The Death Of Death

Please take your Bibles and open them up to John chapter 20 this morning.

John 20 · chapter mention

Our sermon text is going to be the whole chapter, John chapter 20.

John 20 · chapter mention

If you didn't bring a Bible with you this morning, that's okay.

We have Bibles provided for you in the seat backs there in front of you.

And if you're using that Bible in front of you, you can find our passage on page 852.

Either way, I would encourage you to have a Bible open.

I don't want you just hearing my words this morning.

I want you to see with your own eyes the Word of God as we walk through this chapter together.

So when you found it, John chapter 20, let's stand in honor of the reading of God's Word.

John 20 · chapter mention

Now on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early while it was still dark

and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb.

So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved,

and said to them,

They have taken the Lord out of the tomb.

We do not know where they've laid him.

So Peter went out with the other disciple and they were going toward the tomb.

Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.

And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in.

Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb.

He saw the linen cloths lying there, in the face cloth, which had been on Jesus' head,

not lying with the linen cloths, but folded up in a place by itself.

Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in.

And he saw and believed.

For as yet they did not understand the scripture, that he must rise from the dead.

Then the disciples went back to their homes.

But Mary stood outside, weeping outside the tomb.

And as she wept, she stooped to look into the tomb.

And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain,

one at the head and one at the feet.

They said to her, Woman, why are you weeping?

She said to them, They've taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they've laid him.

Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing.

But she did not know that it was Jesus.

And Jesus said to her, Woman, why are you weeping?

Whom are you seeking?

Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him,

Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.

Jesus said to her, Mary.

She turned and said to him in Aramaic, Rabbani, which means teacher.

Jesus said to her, Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.

But go to my brothers and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father.

To my God and your God.

Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, I have seen the Lord.

And that he had said these things to her.

On the evening of that day, the first of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews.

Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you.

When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.

Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord.

And Jesus said to them again, Peace be with you.

As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.

And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, Receive the Holy Spirit.

If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them.

If you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.

Now Thomas, one of the twelve called the twin, was not with them when Jesus came.

So the other disciples told him, We have seen the Lord.

But he said to them, Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails,

and place my finger into the mark of the nails,

and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.

Eight days later, his disciples were inside again.

And Thomas was with them.

Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, Peace be with you.

Then he said to Thomas, Put your finger here and see my hands.

And put out your hand and place it in my side.

Do not disbelieve, but believe.

Thomas answered him, My Lord and my God.

Jesus said to him, Have you believed because you have seen me?

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples,

which are not written in this book,

but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ,

the Son of God,

and that by believing, you may have life in his name.

The grass withers and the flower fades,

but the word of the Lord endures forever.

Let's pray once more.

Father, we pray that as we open up your word now,

as we look and consider the resurrection of Christ,

would you give us eyes to see the truth by faith this morning?

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

You may be seated.

Thank you for standing for that entire chapter.

C.S. Lewis, you might know that name.

He's the well-known author of Mere Christianity

and the Chronicles of Narnia series

and many other books that he's written.

But you may not know that at one point in his life,

he was a convinced atheist.

At age 17, Lewis wrote a letter to his friend Arthur Greaves saying,

I believe in no religion.

There's absolutely no proof for any of them.

But just 15 years later, by the grace of God,

C.S. Lewis saw things differently

and he wrote another letter to his friend Arthur Greaves saying this.

He says,

Christianity is God expressing himself

through what we call real things.

Namely, the actual incarnation,

the crucifixion,

and the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Somewhere along the way,

C.S. Lewis has experienced a shift in his belief.

He was given eyes to see,

not physically to see,

but eyes to spiritually see

and perceive

and understand

and believe

that the things that we read about in God's Word

are real things.

And if they are real things,

then according to C.S. Lewis,

these real things change everything.

C.S. Lewis would later write in his book,

Miracles,

the New Testament writers speak

as if Christ's achievement

in rising from the dead

was the first event of its kind

in the whole history of the universe.

He is the first fruits,

the pioneer of life.

He has forced open a door

that has been locked

ever since the death of that first man.

He has met,

fought,

and beaten the king of death.

Everything is different

because he has done so.

This is the beginning of a new creation.

A new chapter in cosmic history

has opened.

Everything is different

because of the resurrection of Christ.

Amen?

This is what C.S. Lewis claimed

for us this morning.

Everything is different

because of the resurrection of Jesus.

And I think John,

the beloved disciple,

in our passage this morning

would agree.

So what I want us to see this morning

as we walk through John chapter 20 together

John 20 · chapter mention

is four ways the resurrection changes everything.

If you're a note taker

and if you're writing down to follow along,

this is our outline this morning.

It will help you to follow as I go along.

Four ways the resurrection changes everything

for us who believe.

Four ways the resurrection changes everything

for us who believe.

Way number one.

First,

because Jesus lives,

we can trust the Word of God.

Because Jesus lives,

we can trust the Word of God.

We've seen time and time and time again

as we've gone through this series

throughout the Gospel of John.

John is showing us that Jesus' life

and His death

and especially now His resurrection,

this isn't just accident,

what's happening.

This is fulfillment.

He is perfectly fulfilling the Word of God.

So look there with me starting in verse 1 of chapter 20.

John says that on the first day of the week,

Sunday morning,

Mary Magdalene came to the tomb

and she saw in the dark of the early morning

that that stone had been rolled away.

And so she ran to Simon Peter

and the disciple whom Jesus loved,

who we know to be John,

and said,

they've taken the Lord out of the tomb.

And we don't know where they've laid Him.

Apparently grave robbing

was a common practice in this day.

And so Mary feared

that maybe that was what happened here

with the body of Jesus.

And so in a panic,

she goes and she bears witness

to the empty tomb.

Now we'll return to Mary here in just a moment

as we see her encounter with the risen Christ

who she thought was just the gardener.

But let me just point out really quickly here,

briefly,

the fact that the resurrection story

begins with a woman's testimony

ought to be shocking for us

as we read this account.

Especially if we realize and remember

that in this culture,

a woman's testimony,

according to Jewish law,

it wasn't even admissible in Jewish court

as a reliable piece of evidence.

Why in the world would John begin this story

with a woman's testimony?

Why in the world,

if he were simply trying to fabricate a story

and make up a believable story

about something that he wanted us

to think that happened,

why would he start with a woman's testimony?

Well, he wouldn't

unless he wasn't fabricating a story.

He was recording details

of what actually happened

that Sunday morning.

Well, eventually,

two men do arrive on the scene.

Apparently,

they raced there.

At least John thought so.

I'm not sure why he felt the need

to include this,

but verse 4 says,

Peter and John were running together

to the tomb,

but John,

make sure that we know

John outruns Peter.

He got there first.

And he stooped in

and looked inside.

He saw the linen cloths lying there,

but he did not go in.

Well, then Peter catches up eventually.

I imagine him huffing and puffing

and trying to catch his breath.

Maybe, maybe not.

But Peter, bold as ever,

he does.

He goes right inside the tomb.

And verse 6 says that

he saw the grave clothes,

he saw the face cloth neatly folded up,

but he did not see the body of Jesus.

I have to admit to you

that I am not well versed on proper etiquette.

Some of you have eaten a meal with me.

I do my best.

But apparently,

there are certain rules

that you're supposed to follow.

Where to put your knife,

where to put your fork,

where to put your spoon,

how to go about this process

of just getting food into your body.

That's what I'm concerned about

at a meal, right?

And with your napkin,

what you're supposed to do,

proper etiquette,

while you're eating your meal,

where does your napkin go?

It's on your lap.

Okay, good job.

When you're finished with your meal,

you take that napkin

and you fold it neatly

and you set it off

to the side of your plate.

Why?

Well, because you're finished.

You don't need it anymore.

You're done.

You have no use

for that napkin anymore.

So you fold it right up.

You set it off to the side.

In a similar way,

Jesus here,

as He rises from the grave,

He takes that grave cloth,

that face cloth

that He had use for

for a moment,

and He folds it up

and sets it off to the side.

Say,

I don't need this thing anymore.

You might remember

we've seen another resurrection

in John's Gospel.

This isn't the first time

someone's risen from the dead.

Right?

John chapter 11.

John 11 · chapter mention

Lazarus was raised from the dead.

Just like Jesus,

Lazarus was truly dead.

Just like Jesus,

Lazarus was laid in a tomb.

And at the command

of the voice of Christ,

Lazarus came up out of the tomb.

But do you remember

how Lazarus came out of the tomb?

He was still wrapped up

in His grave clothes.

And He would need them again.

But here,

Jesus,

apparently,

He's raised with a different

kind of body.

He passes right through

those grave clothes.

He folds them up,

puts them to the side,

and says,

I won't be needing these anymore.

Well, verse 8

tells us that eventually

the other disciple

who had reached the tomb first,

just to make sure we're clear,

don't forget

that other disciple

who had reached the tomb first

also went in,

and listen to this,

He saw and He believed.

For as yet,

they did not understand

the Scripture

that He must rise from the dead.

Did you catch that?

The Scripture.

The empty tomb.

As John laid eyes

on the empty tomb,

that was key for John's

believing and understanding

the Scripture.

What Scripture?

It's not the New Testament.

That hasn't been written yet.

That's in progress right now.

He's talking about

the Scripture

of the Old Testament.

He saw the empty tomb

and He believed

the witness

of the Old Testament.

He believed

that all of God's Word

has been bubbling up

in anticipation

of this moment.

Which is why

what we read earlier

in 1 Corinthians 15,

Paul starts in verse 3.

He says,

I deliver to you

as of first importance

what I also receive.

That Christ died

for our sins

in accordance

with the Scripture.

That He was crucified.

That He was buried.

That He was raised

on the third day

in accordance

with the Scriptures.

Church,

if Jesus has not

actually risen

from the grave

as a real thing,

as a real event

in human history,

you can forget

the Scriptures.

Toss them right

in the trash

on your way

out the door

this morning.

If Jesus is not

raised from the dead,

the Scriptures

have lied to us

and they're not worth

trusting.

But if He is

risen from the grave,

as John professes

and as we profess

this morning,

then church,

all of God's Word

can be trusted.

The resurrection

is the central

fulfillment

and confirmation

of all of the promises

of God.

They fall flat

if He's not

actually raised.

That's a real thing

in human history.

What sort of promises?

What sort of promises

has God made?

What sort of promises

do we lose

if Jesus remains

in the grave?

I'll give you one.

this promise

of a new covenant.

Jeremiah chapter 31.

Jeremiah 31 · chapter mention

Let me read this to you.

The Lord says,

I will put My law

within them

and I will write it

on their hearts

and I will be their God

and they shall be

My people.

No longer shall each one

teach his neighbor

and each his brother

saying,

Know the Lord

for they shall all

know Me

from the least of them

to the greatest

declares the Lord.

For I will forgive

their iniquity

and I will remember

their sin

no more.

Church,

this promise

of forgiveness

of sins

and personal knowledge

of God

and personal relationship

where He's our God

and we're His people

that is kept

only

in the resurrection

of Christ.

Which leads us

to our second way

the resurrection

changes everything

this morning.

The second way.

Second,

because Jesus lives

sinners like you

and me

can enjoy

a personal

relationship

with God.

That sentence

ought to blow

our minds

church.

Because Jesus lives

because of the resurrection

we can enjoy

a relationship

with God.

To state the obvious

if all we have

is Jesus' death

if He remains

in the grave

we might have

a good example

of selflessness

maybe a motivating

example

of what

sacrificial

love

looks like

but what we don't

have

is forgiveness

of sins.

What we don't

have

is hope

of eternal life.

What we don't

have

is the possibility

of a personal

relationship

with a holy God.

If Jesus remains

in the grave

as Paul's written

our faith

is in vain

and we're still

in our sins.

Look there

to verse 11.

Mary hasn't

yet come

to the same

realization

as Peter

and John

and after

they went

back to their

homes

she stood

outside the

tomb

weeping

and it says

that she

stooped

to look

into the

tomb

and she

saw two

angels

there

in white

clothing

sitting

where the

body of

Jesus

had been

laying

one at

his head

and one

at his

feet

and the

angels

asked her

woman

why are

you

weeping

and she

said

I don't

know

where

the body

of my

Lord

is

they've

taken

his body

away

I don't

know

where

they've

laid

him

and John

says that

it was

then that

she turned

around

and she

sees

Jesus

again

notice

this

theme

of the

difference

between

physical

sight

and

spiritual

sight

throughout

this

chapter

she

sees

the

Lord

Jesus

with

her

eyes

but

she's

not

able

to

recognize

who

it

is

apparently

here

in

his

resurrected

state

Jesus

his

identity

is still

able

to be

veiled

she

didn't

recognize

him

right

away

she

thought

he

was

the

gardener

and so

she

speaks

with

him

Jesus

asks

her

woman

why

are

you

weeping

and whom

are you

seeking

and she

says

to him

sir

if you've

taken

away

his body

let me

know

where

he is

so I

can

take

him

away

she's

still

distraught

at this

possibility

that the

Lord's

body

has been

taken

away

but here

at this

point

John

says

Jesus

drops

the veil

and he

makes

himself

known

to

Mary

but how

does he

do it

look

there

with

me

how

does

he

do

it

simply

by

calling

out

her

personal

name

Mary

at that

moment

she

turns

and she

knows

it's

Jesus

it's

here

at this

personal

call

by name

that Mary

turns and

realizes

it's the

Lord

this is a

beautiful

picture

isn't it

of the

personal

relationship

between

the Lord

and his

people

between

the shepherd

and the

sheep

and we've

seen already

in John

John 10 · chapter mention

chapter 10

haven't we

Jesus said

the sheep

hear the

shepherd's

voice

and he

calls his

own sheep

by name

and he

leads them

out

and he

says

my sheep

hear my

voice

and I

know

them

and they

follow

me

this is

personal

knowledge

it's amazing

isn't it

you know

to be

a Christian

what that

means is

more than

simply

knowing

a lot

about

Jesus

it's much

more than

simply

familiarity

with the

person of

Jesus

it's much

more than

just knowing

a lot

about

God's

word

a lot

about

who

he

is

and

what

he's

done

to be

a

Christian

is

to

know

him

and for

him

to

know

you

is one

thing

for you

to know

a lot

about

Jesus

it's

another

thing

entirely

to say

Jesus

Christ

the Lord

of heaven

and earth

the risen

king

knows

me

by name

many of

you know

that I

love

basketball

this is my

time of year

right now

and if you

watch enough

basketball

you begin to

recognize the

same players

you see them

over and

over and

over again

you hear

stories from

the commentators

about their

lives

about what

they're up

to

is much

more than

just their

stats

you get

to know

their

personality

social media

has taken

this to a

whole other

level

it feels

like we

know

them

but the

reality is

of course

these public

figures have

no idea

who I am

I was

at a grocery

store in

Charlotte

and I

spotted a

player

and he

was easy

to spot

right

he was a

big athletic

looking man

and he

was in

the checkout

line

I figured

now was

as good

a time

as any

to embarrass

myself

and my

wife

and my

family

and so

I walked

right up

to him

and I

started talking

to him

like we

were old

friends

like I

knew him

back from

the day

and like

we were

buddies

like I'd

known him

forever

and he

was nice

enough

and he

put up

with me

he was

patient

but you

could tell

I was

really excited

to see

him

he had

no idea

who I

was

I felt

like I

knew him

but he

didn't

know

me

and the

truth was

I didn't

know him

either

I only

knew

about

him

I knew

the stats

and I knew

the stories

but I

didn't know

him

personally

in church

I think

there's a

lesson

here

for many

church

going

knowledgeable

self

professed

Christians

it is not

enough

to simply

know

about

Jesus

you must

know

him

and he

must

know

you

I think

it's easy

for us

to be

to be

familiar

to be

comfortable

with

being

familiar

with

Jesus

when we're

called

to have

faith

in

Jesus

and this

is why

Jesus warns

those who are

simply familiar

with him

in Matthew

Matthew 7 · chapter mention

chapter 7

he says

on that

day

many will

say to

me

Lord

Lord

did we

not

prophesy

in your

name

and cast

out

demons

in your

name

and do

many

mighty

works

in your

name

and then

I

will

declare

to

them

I

never

knew

you

depart

from

me

workers

of

lawlessness

friend

genuine

faith

in the

resurrected

Christ

means you

don't just

know about

him

you know

him

and he

knows

you

and if

you know

him and he

knows you

the incredible

thing is it

doesn't just

stop there

if you know

him and he

knows you

you are now

brought into

relationship

with God

the Father

look there

to verse 17

it's hard to

miss the

personal language

here of what

he tells

Mary isn't

it

Mary had

apparently

wrapped

herself

around

Jesus

who can

blame her

and she

wasn't

letting him

go again

but Jesus

tells her

don't cling

to me

I'm here

I'm not

going

quite yet

but I

am

ascending

and then he

sends her

with a

message

listen to

this

message

go to

my

brothers

you hear

that

go to

my

brothers

and say

to them

I am

ascending

to my

father

and

what does

he say

your

father

my

God

and what

does he

say

help me

and to

your

God

do you

hear that

personal

language

because

of the

resurrection

of Jesus

from the

grave

he now

calls us

believers

his own

brothers

and sisters

how amazing

is that

his God

is our

God

his Lord

is our

Lord

he shares

what he

alone

has

right

of

with

us

who

have

earned

nothing

but

separation

what a

grace

is this

it says

John told us

all the way

back in

chapter 1

to all

who did

receive

him

who

believed

in his

name

he gave

the

right

to become

children

of God

who were

born not

of blood

nor of the

will of the

flesh

nor of

the will

of man

but of

God

that's a

right

that has

been earned

by Christ

alone

purchased

by his

life

death

and

resurrection

given

to us

simply

by faith

that's

appropriate

I think

for us

to pause

here before

we go on

to our

third point

this morning

and ask

ourselves

do we

know him

do you

know him

or do you

simply know

about him

does he

know

you

if so

we should

know that

being a part

of this

family of

God

it comes

with profound

dignity

and responsibility

Jesus sent

Mary on a

mission

he's a

go bear

witness

in verse

18

it says

that she

obeyed

she went

and announced

to the

disciples

I have

seen

the

Lord

and I

want us

to see

here in

our

third

point

that this

witness

bearing

mission

is the

responsibility

of every

member

of the

family

of God

if you

are a

member

of the

family

of God

if you've

been brought

into personal

relationship

with God

the Father

through faith

in Jesus

Christ

guess what

now you're

sent out

on a

witness

bearing

mission

to bear

witness

to the

real thing

of the

resurrection

which is

why

third

third

because

Jesus

lives

we join

the mission

of God

because

Jesus

lives

we join

the

mission

of God

look there

to verse

19

John

says that

on the

evening

of that

day

the first

day

of the

week

the

disciples

were

gathered

there

together

in a

room

with the

doors

locked

and you

can probably

just imagine

they were

thinking

what in the

world

do we

do now

our

teacher

has been

crucified

are they

going to

come for

us

next

they're

fearing

the

danger

that's

lying

out

there

against

them

and

John

says

Jesus

came

and he

stood

among

them

and he

said

to them

peace

be with

you

now

you'd love

a little

bit more

detail

about how

this

happened

wouldn't

you

I

know

I

would

doors

are

locked

they're

all

gathered

there

huddled

up

together

all of a

sudden

Jesus

is in

the

room

and he's

speaking

to them

peace

be with

you

and he

says

when he

said

this

he

showed

them

his

hands

and he

showed

them

his

side

and the

disciples

were

glad

when they

saw

the

Lord

and then

he

follows

up

this

pronouncement

of

peace

with

a

mission

look there

to verse

21

Jesus

said to

them

again

peace

be

with

you

as

the

father

has

sent

me

even

so

I

am

sending

you

and when

he said

this

he

breathed

on

them

and said

to

them

receive

the

Holy

Spirit

if

you

forgive

the

sins

of

any

they

are

forgiven

them

if

you

withhold

forgiveness

from

any

it

is

withheld

now

how

in the

world

do we

understand

this

this

is

somewhat

difficult

for us

to

wrap

our

minds

around

isn't

it

we

know

that

the

spirit

of

God

fell

upon

the

disciples

in

Acts

Acts 2 · chapter mention

chapter

2

at

Pentecost

it

came

in

full

and

so

likely

what

we're

seeing

here

is a

sort

of

prophetic

sign

of

what's

to

come

that

after

Jesus

departs

he

will

send

another

helper

he's

promised

this

already

to

equip

them

for

the

mission

that

he's

about

to

send

them

to

accomplish

what

mission

what's

the

mission

of

the

church

as

the

father

has

sent

me

he

says

even

so

I

am

sending

you

as

the

father

has

sent

me

to

accomplish

salvation

in

my

life

my

death

my

resurrection

now

I'm

sending

you

to

proclaim

what

I

have

done

the

father

has

sent

me

to

do

it

now

I

send

you

to

proclaim

it

the

mission

of

the

church

is

gospel

proclamation

the

church

can

busy

itself

with

many

many

many

good

things

and

many

maybe

not

so

good

things

but

the

central

mission

of

the

church

at

the

very

core

of

why

we

do

what

we

do

is

to

bear

witness

to

the

real

things

of

the

life

death

resurrection

of

Jesus

to

preach

the

gospel

that

Jesus

has

borne

the

wrath

of

God

that

we

have

earned

so

that

by

faith

in

him

we

might

know

the

peace

of

God

that

he

has

earned

if

you

have

received

peace

with

God

your

mission

is to

extend

peace

with

God

to

others

that's

the

mission

we're

sent

out

as

messengers

of

the

risen

king

and

as

messengers

of

the

king

the

disciples

are

given

this

profound

responsibility

in

verse

23

he

says

if

you

forgive

the

sins

of

any

they're

forgiven

and

if

you

withhold

forgiveness

for

many

it

is

withheld

this

is

immense

responsibility

isn't

it

how do

we

understand

that

let

me

put

it

to

you

like

this

when

a

father

sends

a

child

outside

with

a

message

for

his

brothers

it

says

something

like

this

dad

says

come

inside

and

get

ready

for

dinner

the

authority

of

that

message

is

not

in

the

child

the

authority

in

that

message

is

in

the

one

who

sent

the

child

to

deliver

the

message

and

if

the

brothers

disregard

the

child

if

they

disregard

the