Acts 1. I want us to consider this morning what the following things have in common: Santa Clause, Elvis being seen alive, the tooth fairy, the Easter Bunny and the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Now if you asked your neighbor, or your friend or your unbelieving relative, the answer is that they’re all fairy tales. That is precisely what most people believe. Jesus rising from the dead is a myth, it’s folk lore, it’s a fairy tale, just like Santa and Elvis being spotted at the mall.

And what these people don’t understand is that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is a historically proven fact; it was one of the most witnessed events in history. Notice Acts 1:3 “³ After his suffering, he showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.” There are many convincing proofs, much evidence (facts, data, support) for the resurrection of Jesus. I mean, if we don’t believe in the resurrection of Jesus Christ that puts us in the same category of people who say there was no holocaust. They simply don’t believe history.

And then there are people who are almost Christians, who have examined some of the evidence for themselves, who have seen some convincing proofs, and have come to believe that Jesus did rise from the dead. But it has absolutely no effect on their lives whatsoever. I mean, to talk about the resurrection of Jesus just has no meaning for them; they just want to talk about real life, something that matters to me today. Not some religious event that happened 2000 years ago.

And what these people don’t understand is that the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the most impacting and life-changing event that could ever happen for any person, because the Bible says believers rose with Him. So there we were dead in our coffins of unbelief and rebellion against God, enslaved, entombed in sin, and then God because of His great love for us, made us alive with Christ, even when we were dead in sins. So the resurrection of Jesus totally changes the life of everyone who truly believes. That’s how we know if we truly believe, we’ve risen out of our sins. The title of my sermon is “Jesus rose, and we rose with Him.” Let’s pray.

Well we are continuing in our study of the Book of John, and as a reminder, we’ve just finished chapter 20 where we saw Jesus, the only sinless man to have ever lived, arrested, put on trial at night, declared to be innocent 3 times, and then He was brutally beaten and finally crucified on a cross and buried in a tomb. And if you remember, Jesus had foretold His death, and the manner of His death, for years. “When I’m lifted up, I will draw all men to me.” “The seed must fall into the ground and die in order to produce fruit.” He continually foretold His death. But not only His death, but also His resurrection. “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in 3 days.” “I have authority to lay down my life, and power to take it up again.”

Let’s turn to Matthew chapter 20, and let’s see just one of the places where Jesus foretold His death and resurrection. Matthew 20: “¹⁷ Now as Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, ¹⁸ “We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death ¹⁹ and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!” So Jesus foretold exactly how He would die, and also that He would be raised to life on the third day.

And Jesus is just one in a long line of prophets and prophecies pointing forward to His resurrection. Take just a second and remember some of these. In the beginning the Bible says the earth was in darkness, it was buried under the water and it was empty, but on the 3^rd day the waters separated and up came the earth out of its watery grave. So on the very first 3^rd day there ever was, there was a resurrection. Then you have Isaac who was under the death sentence for 3 days as they walked along toward the hill called Golgotha where he was going to die. But on the 3^rd day the father received his son back, and the Book of Hebrews tells us he received him back “as from the dead.” The promised son received back on the third day as from the dead. And then you have the nation of Israel, and they escape from slavery in Egypt through the death of the Passover Lamb, and the Bible says that on the 3^rd day after the death of the Lamb they walked through the Red Sea on dry land. Where they should have been entombed in a watery grave, instead they were alive and on dry ground. This is a picture of believers being raised with Christ and set on solid ground. And then we have Jonah running away from God, ending up on a boat, and a horrible storm comes up, and Jonah knew God was angry and he said, “throw me overboard and the storm will stop.” He volunteered to die in order to save the lives of those on the boat, and he sunk down to the depths of the sea where he wore a crown of thorns; but through a miracle of God he was raised on the 3^rd day. Everywhere the Bible connects new life and resurrection on the 3^rd day. And look with me at Hosea chapter 6, because here is a very clear prophecy of resurrection on the 3^rd day. Hosea was written hundreds of years BC. Notice Hosea 6 verses 1:2: “¹ “Come, let us return to the LORD. He has torn us to pieces but he will heal us; he has injured us but he will bind up our wounds. ² After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence.” Here it is shown that God’s people were in Christ when He was torn to pieces and injured on the cross. But we were also in Him on the 3^rd day when He rose from the dead to live in God’s presence. And so when Jesus said that He would be crucified and raised on the 3^rd day He was simply repeating what was written in the Old Testament thousands of years earlier.

So with that background let’s begin our study of John chapter 20 together.  It’s now the third day after Jesus died, and vs. 1 says “¹ 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.” And so let’s notice how perfect it is that the Lord Jesus rose from the dead on the first day of the week —teaching us that there is now a new beginning. Jesus rose on the new day of the new week indicating that there is now a new beginning. The full requirements of the law had been met; the shadows and prophecies had all been fulfilled, the curse had been removed, the old covenant had been nailed to the cross, the Sabbath had ended. It was now the “first day of the week”, the new day, the new week, the new life. Jesus is Head of the New Creation, and as such He rose on the new day. The day of “new beginnings.”

So it’s early in the morning, still dark out, the dew is still on the roses, and notice who the first one to the tomb was, it was Mary Magdalene, the woman from whom Jesus had cast out 7 demons. And this Mary got up before the sun came up, everybody else was sleeping, and she was the first one to the tomb. See love drew Mary to the place where Jesus was laid. The one who has been forgiven much loves much. She just wanted to be near Him, whether He was dead or alive. People who have been forgiven and have experienced the love of our Savior, just want to be near Him. I remember reading the story of an older man who had a heart attack in his home. And days had passed since his grown children had heard from him and they got worried. So they drove to his house to check on him, and when they got there, they discovered him lying dead on the kitchen floor, but sitting there with him was his German Shepherd dog. The dog hadn’t left his side, he just wanted to be with his master, whether the master was dead or alive. And that’s Mary. Oh how God’s grace and forgiveness draws people like a magnet to Jesus.

And we could apply this to ourselves today. Have you ever just longed to be with Jesus so much that you got up ahead of your alarm clock, and just got alone with Him? The benefit that Mary had by getting up early and going to the tomb is that she got to see Jesus and hear His voice. Starting at vs. 10 she sees Him, and in vs. 16 He calls her name, “Mary.” Oh she knew that voice. Here’s the risen Lord in all His glory, speaking her name. That’s intimate communication with the Son of God. I can picture Mary writing these words one day:

I come to the garden alone
While the dew is still on the roses
And the voice I hear falling on my ear
The son of God discloses.

And vs. 1 tells us the stone was rolled away from the grave. Matthew 28 tells us an angel rolled it away.  And this stone was rolled away, not so that Jesus could get out, He was already out, but so that the disciples could look in, and see that it was empty. They could go there and look in to that chamber of death, that tomb where Satan had raised a victory flag, and they could see that death had been conquered, the Galilean King had triumphed over death. He had won the victory. And all believers can by faith look into that empty tomb and we can ask, “oh death, where is your sting? Death is dead. Love has won. Christ has conquered.”  

But Mary is bewildered and confused, so in vs. 2 “² So she came running to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” Poor Mary, because while she was full of love she was not full of faith. Jesus said over and over that He would rise on the third day, but she’s thinking someone stole the body. And lack of faith brings confusion. Look at her statement, “they have taken the Lord.” Which is it? Is Jesus the Lord, or have “they” thwarted the will of God?

And we often experience times of confusion when we go through huge disappointments in life, when grieving the loss of a loved one. Mary had just lost her Lord, her Savior, and her hope. Her faith is small and she is confused. And the answer to this confusion during times of great disappointment is to do what Mary did; she ran to the body of Christ, to fellow believers. Vs. 2 says she came running to Peter and John. Sometimes we’re tempted to avoid the fellowship when going through disappointments and trials, and when we’re confused and our faith is failing, but that is the time we need each other the most.

And I want us to notice something important about vs. 2. Notice that Peter and John are together. That’s important, because John had witnessed Peter’s fall, had seen Peter’s open public denial of Jesus, and he witnessed him crying in godly sorrow about his fall, and John stayed with him, and John’s with him now. Proverbs 17:17 says “¹⁷ A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Peter fell, and John was right there with him. Of course, Peter didn’t run off either, he didn’t break fellowship even though he was ashamed of his fall.

So Peter and John started for the tomb and vs. 4 says “⁴ Both were running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first”. And vs. 5 says he bent over and looked in at the strips of linen lying there but he didn’t go in. Then Peter got there and of course burst right in to the tomb, and he saw the strips of linen lying there. Vs. 7 says he saw “the burial cloth that had been around Jesus’ head. The cloth was folded up by itself, separate from the linen,” thereby proving that nobody had stolen the body. Because grave robbers typically don’t tidy up after themselves; they don’t come in and fold the linens, and straighten up the grave. They just take the body, wrapped in the linens and leave. This body was not stolen.

But look at these linens for a moment. They were wrapped around His head and body, as if He were death’s prisoner. But now these linens are laying on the ground, as trophies of His victory over death. These are the signs that Jesus has power over death.   

Vs. 8 says that John then also went in, and it says he saw and believed. The word “saw” here means that he “perceived with understanding”, as if to say “oh I see.” He believed that Jesus had actually risen from the dead. It was a logical conclusion, an irresistible one, based on the evidence: the body was gone, the clothes were left behind. The obvious conclusion is that Jesus rose, and left His grave clothes behind.

 

There is a picture of this in the Old Testament that I want us to notice. If you would, turn with me to Genesis chapter 41. We know the story of Joseph: through no fault of His own he was put into prison. An innocent man in prison, and he was put right between two criminals. But he wouldn’t stay in prison forever, he was going to be raised up and brought into the presence of the king. Joseph’s place of shame and suffering was exchanged for one of dignity and glory. But notice what Joseph did before he came into the presence of the king. Vs. 14 says, “¹⁴ So Pharaoh sent for Joseph, and he was quickly brought from the dungeon. When he had shaved and changed his clothes, he came before Pharaoh.” He left his prison clothes behind as he was going to the king. And just like that, Jesus changed his burial clothes, and was clothed in immortality and glory.

One day we, too, will leave behind everything connected with our old selves. Philippians 3:21 says God “ ²¹ who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” We will leave behind our grave clothes, that is, our flesh, and be transformed into His likeness! We’ll wear what He wears.

And this section ends with vs. 9 that says ⁹ (They still did not understand from Scripture that Jesus had to rise from the dead.) Now this is amazing; they believed based upon the physical evidence, but they did not believe based upon the Word of God. Look with me at Psalm chapter 16 and let’s see what they should have believed. David is writing Psalm 16, and in vs. 9 he says, “⁹ Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure, ¹⁰ because you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your Holy One see decay. ¹¹ You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.” Now Peter tells us in Acts that David’s tomb was in Jerusalem and his body was in that tomb fully decayed. Decay sets in after the 3^rd day. So this passage is talking about the Messiah, that He would die, but would not be abandoned to the grave but would rise and sit at the right hand of God. But the disciples did not understand this. But when Jesus walked with disciples on the road to Emmaus, “he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.”

Well, Jesus rose from the dead, just as He said He would. What does the resurrection mean to us? I just want to close with these few things that it means to us today, and how it should affect our hearts today:

First: Christianity is right! Go look in the grave of Mohammed or Confucius or any other religious leader. Their bodies are still in the grave because they could not overcome the grave. The grave holds them prisoners, helpless captives. But not Jesus, He’s alive!

Two: It means God accepted Jesus’ payment for sin. So His resurrection means that we really are forgiven, we really are free from the guilt of our sin. See if we were still guilty Jesus would still be in the grave paying for our wrongs. But He rose, and when He did we were entirely justified from all our sins. Romans 4:25 says…“²⁵ He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.” “¹⁷ And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile; you are still in your sins.” 1 Corinthians 15:17 But Christ was raised, and so we are not in our sins.

Last week I read about the release of a bank robber from prison. He had done 24 years for his crime. The newspaper said, “he paid his debt to society”, so he was released. The fact that Jesus rose from the dead tells us that our crimes have been paid for. We did the crime, He did the time and we’re released. “When God raised Jesus from the dead, it was because He was satisfied by Jesus’ sacrifice, and had accepted it as payment in full for the sins of His people. Jesus’ death had satisfied the demands of His justice.”

Three: All believers have new life. Look with me at Romans chapter 6, and we’ll see how Paul connects the resurrection of Jesus with new life for all believers, “⁴ We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life (vs. 4). You see the resurrection of Jesus is about power, power to overcome sin so that we live a new life. That’s what a Christian is, one who is living a new life because Jesus is living in us, and He conquered sin.

Look at Ephesians chapter 1 and notice the power we have as believers. “¹⁹ and his incomparably great power (dunamis) for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty (is-khoos, meaning forecefulness and power) strength(kratos, meaning vigor, dominion, power strength), ²⁰ which he exerted (energheo, meaning to energize) in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms…” This is 4 different Greek words that describe God’s power that works in the believer. Then Paul illustrates it by saying the believer has the same power working in Him that rose Jesus from the dead. Wow! That power is to ¹⁸ opens their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins.’ Acts 26:18

I want to read to you what one of my very best Twitter friends wrote just yesterday. This lady is in her eighties. She said, “Many Christians do not know the powerful energy that is at the heart of the believer’s new life.”A Christian is one who has powerful energy and new life. We are no longer under the wrath of God we are under the grace of God. We are no longer under the power of sin and shame, we are under the power of forgiveness and grace.

Finally: We have a living hope. Look at Jesus risen from the dead and you’ll see your future if you’re a believer. See if Jesus had remained in the grave it would have been the death of all our hopes. But He rose and our hope rose with Him. And nobody can take our hope, Jesus is alive. The only way we wouldn’t have hope is if Jesus could die again.

³³ With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and much grace was upon them all. Acts 4:33