2017-11-26 Luke 24: 1-12 Grand Openings (1)- Open Tomb

GRAND OPENINGS (1): OPEN TOMB (Luke 24:1-12) November 26, 2017 Read Luke 24:1-12 – When Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black died in 1971, the minister delivering the eulogy found The Greening of America a popular book written by Charles Reich, one of Black’s former clerks, in Black’s library. He selected some of the underlined portions to read at the funeral. Fellow justice, William Brennan, nudged justice, Potter Stewart. “Hugo would turn over in his grave if he heard that.” Black’s intimates knew Black thought Reich’s book absurd. He underlined the sections he disliked – the point being, if you’re going to honor someone, you must do it on their terms. These women tried to honor Jesus – at a grave. They’d consigned him to a place like the founders of other religions – among the dead. But they found out what all must find out. You can’t honor Jesus at His gravesite. He’s not there. He was long gone by the time those women got there. If you treat Jesus like all the other religious leaders, you’ll never find Him. He cannot be honored as a dead moral example. He can only be honored as the living Lord. Trying to honor Him as a great moral teacher is only to condemn yourself. Bc, The Stone is Moved, The Tomb is Empty, and The Deceased is Alive. I. The Stone is Moved As these women arrive to finish burial preparations started on Friday, they face a problem. Mark 16:3: “3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” They’d seen the stone and seal put in place and knew it was a hurdle. But when they arrived, Mark 16:4: “And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large.” Problem solved -- BUT who moved the stone?! The soldiers? Not likely with their lives on the line. Tho assigned by Pilate, they first reported the problem to the Jewish leaders: Mt 28:11 While they were going, behold, some of the guard went into the city and told the chief priests all that had taken place. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and taken counsel, they gave a sufficient sum of money to the soldiers 13 and said, “Tell people, ‘His disciples came by night and stole him away while we were asleep.’ 14 And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble.” 15 So they took the money and did as they were directed. And this story has been spread among the Jews to this 1 day.” Why to the Jews first? Because they knew their Roman superiors would execute them. It must have cost the Sanhedrin a plenty to pay off both the guards and Pilate to let them live. But they had to pay it to get their story out. So, was it the disciples? Could those fearful men have regrouped within one day, concocted a resurrection story, overcome a professional Roman guard and later died horrendous deaths for their lie? No. If they’d done it, the Romans would have rounded them up in no time and killed them all. The Jewish leaders. They insisted on the guard in the first place. So who? God knew! Mt 28:2 And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it.” Lu clarifies there were 2 angels. They moved the stone, leaving the soldiers like dead men who had seemingly fled by the time the women arrived. So you can’t find Jesus at a gravesite. The stone has been moved – not to let Jesus out, by the way. His resurrected body easily passed thru locked doors. The stone was no problem. It was moved to let witnesses in to verify He’s not there. You can’t honor Him at the gravesite. The stone has been moved. II. The Tomb is Empty 3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. The stone is rolled; the tomb is empty! 4 contemporary accounts record the same testimony from eyewitnesses who couldn’t believe their eyes. They expected a body; they found an empty tomb! Few facts in ancient history are verified by 4 eyewitness accounts – compelling evidence, the grave was empty. And there’s proof positive. The resurrection was at the heart of every sermon in Acts. The rulers hated it. They arrested the apostles; warned them to stop and finally began to kill them. But what they never did was the one thing that would have stopped everything in its tracks. They never pointed to Jesus’ tomb and said, “There’s your risen Savior. Dead, buried and gone!” That would’ve stifled everything, but it never happened! Why? Bc the tomb was empty. No one ever disputes that. It’s a historical fact at the heart of Xn faith. 8-year-old Philip had Down’s syndrome. One Easter his 2nd grade SS teacher brought some L’eggs pantyhose containers and asked the children to go find evidences of new life to put in their egg. The teacher opened them one by one finding a flower, a leaf, a butterfly – and one that contained – nothing! The 2 kids protested, “Whose egg is it? Someone didn’t do the assignment.” Philip responded, “It’s mine.” Someone said, “Philip, you never do anything right. There’s nothing there.” Philip said, “I did so do it. It’s empty bc the tomb was empty! That’s the greatest sign of new life.” So right! That’s why the women couldn’t honor Jesus at the grave, and neither can we. He’s not there! The Deceased is Alive [so where’s the body?] A. Implausible Explanations of the Missing Body 1. Wrong Grave – Did the women get the wrong tomb? Lu 23:55b clarifies that on Friday, these same women “followed and saw the tomb and how his body was laid.” They knew its location. And the stone was there – just moved! Had they been wrong, their story would have been shot down in no time by pointing people to the right tomb. That never happened. III. 2. Swoon Theory – Seems there’s always a new book claiming Jesus never died. He just collapsed from His ordeal, and revived in the coolness of the tomb. But the Romans were death experts, and speared Jesus in the heart to be sure. If he revived, how did He unwrap from the linens, move the stone, overcome the guard, find new clothing, and in his beaten, bleeding, half-dead condition convince His followers He was conqueror of death and and Lord of life?! It is a preposterous suggestion. 3. Stolen Body – Lu 23:4 says the empty tomb perplexed the women. Why? Jesus told them multiple times He would be killed and rise again. Yet, none of Jesus’ disciples on that spectacular morning said, “Oh, of course. He said it and He’s actually done it. He must be risen.” No one said that. Instead, they were all like Mary. Jn 20:2: “So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” Resurrection never crossed their minds. They were thinking stolen body! That was the only explanation their minds could absorb. But wouldn’t we think the same thing? If we went to Aunt Martha’s gravesite tomorrow and found a hole in the ground we’d think someone moved the body, right? That’s the way most people see Jesus’ resurrection. Our 21st century scientific mindset says when people die, that’s it. So, we spiritualize. Resurrection -- a metaphor for new beginnings. Nothing more! That’s preached on Easter all over the world. Dead people don’t come alive again. 3 But it was no easier for 1st century people to believe it. Their first reaction was just like ours despite the fact that just days before they’d seen Jesus raise Lazarus from the dead. But they couldn’t believe there’d be a repeat performance. Like the guy grabbing a snack in the kitchen while watching a game with his friend. As he returns, Cargo comes to bat. The friend says, “I’ll bet you $20 he hits a home run.” The guy says, “You’re on.” Sure enough, Cargo hits one out. As he passes $20 over, the friend confesses, “Look, I can’t take your money. That was a replay.” The guy says, “I know. I saw it in the kitchen. I just didn’t think he could do it again!” That’s how the disciples saw God. Us, too. Subject to human limitations. But Beloved, He’s not subject to human limitations. He created human limitations. Supernatural to us is natural to Him. But the disciples were stupefied, and the only explanation they could come up with is, someone moved the body. The soldiers said it was the disciples. But we’ve already seen how unlikely it is that they would take on a Roman guard in their fearful state. Where would they take the body? And why unwrap it?! And most of all, why would these hard bitten, down-to-earth, blue-collar workers go found a religion on a blatant lie and then die horrendous deaths for it. It doesn’t begin to add up. Nor would the Romans or Jewish leaders steal a body they were trying to keep in the grave, leaving the grave clothes neatly behind. And if they had, surely they would have produced it when the disciples made the resurrection the selling point of their world-changing message. The fact is no one had motive or ability to move the body once it was entombed and sealed. B. Irrefutable Evidence of the Missing Body 1. Tale of the Clothing – Often overlooked. If you’re making this up, why mention clothing? Both John and Luke do. Jn 19:5 And stooping to look in, he [John] saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. 6 Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, 7 and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself.” The word “lying” suggests an orderly arrangement. The word “fold up” means “twirled about itself.” John Blanchard suggests, “The grave-clothes look like the empty chrysalis of a caterpillar’s cocoon.” That is not compatible with the swoon theory or with someone stealing the body. Neither would leave neatly folder clothing behind. The clothing tells a story of resurrection. 4 2. Testimony of the Witnesses – First are the angels: v. 5b: “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but has risen.” They were looking for death in a grave. So the angels correct them: “You’re looking in the wrong place for the wrong kind of person. The one you seek is the living one. He’s not hanging out here any more.” Next there is the testimony of the women. They are critically important for this reason. If you were making this up you would never have made women the stars of the show. Women were 2nd class in that society. Their testimony was not accepted in court. To put them at the forefront of the greatest discovery of all time would have been fatal – had it not been true. That the gospel writers put them up front is unexplainable except it was all true! Third is the testimony of the apostles. They are important because they were all skeptics. Not one of them believed the women: V. 11: “but these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them.” So why was the resurrection the center of their message for the next 40 years? And why did they all die for that message – these cowering skeptics. Because it was true, that’s why! There’s no other reasonable explanation. Finally, there’s Jesus’ testimony. The most important by far. The angels say, 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” 8 And they remembered HIS words.” How could they forget them? Because they never understood them. They couldn’t fathom the resurrection of Christ bc they never understood the death of Christ. A suffering, dying servant did not fit their image of a Kingly conquering Messiah. They didn’t get that He must to die. It wasn’t an option. No death; no payment for sin, no forgiveness, and no kingdom. This was the entry fee. It had to be paid. And once paid, He must rise again or no hope! Jesus predicted all of this before it ever happened. Many times during His last weeks, He told His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, suffer at the hands of the elders and be killed. And He always ended by saying He’d rise again! But it so offended their expectations that they wrote it off as some deep spiritual truth they could not yet grasp. Even when the reality stared them right in the face, they did not get it. Not until the angels reminded them – then they remembered – then the wheels began to turn and in time they got it. 5 But what you must see is Jesus while at the peak of popularity, with no reason to do so, began to predict His own death and resurrection. And He did so with enough clarity that while His own disciples didn’t get it, His enemies did and tried to prevent it. They might as well have tried to stop the earth spinning. What God wills, happens. And this happened just like He determined before time began, prophesied in the OT, and predicted in His own lifetime. It all happened – death, burial resurrection – the whole shebang – just like He said. Conc – So, Beloved, do not come to the gravesite to find and honor Jesus. Lu 24:3: “ but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.” No longer Jesus, but Lord Jesus! Luke’s cluing us. There’s no body. There’s no dead Jesus – but there is a living Lord. So, you’ll not find Him at the tomb. You can’t honor Him by declaring Him the equal of Mohammad, Buddha, Confusius, or Joseph Smith. That is a vicious blasphemy against a living Lord. It’s like Sigmund Freud visiting a mental institution, after which he boarded a bus back to town. A minute later the keeper brought some patients on board for a field trip. As they were seated he began to count, “1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.” Then he got to Freud and asked, “Who are you?” Freud responded, “I’m Sigmund Freud,” whereupon the keeper pointed to him and continued, “7, 8, 9 . . .” I assure you Freud was not honored by being counted with the inmates. Neither is Jesus honored when you count Him as one of the inmates He came to save. Until you honor Him as Lord, you’ve not honored or found Him at all. The resurrection proves it. You won’t find Him at the tomb – He’s at the right hand of the Father. Luke calls Him Lord. Paul tells us why. Phil 2: 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” If you honor Him at all, it must be as your living Lord. Nothing less will do. 6