Behold Your Risen King

Hear God's Word.

When the Sabbath was passed, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of the Romans, and Salome bought

spices so that they might go and anoint Him, Jesus, who had died.

And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb.

And they were saying to one another, who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance

of the tomb?

And looking up, they saw the stone had been rolled back.

It was very large, and entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side,

dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed.

And He said to them, do not be alarmed.

You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who is crucified.

He is risen.

He has risen.

He's not here.

See the place where they laid Him?

But go tell His disciples and Peter that He is going before you to Galilee.

There you will see Him, just as He told you.

And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them.

And they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

May God bless the Word.

Aslan.

Aslan.

That great Christ figure of the Narnia series by C.S. Lewis.

The Mighty Lion.

What a great book series if you haven't read that.

Parents, if you've not yet read through the Narnia series with your children, get that on your short list.

Well, Aslan, as C.S. Lewis betrays him, is this Christ figure.

And early on in the Narnia series, and I think it's the magician's nephew,

Lewis portrays this lion as singing into creation all of Narnia.

It's a beautiful sight.

In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe,

Aslan rescues this Narnia from the perpetual winter of the reign of the White Witch.

Well, at this moment in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe,

there's this dramatic moment where Aslan offers himself to be killed in the place of Edmund.

One of the four Pevensey children.

Edmund was the traitor.

And though betrayed, Aslan willingly offers himself to be killed by the White Witch

on that ancient stone table.

With Susan and Lucy looking on.

And then the White Witch kills Aslan.

Leaves him for dead.

And then go bringing her, her horde of beasts goes to fight Aslan's army.

Shortly afterwards, Lucy and Susan are mourning the death of Aslan.

And all of a sudden, they hear this splitting of stone.

Granite being sheaved in two.

The stone table has been split.

Deep magic has brought Aslan back from the grave.

He appears.

He's risen from the dead.

His death and resurrection changes everything in Narnia.

Aslan is this Christ figure.

And after his resurrection, he is on the move.

Breathing his life-giving breath on all of those who's been turned to stone.

This fall, we've been making our way through the Gospel of Mark.

And Mark has been making this argument all throughout it that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.

Two weeks ago, we beheld our rejected King.

Chapter 14.

Last week, we beheld our crucified King.

Chapter 15.

Remember, when Jesus breathes his last.

The curtain of the temple is torn in two from top to bottom.

And then the centurion, he cries out, having witnessed what Jesus has just done.

Says, truly, this man was the Son of God.

Today, we behold our risen King.

There are three words that come from the mouth of an angel.

And it changes everything.

He has risen.

And that should put some awe in your heart.

Because that means, by implication, that Jesus is alive today.

Are you living as if Jesus is presently alive?

Or as if he's long dead?

This Jesus is alive today.

And there are three scenes in Mark 16, 1 through 8, that will help us to see that.

Going to the tomb.

In the tomb.

Coming out of the tomb.

So let's look at scene number one.

Going to the tomb.

It's in verses 1 through 4.

And we start with these women.

When the Sabbath was passed.

That's Saturday.

Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome.

Bought spices so that they go and anoint Jesus.

Jesus, of course, has been killed on Friday.

It's now Sunday.

We've already been introduced to the Marys.

If you look up one verse to 1547.

At Christ's death, his body's been given to Pilate.

Been placed in a tomb.

In verse 47, Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of Jesus, Joseph, saw where he was laid.

So Mary and Mary have eyewitness account of the tomb that Jesus' body was laid in.

If you look at 1540, they're also referenced.

The centurion has just said,

Surely this man was the Son of God.

In verse 40, there were also women looking on from a distance,

among whom were Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James, the younger, and of Joseph.

And Salome.

They had been with Jesus from the beginning.

They've been supporting in his ministry.

So you have these three women who are, on Sunday morning, have spices in hand and are going to the tomb.

By the way, that Mary of Joseph, that's Jesus' mother.

And don't miss the fact that the male disciples of Jesus are MIA.

Nowhere to be found.

Now we come to the tomb in verses 2 and 3.

And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb.

And they were saying to one another,

Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?

A tomb was a place to place a body.

It was basically a cave with a small entrance,

and there was a bigger room inside that they had a burial platform

that you'd place the corpse of someone.

And there was a confined space.

But it's pretty safe to say at this point in the account

that these three women,

what do you think they were expecting to find in the tomb?

The dead body of Jesus.

This tomb actually belonged to Joseph of Arimathea.

We learn that in verses 42 through 47 in chapter 15.

Joseph was a rich man.

He was part of the Sanhedrin.

He was looking for the kingdom of God,

which means he was a follower of Jesus.

After Jesus dies, he, Joseph of Arimathea,

goes to Pilate and asks for the body.

Pilate's surprised that Jesus had died so fast.

So he wants to confirm that.

He asks for the centurion who confessed that Jesus was the Son of God.

The centurion comes.

He says, yeah, he's dead.

Pilate grants Joseph the body of Jesus.

And because it was just before the Sabbath,

Joseph puts the corpse of Jesus in his tomb,

seals it up,

and we're on our way.

Now you might be thinking, well, that's interesting.

Those are little interesting little tidbits.

Until you realize that Mark is actually doing something else.

Do you remember how in chapter 14 and chapter 15,

there's all these allusions to Isaiah 53,

and then in chapter 15 to Psalm 22,

but Isaiah 53 is all over the place.

What we have here is another allusion to Isaiah 53.

The suffering servant.

Let me just read it.

This is verse 9.

And they made his grave with the wicked,

and with a rich man in his death.

You see, what's going on here

is not just historic.

It actually happened.

But Mark is helping us make a connection.

This is all according to God's plan.

This is the fulfillment of Isaiah 53.

It's all according to the Scriptures.

There's a time stamp as well.

We saw the time stamps last week in Mark 15.

The 6th hour and the 9th hour.

Here we're told it's a particular day.

Do you see that in verse 2?

And very early on the first day of the week.

That means it's Sunday.

Which means it's the third day

since Jesus was crucified.

He was crucified on day 1, Friday.

Then there's the Sabbath, day 2.

And then there's Sunday, day 3.

It's the third day.

This is fulfilling what Jesus himself has said

over and over and over.

I'm going to be rejected, killed,

and on the third day I will rise.

There's a time stamp.

It's at sunrise.

So this is very early on, on that Sunday.

These women have, they're not wasting any time.

They've got burial spices in hand

that they are going to the tomb.

And then they remember something.

Who's going to move away the stone for us?

And evidently the stone was so big

that the three of them themselves couldn't move it.

That's how big it was.

Now you may be wondering,

well how can he forget a detail like that?

Has anybody planned the funeral

of a loved one that recently died?

It's hard work.

You're in a state of numbness.

It's surreal.

You've got details that you're trying to take care of.

I think you need to realize

the mood of this moment

as these three women are making their way to the tomb.

They're not happy.

They're sad.

They're somber.

They're quiet.

They're grieving.

They're forgetting details

because they're distracted.

These women have spent a lot of time

with Jesus over the last three years.

And now they've seen him die.

They saw where he was buried.

And as they're making their way to the tomb,

they are expecting to find

the corpse of Jesus in that tomb.

But as they walk in verse 4

up to the tomb,

they see that the stone has been rolled away.

And their immediate thought is not

he's been raised from the dead.

If you were them,

I'm guessing you'd be like,

what's going on?

Who got here before us?

I'm guessing their heart rate

would have started going up.

Maybe you came into this building this morning

and you've got some questions

about the empty tomb.

Maybe you've been a Christian for a long time

and you've never thought

about what the empty tomb

actually means for you.

Let's go into the tomb.

That's where Mark brings us.

Scene 2,

while in the tomb,

verses 5 through 7.

And entering the tomb,

they saw a young man

sitting on the right side

dressed in a white robe

and they were alarmed.

Kids, if you want to draw a picture for me,

this is it.

And he said to them,

do not be alarmed.

You seek Jesus of Nazareth

who was crucified.

He is risen.

He's not here.

See the place where they laid him.

But go,

tell his disciples and Peter

that he is going before you to Galilee.

There you will see him

just as he told you.

Now,

if you're one of these three women,

you're expecting to find

in this tomb

the corpse of Jesus.

And so the first surprise

of the empty tomb,

and there are a number of surprises

in the empty tomb.

The first surprise

is a surprising sight.

Verse 5.

This young man

dressed in white.

They don't see the body.

They see this young man

dressed in white.

The other gospels

talk about there being

two angels,

dazzling appearance,

and in classic Mark fashion,

he gives you bare bones.

Yes?

This would have been spectacular.

This young man is an angel,

a messenger from heaven,

because God knows

that these women

will need a heavenly explanation

to make sense

of the empty tomb.

You see,

this angel

is to give all of us

God's perspective

and explanation

for the empty tomb.

Could you imagine

if these women

had heart rate monitors

on them?

The three of them

have a different

heart rate monitor

on them.

As they're approaching

the tomb,

they see this stone

rolled away.

I'm guessing,

amidst their grief,

they're starting now

to get concerned,

and so their heart rate

starts going up.

But when they walk

into the tomb,

they come underneath

the entrance

into the opening,

and they see

a young man

dressed in white,

sitting to the right

of this burial platform.

No body.

I'm guessing,

if we were reading it

on a digital display,

their heart rates

would have gone

through the roof.

What's going on?

They're obviously alarmed,

as you and I would be.

This is a heavenly visitor

with them

in a confined space

of this tomb

where Jesus had been laid,

but His body's not there.

Surprise two.

This angel

has a surprise

explanation.

He's going to explain

to them

what has happened.

He starts by saying,

do not be alarmed

because He

has Heaven's

point of view.

He

knows that this is

all according to plan.

He knows

something that

these three women

haven't yet

fully realized,

and that Jesus

has been true

to His Word.

He says to them,

you seek

Jesus of Nazareth.

They're all talking

about the same person.

This Jesus

of Nazareth

who was crucified.

crucified.

This angel

knows that

these women

just witnessed

three days earlier

the death

of Jesus.

And I'm guessing

all Heaven

had witnessed

the death

of Jesus.

Which makes

one wonder,

how do you think

Heaven responded

when Jesus

breathed

His last

and the curtain

was torn in two

and the centurion

confessed,

truly this man

was the Son of God.

Do you think

that there was

just like

this heavenly

thunderous ovation?

Or do you think

there was just

such silence

around the throne

that this

is what God

has done

to save

sinners?

This angel

knows

that He

was crucified.

And then

He speaks

those three

words that

change everything.

He has

risen.

In the

Greek

it's just

one verb.

To roughly

translate it

into English

you could say

He has

been risen.

The angel

is saying

Jesus didn't

raise Himself

He was raised

by God

the Father.

The divine

Son of God

who

bore the wrath

of God

the Father

on Friday

has now

been raised

by the same

God the Father

on Sunday

morning.

This is

all according

to God's plan.

This is

according to

the Scriptures.

This is

actually

surprising

good news.

These three

words the

angel

is speaking

I'm guessing

if you're one

of these

three ladies

with your

heart rate

kind of

heart in

your chest

you're kind

of like

what?

I'm not

sure if they

totally understood

what's being

said here.

Maybe you've

never thought

about the

implications

of those

three words.

He has

risen.

He's

alive today.

The angel

goes on to

say he's

not here

and sitting

to the right

of this

burial platform

he kind of

gestures and

say see the

place where

they laid

him?

Nothing.

No body.

No corpse.

No Jesus.

Empty.

It's an

empty tomb.

Here we

have an

angel

explaining

the empty

tomb.

Surprise!

He has

risen.

This is a

God-sized

miracle

for the

God-sized

work of

saving

sinners.

It's at the

heart of the

gospel.

It's all

accordance to

the scriptures.

And you

know what?

It either

happened or

it didn't.

He was

either raised

from the

dead or he

wasn't.

He's

either alive

today or

he's been

long dead.

So this is

an angelic

heavenly

explanation for

the empty

tomb.

But there's

more surprises

coming from

the empty

tomb.

In verse

6, this

angel explains

why the

body's not

there.

He is

risen.

In verse

7, he

goes into

some surprise

instruction.

Look at

verse 7.

But go

tell his

disciples and

Peter that

he is going

before you to

Galilee.

There you

will see

him just

as he

told you.

Well, that's

rather surprising.

He has

risen.

Go tell.

What's

historically

interesting about

this and

striking is

that the

first witnesses

to the

empty tomb,

the first

people to

bear testimony,

the first

humans to

bear testimony

that Jesus

has risen

from the

dead are

these women.

It was

historically

remarkable

because back

in that

time, their

testimony would

not have been

considered having

much weight.

this is

extraordinary.

Now, it

even gets

more

extraordinary.

This

angel says,

but go tell

his disciples

and Peter.

Now, I

don't know

about you,

but if I

were Jesus

and had been

abandoned by

all my dudes,

I'd be like,

you're fired.

Done.

I'll go find

some other

Gentile folks

to do this.

but that's

not what's

going on

here.

This

angel seems

to think

that the

risen

Jesus

hasn't

disowned

his

disciples,

but still

claims them

as his

own.

Do you

remember back

in chapter

14,

what Jesus

said to

them?

1427,

and Jesus

said to

them,

while on

the Mount

of Olives

that just

had the

last supper

before

Gethsemane,

you will

all fall

away for

it is

written,

I will

strike the

shepherd,

and the

sheep will

be scattered,

Zechariah

13.

7.

And it

happened.

They had

all abandoned

him.

Despite

their

failures,

Jesus

still claims

them as

his own.

Did you

notice the

angel singles

out Peter?

But go

tell his

disciples and

Peter.

Maybe it's

better understood

if it went

something like

that.

But go

tell his

disciples,

especially

Peter.

Remember

where we

left Peter

at the end

of Mark

14.

Let me

just point

you there.

Mark

Mark 14:72

14,

verse

72.

The

verse

before

Peter,

third

denial,

he makes

it big.

He calls

down a

curse on

himself,

and he

swears,

I do

not know

this man

of whom

you speak.

Cock-a-doodle-doo.

Do you

remember?

Do you

remember?

Peter

breaks down

and weeps

because

Jesus'

words to

him in

30 have

come to

pass.

He has

denied

Jesus three

times

before the

cock crowed

twice.

he's

been

exposed

as the

complete

and utter

failure

that he

is.

So he

breaks down

and weeps.

In the

empty tomb,

this angel

speaks

words

that are

full

of

grace.

Forgiveness.

Restoration.

Regathering.

They would

all see

him again

in Galilee,

including

these women.

They would

all be

with him

and he

would forgive

them and

restore them

and regather

them,

even

recommission

them to

go to the

nations,

proclaiming

that he

is a

crucified

and risen

king.

I just

want to

pause here

for a

second.

This is

surprising.

In the

tomb,

this angel

speaks

words full

of grace.

Anyone

in the

room

come into

this

place

this

morning

thinking

that you

are

somehow

unworthy,

that you've

done something

so awful,

so terrible,

that it

is beyond

God's

grace,

that you've

been

permanently

disqualified

from following

Jesus,

that somehow

because of

something you've

done,

you bear the

black mark

in Jesus'

eyes,

and now you

are at

best second

class in

the family

of God.

Anybody

come in

like that?

That you

don't measure

up?

why would

Jesus want

to bother

with me?

I'm a

mess.

I've

sinned

too much.

From the

bloody cross

and the

empty

tomb

issues

forth

some

really good

news for

you.

God's

grace

is greater

than your

failure.

God's

grace is

greater than

your

failure.

It's a

surprise

in the

surprise.

From the

empty tomb,

this angel

speaks words

full of

grace.

If he can

restore Peter,

he certainly

can restore

me.

He can

certainly

restore you.

God's

grace

is greater

than your

failure.

That's

nothing.

There's

more.

You want

to see

another

surprise?

this angel

says,

there you

will see

him just

as he

told you.

Just as

he told

you.

Wait,

Mr.

Angel,

are you

saying that

Jesus told

his disciples

that he

would see

them in

Galilee after

he's been

raised up?

That's

exactly what

he's saying.

Turn back

to Mark

Mark 14:27

chapter 14

verse 27,

and Jesus

said to

them,

you will

all fall

away for

it is

written,

I will

strike the

shepherd and

the sheep

will be

scattered.

Look at

verse 28.

This is

Jesus

speaking.

But after

I am

raised up,

I will

go before

you to

Galilee.

Do you

know what

this means?

Jesus

knew all

of his

disciples would

abandon him.

and he

factored it

in.

His plan

all along

factored in

their failure

and his

forgiving them

post-resurrection.

Recommissioning

them to

take this

good news

of a God

who became

man and

was crucified

for sins

and raised

victorious

over sin

and death.

to take

that to

the nations.

It's all

according to

plan.

And if

he's able

to factor

in the

failures of

those early

disciples,

he is able

to factor

in our

failures too.

In fact,

our God

specializes

in pouring

out grace

on failures

to accomplish

his glorious

purposes.

Keeps us

humble,

doesn't it?

There's one

more

surprise

and that

is

go tell

his disciples

that he is

going before

you to

Galilee.

Aslan's

on the

move.

He's on

the move.

This empty

tomb is full

of surprises.

One surprise

after another

he is

alive.

He is

restoring

grace.

And he's

on the

move.

Which brings

us to

scene three.

Coming out

of the

tomb.

And they

went out

and fled

from the

tomb for

trembling

in astonishment

had seized

them and

they said

nothing to

anyone for

they were

afraid.

I mean,

seriously,

could you

imagine being

these three

women at

this moment?

They're

expecting to

find his

corpse,

but they

find an

angel

announcing

that he

is risen

and then

they're

like,

go tell

his

disciples

that you

all are

going to

see him

in

Galilee.

Just like

he said,

you're

like,

what?

They went

to the

tomb

mourning

and they

come out

of the

tomb

in

awe.

Something

happened.

all

these

surprises

lying

within

the

empty

tomb.

What's

going on

here in

verse 8?

There's

trembling,

which literally

means shaking,

astonishment,

they're totally

overwhelmed,

they've been

seized by

these feelings,

which means

they're

controlled by

them,

they're

saying

nothing to

anyone,

which means

they're

speechless

in that

last phrase,

for they

were afraid.

What kind

of fear

is this?

Let's

rule out

a couple

things.

Well,

they're

obviously

not

overjoyed,

happy

ladies,

are they?

We can

rule that

out.

But they

didn't

run out

of the

tomb

screaming

in terror,

did they?

What kind

of fear

is this?

We come

across a

similar phrase,

they were

afraid,

in Mark

Mark 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5.

Jesus

has just

released

a man

who has

been ruled

by a

legion of

demons

for who

knows how

long,

and nobody

in that

region could

subdue him.

Word gets

out to the

people in the

surrounding city

and countryside,

they come to

him,

they see

Jesus,

they see

this man

who they

could not

subdue,

sitting next

to Jesus,

clothed in

his right

mind,

and you

know what

their response

was?

They were

afraid.

They

actually begged

Jesus to

leave at

that point.

These three

women,

they come out

of the empty

tomb,

full of

surprises,

he has

risen,

and they

are speechless

in awe.

Because they

are realizing

that what

Jesus has

repeatedly

said about

himself has

come to

pass.

I'll be

raised on

the third

day.

This is not

disbelief,

this is not

unbelief,

this is

speechless,

fear and

trembling awe.

They have

heard,

and have

begun to

believe that

Jesus is

alive.

They went

to the

empty tomb

grieving,

and they

flee the

tomb in

hopeful

awe,

expecting to

see a

risen Jesus

in Galilee.

The empty

tomb is full

of surprises,

isn't it?

It changes

people.

It changes

people.

Jesus is

alive,

he's on

the move,

they will

see him

soon,

just as

he has

said.

What does

this mean

for us?

What's the

point?

The point are

just really

three words.

He has

risen.

Let me say

that,

you respond.

He has

risen.

Which means

Jesus is

alive today.

Today.

Today.

this surprise

announcement of

this angel in

the empty

tomb, it

speaks of a

reality that

changes everything,

and it changes

everything for

all who believe

it.

Do you

believe that

Jesus has

been risen

from the

dead?

Do you

believe that

Jesus is

alive today?

These three

little words

change

everything.

He has

risen.

It's a

surprising

fulfillment.

This is

according to

the scriptures

of Psalm

16 and

Isaiah 53

again,

verse 10.

His day

shall be

prolonged.

It's all in

accordance with

the scriptures,

but not just

Old Testament

scriptures.

This is

fulfilling of

what Jesus

himself has

said five

times in

Mark.

He said

he'd be

raised from

the dead.

Do you

know anybody

like that?

Not only

know you're

going to

die,

when you're

going to

die,

but then

you're

going to

be raised

and then

it happens.

Who is

this guy?

If all

this is

true,

if he died

for our

sins and

was raised

from the

dead and

he's alive

today,

if that's

true,

then Jesus

is unlike

anyone else

in existence.

not just

surprising

fulfillment,

but surprising

grace.

I mean,

restorative

grace.

These words

full of grace

come out of

the tomb.

Isn't that

good news

for us?

I needed

to hear

that.

If Jesus

can restore

Peter,

he can

restore you

and me.

This is a

surprising

claim.

he has

risen.

It's a

surprising

claim.

People don't

rise from

the dead.

This is a

God-sized

miracle.

And all

of Christianity

falls or

rises on

these three

words.

He has

risen.

He's either

alive today

or he's

long dead.

We're given

a surprising

glimpse that

Jesus is

on the

move.

Aslan

is on

the move.

Today,

he's at

work all

around this

globe calling

a people from

every tribe,

tongue,

and nation to

himself because

he's been

given a

dominion,

a kingdom,

everlasting

and indestructible

because he is

the son of

man.

Surprising

glimpse.

His

resurrection

defeated sin.

His

resurrection

defeated death.

His

resurrection

defeated the

devil.

And if you

believe in

him, you

are brought

into that

victory over

sin, death,

and the devil

too.

His bloody

cross and

his empty

tomb are

good news.

Behold your

risen king.

risen.

How do we

respond?

These three

words, he

has risen,

which means

for us he's

alive today.

How do you

respond to

that?

Well, if you're

not a Christian

in the room,

you've got to

come to terms

with these

words.

They're either

true or

they're not.

Jesus is either

presently alive

or he's

long dead.

All of

Christianity

rises or

falls on

it.

If he

wasn't raised

from the

dead, don't

waste your

time with

Christianity.

But if he's

been raised

from the

dead, his

claims of

being the

Christ, his

claims of

being the

Son of

Man and

the Son

of God,

the great

I Am,

man, that

means he's

the king

of all.

God's

only way

of salvation,

the way to

respond to

that is

Romans 10

9.

If we

confess with

our mouth

that Jesus

is Lord,

King, and

believe in

our hearts

that God

raised him

from the

dead, you

will be

saved, you'll

be rescued,

you'll be

brought into

the kingdom,

and the way

that we

respond to

this great

news is

confessing

him and

then denying

ourselves,

taking up

our cross,

and following

him for

the rest of

our lives.

There's a

group of

people in

the room

that I'm

concerned

about that

I just

want to

say, let

me help

you think

this through

a little

bit.

If you've

grown up

in the

church, and

you've heard

this good

news over

and over

again, do

you know

when it's

possible to

respond to

it?

It's

possible to

respond this

way.

Yeah, I

believe that's

true, but

you never

actually

commit to

following

Jesus.

You think,

yeah, I

agree with

that, but

you're still

living for

yourself.

According to

the New

Testament,

those who

confess Jesus

as their

king, then

deny

themselves, take

up their

cross and

follow him.

They commit

to him.

if you're

not a

Christian, or

you think

you're a

Christian, but

you're not,

you need to

decide whether

or not the

resurrection

actually happened,

is it true or

not, and

then you need

to decide,

will I

commit to

following

Jesus?

For those

of us who

are Christians,

isn't this

just wonderful

to hear?

Our king's

alive.

Our Aslan,

the Lion of

Judah, is

alive.

It's easy

to forget.

It's easy

to fall

asleep,

to drift,

to lose

sight of

what matters

most.

In those

three words,

he has

risen.

They're

like smelling

salts to

our souls.

They wake

us up.

They help

us to

not just

stay awake,

but stay

awake looking

for our

king,

anticipating

his return.

Jesus went

to the

tomb dead

and came

out of the

tomb alive

so that we

would be

wholehearted

followers of

him.

To

treasure

Jesus above

all else.

To

obey him

in all

that he

commands.

To

magnify him

among all

people.

We no longer

make a name

for ourselves,

nor do we

seek to

protect our

reputations

when it

comes to

him.

We magnify

him.

We speak

of our

crucified and

risen king,

and we

belong to

him with

all who

treasure him.

He is

forming a

new family

of faith

and we

are bound

together by

a love

that is

born of

the spirit.

Blood

bought,

blood bound,

spirit

empowered love

for one another

in the family.

We belong to

one another

regardless

of our

backgrounds,

regardless of

skin color,

regardless of

salary rates,

education,

you name it.

We belong

to him with

all who

treasure him.

We're the

new family

of faith

doing his

will.

Jesus went

to the tomb

and came out

so that we

would treasure,

obey,

magnify,

and belong

to him.

Because he's

our one

consuming

passion.

He's our

all governing

reality.

and we

stay awake.

In the

Lion,

the Witch,

and the

Wardrobe,

after Aslan

comes back

to life,

he travels

throughout

Narnia

breathing his

life-giving

breath on

all his

own that

were turned

to stone

by the

White Witch.

He gives

them life,

gathers

them together,

and together

they follow

Aslan.

There's no

one like

Jesus.

The Gospel

of Mark,

over and

over again,

there's no

one like

him.

He's the

Christ,

the Son

of Man,

the Son

of God,

the incarnate

I Am,

crucified and

raised.

Jesus is

alive today.

Do you

know how

we respond?

Deny

ourselves,

take up

our cross,

follow him,

and together

follow Jesus.

Christ the

King Church,

as we head

into Christmas

season,

behold your

King,

rejected,

crucified,

and raised.

He is alive.

Let's pray.

God in

heaven,

Lord Jesus,

we know

you're hearing

us now.

Thank you

for what you've

done for us,

for both in

your death

and resurrection.

Lord Jesus,

would you be

about your

work and

would you

graciously

allow us

to be a

part of

what you

are doing

for your

namesake?

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.