Easter
Sunday, April 20, 2014
“Life after Death”
It’s
Easter Morning. We celebrate the
resurrection of Jesus! Just a few notes
as we begin. To a degree this is a
SYMBOLIC celebration. We aren’t sure
this is the exact anniversary of the resurrection of Jesus. This is not like the 4th of July
or Cinco de Mayo. The exact date is not
so as important as the fact of what happened:
Jesus Christ rose from the grave!
19 If in this life only we
have hope in Christ, we are of all men the most pitiable. 20 But now Christ is risen
from the dead, and has become the
firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. I Corinthians 15:19-20 (NKJV)
Question: Anyone here ever had your computer to crash?
Video about Computer Crash
Seems
like the end of the world.
“Technology
comes making promises and stays making demands.”
Disciples
felt that way but worse.
Picking
up the pieces.
45 Now from the sixth hour
there was darkness over all the land until the ninth hour. 46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a
loud voice, saying, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you
forsaken me?” 47 And some of the
bystanders, hearing it, said, “This man is calling Elijah.” 48 And one of them at once ran and took a sponge,
filled it with sour wine, and put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink.
49 But the others said, “Wait, let us see
whether Elijah will come to save him.” 50 And
Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit. Matthew 27:45-50 (ESV)
51 And behold, the curtain
of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the
rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of
the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and
coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and
appeared to many. 54 When the centurion
and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and
what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of
God!”
Matthew 27:51-54 (ESV)
GOOD
NEWS
about the worst thing that could happen.
Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind
you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have
taken your stand. 2 By this gospel you are saved,
if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed
in vain. 3 For
what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for
our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the
third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the
Twelve.
I Corinthians 15:1-5 (NIV)
DEATH
BURIAL
38 Later,
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. 39 He was
accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night.
Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.
40 Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped
it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish
burial customs. 41 At the place where
Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which
no one had ever been laid. 42 Because
it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid
Jesus there.
John 19:38-42 (NIV)
Matthew indicates that the tomb was owned by Joseph
of Arimathea.
RESURRECTION
1 After the Sabbath, at dawn
on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at
the tomb. 2 There was a
violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going
to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3 His
appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4 The guards were so afraid of him that they shook
and became like dead men. 5 The
angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for
Jesus, who was crucified. 6 He is not
here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. Matthew 28:1-6 (NIV)
Problem:
differing versions of the same story.
Illustration:
car accident
Matthew has Mary Magdalene and Mary; Mark adds
Salome; Luke has a woman named Joanna, John just tells it from the perspective
of Mary Magdalene.
Sequence:
EARTHQUAKE
MARY MADGELENE FREAKS OUT
ROLLED THE STONE
The angel sat on the stone. What's going on here?
Why did they roll the
stone back?
Not so Jesus could get
out, but so we could get in … to see that He is not there.
EMPTY TOMB!
But, let’s back up a little to find out about the
Disciples. Where were they?
But all this was done that the Scriptures of
the prophets might be fulfilled.” Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled. Matthew 26:56 (NKJV)
Matthew
26:56. “Then all the disciples forsook
Him and fled.”
CONTRADICTION
IN TERMS: All the disciples – followers
stopped following
1.
Forsook. Gk. Aphiemi. To send away, dismiss, emit, resign, depart,
desert.
2.
Fled.
Gk. Pheugo.
To flee, take flight, escape.
3.
Interesting
sidelight:
a.
Forsook
is a participle
b.
Fled
is an aorist past tense indicative
c.
Could
be translated “forsaking Him, they fled.”
d.
Their
hearts departed and their bodies followed suit.
e.
Forsake
speaks to the reason.
f.
Fled
speaks to the action.
Illustration: Movie Open Range.
Standoff
between Charlie Waite and Boss Spearman vs. Denton Baxter.
One
by one, Baxter’s men cut and run. Boss
Spearman shouts, “Baxter, looks like you’re losing your army.”
PRINCIPLE:
Your body follows your heart. We
freak out when we see someone DO something we call “out of character”. The truth is they are acting out what has
already happened inside them. It can be
a momentary crisis or the culmination of a lifelong battle.
Steps in Grief Management
Denial
Anger
Bargaining
Depression
Acceptance
First
Steps to Life after Death
1.
STAY
together.
On the evening of that first day of
the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of
the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” John 20:19 (NIV)
2.
BELIEVE
again.
When
they heard that Jesus was alive and that she had seen him, they did not believe
it. Mark 16:11 (NIV)
While they still could not believe it because of their joy and
amazement, He said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” Luke 24:41 (NASB)
When they saw Him, they worshiped
Him; but some doubted. Matthew
28:17 (NKJV)
3.
Overcome
FEAR.
On the evening of that first day of
the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of
the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” John 20:19 (NIV)
4.
HEAR
what He SAYS.
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As
the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22 And
with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the
Holy Spirit.” John 20:21-22 (NIV)
The best is yet to come!
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