Faith Presbyterian Church - Birmingham
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Faith Presbyterian Church - Birmingham
Luke 24:1-12; The Resurrection of Jesus
Jason Sterling April 20, 2025 Faith Presbyterian Church Birmingham, AL Bulletin
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If you have a copy of God's Word, turn with me to Luke 24. Luke, chapter 24, it will also be printed in your bulletin this morning and I would encourage you to keep your Bible open, if you've got a Bible with you. I'll be referring to some different verses around our passage that we'll be reading this morning. We've been studying the gospel of Luke this year and we've been looking the last several weeks at the last week of Jesus's life, which all leads up to this. This is it. In many ways, we come this morning to the foundation of Christianity the resurrection of Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians, chapter 15,. Paul has some strong things to say and as we think about Easter, he says if Christ was not raised from the dead, listen to this our faith is useless. Our preaching is useless. Faith is useless. Our preaching is useless. We are still dead in our sins and we, out of all the people in the world, are most to be pitied. In other words, if Jesus didn't walk out of the grave, there is no Christianity. Nothing else matters. This is just a nice bedtime story. You got all dressed up. You look wonderful, by the way. But if this is not true and Jesus didn't get out of the grave. You got all dressed up for nothing and what we're doing here is a complete waste of time. Let's go eat our honey-baked ham and get on with our Easter egg hunt. You see, christians make such a big deal out of Easter. Because this is it. This is the foundation of everything, it is the pivot point of all of human history and it's true and it changes everything. So, with that in mind, follow along with me as I read. This is God's Word Luke 24, 1 through 12.
Speaker 1:But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb taking the spices they had prepared, and they found the stone. Rode away from the tomb, but when they went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. Went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were perplexed about this, behold two men stood at them, stood by them, in dazzling apparel, and as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you while he was in Galilee, that the son of man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise again. But they remembered his words and, returning from the tomb, they told all the things to the 11 and to all the rest. Now it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and the mother of Mary, the mother of James and the other women with them, who told these things to the apostles. But these words seem to them as an idle tale and they did not believe them. But Peter rose and ran to the tomb, stooping and looking in. He saw the linen cloths by themselves and he went home marveling at what had happened. This is God's true and holy word.
Speaker 1:We're going to jump right in this morning. We're here this morning, on Easter morning, to look at the resurrection, and so we're going to look at that through this passage. Three things I want us to see in regards to the resurrection the truth of the resurrection, the hope and the recipients of the resurrection. The truth, the hope and the recipients. This morning. Let's look at our first point. Look at verse 1, the truth of the resurrection.
Speaker 1:The passage opens and the sun is starting to rise and they, it says, went to the tomb with spices that they had prepared. So let's ask a couple of questions. Who is the they? Well, if you look at the context, at the end of chapter 13, it's the women who had come with Jesus from Galilee, and we get some. There's other women, but we know the names of some of them. And verse 10, we see the names Mary Magdalene, joanna, mary, the mother of James, and they're going to the tomb to anoint Jesus's body for burial. This was a traditional Jewish custom. Why is that so important? Well, the women were not going to the tomb expecting a resurrection. They weren't expecting Jesus's resurrection. They arrived at the tomb to anoint a dead body resurrection. They arrived at the tomb to anoint a dead body and they went into the tomb and his body was gone. And you get the authenticity and the credibility of this account when you get into some of the ways they responded.
Speaker 1:Look at verse 4. They're perplexed. They see these two angels who speak to them and they're frightened and they fall down onto the ground. Verse 11 and 12. Did you notice how the disciples respond? Don't miss that. They thought this was idle talk and that they did not believe. The text says and Peter, he runs to the tomb. The tomb's empty. And notice his response. He wasn't expecting it. He marveled, he's stunned.
Speaker 1:There's a whole lot of shock and a whole lot of surprise in these first couple of verses. Here's my point the resurrection was surprising. It was not expected and that strengthens the credibility of this event. They were perplexed and frightened and marveled. And people I say this because people often look down on the people in the first century and they say things like oh, of course they're really superstitious and supernatural. They believed in things like. Oh, of course they're really superstitious and supernatural. They believed in things like this and so they were completely expecting this miracle to happen. They had a worldview in which people rose from the dead in the middle of history. No, they did not. They weren't any more predisposed to believe in the resurrection than you are this morning, to believe in the resurrection than you are this morning. It's why Jesus later in the chapter look at verse 39, he has to say look, it's me, I'm here, touch me, jesus, with a bodily resurrection standing in front of them.
Speaker 1:The resurrection was not expected, but it is undeniably true. And you see, if you look at church history, no one throughout church history has really argued that the tomb was actually empty. No, the problem is with how the tomb was empty. And some people have, over the years, said that the Romans, they're the ones that took and stole Jesus' body. But that doesn't make any sense, because think about the book of Acts Christianity took off at lightning speed and it toppled the Roman Empire in 300 years. Don't you think if the Romans had the body and knew where it was, they would have produced it in a matter of hours and they would have shut this whole thing down and brought an end to Christianity right there on the spot again, in a matter of hours. That doesn't make any sense.
Speaker 1:Another common objection or argument against the resurrection is that the disciples, they're the ones who stole the body. You're telling me that the disciples who had deserted Jesus and Peter, who denied knowing Jesus and would eventually be, history tells us, be crucified upside down, would do that for a lie, not a chance. You see, history tells us that the disciples were martyred and exiled for their faith. And don't you think that these men, who wouldn't sacrifice anything when Jesus was alive, when they're ready to be killed, would have said hey, wait a minute, stop, we were just kidding. Here's the body. This was a joke, friends. They didn't do that. Lies don't transform people from sellouts into martyrs. Truth does and that it makes no sense for the disciples to die if they knew this was a lie.
Speaker 1:Chuck Colson you might be familiar with that name. He was the center of the Watergate scandal back in the 1970s. He becomes a Christian. He starts a prison ministry. Listen to this, he says. I know the resurrection is a fact and Watergate proved it to me how Well. Because 12 men testified that they had seen Jesus raised from the dead and then they proclaimed that truth for 40 years, never once denying it. Everyone was beaten, tortured, stoned and put in prison. They would not have endured that if it weren't true. Watergate consisted of 12 of the most powerful men in the world and they couldn't keep alive for three weeks. You're telling me 12 apostles could keep alive for 40 years Absolutely impossible.
Speaker 1:The only explanation is that the resurrection is historical fact and 100% true and that it really happened. Now those are compelling apologetics and helpful, but did you notice that's not what the angels did to convince the women at the empty tomb? They didn't go to reason and base what they were saying on historical or physical evidence. The angels look at verses 6 and 7, they go back to the words of Jesus. They go back and say, hey, do you remember what Jesus said to you, what he told you, that he was going to die and then rise again on the third day? And then it says and they remembered and notice this, don't miss this. Notice, they had not seen the resurrected body of Jesus, but they believed because Jesus told them. They heard the words of Jesus or remembered his words. They run to the disciples. What's happening here? They are taking Jesus at His word.
Speaker 1:Your life in faith is anchored this morning, not in emotion or evidence or great arguments, but in the truthful word of the Lord, jesus Christ. By faith, we believe in the gospel promise that Jesus died and rose again, john 20, verse 29,. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe. Secondly, hope.
Speaker 1:All of us in some way, shape or form, either indirectly or directly, have been impacted by the fall of the world. You have experienced suffering. You've lost someone you love, you've lost a child, maybe your marriage is broken, maybe you've experienced rejection, maybe your health is failing you, or maybe it's the pain of your own sin and the way it's impacted other people. And oftentimes, when we experience pain and suffering, we go to things like technology, like food, drink, money, comfort and we go to these things relationships in order to ease our pain and in order to give us hope, and those things. They might work for a moment, but they don't help you make it to the end. They don't give you what you need the hope and the strength and the endurance to live in a world full of pain and sadness. You see, our ability to face grief and pain and sorrow in this life is directly proportional to your future hope. Your ability to handle suffering here is directly proportional to the level of glory that you are expecting in the future.
Speaker 1:And I want to suggest there are a few versions of the human destiny that can match the glory and hope that is found in the Christian gospel. What is that glory and hope? Simply put, we've been talking about it all morning our resurrection. Look at verses 39 through 42. And I just simply want to say this Jesus came in a real physical body, his body. He had a bodily resurrection. A spirit does not have flesh and bones, nor do they eat. Look at verses 42 and 43. His body was transformed and renewed. And if you are united to Jesus by faith 1 Corinthians 15 talks about this then if Jesus walked out of the grave in a bodily resurrection.
Speaker 1:That means that you too, as a Christian, will also one day walk out of the grave and experience a bodily resurrection and your body will finally be made whole and it will work the way it's supposed to, and that the resurrection of our bodies is the Christian's ultimate hope. Quick theology of death yes, when you die, your soul goes immediately to be with the Lord and you enjoy rich communion with God. That is wonderful, that'll be amazing, and yet that's incomplete, incomplete. It's incomplete. Until Jesus comes back and brings the new heavens and new earth and brings the resurrection of our bodies, and our souls and bodies will be reunited. That is why Christians are to live in this state of longing for Jesus to return. It's why the Bible ends in Revelation by saying what Come, lord, jesus come. And then the question is so what? Great theology? Thank you. What does that have to do with me? Right now, this morning, easter hope enables you to stand when this world knocks the breath out of you. As Christians, we grieve, we cry, we mourn, we wail, of course, but we do so 1 Thessalonians 4.13, with great hope. You want a picture of what that looks like? Here's a picture.
Speaker 1:I was a campus minister for many years and I was at the University of Mississippi for about six years, and one of the joys of being in campus ministry is you get to see students meet. You get to see them marry and then they oftentimes have the privilege of doing their wedding. It's one of the greatest privileges of being in ministry and I got to see that with this particular couple and so they mean a lot to me. And in January they had a baby girl who had a chromosomal abnormality and the baby passed away shortly after being born. They've not mentioned this story until this week, holy Week, and they share this on social media and there's a picture of the mom holding the baby. And they've got two other young children. They're gathered around this baby and listen to the post.
Speaker 1:Our precious little girl, alice Elizabeth, was born on January the 11th and her Savior took her swiftly home. We praise our great God for the incredible gift of her life that has changed us forever. Then here it is. We eagerly await the day when we will see our Savior face to face and reunite with our baby girl, and it closes with Psalm 73, 25. Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Do you see that? Do you see it? Gut-wrenching grief with living hope, living Easter hope. We are caught, yes, in the broken middle chapters of the story, but Easter and what we celebrate this morning is that the story is not over and we wait eagerly for resurrection, for Jesus to come and make all the sad things come untrue, when one day, as Isaiah 65 says, no more will there be an infant who lives only but an hour or a few days.
Speaker 1:And then the question is why did the couple wait three months and wait till Holy Week in order to make this post? Well, I'll tell you why. It's a protest against death, and that's what we're doing here this morning. It's a protest of saying death does not have the last word. It's a way of saying death we're not afraid of you. Where is your sting? Where is your victory? Why do you seek the living among the dead? He is not here. He has risen. People often say and you'll hear this well, don't get your hopes up. No, easter says get them up, get them up higher, because when we have our hopes up high. We have something that reorients our lives and gives us strength in order to endure whatever life throws at us in this world. Do you, this morning, have that kind of living Easter hope?
Speaker 1:Lastly, briefly, look at verse 10. Who are the recipients Interesting? We see Mary Magdalene mentioned. She was the first to see Jesus. We see or interact with Jesus in John 20 at the tomb. Who are these women? Joanna and Mary Magdalene.
Speaker 1:Well, we get a glimpse into Mary in Luke 18, when we learn that Jesus cast seven demons out of her and Joanna had been healed in some way. She had some infirmity that Jesus had healed. And the only other person we see in the Bible who had multiple demons was the demon possessed man in Mark, chapter 5. And if you look at that story, it's an awful scene. He's running around naked, he's screaming, he lives in a graveyard, and so we can probably assume that Mary experienced something very similar. Until she met Jesus, mary was not a pillar in her community, she was not the president of her company, she was not first in her class, she was not connected socially, she was an outcast. And yet Jesus makes her the first witness to the resurrection and the first one to deliver the news. What does that tell you about Jesus? That Jesus is about grace. That, jesus, that you don't come to Jesus on the basis of your morality, your pedigree, your popularity or success, but salvation is by grace alone. And it makes sense now, doesn't it why Mary was running to the tomb to see Jesus and anoint Jesus for burial? Because Jesus was her everything. She had nothing until she met Jesus and Jesus changed her life. No wonder Mary loved Jesus so much.
Speaker 1:I heard a story about an adopted child who had grown up in the foster system. This boy had spent 10 years of his life being with a family temporarily and would go back and forth and to a home, back into foster care, back and forth, until this couple finally adopted him and so he moved from a foster child to an adopted child and things started out okay. And then the boy got really angry and destructive and even violent at times and starts lashing out. And this couple is really struggling, like what is going on. And one day they find this young boy. He's upstairs, he's under the bed, crying, and the dad walks up, lays down and he gets under the bed and he says what are you afraid of what's wrong. And the child says when are you sending me back? And the dad looks at him and says I'm never sending you back. You're my son, you belong to me. This is forever. Mary had been sent back her whole life until she met Jesus, who healed her and never sent her back.
Speaker 1:And I tell you that because that's often the way we feel. Isn't it? In the midst of whatever it is that we're going through? In our sin, in our shame, in our brokenness, in our failure, we think Jesus is going to send us back. But the resurrection is proof that Jesus is never going to send you back, that you belong to him, that this is forever. How do we know that? How is that possible? Look at verse 39, and we'll end.
Speaker 1:The disciples are doubting and Jesus says look at my hands and feet and remember John 20,. We know one of the disciples is doubting, thomas. And Jesus tells him put your hand and your finger in my hands nail-scarred hands and put your hand in my side Now. I want you to think about that just for a second. This is Jesus in his resurrected body. And so you're saying Jesus has scars in his resurrected, glorified, new created body? That's exactly what I'm saying he does, and he's the only one that will stay eternally scarred. Jesus kept his wounds so that you and I could lose ours. Jesus took the marks of pain so that you could lose your pain. His resurrected body will remain scarred as a picture of his love and commitment to you. His life is perfectly marked by a cross. That is how much Jesus loves you. His life is perfectly marked by a cross. That is how much Jesus loves you. That is how you know he's never sending you back and that this is forever. Do you believe in this Jesus this morning?
Speaker 1:The good news of the gospel is the hope that we talked about today, and it is for people like Mary, and it's for people that doubt, like Thomas, and it is for sinners like us. Friends. Jesus died for sinners who desperately need a Savior. Jesus is better than we think. Will you come to Jesus, the risen Jesus? This morning, let's pray Father, thank you for overcoming the grave, for conquering death. The grave could not hold you and we anticipate the day that you will come again and you will raise us from the dead and all the sad things will come untrue. If there's anyone here this morning that doesn't know you, I pray that this would be the morning that they have faith, that you would move in their hearts. Give them eyes to see and ears to hear the good news of the gospel In Jesus' name amen.