Behold, The New Has Come!

Our sermon text today is John 20, from verse 1 to verse 18.

As I read this, remember this is God's inspired, inerrant, infallible, clear, and sufficient word.

It's God's very own word for you, His people.

John 20, 1 through 18.

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, and we do not know where they have 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, and he saw the linen cloths lying there,

and 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.

Verse 11,

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept, she stooped to look into the tomb,

and she saw two angels in white sitting there, 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 have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.

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

but she did not know that it was Jesus.

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 had carried Him away,

tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.

Jesus said to her,

Mary,

Mary?

She turned and said to Him in Aramaic,

Rabboni,

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.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

You may be seated.

The grass withers,

the flower fades,

but the word of the Lord remains forever.

Let's pray.

Amen.

O good shepherd,

please call your sheep by name today,

and may we not go home the same.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Maybe you're sitting here this morning

with a deep desire in your soul

that you can't quite describe.

If you're like me,

this desire,

it's stronger sometimes than others.

C.S. Lewis had the same desire.

He wrote,

There is a desire in the human soul

that this old creation can not satisfy.

And if you have that,

he wrote,

The most probable explanation

is that we were made for another world,

a new creation.

My prayer preparing for this special service

has simply been that together

we can behold Jesus.

We can turn our eyes upon Jesus today together.

Paul wrote to the church

in 2 Corinthians 5.17

that the old has already passed away.

Behold, the new has come.

To behold means to fix your eye upon.

To behold is to see with attention.

To behold is to observe with care.

So let's behold together

God the Son

and His new creation.

Behold, the new has come.

The first observation is because

God the Son

transformed a place of death

into a place of life

for you

and for me.

Would you look at verse 1 with me?

We read that on the first day of the week

Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early

while it was still dark

and she saw

that the stone

had been removed

from the tomb.

Well, where is this tomb?

And who put the stone there?

In John chapter 19 verse 41

John 19:41

you can look

it's probably on the same page

in your Bible.

John 19.41 says

there was a garden

in the place

where Jesus was crucified

and a new tomb

was in the garden.

Graves are a place of death

but gardens

are a place of life.

Think of the first woman

Eve

she walked away

from the Lord's garden

in grief

and now

our Lord Jesus

turns

that place of grief

into a place

of life.

Mary Magdalene

walks to the Lord's garden

to grieve

but she runs away

from there rejoicing

and declaring

the good news.

we're told here

that the stone

that covered the tomb

in which Jesus was buried

it had been set there

by Nicodemus

and Joseph

of Arimathea.

It had been sealed

and was being watched

by two sets

of Roman guards

alternating their shifts.

That stone

John simply says

was gone.

We read that

Mary went to the tomb

when it was still

dark.

It was so early

in the day

and the stone

was already gone.

So think of it

from their perspective

as Mary

and these women

are walking

in the dark

to grieve

at the tomb

of the Lord.

The sun

was rising.

Andrew Peterson

poet

and musician

has wonderful lyrics

every time you hear me

say

his heart beats

it's Andrew Peterson.

He reflected

on this moment

as the sun

was rising

and he wrote

his heart beats

his blood

begins to flow

waking up

what was dead

a moment ago

and his heart beats

now everything

is changed

because the blood

that brought us

peace with God

is racing

through his veins

and his heart beats

and that's because

God the sun

transformed

this place

of death

into

a place

of life

for you

and for me.

Beloved congregation

of Jesus Christ

if you are in

Jesus

you are

a new creation

Paul wrote

2 Corinthians 5

17

the old

has passed away

behold

the new

has come

amen

the second reason

why the new

has already come

is because

God the sun

broke the old

curse

and he did this

on the first day

of his new creation

God the sun

broke the old curse

on the first day

of his new creation

still on verse 1

look at those

first few words

we read it was

the first day

of the week

in the original

literally this would

be translated

it is the first

of sabbaths

the first of sabbaths

not just

any sabbath

this is the sabbath

of the passover

it's the day

of great

deliverance

it's the day

where the bondage

to slavery

is broken

and think of that

pattern of new

creation

our creator

God

he finished

his work

on the sixth

day

and he rested

on the seventh

day

the sabbath

now our savior

lord

he finished

his work

on the sixth

day

we read in

first corinthians

15 3

that christ

died for our

sins

according to

the scriptures

and he was

buried

and as he's

buried

on that sabbath

he rested

on the seventh

day

the last day

of the old

creation

now we read

it was

the first

day

of the

week

it was

the first

of new

sabbaths

it was

the eighth

day

you could

say

and in

biblical

theology

the eighth

day

it marks

a clean

new

beginning

let me give you

just a couple

examples

though there are

many more

leviticus 12

2

it tells a

ceremonial law

that if a

woman

became pregnant

and gave birth

to a son

not a daughter

but a son

carrying the

curse of Adam

they would be

ceremonially

unclean

for seven

days

then on the

eighth day

after that

son

that seed

of the

woman

is circumcised

the mother

as well

would be

clean

so a

promised

seed

on the

eighth

day

bringing

cleaning

for the

woman

as well

a second

example is

Leviticus

14 10

a leper

a person

who had

something

far worse

than bed

bugs

their skin

is falling

off

their nerves

are degenerating

their fingers

and toes

are falling

off

their body

is rotting

on their

bones

if a leper

thought they

were getting

clean and

they presented

themselves to

a priest

they then

had to count

seven days

of ceremonial

cleansing

and at the

end of those

days

on the

seventh day

they had to

wash their

clothes

and bathe

themselves

with fresh

water

they had

to be

baptized

you could

say

because then

on the

eighth day

the priest

would declare

you are

clean

you leper

full of

disease

that's going

to be

contagious

for this

whole

city

you are

a new

man

on the

eighth

day

and so

it was

the first

of sabbath

it was

the first

day of

the week

the first

day of

the new

creation

that God

the son

broke

the old

curse

and the

new

creation

has

begun

his heart

beats

he breathes

in

his living

lungs

expand

the heavy

air

surrounding

death

turns to

breath

again

he breathes

out

he is

word and

flesh

once more

the lamb

of God

slain for

us

is a lion

ready to

roar

and his

heart

beats

amen

if you

are in

Christ

the living

lion

lamb

of God

you are

a new

creation

the old

has passed

away

behold

the new

has come

you can

behold

the new

in Christ

because

the only

ministry

that can

transform

weeping

into joy

is the

ministry

of the

risen

God

the ministry

of God

the son

alive

he alone

can transform

your weeping

into joy

maybe you're

weeping this

morning

there's a

grief

Jesus invites

you

bring it

to him

he alone

can transform

it

in verses

two and

three

Mary

runs back

and doesn't

have good

news yet

she thinks

it's bad

news

she tells

John and

Peter

the stone

is rode

away

where's

his body

so then

they go

with her

now look

with me

at verse

four

they both

ran

together

the other

disciple

who is

John

outran

Peter

and got

to the

tomb

first

the last

time we

heard about

Peter

is when

he had

denied

Jesus

three

times

the sorrow

and darkness

that Peter

had felt

now

must have

been

compounded

even his

body is

gone

we're told

that John

believed

but Peter

had not

seen in the

scriptures

how this

was fulfilling

what Christ

promised all

along

one commentator

pointed out

how hard

it must have

been for

Peter to

run

weighed

down by

the guilt

of his

denial

maybe

you're

feeling

heavy

and it's

hard for

you to

run

to Christ

we read

in verse

nine that

Peter and

John

did not

understand

that Jesus

must die

be buried

and then rise

from the dead

as the scripture

said

so in

verse 10

we're told

simply that

these disciples

returned

to the place

where they

were staying

Peter and

John did

not get

to meet

Jesus

that early

morning

so they

go home

the same

the good

news

is that

Peter and

John do

believe

eventually

they do

see in the

scriptures

for themselves

how Christ

fulfilled all

of the promises

of God

they all

find their

yes and

amen

in him

so my

invitation

to you

today

don't go

home

the same

make sure

you meet

Jesus

this morning

see for

yourself

in the

scriptures

how he

fulfills

all of

God's

promises

for you

we're told

in verse

11 that

Mary

stood

outside

the tomb

crying

and as

she wept

she stooped

in to

look

inside

the tomb

no wonder

Mary

wept

without

Jesus

there's

no

peace

without

Jesus

there is

no

forgiveness

without

Jesus

she could

not know

the love

of God

do you

understand

Mary's

tears

without

Jesus

there is

no joy

in verse

12

Mary

saw

two

angels

in white

sitting

where

Jesus

body

had

been

lying

one

at

the

head

the

other

at

the

feet

in

verses

13

and

14

she

talks

with

these

angels

they

talk

back

to

her

she

responds

back

to

them

these

messengers

from

heaven

and

Mary

is

in

such

shock

that

that's

not

even

something

she

thinks

is a

big

deal

she

continues

to

weep

without

Jesus

Christ

the

glory

of

heaven

the

presence

of

angels

from

the

throne

of

God

mean

nothing

to

Mary

she

does

not

want

heaven

without

her

Lord

Jesus

Christ

heaven

is a

place

of

singing

worship

glory

but

that's

only

if

Jesus

Christ

is

on

the

throne

heaven

heaven

itself

is

not

good

news

for

you

and

for

me

without

Jesus

Christ

but

the

Lord

Jesus

does

not

leave

Mary

weeping

longing

for

the

new

creation

God

always

meets

you

and

me

in

our

place

of

need

the

presence

and

the

company

of

Jesus

Christ

is

better

than

anything

that

this

world

or

the

next

can

offer

us

and

Mary

knew

once

you

have

communed

with

God

through

Jesus

you

will

never

settle

for

anything

less

that's

because

the

only

ministry

of

God

the

Son

that's

the

only

thing

that

can

transform

our

weeping

into

joy

and

if

you

are

in

Christ

you

can

know

this

joy

the

joy

of

the

new

creation

because

the

old

has

passed

away

and

behold

the

new

has

come

the

fourth

reason

we can

behold

the

new

creation

in

Christ

is

because

God

the

Son

he

turns

sinners

like you

and like

me

from

the grave

to

the

garden

God

the

Son

turns

sinners

from

the

grave

to

the

garden

that's

what

he

does

look

at

verse

14

Mary

turned

around

and

she

saw

Jesus

standing

there

but

she

did

not

know

it

was

Jesus

in

verse

15

Jesus

said

to

her

why

are

you

crying

and

she

supposed

that

he

was

the

gardener

she

was

right

the

verb

in

verse

14

is

in

the

passive

reflective

a

better

translation

would

be

that

Mary

was

turned

to

the

back

when

we

hear

this

turning

we

should

pay

attention

do

you

remember

how

God

turned

the

whole

empire

of

Assyria

and

the

capital

Nineveh

he

turned

them

as

the

word

of

the

Lord

was

preached

it

was

the

Lord

who

turned

Mary

from

the

grave

to

the

garden

Mary

is

passive

she's

reflecting

she's

simply

responding

to

the

voice

of

Christ

he

turns

her

from

the

place

where

he

once

laid

to

the

place

where

he

now

stands

we're

left

with the

impression

that

Jesus

was

standing

in

this

garden

near

the

tomb

all

along

just

as

Adam

was

standing

in

the

garden

silent

but now

Jesus

Christ

is

standing

in

this

garden

as

the

gardener

and

he's

calling

her

by

name

look at

verse 16

Jesus

said to

her

Mary

in

John

10

Jesus

had

preached

that

the

shepherd

calls

his

sheep

by

name

and

then

in

verse

16

we

have

that

passive

reflective

verse

again

being

turned

she

said

to

him

in

Aramaic

Rabboni

which

means

teacher

in

John

10

Jesus

said

his

sheep

will

know

his

voice

and

they

will

follow

him

you

see

Christ

fulfilling

the

very

word

that

he

preached

Jesus

turned

Mary

to

him

because

Jesus

was

right

there

all

along

that's

where

Jesus

wants

to

be

it's

by

the

side

of

sinners

she

calls

him

Rabboni

or

teacher

what

a

great

teacher

he

is

he's

going

to

preach

to

her

a

simple

and

clear

message

of

good

news

that

only

gets

better

Jesus

Christ

is

the

first

preacher

on

the

first

Lord's

day

of

the

new

creation

and

he

has

never

stopped

preaching

since

then

in

verse

17

he

says

I

am

ascending

to

my

father

who

is

your

father

to

my

God

who

is

your

God

his

work

as

mediator

is

in

effect

he

calls

God

the

father

creator

of

all

your

father

God

the

holy

triune

God

father

son

and

holy

spirit

is

yours

he

calls

you

by

name

because

he

is

the

great

friend

of

sinners

think

of

all

rabboni

taught

Mary

in

that

short

exchange

Jesus

Christ

taught

Mary

forgiveness

Jesus

Christ

taught

Mary

what

it

means

to

be

delivered

Jesus

Christ

taught

Mary

what

it

means

to

be

unconditionally

loved

Jesus

Christ

taught

Mary

his

work

is

what

makes

her

righteous

and

he

taught

Mary

and he

wants

to

teach

you

and

me

that

there

is

even

more

good

yet

to

come

it

only

gets

better

as

you

follow

Christ

his

work

as

mediator

is

ongoing

and

glorious

and

builds

that's

because

he

rises

glorified

in

flesh

clothed

in

immortality

the

firstborn

from

the

dead

and

he

is

alive

today

and

he

is

here

to

meet

you

in

your

darkness

he

is

here

to

turn

you

he

is

here

to

turn

your

weeping

into

joy

to

take

your

eyes

off

the

tomb

off

the

grave

and

onto

himself

the

risen

lord

your

teacher

your

good

shepherd

if

you

are

in

christ

you

are

a

new

creation

the

old

has

passed

away

behold

the

new

has

come

the

fifth

way

in which

i

invite

you

to

behold

the

new

creation

of

christ

is

this

god

the

son

makes

old

slaves

to

death

into

messengers

of

new

life

god

the

son

makes

old

slaves

to

death

into

messengers

of

new

life

in

verse

17

jesus

says

don't

cling

to

me

mary

evidently

mary

when she

recognized

jesus

and he

spoke

to her

she

is

holding

on

to

his

ankles

she

loved

him

so

much

she

couldn't

bear

the

thought

of

losing

him

again

but

jesus

says

i

have

not

yet

ascended

to

the

father

there

is

more

far

greater

still

to

come

mary

a

pastor

named

brian

voss

pointed

out

jesus

is

teaching

mary

that

her

salvation

does

not

depend

on

her

hold

on

christ

but

on

his

hold

of

her

yes

cling

to

christ

but

be

assured

that

from

heaven

he

is

clinging

on

to

you

he

will

get

all

the

glory

in

your

preservation

and

in

your

sanctification

until

you

breathe

your

last

breath

your

salvation

depends

on

his

hold

on

you

and

then

jesus

tells

mary

just

like

the

angels

had

told

the

shepherds

go

declare

this

stand

on

the

rooftops

tell

the

good

news

go

tell

the

brothers

what

i

have

revealed

to

you

and

in

verse

18

mary

went

off

and

she

announced

to

the

disciples

i

have

seen

the

lord

and

she

told

them

what

he

said

to

her

god

the

son

makes

old

slaves

to

death

into

messengers

of

new

life

what

was

god's

purpose

in

using

mary

mary

of

magdalene

of

all

of

his

hundreds

of

followers

and

his

twelve

disciples

it

was

mary

why

command

her

to

go

give

this

good

news

in

the

ancient

world

women

could

not

be

a

legal

witness

in

a

court

of

law

but

yet

john

describes

mary

as

a

legal

eyewitness

she

saw

that

the

stone

had

been

taken

away

from

the

tomb

what

do

we

know

about

this

mary

she

was

from

a

city

called

magdala

it

was

a

fishing

town

on

the

western

shore

of

the

sea

of

galilee

in

luke

8

we're

told

that

she

had

been

possessed

by

seven

demons

mary

was

a

slave

to

darkness

our

lord

freed

mary

from

that

demon

possession

and

she

followed

him

if

you

are

in

christ

you

are