Resurrection Long live the King

okay good morning everyone lovely to be part of Easter Sunday with you all even

though remotely so we've seen again this week that death is very much a part of

life now that's a cliche I know but it's a true cliche I googled it this week and

apparently more than 157,000 people in our world die on average every day that's

about 57 million people a year and when you put that in the context of 5,000

years of history and that gets to be an absolutely staggering figure a staggering

death toll and of course the death toll is very personal thing isn't it because

that includes countless unique people amazing people and people in who in

their day were larger than life people whose influence in the world continues

long after they died but in the end death got them all but this morning I want to

talk to you about the person who defied the great equaliser that death the

person who reversed the finality of death by coming back from the grave the

person of whom we must say life was very much a part of his death so today we

celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ and Jesus Christ is the person who so

altered the course of history that we still talk about him 2,000 years later we

still mark the event on our calendars 2,000 years later and most importantly we

continue to be confronted by the consequences of his death and

resurrection more than 2,000 years later we pick up the story in John chapter 20

John 20 · chapter mention

and the first point if you're following through in the notes King Jesus is dead and

you can't argue about the finality of death or can you well we all know that words

of impact words are very very powerful Jesus had a rousing message that attracted

so many over three years of his ministry but we all know that what people see

impacts us far more than what we hear and so the issue we're confronting is

dead means dead and here's the here's the problem for us Jesus said he was God

that Jesus said he was God's Messiah God's King coming to the world to

re-establish God's rule and establish a kingdom which would never ever end that

Jesus said he was God's long-awaited Savior come to rescue God's people by

dealing with a sin giving them new hope for the future rising word rising message but

if we pick up the story this morning the king is now dead beaten humiliated

ridiculed crucified as a common criminal bayoneted or speared and finally taken down

dragged away and buried David Butt took us through that awful story on Friday

now surely that has to be the final criteria for evaluating everything Jesus said and did

a rising message over three years but the king is dead and you can't argue with death can you

it's not as if it's just a mistake because these Roman soldiers they dealt with death

they had blood on their hands and these Roman soldiers knew Jesus was dead

at the Roman governor pilot he was used to executing people he was satisfied that Jesus was dead and

actually released his body for burial at two reputable Jews

Joseph and Nicodemus knew that Jesus was dead they actually embalmed his body and put it in a tomb and

sealed it with a large rock that that final symbol of separating those who are dead from those who are

living that large rock sealing off that tomb the tomb of the dead and even as most loyal disciples knew

that Jesus was dead they just went home to grieve now whatever way you read that story you have to say

what an anticlimax what an anticlimax a rising message over three years

but the king is dead and you can't argue about the finality of death or can you

well according to John the death and burial of Jesus was not the end of his story

we pick up in verse one Mary Magdalene is at Jesus tomb before dawn in the darkness on what we would

call Sunday morning three days after Jesus was crucified and she discovers the tomb open and Jesus body gone

now understandably she's upset and confused and immediately reports back to Peter and John who

in turn immediately went to the tomb to see for themselves and the question we have to ask and look at

carefully carefully then is what did they see well traditionally and historically we've said talked

about the empty tomb but of course that's not right because it wasn't quite empty so Peter and John see

the not quite empty tomb yes the body of Jesus was gone but his grave clothes immediately took their

attention and actually become the focus of the story because they saw the grave clothes lying undisturbed and

intact but in those days when a person died their body was wrapped from head to shoulders in from

feet to shoulders rather in linen strips and the linen strips were soaked in a solution of aloe which

was a powdered sweet smelling wood and another product called mirror and my double r h and that was a sort of

sweet smelling rosin or gum which actually solidified when went hard then back in chapter 19 we're told that

about 34 kilograms of this stuff was used to wrap the body of Jesus and essentially it made a cast

around the body a bit like a modern plaster cast around a broken limb

and then also the naked head was wrapped with a separate turban like a piece of cloth

so what Peter and John saw was the empty cast and the head cloth neatly folded and put to one side

just like you'd expect if someone took it off because they no longer needed it

something really unusual had happened both John and Peter recognized that

if thieves had stolen the body they would have taken the cast with them that would have been the

quickest and easiest way to make an exit or if they wanted the body without the cast they would have

had to cut all those wraps off and chances are left chunks of flesh or at least left the cast and the

strips and pieces or again if Jesus had simply been unconscious and somehow or other come around after

a period of time and got himself out even if that's possible then again the wrappings would have been broken

anyway the point of the story is that the tomb was undisturbed except that Jesus body was gone

and it's interesting the way John writes it because the significance of this

is highlighted by John in the words he uses the different words he uses for saying

so what did John and Peter say well verse 5 you look in there

um stooping to look in John saw the linen cloths lying there

the word there is to say or blepho that's the Greek verb and it means just to observe in other

words he just roamed his eyes around and took in what his eyes could see he observed the grave clothes

with no body and verse 6 Peter goes right into the tomb typical Peter he just rushes in John was a

little bit hesitant a bit nervous maybe I don't know but Peter just rushes in no surprise there

and he sees but the word there is the or oh oh in other words the same word as we use for theorizing

Peter's looking around observes the intact tomb except the body's missing and he's trying to theorize or work

out the significance of intact grave clothes but no body and then verse 8 finally John joins Peter in the tomb

and sees and the word there is orato in other words it's a saying that reaches a conclusion an understanding

so Peter and John see with understanding finally he concludes or they conclude that something really

supernatural has happened Jesus had left his burial cast somehow or other come through the burial cast

without damaging or disturbing it now verses 9 and 10 are also important um and it's it's a difficult

verse to understand verse 9 for as yet they did not understand the scripture that he must rise from the dead

then the disciples went back to their homes so the immediate impact of the facts on Peter and John

were that they believed they saw they theorized and they came to conclusion they believed the evidence

for Peter and John was mind-blowing but compelling and it pointed to one conclusion Jesus was no longer dead

Jesus somehow or other had come back to life and left his tomb in the most supernatural way not even disturbing

the grave clothes

now I think that the emphasis of verse 9 is that they didn't understand everything but they understood enough

to know that the grave of Jesus was no longer their focus

they didn't understand everything but they knew where he wasn't he was no longer in his grave

and so verse 10 they did what you'd expect they went home to think further about the matter

no longer was the grave the focus of their attention

and I think the point that John's making is this that John's emphasis is that the disciples

belief in the resurrection of Jesus came first based on the physical evidence before their eyes

they didn't manufacture a resurrection story to agree with expectations they already had from

Old Testament scriptures I think that's the point of verse 9 it wasn't as if they already knew and had

clear understanding from the Old Testament that Jesus would rise from the dead no they didn't understand

that that was that only came later with prompting for Jesus from Jesus only then did they understand

that various Old Testament scriptures which they had read previously without understanding

now became clear and added to what they'd seen physically with their own eyes the evidence that Jesus

had come back from the dead Jesus had risen from the grave

so that's the story at this point but the story continues and we switch focus to a very incredibly personal

experience for Mary and the experience builds around the point King Jesus is alive and she says I've seen

the Lord King Jesus is alive I've seen the Lord and this changes everything

now when you look at verse 11 it's just sad isn't it Mary stood weeping outside the tomb remember

it's it's pre-dawn it's in the darkness no lights you can just imagine the scene Mary was a deeply

troubled woman now we know from other parts of the record of John that she was known she was a woman

with history she was known for her sexual sin she was one of the ladies about time to use a sort of

modern term she was a woman who therefore was condemned by her her fellow Jewish citizens condemned

and rejected by the Jewish religious leaders condemned by God's law Mary had only a bleak future of

hopelessness to look forward to but Mary had found new hope of salvation and belonging in the teaching of

Jesus it's interesting that you might recall only a few days earlier the extent of the hope that Mary

had now placed in Jesus was expressed in her pouring a super expensive oil on him we're told in the text

that it cost about a year's worth of wages to buy the stuff and there was Mary just pouring all over Jesus

it was a demonstration of her total commitment to Jesus and her total trust in Jesus in Jesus she saw

something that gave her hope when the Jewish religious system when her own religion left her hopeless and

despairing but Mary before us again this morning in this story here she is standing in the darkness

weeping bitterly her hopes had died and were buried with Jesus

that's an incredible statement in her hopes had died and were buried with Jesus and she's left weeping

despairing engulfed by both physical and spiritual darkness as she recognizes that with Jesus body gone she can't even

grieve probably not only is is the hope that she had in Jesus cause gone but the body's gone she can't even

grieve she can't touch him she can't do that process that we all know to be such an important part of of relational

things even at the end of a relationship well at that very point

Mary's

Mary's darkness and despair is dispelled

first

two angels appear to her

and then Jesus himself appears and speaks directly

so that she knows he is alive

and it's just a very very moving

story that John records

here's this woman and you wonder why she's even there because

if any woman was going to be there and that's quite countercultural for a Jewish story to record a woman as a

as a focus

but if any woman was going to be there you might expect a Jesus mother to be there but no

this

woman with history with dubious character

this woman who had put so much hope in Jesus

is here in despair and weeping

and yet when Jesus speaks to her we can just sense the renewed hope and joy surging through our body

and becomes a confident statement to the disciples

I have seen the Lord

so what Peter and John had derived from physical evidence

Jesus

Mary learned directly both as revealed truth

and experiential truth

used both those terms last week when they speak

Jesus engages Mary relationally

Mary he speaks to her

he calls her by her name

and her troubled dark heart

is filled with truth

and light

and life

not only

is Jesus

not in the grave anymore

but he's alive

he's out there

he's on the loose

and he's engaging Mary

and replacing

dispelling darkness

and despair

with hope

and light

and life

look at verse 17

a wonderful verse in there

Jesus said to her

do not cling to me

I guess she must have thrown herself at his feet or something like that

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

now that's a

that's a chock-a-block full of wonderful things type verse

go to my brothers

says Jesus

tell them

go to my

I am ascending to my Father

and your Father

your Father Mary

your God Mary

the significance of this verse

well

so many things can be said about it

Jesus

is confirming

that he has done

what he said he would do

as God's King and Saviour

just a week earlier

remember back to chapter 14

and that was only a few days earlier

five or six days earlier

chapter 14

Jesus said to his people

do not be troubled in heart

I'm going away in death

to prepare a place in heaven for you

and then verse 6 of that same chapter

over that meal that night

only six days earlier

Jesus also said

I am the way

the truth

and the life

no person comes to the Father

but through me

now

in the words of a

Colby Cannon song

what Mary

the lost

and despairing

needs most

is to find the way

back to God

what Mary

the confused

and deceived

needs most

is the truth

that will set her free

from sin and death

what Mary

the dead

in her sins

needs most

is life

eternal

abundant life

and verse 17 here

tells us that

Mary had

all her needs

met

in Jesus'

death and resurrection

all her needs

were confirmed

as being met

in this one encounter

Jesus' resurrection

had changed

everything for Mary

and the first disciples

Jesus

in speaking to her

in being there

confirmed that he is God

who else

has power

and authority

to come and go

in his world

as he needs to

death could not

hold him

and now he says

he will go back

to his father

and to his throne

in heaven

having completed

his salvation task

powerful

irrefutable

compelling evidence

that Jesus

is God

and Jesus

confirms that

Mary was right

to put her

confidence

and hope

in him

both she

and the disciples

are now

in new

relationship

with the fathers

through Jesus

they have new

family

with Jesus

my brothers

says Jesus

they have new

family

with Jesus

your father

your God

he speaks to Mary

she who was distant

and cut off

from God

because of our sin

is now

in new

relationship

with the father

personal relationship

with the father

through Jesus

new family

new security

which guarantees

they will go to be

with the father

as Jesus will

as he ascends

so they will

ascend

and enjoy

a resurrection

with Jesus

now friends

there's the evidence

compelling evidence

and the evidence

that King Jesus

has risen

and is alive

and is on the loose

still demands

a verdict

from you

in 2020

that's John

purpose

in writing

the biography

we'll see that

next week

John's purpose

in writing

this biography

of the life

of Jesus

is to present

the evidence

that he believes

will cause people

to believe

that Jesus

is God

and Savior

and as a result

find eternal life

John's convinced

that if people

will only give

the evidence

a chance

then they will

be brought

they will theorize

like Peter

and they'll be brought

to a position

of understanding

that conclusion

that Jesus

is alive

Jesus is God

Jesus is God's Savior

and that

therefore

everything

is changed

now

here's a problem

the evidence

is compelling

yet so many

refuse to believe

why is that

do you think

well

it's very common

to blame

a lack of belief

on a lack

of evidence

but that's

just not right

the evidence

is compelling

more likely

in reality

they don't believe

because they don't

like the implications

of the evidence

they don't like

the implications

of belief

see here's how

it works

because if you

believe in Jesus

if you believe

that Jesus is God

that he really

did beat death

that he really

came back

that he's now

alive

and on the loose

and at large

in his own world

ruling as God's

King and Savior

then that

must force

an admission

from you

the admission

must be

that I am not

a good person

that I

of my own

character

my own nature

I'm entitled

to heaven

and that I can

sort of do

some sort of

bargain

with God

saying well

of course

I'm not as good

as I could be

but I'm not as bad

as I could be either

and so I'm entitled

to heaven

now belief

in the resurrection

of Jesus

forces us

to admit

that that's not

the case

Jesus died

to bring

people like you

and me

into heaven

and then

this belief

in Jesus

forces the

recognition

that if

Jesus

is King

and Savior

then I

must live

all of life

under his

authority

and that

means

and this is

the really

hard bit

for most

people

that means

giving up

my autonomy

there can't

be two kings

I can't be

king of my

life

and be

autonomous

and at

the same

time

claim

to live

under

the rule

of the

Lord

Jesus

Christ

and that

is so hard

for us

we don't

want to

give up

our autonomy

and the

irony

of the

Easter story

is in the

words of

Jesus

in verse

15

he says

who are

you seeking

whom

are you

seeking

and here's

the problem

for us

we long

to be

accepted

with God

we are

seeking

someone

who will

make us

acceptable

with God

who will

take us

home to

heaven

we long

to have

security

and hope

given that

we're so

fragile

and given

that death

is a

certain

part of

life

but we'd

rather miss

out on the

way

the truth

and the

life

rather than

give up

our autonomy

rather than

totally commit

to Jesus

as Mary

did

so often

people turn

and walk

away from

Jesus

even though

he's the

one that

they've been

seeking all

their lifetime

so friends

Jesus'

resurrection

changes

and it

demands

we change

how we

think about

him

how we

think about

ourselves

I started

by saying

that death

is very

much a

part of

our life

well

I end

by saying

that Jesus

backs the

trend

and offers

us

the life

that is

very much

a part

of his

death

this is

why

Easter

is so

offensive

because there's

not room

for King

me

and King

Jesus

but there's

also why

Easter is

so wonderful

at the

same time

Jesus

says to

Mary

why are

you

weeping

in despair

Mary

there is

no

nothing

so out

of place

as weeping

in despair

in the

presence

of the

resurrected

Jesus

who brings

life

and light

and hope

and security

so

Easter

is it

something that

will be

offensive to

you

or something

that will be

wonderful to

you

hopefully

it's something

that begins

as an offence

to you

and challenges

you

and then

reshapes you

so it becomes

wonderful to

you

but the question

remains a very

simple

bland but

profound question

what will

the Jesus

who came

back from

the dead

be to

you

thank you

very much

for listening

I'm going to

pray

and hopefully

you'll join me

in prayer

and then we'll

throw back

to Rob

Lord

we echo

your words

to Mary

why are

you weeping

we identify

with Mary

Lord

caught up

in

sometimes

the despair

of life

sometimes

Lord

we're just

reduced

by our

fragility

to

sadness

and weeping

we thank

you Lord

at that

very point

of need

you spoke

into Mary's

life

dispelled

her despair

and

made hope

new hope

and confidence

and security

and life

surge

through her

body

and I

pray

Lord

that you

might

do that

for each

one of us

listening in

today

that you

might

re-energize

us for those

of us who are

ready

committed to

serving you

fill us again

Lord with the

admiration

of your love

for us

and the desire

to serve you

better

and for those

Lord who might

be listening

this morning

who still

want to be

king

in their own

lives

Lord

confront

and break

down that

opposition

so they

might seek

you

the living

Lord

and know

life

life eternal

life abundant

pray this in

Jesus name

Amen

Amen

Amen

Amen

drum

up

есте

Holy

beams

through

march

health

amen

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