Death Defeated in the Garden Luke 23:50-24:12

So it's Luke 23 verse 50 and that's page 1060 in the Church Bibles.

Luke 23:50

Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the council, a good and upright man,

who had not consented to their decision and action.

He came from the Judean town of Arimathea and he himself was waiting for the kingdom of God.

Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body.

Then he took it down, wrapped it in a linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock,

one in which no one had yet been laid.

It was preparation day and the Sabbath was about to begin.

The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph

and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it.

Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes,

but they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning,

the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb.

They found the stone rolled away from the tomb,

but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

While they were wondering about this,

suddenly two men in cloths that gleamed like lightning stood beside them.

In their fight, the women bowed down with their faces to the ground,

but the men said to them,

Why do you look for the living among the dead?

He is not here, he is risen.

Remember how he told you while he was still with you in Galilee,

The Son of Man must be delivered over to the hands of sinners,

be crucified, and then on the third day be raised again.

Then they remembered his words.

When they came back from the tomb,

they told all these things to the eleven and to all the others.

It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James,

and the others with them who told this to the apostles.

But they did not believe the women

because their words seemed to them like nonsense.

Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb.

Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves,

and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.

Thank you, Avin.

Well, we've been following the journey of Jesus

during his last week before his death and resurrection.

And this morning we come to this

incredible, amazing scene

at the empty tomb.

Let's pray and ask for God's help as we look at it together.

Amen.

May the risen Lord Jesus in all his power and greatness

be present with us now by his Spirit

and be at work in our lives,

reminding us afresh

of the truth and the reality that Jesus is alive.

Help us to be convinced where we doubt.

Help us to trust in the face of skepticism.

Help us to believe.

And may our lives be changed

by what you have done.

We ask this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.

Well, this past week,

Kirsty and I took a trip down memory lane.

We went to Waterford,

the city where I grew up.

And one of the places that we went to visit

was my old secondary school.

There were some funny memories,

as I pointed out,

different places.

Like the time Mr Lawler,

our e-teacher,

got hit in the head with an apple.

There was also a sad memory.

As we walked into the main court area,

which was a grassy area,

there was a tree.

It was now significantly bigger

than what I remember.

And at the base of the tree

was a small memorial plaque.

I remember my friend Richard very well.

We went through primary school.

We started the same secondary school together.

He was good fun.

He was great at sport.

He was in our circle of friends.

But following a tragic accident

in third year,

Richard died.

Death is never easy, is it?

Whatever age it confronts us.

It takes from us those we love

and those we care for the most.

It robs our joy

and it steals our happiness.

It leaves within us

this aching void

that no one and nothing seems to fill.

It shatters dreams

and it destroys our hopes.

And in that moment of agony,

we long for someone

to come along

and speak these words to us.

The words that are written

in chapter 24,

end of verse 5.

Why do you look

for the living among the dead?

He is not here.

He is risen.

We long

that death is not the end.

Well, as we think about

the resurrection of Jesus

as we celebrate

on this Easter Sunday,

I want us to see

that these words

are not just for the women

who came looking for Jesus.

These words were written

for you and for me.

Why do you look

for the living among the dead?

He is not here.

He has risen.

Risen.

You see,

sooner or later,

we will all face death.

And if we live long enough,

we will watch our friends

or perhaps even our loved ones die.

So we need to be

absolutely sure

that the resurrection of Jesus

is not some

April Fool's hoax,

but is true,

is reliable,

is dependable,

is this rock-solid,

unshakable foundation

on which we put

all our trust.

So first,

we want to examine

the evidence together.

For so many people,

the resurrection of Jesus

is just completely untrue.

It's just a myth.

It's an invention

of the church.

We can't trust it.

Well, for those who doubt

and remain skeptical,

look at the first eyewitnesses

of the resurrection.

The first people

to come to the tomb

were told in Luke's account

were women.

Chapter 24, verse 10

tells us their names.

It was Mary Magdalene,

Joanna,

Mary the mother of James,

and the others.

The others are other women

who were with them.

These women

had witnessed

the death of Jesus.

If you go back

to chapter 23,

verse 46,

it's talking there

of Jesus'

final words.

Jesus called out

with a loud voice

from the cross,

Father,

into your hands

I commit my spirit.

When he had said this,

he breathed his last.

verse 49,

all those who knew him,

including the women

who had followed him

from Galilee,

stood at a distance

watching these things.

These women

watched

Jesus

nailed,

beaten,

hung,

executed,

die

on the cross.

These same women

also witnessed

his burial.

If you look down

at verse 55,

chapter 23,

the women

who had come

with Jesus

from Galilee

followed Joseph

and saw

the tomb

and how his body

was laid in it.

They saw

his burial.

They saw

Joseph

lay the body

of Jesus

in the tomb.

And it's

the same women

who witnessed

the resurrection.

When they went

to the tomb,

chapter 24,

verse 2,

they found

the stone

rolled away

from the tomb

but when they

entered,

they did not

find the body

of the Lord

Jesus.

The tomb

was

empty.

It's

not that

the body

was just

missing.

There was

no body

to be found.

Now,

witnessing

the death,

the burial

and resurrection

of Jesus

might seem

a credible

witness to us

but we must

remember that

in the first

century,

this would

have been

laughed out

of court.

The testimony

of women

were simply

not counted.

Their social

standing meant

their testimony

was not

admissible

evidence in

court.

Women were

just considered

hysterical.

they couldn't

be trusted.

In other

words,

if you were

writing this

account and

you wanted

to prove

the fact

of the

resurrection,

you would

never use

the witness

or testimony

of women

because that

would undermine

your evidence.

Writers of

this time

in the first

second century

never used

women as

their testimony

for their

case.

It just

didn't

happen.

So why

on earth

would Luke

writing

do that?

Well the

only reason

Luke would

tell the

resurrection

account like

this is

because what

the women

saw was

true.

This is a

true account.

If it was

all made up

and he wanted

to convince

us, he

would have

used men

as the

witnesses.

But here

we have

the first

witnesses

being the

women.

They see

the death,

the burial

and resurrection

of Jesus.

Now some

will go,

okay, come

on.

Because

everybody

believed in

the resurrection

and because

they knew

Jesus was

going to

die and

three days

later he

would rise

again,

they had

to meet

people's

expectations.

So they

just simply

created

evidence.

And they

invented the

whole account.

But the

fact is,

as we'll

see later

on again,

the women

and the

rest of

the disciples

had no

expectation

whatsoever.

In their

belief system,

yes, they

had this

understanding

there would

be a

resurrection

at the

very end

of time,

but a

physical

resurrection

of somebody,

a bodily

resurrection

of somebody

in the

middle,

that was

just not

in their

thinking.

You see,

why would

the women,

24 verse

1,

come to

the tomb

with their

spices and

perfumes if

they thought

Jesus might

rise?

Or look at

the response

of the

disciples down

in verse

11.

They did

not believe

the women

because their

words seemed

to them like

nonsense.

It doesn't

sound like the

response of

those who

expected a

resurrection.

to them

it was

a

nonsense

in their

minds.

It's an

impossibility.

No one

believed in

a physical

bodily

resurrection

in the

middle of

history.

It just

wasn't in

their

thinking.

You see,

these women

and the

disciples

are not

unlike most

people today.

They're

sceptical.

But when

confronted with

the evidence

they came

to believe.

Now I

don't know

all of

your stories.

You might

think that

the resurrection

is just a

nice story.

But really

deep down

you can't

really trust

it or

believe it.

But if we

take time to

look at these

eyewitness

accounts,

it will help

us see that

the words that

were spoken by

the angels to

these women

are words that

are also spoken

to you and

I today.

Why do you

look for the

living among

the dead?

He is not

here.

He has

risen.

So first

we examine

the evidence.

The second

thing, we

need to

remember

his words.

Look, the

women who

came to the

grave of

Jesus were

met by

two angels.

We read

about them

in verse

four.

While they

were wondering

about this

as they

were thinking

about the

empty tomb,

suddenly two

men in

clothes that

gleamed like

lightning stood

beside them.

Now listen

to what the

angel said,

verse six.

He is not

here, he

has risen.

Remember,

remember how

he told

you while

he was

still with

you in

Galilee.

The son

of man

must be

delivered over

to the

hands of

sinners, be

crucified, and

on the third

day be

raised again.

You might

remember that

when Jesus

was in

Galilee, these

were the

words that

he spoke to

his disciples

to tell them

what would

happen.

happen.

Just have

a look back

with me to

chapter 18

verse 31.

Chapter 18

verse 31.

This is the

third occasion

that he told

them what was

going to

happen.

Chapter 18

verse 31.

Jesus took

the twelve

aside and told

them, we are

going up to

Jerusalem.

Jerusalem.

And everything

that is written

by the

prophets, that

is in the

scriptures about

the son of

man, that

Jesus will be

fulfilled.

He will be

handed over to

the Gentiles.

They will

mock him, insult

him, and spit

on him.

They will flog

him and kill

him.

And on the

third day he

will rise

again.

Jesus has

made it

crystal clear

to them what

is going to

happen.

I don't

want you to

be in any

doubt.

When we

arrive in

Jerusalem, I

am going to

die, but

three days

later I am

going to

rise again.

But to

help these

disciples see

that they

could trust

his words,

Jesus does

something

remarkable.

Two

extraordinary

events follow

this

prediction.

Look at

chapter 19.

They are

making their

way to

Jerusalem from

Galilee, where

Jesus is going

to die.

And in

chapter 19,

verse 30,

we read

these words.

He says to

the disciples,

go to the

village ahead

of you, and

as you enter

it, you will

find a cult

tied there which

no one has

ever ridden.

Untie it and

bring it here.

If anyone asks

you why you

untying it, say

the Lord

needs it.

Now look what

happens, verse

32.

Those who were

sent ahead went

and found it

just as he

had told

them.

He told

them what was

going to

happen, and

it did

happen.

Now look at

chapter 22.

It's now

four days

later from

that event in

chapter 19, and

it's the day

before Jesus'

death.

We pick it

up in

verse 8.

Jesus sent

Peter and

John saying,

go and make

preparations for

us to eat the

Passover.

Where do you

want us to

prepare for it,

they asked.

He replied,

as you enter

the city, a

man carrying a

jar of water

will meet

you, follow

him to the

house that

he enters,

and say to

the owner of

the house,

the teacher

asks, where

is the

guest room

where I may

eat the

Passover with

my disciples?

He will

show you a

large room

upstairs, all

furnished, make

preparations there.

That's a lot

of predictions.

Again, look what

happens, verse

13.

They left

and found

things just

as Jesus

had told

them.

Jesus told

them of

his death

and resurrection,

but knowing

how hard it

would be to

believe Jesus'

words, he

then provides

them with

these two

extraordinary

events to

show them,

say, look,

when I say

something, you

can trust me,

I will deliver

on my words.

Now go

back to

chapter 24,

verse 8.

The angel

has spoken.

They remind

them of what

Jesus had

said.

24,

verse 8.

Then they

remembered

his words.

This is a

moment of

revelation.

They see

the empty

tomb.

They remember

Jesus'

words about

the resurrection.

They remembered

all that he

had said,

that they

will mock

him,

they will

insult him,

they will

spit on

him,

they will

flog him,

they will

kill him,

and on

the third

day he

will rise

again.

They

remembered

his words.

We can

trust in

his words.

We believe

in what

he has

said.

Now the

question is,

when we

are facing

death,

be it

our own

death,

or the

death of

someone else,

will we

believe his

words about

the resurrection?

Do you

confidently put

your trust in

what Jesus

has said?

You see,

these women

and these

disciples are,

they're really

not unlike

us.

They are

facing the

reality of

death.

They've seen

their loved

ones die

in a

desperate

way.

They've

seen him

buried.

Their

close

friend,

their loved

one,

has gone.

They're

completely

heartbroken.

Their dreams

and their

hopes have

been shattered.

But,

verse 8,

they remembered

his words.

To remember

the words

of Jesus

gives us

reason for

certain hope.

When we

face the

reality of

death,

when we

stare into

that space,

we can

rest in

the absolute

trustworthiness

of his

words,

what he

said

would

happen,

did

happen.

So,

let me ask

us all

again,

do you

trust Jesus

with your

life?

Do you

trust his

words to

you?

You see,

the person

who dies

trusting,

the words

of Jesus,

the words

that the

angels spoke

to the

women,

become true

for us.

Why do

you look

for the

living

among

the

dead?

He is

not here,

he has

risen.

So,

we look

at the

evidence,

we remember

his words,

and when

we examine

this evidence,

when we

reflect on

these words,

when we

take that

deep into

our hearts,

when we

trust it

with our

life,

it changes

us

dramatically.

let me

just show

you three

ways in

which the

resurrection

can change

us.

First,

it can

change us

in such

a way that

we can

stand

confidently

in the

face of

opposition.

Look back

at verse

50.

Here we

meet this

character,

Joseph.

Joseph.

We're

told,

verse 50,

that he's

a member

of the

council,

a good

and upright

man.

Verse 52,

going to

Pilate,

he asked

for Jesus'

body,

then he

took it

down,

wrapped it

in linen

cloth,

and placed

it in a

tomb

cut in

the rock,

one in

which no

one yet

had been

laid.

Now this

is an

incredibly

courageous

act.

Joseph,

verse 50,

we're told,

is a

member of

the council.

He's part

of the

Sanhedrin.

These were

the guys

who were

responsible

for overseeing

all the

religious and

social affairs.

They were

the rulers,

the ones

in authority.

If you

got on

the wrong

side of

the council,

you could

lose your

life.

In fact,

it was this

very council

that had

been planning

and plotting

the death

of Jesus.

They've

just told

a whole

bunch of

lies to

Pilate to

make sure

that Jesus

got executed.

And where

was Joseph

in the midst

of all of

this?

Well,

Joseph had

stood up

to them.

Look at

verse 51.

He had

not consented

to their

decision and

action.

When it

came to

the vote,

Joseph

wouldn't

go with

it.

And now

he's

identifying

with

Jesus

by asking

for his

body to

bury him.

Now,

such an

act is

not just

going to

get you

sidelined,

it could

also get

you killed.

Now,

I want to

ask the

question,

what gives

Joseph

this kind

of courage,

one amidst

many,

to make

that kind

of stand?

God?

How is

he so

confident

in the

face of

such

powerful

people?

Well,

look at

the rest

of verse

51.

We're

told he

came from

the

Judean

town of

Arimathea,

and he

himself was

waiting for

the kingdom

of God.

God.

Now,

I don't

think he

expected a

resurrection

to happen,

but he

had faith

that the

kingdom

would come,

that God

was going

to come

in power,

that God

was going

to deliver

on all

of his

promises,

but he

just didn't

know how

it was

going to

be worked

out,

but he

had faith

that God

would do

it.

Now,

this side

of the

cross,

this side

of the

resurrection,

we now

stand with

a greater

advantage

because we

can look

back to

the truth

of the

resurrection.

Jesus

did die,

he was

buried,

he rose

again,

which means

we can

now stand

confidently.

We may

face

opposition,

we may

be the

one amongst

many people

who only

believe this

and put

our faith

in the

Lord Jesus.

We may

face

powerful

enemies

and powerful

people who

think we're

just a

nonsense and

a load of

rubbish.

But because

it is

true,

we do

not need

to fear

their

threats

because

Jesus

is Lord

over life

and over

death.

And many

of these

disciples

would go

on to

make their

stand and

they would

be put

to death.

But at

the end

of the

day,

what does

it matter

that they

should lose

their life

because they

would go

on to

the kingdom?

They

would have

eternal

life.

So you

and I

can stand

confidently

in the

face of

opposition,

one amidst

many,

because Jesus

has risen.

Stand

confidently.

the second

way in which

it can

change us

is it

gives us

a message

of hope.

We can

speak hope.

When we

encounter,

when we

believe the

resurrection,

it fills us

with sure and

certain hope.

Hope that we

can pass on.

look at

chapter 24

verse 9.

Talking about

the women

when they

came back

from the

tomb.

They

told all

these things

to the

eleven and

to all the

others.

I mean,

this is news

you can't

keep to

yourself.

We've just

been to

the tomb.

It's

empty.

We've

remembered

what Jesus

has said.

We've

believed

his words.

Death

has been

defeated.

And now

they begin

to speak

this hope

and this

comfort to

those who

are broken

hearted,

to those

without any

hope at

all.

One of the

hardest things

in life

is to stand

at the grave

of a loved

one.

In some

ways it

marks the

end.

We're there

to say our

goodbyes.

But for the

Christian,

it's just

the beginning.

You see,

in the

midst of

brokenness

and

hopelessness,

we can

bring the

comfort of

the risen

Lord Jesus

to say,

here is

one who

understands

your hurt.

Here is

one who

understands

your pain

and one

who will

walk with

you.

But you

know what?

More than

that,

he is the

one who

has defeated

death.

Defeated

death for

you.

And all

who

entrust

their

life

to

Jesus

can

look

forward

in

hope

to

brand

new

bodies

so that

we

will

never

get

sick

again.

The

Bible

tells us

we will

become

like

Jesus

so that

we will

never

sin

or

struggle

with

temptation.

we

can

look

forward

to

the

new

kingdom

that

beautiful

new

world

where

there

is

no

more

funerals

no

more

goodbyes

just

joy

and

joy

and

more

joy

forever

and

forever

and

forever

without

end.

This

is the

hope

that

we

can

speak

to

those

who

have

no

hope.

it

changes

our

message.

It

changes

what we

can

bring

to

people.

Or

maybe

you're

just

struggling

to

believe

that

any

of

this

is

true.

Maybe

you

watch

things

on

the

telly

and

all

the

evidence

that

people

try to

throw

up

to

say

it's

just

a

hoax

and

you

just

go

can

I

really

believe

this?

Is

it

really

true

that

when

I

die

I

am

going

to

receive

eternal

life?

Maybe

you

have

doubts

like

that.

Maybe

you're

just

like

the

disciples.

Look

at

verse

11.

They

did

not

believe

the

women

because

their

words

seemed

to

them

like

nonsense.

How

could

this

possibly

be

true?

They

simply

don't

believe

that

Jesus

rose

from

the

dead.

Even

though

he

told

them

on

three

different

occasions

even

though

the

women

have

seen

the

empty

tomb

they

don't

believe.

But

look at

what

unbelieving

Peter

does.

He

steps

out

in

faith

verse

12.

Peter

however

got up

and ran

to the

tomb

bending

over

he saw

the

strips

of

linen

lying

by

themselves

and

he

went

away

wondering

to

himself

what

had

happened.

This

wondering

is not

so much

a sense

of

confusion

but

wonder

as in

amazement.

There

should be

a body

but there's

none.

Peter is

beginning

to make

sense

that what

Jesus

said

and what

the women

had seen

was really

true.

but it

only

happened

for him

as he

stepped

out in

faith

to look

for

himself.

And so

I think

Luke

the author

here is

inviting us

again.

He's

saying

look

come

with

Peter

look

afresh

into

the

empty

tomb

stand

there

at that

empty

tomb

see the

stone

rolled

away

look

inside

the

strips

of

linen

lying

by

themselves

wonder

be

amazed

that

Jesus

has

destroyed

death

and

defeated

the

grave.

The

words

spoken

by the

angel

are

not

just

for

the

women.

They

are

words

that

have

been

spoken

to

us

today

to

give

us

hope

to

bring

us

comfort

to

bring

us

peace.

Why

do you

look for

the living

among

the dead?

He

is not

here.

He

has

risen.

Examine

the

evidence.

Remember

his

words

and

see

how it

can

change

your

life

hope.

To

stand

confidently

to

speak

hope

to

others

and

to

step

out

in

faith.

Let's

pray

together.

thank you

father

for giving

to us

this

eyewitness

account

of the

resurrection

of Jesus

Christ.

thank you

for allowing

us to

take the

journey with

Mary Magdalene

and

Joanna

and Mary

the mother

of James

and walk

with them

to see

what they

saw

people

to

remember

his

words

to

look into

the grave

just like

Peter

and see

the

cloths

lying

there

and to

be amazed

that

Jesus

who died

for us

is our

risen

savior

lord

over

life

and lord

over

death

father

give us

faith

that we

might

believe

help

us

to

stand

confidently

in the

face of

opposition

in the

face of

those

who may

say

it's

a

nonsense

it's

rubbish

help

us

to

stake

our

claim

on

the

foundation

that

Jesus

is

alive

and

father

would

you

give

us

opportunity

that

we

might

speak

these

words

of

hope

and

of

comfort

to

those

who

have

no

hope

where