EASTER SUNDAY 2009
“RESURRECTION REMEMBRANCES”
LUKE 24:1-8
OPEN
Do you ever have trouble with your memory? I heard about a preacher and his family who went on vacation one summer. They had determined that they would be in church on Sunday but when they got to their destination, they found that there was only one small church in the area.
When Sunday morning rolled around, they all got ready and drove to the little church. Even though they were 10 minutes early, they found that the parking lot was almost full. When they got inside the building, it was difficult to find seats.
The service began and was going along quite well but it was summer and the little church had no air conditioning system. Even though the windows were open, it was a very hot day and the worship auditorium was quite stuffy. The sermon was a little dry and people began to nod off.
Out of the clear blue, the preacher blurted out, “The best years of my life have been spent in the arms of
another man’s wife!” The congregation let out a collective gasp. Several sleeping members sat upright. One of the elders jumped to his feet and the hymn book in his lap hit the wood floor with a loud thud. That preacher now had everyone’s full attention. He said, “It was my mother.” The congregation laughed and the preacher finished his message with everyone’s complete interest.
The visiting preacher filed this little in his memory and sure enough, the next time he was preaching and felt he was losing his congregation’s interest, he said those words: “The best years of my life have been spent in the arms of another man’s wife!”
Just like the other preacher, he had his congregation’s rapt attention. One of his deacons was sitting on the back row and was leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. The deacon sat up so fast he bumped his head on the pew in front of him.
Terror then struck the preacher. He hemmed and he hawed and then blurted out: “And for the life of me … I can’t remember her name!!!”
Today is Easter Sunday. We go back about 2000 years ago to remember Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. The disciples had just been through the most tragic and disappointing periods of their lives. On Friday, their lives and hopes were crushed. Their leader and teacher, their friend their hero had been brutally beatedn and then cruelly nailed to a cross.
They are confused. Why, just one week earlier, the crowds of Jerusalem had gladly welcomed Jesus into town with shouts of “Hosanna” and the waving of palm branches. Now, Jesus was dead. They had watched as the Roman soldiers drove the nails in his hands and his feet, then set the cross upright. They had watched him die. They were aware that Joseph of Arimathea had volunteered his new tomb for Jesus’ burial place. Every thing they had hoped for was over. It seems they went into hiding.
Lk. 23:1-8 – 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 clothes
that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright 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 has
risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: ‘The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.’” Then they remembered his words.
Who do we find venturing out the morning after the Jewish Sabbath? The women. The men are locked away in the upper room. The women are going back to the tomb with spices for Jesus’ body. As they walked along, they wondered how they were going to move the massive stone in front of the tomb.
Imagine their shock when they arrived at the tomb and found the stone already rolled back from the face of the tomb. They slowly walked in and looked around. The tomb was empty!
Suddenly, angels appeared to them and said, “Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here, he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was till with you in Galilee: “The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.”
After their hearts slowed down just a bit after the initial shock of seeing angels, they began to quickly reminisce. What did Jesus tell us? Oh, yeah. It was making sense now. All those times Jesus had made comments about needing to go to Jerusalem. He kept talking about having to suffer greatly at the hands of the chief priests; about being crucified. It never added up. Especially the part about rising again on the third day …? RISE AGAIN!!! Did you say, “He is risen?”
As the women looked at their surroundings, it dawned upon them exactly where they were. They were in a tomb – an EMPTY tomb. The truth registered now. He is risen, just as he said.
For just a few minutes today, will you follow the advice of the angel and remember? 2 Tim. 2:8 – Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead... What are some things that you can remember today and carry with you every day?
REMEMBER: JESUS DIED FOR YOU
When was the last time you remembered that Jesus died for you? Scripture tells us that he died for ALL. You and I are part of ALL. You are not just a number. You are a name, a person, a unique individual to God. And He sent Jesus to die to for you and me.
Rom. 5:8 – But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 1 Cor. 15:3 – For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures… 2 Cor. 5:15 – And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. 1 Pet. 3:18 – For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.
Jesus gave his perfect life for our sinful lives. He took the punishment meant for us. His death on the cross was a substitutionary death – he gave his life in place of ours.
REMEMBER: JESUS IS NOT IN THE TOMB
The angels said, “He is not here.” That first Easter morning, the tomb was empty. It has been empty for almost 2,000 years and it is empty today! He is not there!
Can the words, “He is not here” be disturbing words? Maybe your son went to play with his friends. It’s now past time for him to be home. You’re not worried at first, but as time ticks slowly by, you begin to worry a little.
You call one of his friend’s homes. The friend’s mother answers the phone. You ask, “Is my son there?” She answers, “No. He is not here.” You make a couple more phone calls. You get the same answer: “He isn’t here.” Something begins to rise up inside of you doesn’t it? Fear? Apprehension? Whatever it is, it’s disturbing.
How do you think Jesus’ followers felt that first Easter morning when the angels said, “He is not here”? Were they disturbed? Excited? Afraid?
As I was reading in preparation for this message, I came across a reassuring thought: the only we will ever hear the words, “He is not here” is in the tomb. No other place. Frankly, the tomb is the only place I want to hear those words.
With that being true, “He is not here” will never be spoken in heaven. Jesus will be there. There is no location on earth, except the empty tomb, where “He is not here” will ever be heard. No matter where I am or where I go, Jesus will be there. He has promised in his Word that he would never leave us or forsake us.
All across the world today, Christian will be celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ. No matter the name above the door of the style of their worship, these words will not be heard in their worship service: “He is not here.” He is here with us this morning in Martinsville, IL and He is with those worshipping across the oceans. He is here.
If you don’t know this Jesus this morning and will seek Him, I have good news for you: You will find Him! As you seek Him, you will not hear: “He is not here.” It doesn’t matter how far you’ve gone away from God, how wicked your deeds may be, how many times you’ve ran away, those disturbing words will not be heard by you. Turn to Him. He tells us, “Whoever comes to me I will never drive away.”
Christian, in your daily devotional life, Jesus will meet with you. In your place of prayer it will not be heard, “He is not here.” Are you praying for an unsaved family member or friend. Be encouraged today. As you battle in prayer and ask God to save them, rest assured you will never hear, “He is not here.”
Regardless of the circumstances in our lives – sickness, a problem at the office or at home, death of a family member or friend – our confidence is that we will not hear, “He is not here.”
REMEMBER: JESUS IS RISEN
Remember, Jesus is alive – TODAY! The fact that He is risen from the dead makes all the difference in our lives. The apostle Paul tells us in 1 Cor. 15 that if Christ is not risen from the dead, our faith would be futile and we would still be in our sins. Anybody can die. Only God can rise from the dead and offer resurrection hope to those who will believe and follow.
Paul assures us in 1 Cor. 15:20 – But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. This fact, more than any other, distinguishes Christianity from all other religions of the world. Christians are the only people who can claim that their Savior is alive today.
Christ rising from the dead and being alive today validates that Jesus is who He claimed to be. He makes life worth living. It is only through Jesus Christ, our risen Lord, that we can be assured of eternal life.
Earlier we sang that familiar Gaither song: “Because He lives, I can face tomorrow. Because he lives, all fear is gone. Because I know, He holds the future; and life is worth the living just because He lives.”
Do you serve a risen Savior this morning? He is alive. He holds the future. Life truly is worth living simply because He lives. Never forget that He is risen.
CLOSE
Stephen was an eight-year-old boy who was mentally retarded. It became obvious to everyone that his retardation was becoming even more severe. His Sunday school teacher did her best to include Stephen in her classroom activities and to avoid situations which might prompt his classmates to make fun of him.
Close to Easter, she gave each of the eight children in her class an empty L’eggs® pantyhose container (plastic egg) and instructed them to place inside the container an object that represented new life in spring. The next week, afraid that Stephen might not have caught on, and not wanting to embarrass him, the teacher had the children place all of the containers on her desk so that she could open them.
The first one had a tiny flower in it. The teacher said, “What a lovely sign of new life.” One of the students couldn’t help but erupt, “I brought that one!”
Next came a rock. The teacher assumed that this must be Stephen’s since rocks don’t symbolize new life. But Bull shouted that his rock had moss on it, and moss represented new life. “Very good, Billy.”
The teacher opened the third container. Out flew a butterfly and another child bragged that her choice was the best of all.
The fourth container was empty. “This must be Stephen’s,” the teacher thought and reached for another container.
Stephen jumped up and said, “Teacher, please don’t skip mine.”
“But it’s empty, Stephen,” said the teacher gently.
“That’s right,” said Stephen. “the tomb was empty, and that represents new life for everyone.”
Later that summer, Stephen’s condition worsened and he died. At his funeral, in his casket, mourners found eight L’eggs® pantyhose containers – all of them empty.
If you leave here this morning remembering anything, remember that because Jesus came to this earth, lived a perfect life, died a horrible death on a cross because we’re sinners, and rose again three days later, we can all have new life. 2 Cor 5:17 – Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.”
