John Ch19v38-Ch20v18 - I Have Seen The Lord!

Good morning, everybody. It's nice to see you today. I invite you to get a Bible. If you haven't

! got a Bible, you can get one as you came in, or you can just listen. That's okay, too. But we're going to be looking at John's Gospel. I think if you're using one of the red covered Bibles or blue, it's on page 1088.

1,088. John is one of the four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. And we're going to read in just a moment. So if you could have your Bibles open, John chapter 19 on page 1088.

John 19 · chapter mention

Thanks to Ralph for leading this morning and reminding us that today, Easter Sunday, is when we celebrate the bodily resurrection of Jesus.

Now, that's good news, because it's not just the experience of Jesus. The Bible tells us that if we trust in the resurrection of Jesus, if we trust in him, too, we, too, can be raised from the dead to enjoy eternal life in God's eternal kingdom.

So we're going to read this morning, the account of the resurrection, and then we're going to think together about what its message is to us today.

So John 19, starting at verse 38, this is a record, an account of the burial and resurrection of Jesus.

So starting at verse 38.

Later, so this is after the crucifixion of Jesus, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus.

Now, Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders.

With Pilate's permission, he came and took the body away.

He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night.

Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about 35 kilograms.

Taking Jesus' body, the two of them wrapped it with the spices in strips of linen.

This was in accordance with the Jewish burial customs.

At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden.

And in the garden was a new tomb which no one had ever been laid.

Because it was the Jewish day of preparation, and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

So early on the first day of the week, so Jesus was crucified on the Friday, it is now Sunday.

So 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.

So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved.

That's John, the actual author of the gospel.

So two disciples, Simon Peter and John.

And said, they have taken the Lord out of the tomb.

And we don't know where they have put him.

So Peter and the other disciple started for the tomb.

Both were running.

But the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first.

He bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there, but did not go in.

Then Simon Peter came along behind him and went straight into the tomb.

He saw the strips of linen lying there, as well as the cloth that had been wrapped around Jesus' head.

The cloth was still lying in its place, separate from the linen strips.

Finally, the other disciple who had reached the tomb first also went inside.

He saw and believed.

But still, they didn't understand from scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.

Then the disciples went back to where they were staying.

Now Mary stood outside the tomb crying.

As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb.

And saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus' body had been.

One at the head and the other at the foot.

They asked her,

Woman, why are you crying?

They've taken my Lord away, she said.

And I don't know where they've put him.

At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there.

But she didn't realize that it was Jesus.

He asked her,

Woman, why are you crying?

Who is it that you're looking for?

Thinking it was the gardener, she said,

Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him and I will get him.

Jesus said to her,

Mary.

She turned towards him and cried out in Aramaic, a local language,

Rabboni, which means teacher.

Jesus said,

Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father.

Go instead to my brothers and tell them,

I am ascending to my Father and your Father,

to my God and your God.

Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news.

I have seen the Lord.

And she told them that he had said these things to her.

Now, before we think about what this story, this account has to say to us today,

I'm just going to pray a short prayer for us.

Let's pray.

Our Father,

will you please open the eyes of our heart

that we might see the risen Jesus

and understand

what that means for us today.

Amen.

I wonder if you notice that something happened to Mary.

At the beginning of the account,

Mary arrived at the tomb

and is looking for a dead Jesus.

But at the end of the account that we read,

Mary claims to have seen the risen Jesus.

So the question is,

what happened to Mary

to believe that Jesus had risen from the dead?

What caused her to believe in the resurrection?

Well, to help us answer that question,

we're going to look at three things this morning.

We're going to think about the missing body,

then we're going to look at the credible witnesses,

and then we're going to look at a changed life.

So the missing body,

credible witness,

and a changed life.

So first, let's think about

this missing body.

Mary arrives at the tomb

where Jesus had been placed.

People were buried,

usually in a hole

where they had cut into the rock,

and a large big stone

would have been put in front

of the entrance.

And Mary has arrived there.

But something is drastically wrong.

Verse 1 of chapter 20

tells us that

not only has this big,

big stone been removed,

there's no body.

So verse 2,

she came running to Simon Peter

and the other disciple,

the one Jesus loved,

and said,

they've taken the Lord

out of the tomb

and we don't know

where they've put him.

Her conclusion

is simply

that the body of Jesus

has either been taken

or been stolen.

Someone

has moved

the body.

Now notice,

Mary doesn't think

to herself

as she arrives

at the tomb,

oh,

it's the resurrection.

It's happened.

Jesus is alive.

And she doesn't go

running to the disciples

to tell them,

hey guys,

Jesus is alive.

He's been raised

from the dead.

No,

the only conclusion

Mary comes to is

someone

has either

stolen the body

of Jesus

or taken it away.

There's no suggestion

from Mary at all

that a resurrection

has taken place.

So what happened

to Jesus?

What happened

to the body?

Now I think

that's a question

we all need

to think about

this morning.

Whether we've thought

about it before

or we just dismiss

it out of hand.

what happened

the body

of Jesus?

There was a tomb

and there was

a body in it

but now

there's the tomb

and it's empty.

What

happened?

Well,

the writers

of the gospel,

Matthew,

Mark,

Luke and John,

the primary sources

that we have

for this resurrection,

all claim

that it was

a physical

resurrection,

that Jesus'

resurrection

was a bodily

resurrection,

that he physically

walked out

of the tomb.

Now I don't know

what you think

about that

but not everybody

believes that.

There are many

scholars today

that believe

the gospel writers

have got it

all wrong,

that it's just

made up,

that it's not

true.

At best

they'll say

it's just

an invented

story

that gathered

legs

and it's been

rumoured

ever since.

So there's

one scholar

by the name

of Bart

Ehrman,

he's a

New Testament

scholar

and he

explained

the resurrection

like this.

He said

some of them

referring to

the disciples

began to

say

that God

had intervened

and brought

Jesus back

from the dead.

The story

caught on

and some of

his closest

followers

came to

think that

in fact

he had

been raised.

So somebody

started a rumour

and the rumour

has been spreading

ever since

all these

years later.

What do you

think of that?

Either Jesus

was raised

or he

wasn't.

it's just

a made

up story.

So who's

right?

Well we

want to

listen to

the witnesses

of the

resurrection.

The

credible

witnesses

and that's

what the

gospels

do.

They

provide us

with

credible

witnesses.

There's

at least

three reasons

from this

account that

we have

here that

tells us

why we

can believe

that Jesus

was actually

physically

raised from

the dead.

Let's look

at the

three

different

evidences

that we

have.

First

there's

John

and the

strips

of linen.

So some

people will

claim

the body

was stolen.

Thieves

came along

pushed back

the great

big stone

and they

stole the

body

or

that the

disciples

came along

and they

took the

body so

it looked

like a

resurrection.

But look

at what

John sees

when he

arrives at

the tomb.

We find

out in

verse 5.

He bent

over and

looked in

at the

strips of

linen lying

there but

didn't go

in.

Now what

does this

tell us that

there's

strips of

linen lying

there?

Well we've

just said

that somebody

may have

stolen the

body because

grave robbing

or tomb

raiding were

quite common

at that

particular

time.

The linen

strips that

were wrapped

around the

body with

all those

spices,

well they

were worth

a lot of

money.

So if you

were robbing

a grave

you would

take the

strips of

linen and

you would

leave the

body behind.

But in

this account

it's completely

reversed and

flipped.

It's the

other way

around.

The strips

are left

the most

expensive

items and

the body

is gone.

It doesn't

make sense.

Why would

you take

a corpse

and leave

the most

expensive items

if you

were robbing

a grave?

You see

the suggestion

is that

no one

stole the

body but

that Jesus

was actually

raised.

So there's

John and

the strips

of linen.

Then there's

the other

disciple Peter

and the

burial cloth.

Verse 6

Then Simon

Peter came

along behind

him, behind

John, and

went straight

into the

tomb.

And he

saw the

strips of

linen lying

there too,

as well as

the cloth

that had been

wrapped around

Jesus'

head.

The cloth

was still

lying in

its place

separate

from the

linen.

So there

we can

imagine

Peter

running

into the

tomb

and there

he sees

these

strips of

linen lying

where the

body was

and also

the cloth

that was

wrapped around

Jesus'

head and

he says

in great

detail

it was

lying in

its place

separate

from the

linen.

Now why

this intricate

detail?

Well it

seems that

the way

the strips

of linen

are lying

and the

way the

cloth

for the

head has

been placed

are all

suggesting

that it

contained a

body but

now there

is no

body.

In other

words there

was a

body that

was wrapped

up by

these strips

and by

this cloth

around the

head but

now those

strips of

linen are

empty.

You see

no one

moved the

body.

Jesus

was raised.

So we

have John

and the

strips of

linen,

Peter who

goes into

the tomb

and sees

the cloth

around

Jesus'

head and

then the

third piece

of evidence

is Mary

herself who

sees the

risen Jesus.

John introduces

us to

Mary Magdalene

who is the

key witness

in this

account and

she claims

that she

has seen

the risen

Jesus.

In verse

18 it

tells us

Mary Magdalene

went to the

disciples with

the news,

I have seen

the Lord.

Now the

only problem

with that

is in the

first century

a woman's

evidence was

not counted.

One writer

explains it

like this,

women were

thought by

educated men

to be

gullible in

religious matters

and especially

prone to

superstitious

fantasy and

excessive

religious practices.

That was how

people

considered

the evidence

or the

account of

a woman.

They would

never give

evidence in

court,

it just

wasn't

accepted.

It would

work against

you.

So why

on earth

if you

were making

up a

story about

a resurrection

why would

you have

a woman

as the

first

eyewitness

account?

It wouldn't

help your

case at

all.

So the

only plausible

reason for

including Mary's

testimony is

because she

actually was

the first

person to

have seen

the risen

Jesus.

And that's

why John

records it.

Now I

wonder what

you think

about that

evidence,

what John

saw, what

Peter saw,

what Mary

saw.

Well I

never met

my grandfather

on my

mother's side.

he had

died eight

years before

I was

born.

I've never

met him

but I

have every

reason to

believe he

is a real

person.

I don't

have film

footage,

there's no

voice recordings,

there's no

Facebook account

or Instagram

account that he

was on.

I just have

the eyewitness

accounts of

my mother

and my

father who

have told

me stories

about him.

And I

have a

newspaper

article about

an award he

won for his

garden.

So although

I've never

seen Francis

Walton

Edwards,

I look at

all the

evidence and

I come to

the conclusion

that yes,

it's true.

And John,

the author

of the

gospel,

is providing

us with

evidence,

not that

Jesus was

just a

real person

who lived

way back

in history,

but he's

giving us

eyewitness

accounts so

that we can

believe in

the historical

bodily

resurrection of

Jesus.

It's something

factual,

something

historical.

In fact,

John himself

believed the

evidence.

Did you see

that in

verse 8?

After Peter

had gone

into the

tomb,

the other

disciple who

had reached

the tomb

first also

went inside.

He saw

and

believed.

But,

verse 9,

they still

did not

understand from

scripture that

Jesus had to

rise from

the dead.

Yes,

they'd come

to believe.

Yes,

they weigh

up the

evidence.

Jesus has

been raised.

But what

does it all

mean?

You might

say,

well,

so what?

He was

raised from

the dead.

What does

that mean

for you

and for

me?

Well,

let's follow

Mary's

encounter

with the

risen Jesus

and we

will see

that this

missing

body,

where we

now have

credible

evidence

for a

resurrection

changes

people's

lives.

Look at

the life

changing

impact the

resurrection

had on

Mary.

We're going

to consider

five things

about the

account of

Mary that

impact and

affect us

as well.

First,

notice the

despairing

loss of

Mary.

In verse

11,

we're told

that Mary

stood outside

the tomb

crying.

As she

wept,

she bent

over to

look into

the tomb

and she

saw two

angels in

white seated

where Jesus'

body had

been,

one at

the head

and the

other at

the foot.

They asked

her,

woman,

why are

you crying?

Now,

doesn't that

sound very

insensitive

and very

unloving?

If you

saw somebody

in a

cemetery

crying,

you don't

need to

ask them,

why are

you crying?

We know

the reason

why they're

crying.

Because for

most of us,

we've been

there too.

Death

hurts.

Death

robs us

of our

loved ones

and death

steals away

our joy.

Mary is

struggling

with a

despairing

loss.

Her

close

friend

Jesus

is

gone.

He's

dead.

And to

add to

her grief,

there's

no body.

There's

nowhere to

come.

You see,

death

confronts us

all with

this agonizing

grief.

And there

is nothing

we can do

to stop

it.

Death

comes

to us

all.

And like

it was for

Mary,

death

can leave

us

with a

deep

despairing

loss.

Maybe

that's what

you've

experienced

as you've

watched a

loved one

go.

The

aching,

heartbreaking

agony

of a

deep

despairing

loss.

loss.

But not

only was

there

despairing

loss

for

Mary,

there

was a

spiritual

blindness.

In

verse 14,

as she's

asked about

what

happened,

she says,

why have

they taken

the Lord

away?

She says,

I don't

know where

they've

put him.

At

this,

Mary

turned

around

and saw

Jesus

standing

there,

but she

didn't

realize

that it

was

Jesus.

Now,

Mary

isn't

blind,

and she's

not stupid

either.

She sees

Jesus,

but she

doesn't

actually

realize

it's

Jesus.

In

fact,

verse 15

tells us

she thinks

Jesus is

the gardener,

the one

who looks

after the

area.

She

sees,

but she

doesn't

actually

see.

Yes,

she sees

the empty

tomb,

and she

sees the

strips of

cloth,

but Mary

can't

see what

it all

means.

She's

got

spiritual

blindness

to the

resurrected

Jesus.

She's

stuck in

despairing

loss.

She has

no hope,

and she

has no

joy.

She's

blind

to what

has

happened.

Now,

that can

be true

for lots

of people.

we can

know

information

about

Jesus,

we can

learn about

things he

did and

things he

said,

but we

are

spiritually

blind to

what the

resurrection

actually

means.

So,

despairing

loss,

spiritual

blindness,

and the

third thing

we learn

from Mary

is about

God's

gracious

revelation.

Look at

verse 16.

Jesus

said to

her,

Mary,

she

turned

towards him

and cried

out in

Aramaic,

Rabboni,

which means

teacher.

Now,

there's two

ways for us

to think

about how

Mary

recognized

Jesus.

First,

you could

think,

well,

it must

have been

the way

that Jesus

said Mary.

It was

that kind

of accent

that Jesus

had,

and it

was just

the way

he said

it.

Mary,

Mary,

for whatever

way he said

it,

it was just

something he

said that

Mary goes,

oh,

it's Jesus.

That's one

possible way

of thinking

about it.

But there's

another way

to think

about it,

and I

think this

is what

John wants

us to

grasp.

When Jesus

says Mary,

however he

said it,

it was a

personal call

of the

risen Jesus.

In other

words,

it was his

gracious

intervention

in her

life that

opens her

spiritual eyes

that reveals

Jesus

to Mary.

you see,

all of us

are born

blind

to who

Jesus

is.

As we've

said,

we can

know

information

about him,

but that's

the extent

as it

goes.

And unless

Jesus

opens up

our spiritual

eyes,

or the

eyes of

our hearts,

we will

never truly

understand

who

Jesus

is.

We must

have a

personal

encounter

with the

risen Jesus.

I'm not

saying a

face-to-face

one-on-one

with the

physical

Jesus

right here

and now,

but that

our eyes

would be

open,

the eyes

of our

heart,

to spiritually

see and

know who

he is.

And that's

what's

happening

now.

Through

this

written

and recorded

eyewitness

account of

the

resurrection,

the risen

Jesus,

through his

word,

today in

2026,

is calling

us by

name.

Johnny,

listen to

me.

Trust

me.

Know

who I

am.

Now,

if you

have never

ever had

an encounter

with the

risen Jesus,

I

encourage you

to ask

him to

open up

your

spiritual

blind

eyes,

open up

the eyes

of my

heart,

so that

I might

see and

understand

who Jesus

is.

So,

despairing

loss,

spiritual

blindness,

joyful

intimacy.

You see,

once Mary

can truly

see,

she

hugs

Jesus

with all

of her

might.

She

wants to

be with

him and

never leave

him.

Do you

see that

in verse

17?

Jesus

said,

do not

hold

on to

me,

for I

have not

yet

ascended

to the

Father.

Mary,

understandably,

wants Jesus

to say,

she doesn't

want him

to leave,

she wants

to be

with him

forever,

but Jesus

interrupts

her and

says,

Mary,

don't hold

on to

me,

because I

must

ascend to

the

Father.

Why

does

Jesus

have to

go to

the

Father?

Well,

when Jesus

goes to

be with

the

Father,

he's

going to

send the

Spirit to

his people.

Go back

with me to

John chapter

John 14 · chapter mention

14.

Just a few

pages back,

John chapter

John 14 · chapter mention

14.

And

verse

15.

John

John 14:15

chapter

14,

verse 15.

Jesus

is speaking

to the

disciples.

this is

before he

has been

crucified

and buried

and he's

teaching them

and he

says,

if you

love me,

keep my

commands.

And I

will ask

the Father

and he

will give

you another

advocate to

help you

and be

with you

forever,

the

Spirit of

Truth.

truth.

Well,

who's the

Spirit of

Truth?

Well,

let's go

back down

to verse

23.

Jesus

replied,

anyone who

loves me

will obey

my teaching.

My

Father will

love them

and we,

that's

Jesus and

the Father,

will come

to them

and make

our home

with them.

Isn't that

incredible?

Let's go

back to

chapter 20.

Jesus is

saying,

the Spirit

will be

sent by

the Father

and the

Son so

that we

might have

fellowship

with the

Father and

the Son.

By the

Spirit,

if we are

trusting in

him,

we can

enjoy the

love of the

Father and

the love

of the

Son.

There will

never be a

moment where

we will be

without him.

They will

make their

home in

us.

You see,

when Mary

was hugging

Jesus,

she had

him for

that moment

in time.

But Jesus

could go and

walk anywhere

and then

he wouldn't

actually be

with Mary.

But because

he goes to

the Father,

he sends

the Spirit,

the Spirit

of the

Father and

the Son,

so that

they could

be with

Mary forever.

Look at

the end of

verse 17.

Jesus says

to Mary,

go instead

to my

brothers and

tell them,

I am

ascending to

my Father

and your

Father,

to my

God

and your

God.

God

the

relationship

that Jesus

has with

God the

Father

can also

be our

relationship.

God is no

longer some

distant,

absent being

away out

there,

but through

and by the

resurrection,

he is present

with us,

giving joy

and hope

and life.

You see,

when our

spiritual eyes

are opened,

when the

risen Jesus

graciously

reveals himself

to us,

we enter

into an

unending,

unbreakable,

joyful intimacy

with the

Father and

the Son.

So a

joyful

intimacy

leads

finally

to a

new

purpose

in our

life,

a new

purpose

for our

life.

Mary's

life has

been

transformed.

There's

literally a

joyful step

in her

run.

Verse

18,

Mary Magdalene

went to the

disciples with

the news,

I have

seen

the Lord.

And what

good news

it was,

before she

was weeping,

she was

crying,

she was

in a

state of

deep

despairing

loss,

confronted

with this

death,

there was

no hope,

but now

she's seen

the risen

Lord.

There is

confident

hope.

Jesus,

who died

on the

cross on

the Friday,

was buried

and is

raised to

life,

is now

with us

forevermore

as we

place our

trust

in him.

By his

resurrection,

Jesus

has crushed

death to

death,

he has

destroyed

the grave,

defeated

our enemy,

the sting

is removed

and despair

is gone.

He comes

to us

to offer

us life

in all

its

fullness.

us.

Now,

of course,

none of

this is

saying

that that

means now

death is

easy.

No,

there's a

sense in

which Mary

was right

to grieve

because death

breaks what

is special

and it

ruins what

is good.

Death will

always be a

painful curse.

Yet we

know that in

our suffering

we have

the Spirit

of God,

the Father

and the

Son living

within us

to bring

us and

embrace us

with their

love and

comfort

every moment

of every

day.

and I

want to

underline

that today.

If any

of you

are

suffering

and

struggling

because you

have lost

someone close

to you,

know this,

that the

Father and

the Son

by the

Spirit

can make

their home

in you

and they

will embrace

you with

their love

and comfort

you as

we trust

in him.

And so

we can go

with a

new purpose.

Like Mary

we can tell

the good news

that Jesus

is risen.

He's alive

and he

can radically

change

your life.

You see

our hope

is not in

the stuff

of fantasy.

What we're

reading here

in this

gospel account

isn't just

made up

nonsense.

Our hope

is in the

bodily

resurrection

of Jesus.

Almost

2,000 years

ago

he died

on a cross,

he was

buried

and he

was raised.

And the

ones who

trust in

him

will one

day hear

the voice

of the

risen Jesus

and we

will be

raised

to eternal

life

in his

eternal

kingdom

forever

forever

and forever

without

end.

I hope

that each

one of us

can go

joyfully

this morning

not in

despairing

loss

but filled

with hope

and say

I too

have seen

the Lord.

Let's pray

together.

Father God

help us

if we

have any

doubts

or any

concerns

or any

struggles

as to

the

reliability

of the

resurrection

that you

would indeed

open our

eyes

the eyes

of our

heart

that we

might see

and

experience

the risen

Jesus

in our

life.

Help us

to go

with

assurance

that Jesus

is indeed

risen

and has

come to

live with

all who

will trust

him

now

and

forever.

Thank you

for this

account

and thank

you for

Jesus.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.