Sermon Tone Analysis

*He is Risen Indeed!*

*/Easter Sunday, March 23, 2008/*

 

 

*Prep: *Read Luke 24:13ff and all resurrection accounts

 

 

*He is risen*

 

Easter is the *pinnacle* of the Christian *calendar*.

Every kid prefers Christmas because you get a better haul, but *Christmas* was only in *preparation* of Christ’s death and resurrection.

Q   How many of you know the traditional Easter Greeting?

·         Part of my church going up, and my mom has a tradition of calling a certain friend every Easter.

This is actually a very *ancient greeting*, and it is taken straight from the Bible.

It is meant to express the *joy* and *amazement* at Christ’s resurrection.

But before we can appreciate the joy, we have to *experience* the *sorrow*.

*Good Friday*

 

On Friday, several you joined us for Good Friday service, which is one the few times we want to be *somber*.

·         Good Friday is meant to remind us of what Jesus *suffered* for our *sake*.

We showed “The Passion of the Christ,” a rather gruesome portrayal of his death.

We made a point of *stopping* it at his *death*, before the resurrection, so that we can in some manner experience the *sorrow* and *hopelessness* the disciples felt.

·         To us, Jesus resurrection seems *obvious*, to them it seemed *impossible*, a cruel hoax.

·         We *know* that *Easter* would follow *Good* *Friday*, they did *not*.

*False Messiah?

*

 

Even when the *women* saw the *angles* and the *empty* *tomb*, it took awhile for them to believe, but it’s not that they were *dense*.

You have to understand their *mindset*.

Life in 1st century Palestine was hard, poverty and starvation were common, but the worst part was the *Roman* *occupation*

 

The *Bible* had *promised* that a *Messiah* would free them, but they had been under *foreign* *rule* for 400 years and many wondered, “How long, O Lord?” Others took matters into their own hands.

Many *false* *Messiahs* arose, including *Barabbas*.

They all met the same fate: Crucifixion.

On another occasion, 2,000 men were crucified for following a false Messiah.

Jesus was *different* than those guys.

Granted he said *strange* *things*, but there was no getting around the *miracles*.

The disciples and many others were sure he who would *restore* *Israel*.

·         That’s why people could go from welcoming Jesus to shouts of “Hosanna!” on Palm Sunday to “Crucify!” five days later.

*Disillusioned followers*

 

When Jesus was crucified, his followers watched their *world* *fall* down around them.

They thought he really was the Messiah, but when he died, they realized they had been *duped* like the rest.

·         The Messiah wasn’t *supposed* to be *killed*.

·         I think when Peter said “I will die with you,” he *didn’t* really *believe* Jesus would die.

What was *supposed* to happen was that Jesus would call down the angels and *kick* the *Romans’* *butts*.

Beyond their personal sorrow, they would have been *confused* and profoundly *disillusioned*.

·         It would be like calling the *cops* because you are being robbed, but they show up and *help* the *thieves*.

So on the third day, when the disciples heard from the *women* that the *tomb* was *empty*, they still didn’t know what to think, especially because women were not considers *reliable* *witnesses*.

*On the way to Emmaus*

 

Luke tells of two disillusioned disciples waking to the town of Emmaus, trying to figure out what the heck is going on, and Jesus meets up with them incognito:

As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him.

He asked them, “What are you discussing together as you walk along?”

They stood still, their faces downcast.

One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, “Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?”

“What things?” he asked.

“About Jesus of Nazareth,” they replied.

“He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people.

The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel.

And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place.

In addition, some of our women amazed us.

They went to the tomb early this morning but didn’t find his body.

They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive.

Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see.”

He said to them, “How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken!

Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?”

And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.

/Luke 24:15-27 NIV/ 

 

Jesus had to show them that it was *clearly* *prophesied* the Messiah would die.

The reason they *misunderstood* the *prophecies* is because the misunderstood *why* he had come.

·         They thought it was to “*restore* *Israel*,” but it was really to *restore* all the *world*.

·         They thought God only cared about *Israel*, Jesus show that God loved the *entire* *world*.

·         They thought that Israel were *enslaved* by the *Romans*, Jesus said that *everyone* is *enslaved* by *sin*.

·         They wanted *Israel* to be *free*, Jesus wanted *everyone* to be *free*.

The *message* and *meaning* of Easter, the *purpose* of Christ’s death and its *power* for us is best summarized by Paul:

 

...for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.

God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.

He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished - he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.*

*/Romans 3:23-26 NIV /

 

At one point in “The Passion,” when he was being beaten, Laura wrote a one word note: “*Animals*.”

But the point is that that is what humanity, collectively and individually did to him.

·         *Our* *sin* put him there.

Q   Why did Jesus have to die?

 

·         So God could be both loving and just.

*no resurrection, no christianity*

 

Q   All of this had talked a lot about his death, but why is Easter so important?

Q   Why did he have to come back from the dead?

To *demonstrate* with *power* that this was all *true*.

Without the resurrection, all of this just sounds like *delusional* *thinking*.

·         The resurrection shows us that Jesus was indeed the Christ and that *his* *death* did indeed *free* us from our *sins*.

·         It *also* *proclaims* that *death* has been *destroyed*, and it is the *promise* of *eternal* life.

It is for this reason that the Apostle Paul also said that if *Christ* was *not* *raised*, then Christians are to be *pitied*.

If Easter is just a *fable*, then there is *no* *point* in being a Christian.

Christianity is lived in the *hope* of *heaven*, and if there is no heaven, then we are *big* *suckers*.

·         If you *proved* to Paul that the Resurrection never happened, he would have *rejected* *Christ* and the same goes for me.

*Prove it*

 

But, I am glad to say, the Resurrection doesn’t have to be accepted by *blind* *faith*, it is one of the more *supportable* *events* of the ancient world.

 

1.

The Bible, especially the *NT*, is the most *verifiable* ancient *document* in the world.

2.

The Gospels were written by those either *saw* the *resurrection* or *interviewed* people who did.

 

3.

The Gospel accounts bear the marks of authenticity:

a.

They included *specific* *evidence*.

b.

They used *disputable* *witnesses*

c.

Their accounts *vary* *slightly*.

d.

They *died* for it rather than *recant*.

e.

It *powerfully* and *immediately* *transformed* an empire.