Certain Hope

Good morning, everyone.

If I've met you before, my name is Steve.

I'm the senior pastor here at St. Paul's.

And I just want to say as I kick off,

really grateful for those who do the translation work for me in advance,

submit a sermon in advance so that they can do the translation

so that those who are not as sharp with English

or can't follow my English

have got something in their own language.

And so thank you, John, for this last week.

Let me just say I've actually changed it since then,

particularly the introduction bit mainly,

mainly because I read something this morning

which prompted my attention

and I thought would be particularly useful for us this morning.

So if you've got John chapter 20 open in front of you,

John 20 · chapter mention

that would be awesome.

Also, there's St. Paul's app.

You can download that and I've got an outline there for us.

So here it is.

Read this this morning in the Australian newspaper.

Immortality has become the great question mark.

The answer used to be provided at Easter

with the Christian climax in the death by crucifixion

followed by resurrection.

The Jesus story wrestled with death,

not being merely death.

Today, however,

the sacred meaning of Easter is little more than a dusty relic.

For the secular modern age,

belief in any form of life after death is in doubt.

Most no longer believe in any form of supernatural being.

God has become a figment of the archaic imagination.

Gods of any type are mere alien superstitions

held once upon a time by naive and even primitive ancestors.

All in all,

human consciousness has narrowed down to focus on mortal life.

Here,

now,

and on this worldly plane.

A finite span bound by death,

by birth and death,

and governed by everyday pleasures and pains.

Well,

it's Easter Day 2021

in modern Australia,

so,

frankly,

why are we here?

If that article's true,

why are you here?

Why even bother?

Why not just eat the chocolate,

go out for breakfast,

and get ready to head to the beach?

Why bother even turning up?

This article,

and many like it,

raises two big questions

about Easter,

and not just about Easter,

but about the truth of Christianity.

It's central,

and the essential event

of the death and resurrection of Jesus.

The first question is,

the truth question.

The second question is,

the meaning question.

Whenever we talk about the resurrection of Jesus,

the truth question and the meaning question

are intertwined.

They are deeply connected.

The truth question,

did it actually happen?

The meaning question,

who cares that it happened or not happened?

Humanity rejects Easter,

Christianity,

the lordship of Jesus Christ,

on both of those accounts.

See,

about 50 years ago,

an article like that

would not have appeared

in an Australian newspaper.

50 years ago,

people lived with the assumption

that there are universal laws

that govern the universe.

Resurrection was rejected

on the basis

of it not fitting

into the common person's

observable laws.

That's now changed.

Today,

the assumption is that there is a personal law

inside of me.

Not a universal law,

a personal law.

It's called individualism.

And one form of individualism

is the personal law that says,

I don't have to adapt my life

to anything that I don't find

personally helpful for me.

Truth for me

is what I find acceptable,

helpful,

useful,

and affirming of me

and my worldview.

That's truth.

So both questions.

The truth question

and the so what question

are important to address

at the same time

and no more important

than now

on Easter Day.

And so the next little while

I'm going to briefly tackle

those two questions

and land with a third point.

So I've got the truth question,

the who cares question,

and what it means for us

on Easter Day

to discover some certainty,

certain hope.

So the truth question.

The great C.S. Lewis

once wrote

that in a world

that was making

rapid advancement

in scientific understanding,

he said,

there's a great danger for us

in our modern age

of what he called

a chronological snobbery.

It's the assumption

that any conclusion

that's made

from previous generations

is fundamentally based

on ignorance.

for instance,

chronological snobbery

might lead

some to conclude

that the people

around Jesus' time

were just gullible,

simple peasants

who were just

ignorant of reality

and just believed anything.

And yet that's not

the picture we get

when we look at

John chapter 20.

John 20 · chapter mention

If you've got

John chapter 20,

John 20 · chapter mention

open it up for me again.

Look at the very first

two verses there.

Early on the first day

of the week,

while it was still dark,

Mary Magdalene

went to the tomb

and saw that the stone

had been removed

from the entrance.

And so she came

running to Simon Peter

and the other disciple,

the one whom Jesus loved,

and said,

and notice what she says,

they've taken the Lord

out of the tomb

and we don't know

where they put him.

Now you see,

Jesus,

a number of times

before his execution,

he said,

I'm going to come back

to life after they kill me.

And yet,

in this moment,

this is not what Mary's expecting.

One of his keenest followers

doesn't come to the conclusion,

he said he was going to rise.

The first assumption here,

somebody,

whoever they is,

somebody has taken

the body,

moved it.

It's the same in verse 13.

She was working on the assumption

that most likely

the Jewish leaders

or the Romans

or someone

have taken the body

and dumped it

outside the city limits.

That is,

Mary,

first century,

gullible peasant,

doesn't jump to the conclusion

that Jesus is resurrected.

Even Peter and John,

two of the key followers of Jesus,

didn't automatically

jump to the conclusion

that Jesus had been resurrected.

Have a look at verse 8.

Finally,

the other disciple

who had reached the tomb first

also went inside.

He saw

and believed.

But verse 9,

they did not understand

from scripture

that Jesus had to rise

from the dead.

That is,

they believed the testimony

of what Mary had said,

the tomb's empty.

And so they believed that,

but they had not yet

come to the conclusion

that Jesus had resurrected.

This tells me

that these early followers

of Jesus

were not gullible people.

Jesus told them repeatedly

that he would come back to life.

But they weren't looking for it.

And yet,

what they were confronted with

on that morning

was a bodiless tomb.

All the evidence

pointed to a bodiless tomb.

There was no body

in the tomb.

In fact,

one of the great

historical evidences

of the resurrection

is that to this day,

no one can explain

why the tomb was empty

apart from a resurrection.

To this day,

historical evidence

that tomb was empty

and it still cannot be explained

except for a resurrection.

And even the enemies of Jesus

could not produce the body.

And if they could have,

they would have ended

this whole Christian movement thing

within a day.

Done.

Finished.

There's your Messiah.

Right there.

So what are some of the more

modern explanations

of an empty tomb?

What are the ones

people that have come up with

more recently?

Some have suggested,

well, in actual fact,

Jesus didn't really die.

He was revived.

You know,

put in the coolness,

of the,

you know,

tomb.

He revived,

moved the stone himself

and disappeared

in history somewhere.

Of course,

that doesn't come to grips

with the actual

horrible realities

of crucifixion.

The rigorous steps

that Pilate

and the leaders

demanded

to make sure

that he was,

in fact,

dead

on the death,

on the cross

before they took

his body down.

And the steps

that were also taken

to make sure

that no one

got in

or out

of that tomb.

Of course,

that was never

an argument

that neither Jews

or the Romans

came up with.

Neither of them

came up.

The actual people

there at the time

never came up

with that as an argument.

Some have suggested

that the disciples

of Jesus

stole the body.

if they did,

then these guys

began to risk

their lives

and, in fact,

give their lives up

for what they knew

to be nothing more

than an April Fool's joke.

The fact is,

these disciples

were utterly

dejected.

They were terrified

after the crucifixion

of Jesus.

They were scared

that they were

going to be treated

in exactly the same

way as Jesus.

They feared

for their lives.

They did not have

hope of a resurrection

and they were ready

to go back

to fishing.

They were hiding

in a secluded room

unwilling

to believe

the first reports

of Jesus' appearance

three days

after he was executed.

And yet,

that bunch

of cowards

who deserted him

with a matter

of weeks,

these same men

were overflowing

with joy

and courage

and they were

not only just

ready to die

for Jesus

but most of them

did.

This little band

of ordinary believers

changed the course

of human history.

They and those

who came to believe

through them

loved and served

their enemies

and gave their lives

to their enemies

across the entire

Roman Empire

in such a way

that the world

was changed

within three centuries.

How?

What happened?

Their own

explanation

was that they

saw Jesus

alive

after he was

dead

as Jesus

had promised.

Now there is

far more

historical

and rational

evidence

than just that

but

much more

that could be said

except to say

that doubting

the resurrection

of Jesus

is a normal

starting point

and if that's

you

just out there

on the table

out in the atrium

there is a book

here called

The Case for Easter

there is a few

copies out there

if that's you

and you are really

wrestling with this

take it as a gift

and go

read it

please

or come and speak

to one of us

we would love

to have a chat

with you about that.

Strangely however

in John 20

the first person

to doubt the

resurrection

verbally

was not a person

who was opposed

to Christianity

it's one of Jesus

closest supporters

a man named

Thomas

and Thomas

is the most famous

of all doubters

in fact we have a saying

in our culture

to this day

for the skeptic

of any news

ah you're just

a doubting Thomas

so for those of us

who are struggling

to understand

or accept the

resurrection

you've got to

ask yourself

right now

can Thomas

help me

if this is me

now

can Thomas

help me here

now we're told

that Thomas

was not there

when Jesus

first appeared

to his disciples

soon after

he rose from the dead

so have a look

there

verse 24

so the other

disciples told him

we have seen

the Lord

but he said

to them

unless I see

the nail marks

in his hands

and put my

finger

where the nails

were

and put my

hand into

his side

I will

not believe

it

in other words

I will believe

in Jesus

if he

shows himself

to me

his response

to the news

is absolute

he makes

his terms

his demands

in absolute

terms

unless I see

I place

my hands

I will

not believe

he demands

here in this

moment

exhaustive

proof

rather than

sufficient

evidence

belief in

Jesus

belief in the

resurrection

comes down

in the end

as we see

here with

Thomas

not just

to a matter

of evidence

but a battle

of the will

Thomas

rejects

the witness

of 10

of

and more

in fact

more than

10 of

his trusted

friends

and he

dictates

in absolute

terms

to God

about what's

required

for him

to believe

now we

aren't told

specifically

in John

20

why Thomas

was so

skeptical

so anything

I say

is speculation

but I'm

going to

speculate

anyway

because it

might be

helpful

for us

so let

me

speculate

maybe it

was his

personality

that's

maybe why

he's doubting

he's a

personality

thing

maybe he

was well

you know

one of

those

what the

personality

tests

call a

sensing

person

sensing

people

paying

more

attention

to

physical

reality

to

facts

to

hard

evidence

the

opposite

is the

intuitive

person

who

goes

on

perceptions

gut

feel

instincts

that

may be

a

personality

thing

another

alternative

is that

he was

skeptical

about

the

supernatural

unlikely

but

possible

you know

dead people

don't come

back to

life and

that's

it

it's a

common

western

view

in fact

it's

primarily

just a

western

view

a very

small

minority

of our

world

have

that

view

and

Thomas

wasn't

a

westerner

so it's

unlikely

what we

tend to

think when

we come

to this

text

as

westerners

we assume

that

Thomas's

doubting

here is

an

intellectual

one

but

skepticism

is

not

simply

intellectual

so let

me

speculate

imagine

for

instance

that

someone

very

close

to

you

is

dying

in fact

some

of you

may

not

even

need

to

imagine

much

and you

finally

accepted

that

all

hope

of

recovery

is

lost

and

your

loved

one

is

going

to

die

it's

shocking

news

and

then

all

of

a

sudden

someone

says

comes

in

with

some

new

news

there's

a

possible

cure

in

a

clinic

on

the

other

side

of

the

world

and

you

had

there

a

hope

of

recovery

there's

a

hope

of

recovery

here

then

your

hopes

are

dashed

when

you

realize

that

you're

going

to

die

and

with

the

news

of

a

possible

cure

most

people

in

that

moment

don't

go

fantastic

you've

gotten

used to

the fact

that you're

going to

die

most

people

do

not

go

fantastic

news

most

people

cannot

bear

the

concept

of

their

hopes

being

raised

only

to be

dashed

again

most

people

do

not

step

out

in

hope

for

fear

of

losing

again

and

maybe

this

is

what's

happening

with

Thomas

there

is

no

indication

in

the

New

Testament

at

all

up

until

this

point

that

Thomas

did

not

love

Jesus

as

much

as

the

other

disciples

no

reason

to

believe

that

he

wasn't

as

devastated

as

the

other

disciples

at

the

execution

of

Jesus

and

now

they

come

along

and

say

hey

Thomas

in

his

grief

hey

Thomas

good

news

he's

alive

and

so

maybe

Thomas

in

this

moment

in

the

upper

room

is

don't

you

dare

get

my

hopes

up

don't

you

dare

get

my

hopes

up

I'm

just

coming

to

terms

with

the

fact

he's

dead

maybe

he

was

afraid

to

hope

in

the

same

way

that

many

in

our

world

are

afraid

to

hope

it

may

be

our

narrow

secular

western

worldview

that

says

it

cannot

happen

I

have

no

hope

it

might

be

a

personality

thing

that

says

I

need

more

evidence

it

may

be

a

heart

that

is

afraid

to

be

drawn

into

something

only

to

be

disappointed

in

the

end

Thomas

believed

with

joy

he's

the

greatest

doubter

and

yet

his

confession

of

faith

becomes

the

greatest

look

at

verse

26

a

week

later

his

disciples

were

in

the

house

again

and

Thomas

was

with

them

and

though

the

doors

were

locked

Jesus

came

and

stood

among

them

and

said

peace

be

with

you

and

he

said

to

Thomas

put

your

finger

here

see

my

hands

reach

out

your

hand

and

put

it

into

my

side

stop

doubting

and

believe

and

then

Thomas

said

to

him

my

Lord

my

God

it's

a

remarkable

statement

Thomas

is a

Jewish

man

and

to

call

another

human

being

just

a

mere

human

being

not

just

your

Lord

but

your

God

is

incomprehensible

unless

Thomas

has seen

something

absolutely

life

changing

there

is no

higher

confession

of faith

in

Jesus

Christ

in

all

of

the

scriptures

in

my

view

so

that

brings

me

to

the

who

cares

question

for

some

some

doubt

is

not a

matter

of

having

not

having

enough

sufficient

evidence

it's

more

a

matter

of

claims

that

Jesus

has

made

about

himself

his

mission

and

therefore

what

his

claims

are

on

my

life

that

is

it's

about

the

heart

and

the

will

there

is

a

comfortable

place

of

happy

ignorance

if

I

ignore

the

evidence

I

can

just

go

on

and

live

life

my

way

this

is

broadly

the

meaning

of

the

resurrection

Thomas

says

to

him

my

Lord

and

my

God

notice

this

notice

what's

changed

with

Thomas

his

first

words

were not

okay

Jesus

Jesus

said to

him

put your

hand

here

put your

fist in

the side

and

he doesn't

go

oh

the

evidence

his

immediate

response

is

my

Lord

and

my

God

the

whole

issue

that

Thomas

had

was

I

want

to

see

Jesus

for

myself

and

I

will

not

ever

believe

until

I

touch

those

wounds

Jesus

shows

up

and

Thomas

doesn't

even

touch

him

the

wounds

on

Jesus

were

not

so

much

more

than

the

evidence

of

the

resurrection

they

were

evidence

of

something

so

much

more

powerful

for

Thomas

what

he

is

saying

in

that

moment

in

encountering

the

risen

Jesus

is

that

everything

you

said

about

yourself

is

true

everything

you said

about

me

is

true

everything

you said

about

this

world

is

true

he

is

God

he

is

the

king

of

the

universe

he

is

my

lord

he

is

my

king

he

is

my

boss

he

is

my

ruler

he

is

my

god

he

is

my

savior

the

resurrection

means

that

what

Jesus

has

promised

he

delivered

Thomas

has

just

joyfully

discovered

that

the

wounds

on

the

cross

on

Jesus

that

he

thought

had

ruined

his

life

those

wounds

have

in

fact

saved

his

life

this

is

the

answer

to

the

so

what

question

the

resurrection

means

that

everything

Jesus

said

about

himself

is

right

and

true

he

is

the

way

for

humanity

to be

reunited

to

their

creator

the

resurrection

means

that

human

guilt

and

shame

has

been

dealt

with

finally

and

fully

through

Jesus

satisfying

God's

justice

on the

cross

for

us

it

means

that

death

has

not

only

been

confronted

but

it's

actually

been

conquered

by

Jesus

it

means

that

new

and

true

life

can

be

experienced

before

death

and

eternal

life

beyond

death

it

means

that

hope

for

better

things

have

gone

from

a

category

of

oh

I

hope

so

to

an

absolute

definite

certainty

it

means

that

a new

heavens

and

a new

earth

where

those

who

trust

in

Christ

will

live

forever

like

he

lives

forever

is

just

a

matter

of

time

that's

what

Jesus

offers

everyone

who

trusts

in

him

a

number

of

chapters

earlier

in

John's

account

of

this

good

news

we

have

Jesus

declaring

the

life

changing

news

of

Easter

he

says

I

am

the

resurrection

and

the

life

the

one

who

believes

in

me

will

live

even

though

they

die

and

whoever

lives

by

believing

in

me

will

never

die

it

means

that

Jesus

isn't

just

one

option

amongst

any

and many

that

you

might

have

to

turn

to

something

incredibly

unique

and

life

changing

and

worldview

shaping

has

happened

in the

resurrection

of

Jesus

that

is

what

Thomas

has

discovered

that's

what

people

across

this

world

for

2000

years

have

discovered

from

every

cultural

group

and

people

group

there

is

hope

in

Jesus

Christ

so

lastly

how do

we

discover

this

certain

hope

firstly

it's

important

to

listen

to

the

eyewitness

accounts

don't

don't

cast

them

off

we

are

told

here

in

John

20

that

Thomas

wasn't

there

when

Jesus

first

appeared

to

the

disciples

one

week

later

Jesus

shows

up

again

with

Thomas

present

during

the

week

in

between

we

are

told

in

verse

25

of

John

20

that

the

other

disciples

kept

telling

him

we

have

seen

him

we

have

seen

him

we

have

seen

him

during

that

week

Thomas

was

in

the

exact

same

spot

that

you

and

I

are

in

right

now

and

people

have

been

in

for

2,000

years

like

him

we

have

the

eyewitness

accounts

we

have

the

eyewitness

accounts

we

have

the

accounts

of

the

people

who

were

there

access

to

them

access

direct

access

to

the

people

who

had

direct

access

to

Jesus

the

eyewitness

accounts

have been

written

down

for us

and

preserved

through

history

in

the

New

Testament

if

you

haven't

got

one

you

can

grab

one

of

those

out

in

the

table

out

in

the

atrium

as

well

and

read

it

take

it

home

and

read

it

for

yourself

a

number

of

years

ago

it

was

common

accusation

that

the

gospel

accounts

the

historical

biographies

of

Jesus

the

gospel

accounts

were

fables

that

were

written

down

long

long

after

the

events

and

so

are

not

trustworthy