we have uh to share the good news of the gospel.